Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Where is the nearest earplug shop?

….. because Janice needs a new pair !    Fun and games for Dai changing the fuel filter this week when the old one wouldn’t screw off !    He ended up puncturing it with a screwdriver (ohmigod, diesel pouring everywhere) and bashing, bashing, bashing with the lump hammer - I just hope no-one went by with a delicate constitution !   Once punctured it had to come off else we weren’t going to be able to move ever again.    Much bashing and cussing later, it came off and the new one screwed on ever-so-nicely!!

Wasn’t there such glorious sunshine last Saturday 10 April ?   We were moored up by lunchtime in Cropedy on the Oxford Canal to enjoy it.   Unfortunately since then, not seen much of it - just the occasional tantalising glimpse but, as we Brits always say-  “at least it’s not raining” !!

Janice nearly set fire to the pub the other night when we were out for a meal - the menu caught fire by one of those little tea light things.     Waitress said “oh, someone’s set fire to the menu again” - apparently it happens often !     (Or else she was trying to be nice by inferring it’s a regular occurrence!).

Today is Day 18 - the longest time we have been on the boat  (during last summer we had 16 days holiday) and loving it.    Still on the Oxford Canal - moored today at Thrupp - but have now turned around and making our way back up to the Grand Union.    Couldn’t get all the way into Oxford by canal as there is not enough room at the end to turn a boat over 50 foot (and Jandai is 57 ft) so we were about 3 miles short.

Since last blog we have done 47 miles and 39 locks - oh, and a few lift bridges.    This makes total since Setting Off ….. 131 miles and 78 locks.      Janice made a mistake last blog entry when said we were averaging 4.5 miles a day.    This should have been that we were averaging 4.5 hours of boating a day and 11 lock miles a day.    This is still significantly down on what we used to do as hirers !

(sorry - not a good enough internet connection to upload any pictures)

3 comments:

  1. Glad you're enjoying yourselves. There's plenty of room to turn a 57 footer in Oxford. You have to go down the last lock, turn in Sheepwash Channel which is immediately below it, and come back up again.

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  2. Ahaha..... That was nice of the waitress! Amy xxx

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  3. So you haven't learned to reverse yet. It's quite easy now they have cut back all the trees on th Hythe Bridge Arm. Thrupp is about 7 miles short of Oxford but it is well worth the trouble to get down there. As adam said turning is through the lock onto Sheepwash. Always turn anti-clockwise.

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