We had a really lovely evening with Catherine and Nigel last night, with plenty to catch up on since we last saw them at the end of May. They also brought us a large number of letters and parcels we’d had sent to their address. One of the boats that went past was Jubilee with John and Jan on board. They paused for a quick chat, but with a bit of luck we’ll see them at some point on our journey north. This morning it was lovely and sunny from the off, with a bit of mist rising off the water.
On Macc’s walk we went across a field of cows, but they were actually closer to us when we returned via the towpath. At least there was a bit of a fence in between.
As we set off, anglers were arriving for today’s big match. Actually the main event is tomorrow, today is just the setting up and practice session, although I’m not sure how you practice fishing. One of the guys warned us there would be a lot of them, but also said they didn’t actually start until 11. We set off at 9.15, and made a stop about 15 minutes later at Rugby Boats for a top up of diesel. Their price was £1.50, so we’d have been better off at Baxter’s the other day where it was £1.40. Everything was very efficiently done and we were soon on our way again. There were anglers all along the other side of the bridge, where they’ve got two days of sitting next to the sewage works. Then there was another long line down into Weedon.
The A5 bridge was the end of the match, which was a bit of a relief. There were a few young lads among the middle aged and older men, and there were even three girls. We arrived at the bottom of Buckby Locks and it looked as though a boat was in the bottom chamber. As we weren’t planning on going up today, we pulled in a fair way back, partly to let the boat know we wouldn’t be joining them, and partly because you don’t know what spaces are up ahead. At lunchtime, we decided to go to the garden centre cafe because we’ve never been there. Part of it is designated as dog friendly so Macc could come too, and the panini were quite nice. There are signs everywhere about their Christmas events starting on 14 November, but they’ve already got a substantial Christmas section open.
There’s also a pet shop where there’s a 28 year old parrot by the till.
Having checked the mooring spaces further up, and as where we were was shallow and we were aground and slightly on the wonk, we decided to move up a bit. In doing so, Adrian slipped over and put his hand out to break his fall, so he’s now sitting with an ice pack on his wrist. There have been quite a few boats up and down the locks, where the last entry at the moment is 2pm. We’ll be heading up when they open in the morning.
5 miles, 0 locks. (184 miles, 123 locks)