It was only in the evening yesterday, after we’d been moored up for about eight hours, that I noticed the 50 mile marker was right alongside the boat. It was rather overgrown though, so I got the shears out and cleared in front of it.
The forecast for today was not good, and there was a lot of rain in the night. It rained on and off early on, but I managed a walk with Macc in the dry. We decided we’d probably get wet whenever we set off, so we got under way about 9, with Adrian bringing the boat while I walked ahead to Horton’s Lock.
The lock cottage on the towpath side has a tennis court, complete with an umpire’s chair. I’m pretty sure they were building it or replacing the grass when we came past at some other time, but I don’t seem to have mentioned it in a blog.
Horton Lock has to be left empty, so I raised a puddle and then walked on to the two Ivinghoe Locks. The bottom one was full but the top one is another that has to be left empty. It’s also one with a double arched bridge.
We’d been commenting on how not even the lock sides had been mown recently, but at this lock there were a couple of guys with a big mower and a strimmer. Of course we now complained about all the cut grass all over our boots! The weather had taken a turn for the worse, not just rain but very blustery winds, so we decided we’d moor below Seabrook Bottom Lock, a place we’ve stopped before. There was plenty of room on the piling, and when it’s not raining there’s a view of Ivinghoe Beacon. We’d only done just over an hour, but in these conditions it was more than enough. Not long after we tied up the sun came out briefly, and we managed to take Macc for a walk mostly in the dry afternoon lunch. But at other times there’s been drizzle and heavier rain, and it’s still been quite windy. Tomorrow is meant to be better.
2 miles, 3 locks. (53 miles, 34 locks)