Hanging Around

Hemmed in as we are by canal closures our travel options are limited

We could turn left at Great Haywood and head down the Staffordshire and Worcestershire canal. Then turn around and come back. We travelled this section back in June, moving through probably a little too quickly to fully appreciate the landscape. From memory the eastern section was the best, so there is a definite option to look again at this area. We could turn round at Penkridge for a very pleasant journey

We make a (late) start on Tuesday, and travel one mile and one lock to Great Haywood before the rain arrives. On the way to the shop in the village we pass the Anglo Welsh hire centre and pop into their chandlery on the off-chance that they stock a pole

Our pole was broken when we arrived on Venture and in need of replacement. They could supply a new pole for the princely sum of £75. I post on Venture's WhatsApp channel, just in case someone had the replacement in hand, and receive a variety of advice from 'go for it' to 'wait for the AGM'.

But you never know when you might need this equipment, so decide there's little point in waiting and we are now the proud owners of this 4m length of wood

We manage to buy the last Guardian in the village at the Spar, and return to the boat before the rain sets in.

Walk to the Clifford Arms for our tea, arriving drenched. Shared a chicken and rabbit pie which was very good. The beer, Butty Bach, was decidedly mediocre so we return to the boat

for a cozy evening by the fire

On Wednesday morning we visit the nearby farm shop for a few supplies. Over a coffee we consider our next move. The return to Penkridge involves 10 hours of cruising, which is slightly more than we want to do

So we travel half a mile to Tixall Wide. This is a lake-like section of the canal, constructed so as not to spoil the view from the nearby Tixall Hall. Back in June this struck us an idyllic location to moor up, so this is what we do

With time on my hands I decide that the back door is in need of some love and attention and re-varnishing. So a couple of hours spent sanding down, stopping when the sun sets and I lose the light

It is indeed an idyllic and peaceful location

....with a lot of noisy Canadian geese, who take off en masse at about 10pm. The owls are less intrusive, just the occasional distant call

Wake to a beautiful morning, a hint of mist lurking over the fields making the sunlight somewhat milky

I walk the half mile along the canal to pick up a newspaper at Great Haywood

NB Spooky, living up to its name and looking like it might be a run down and haunted ghost ship. I see two kingfishers on the journey, possibly the same one twice

We finish off the smoked salmon for breakfast, with scrambled egg and toast and then I resume my sanding down of the stern door. It's slow work, but the first coat of varnish is applied at about 1pm

I then turn my attention to the brass ventilation grill, which feels like it is covered in 20 years worth of grime and neglect. This is also slow work, but quite pleasant in the warm afternoon weather, and eventually a shine begins to return to the metal

Sunset. It's not often that we just hang around the boat and don't move, but it certainly makes for a chilled out relaxing day

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