Friday, 28th September 2007.  In Pillings Lock Marina off the Loughborough section of the Grand Union - Leicester Arm.  After a rather hectic week chasing back to the Derbyshire hills, the Cheshire Plain and visiting the Yorkshire coast trying to see as many people as possible (apologies to all those we just didn't get time to call on) we came back to Ramyshome on Friday night ready for a bit of R & R.  How do people cope with all the traffic on the roads?  On Saturday we went shopping - by boat of course - sailing down the cut to Loughborough where we found a useful market, Sainsburys and lots of interesting little shops.  Two locks down we were able to empty our loos (no facilities at the marina just yet) then turn around in the river and head back to out temporary mooring slot.  A very pleasant 5 hours renewing our contact with the water.  The rest of the week we have spent walking the local lanes and footpaths getting to know the area, very much liking what we see.  On Wednesday John & Joy Rossington came to visit and we found a nice pub in Quorn for lunch.  Yesterday evening John & Val Cobb called in for a cup of tea; they were our first visitors back in May 2005 and now the last before we head off on our next adventure.  The packing is all done, the taxi is booked for tomorrow lunchtime and, hopefully, everything else has been covered - too late now if we have forgotten anything.  Of course we had to give Ramyshome a final trip before leaving so this afternoon we have sailed the mile or so into Barrow, up through the lock then, turning in the river, cruised back to another temporary mooring in the marina.  The next boat we board should be a Star Ferry ready to cross Victoria Harbour between Hong Kong Island and Kowloon. Likely to be a bit different from the River Soar.  Sadly we won't be able to keep a log of our trip on this website but we hope to set up a page of pictures when we return.  Come back to us about mid-December when hopefully they should be viewable.                

Sunday, 16th September 2007 (3987 miles, 2573 locks).  In Pillings Lock Marina off the Loughborough section of the Grand Union - Leicester Arm.  Putting off the inevitable for as long as possible we stayed at Zouch for two nights and on Friday walked across the fields to the attractive village of Sutton Bonnington.  The sun shone but the breeze kept the temperatures around normal for mid September.  The sun was shining when we came here in May 2005 but the wind was cold and the May blossom only just coming into bloom.  However, true to the saying, we were casting off our clowts a few days later, heading into the first of the hot summers.  It seems a long time ago now and yet in another way it feels like it was just yesterday so clear are our memories.  One of our aims when we set out was to sail every waterway that Ramyshome could reach.  We have only missed Kyme Eau, the River Derwent in Yorkshire, the New Bedford River and Wicken Fen.  OK, we only went 20 metres backward onto the Basingstoke Canal but that still counts in our book; there are still 12 miles of the Rochdale Canal, about 6 miles of the B.C.N. and of the Middle Levels that we have to cruise and already there is a new section of the Middle Levels open to us.  So another trip will have to be planned one day.  Of equal importance though was the intention to see as much of England (and that little bit of Wales) as we could and in that respect we have certainly been successful.  The delights of the Lancaster Canal, the majesty of the hill country along the Rochdale Canal, the drama of crossing the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct, the fascination of Bristol's Floating Harbour, the wonder of sailing under Tower Bridge and the sheer emptiness of the Fens, all pictures that return again and again so easily.  The joy of mooring in Birmingham, Bath, Ely, Llangollen, London, Ripon, Sheffield, Stratford Upon Avon, outside Hampton Court and upstream of the Boston Stump.  The special gems like the Lune Estuary at Glasson, Standedge Tunnel, the view of the Bristol Channel from Sharpness, the first evening we moored on the Little Ouse and by Bridge 100 on the Grand Union.  So many great experiences, so many memories.  Regrets - well lets not break down on the River Trent or run aground on the River Severn again and maybe next time we go to Liverpool we shall moor safely in the Albert Dock - but no, no regrets.  It has been lovely to have had so many visitors, family and friends, more then ever came to see us when we lived on dry land.  And extra special has been all those people, new friends we have met along the way.  Some we just couldn't shake off (not that we ever wanted to) and some we may never see again.  We thank you for your help, your advice and especially your company.     As we came into Loughborough yesterday we passed the spot where, six years ago, Ramyshome's hull first met canal as the crane lowered her into the water.  She has carried us a long way in those six years, especially in the last 28 months.  For now she will continue to be our floating home and, hopefully one day soon she and we will be off again exploring, renewing our acquaintance with the waterways of England and that little bit of Wales.   If you haven't already done so you should try it yourself, we can recommend it.                                

Sunday, 9th September 2007 (3967 miles, 2566 locks).  At Castle Meadows, Nottingham on the Nottingham Canal.  Newark proved to be like the curate's egg, although to be fair good in most parts.  The prominent feature is the castle whose foundations almost stand in the Trent but it is one of those castles that Cromwell knocked about a bit and little remains beyond the river wall and the north gate.  The grounds have been turned into a pleasant park and a more modern building houses the Tourist Information Centre with an interesting historical display.  The town's centre is a grand market place lined with some attractive old buildings that have found a new, retailing use.  There is no market on a Tuesday and pleasingly the square doesn't become a car park (are you listening St Neots) but on market days it is a colourful bustle of trade with good fruit & veg stalls.  We also found two or three butchers as well as other useful shops.  The pleasant riverside was enhanced by MV Sonning, an old Salters steamer from the Thames, sadly no longer powered by steam but still in service offering trips along the River Trent.  The only negatives really were that most of the considerable mooring space is alongside high walls, not very narrowboat friendly, and there are no boating facilities other than a water point unless you venture into Kings Marina, who in fact proved to be very helpful.  On Monday we met up with Maureen's parents, over from France for a short visit, and her aunt and uncle.  It was good to see them all again.  On Thursday, after a quick call at Morrisons, we finally slipped our moorings and headed up river to Nottingham.  Just 20 miles but of course it took us 4 days with overnight stops at all the locks except Holme.  The best was the first, Hazelford where we spent an hour on the lock island picking blackberries, enough to feed us for three days and yet we barely made an impact on the millions growing there.  The 5 mile cruise up to Gunthorpe was probably the nicest scenery, the tree lined south bank making it very reminiscent of some of the Thames Reaches.  At Stoke Lock there is a managed woodland where we hoped to see woodpeckers but although we could hear them they remained out of sight.  And finally today we have motored on to Nottingham's Trent Bridge where on the 12th day we finally climbed off the Trent and onto what remains of the Nottingham Canal.  Tonight we are moored on a narrow, still waterway with the Sheriff's castle looking down on us and Sainsburys beckoning across the towpath.  What more could we ask for.           

Sunday, 2nd September 2007 (3941 miles, 2558 locks).  At Nether Lock, Newark on the River Trent.  Ramyshome has been sick this week and we had to call the "doctor" out but to do that we needed to perform a most scary operation ourselves.  Hitting a floating pontoon on a river with the tide pushing you along at probably 3 miles an hour is definitely scary.  Knowing that if we miss it's another 10 miles before there is anywhere safe to pull in and that to stop one of us will have to jump off, get the stern rope round the cleat and hold on for dear life just adds to the pressure.   At 8:00 am on Monday we were off back down Tinsley Locks.  With Lockkeeper Derek in charge and Helen Makin acting as second paddle turner we raced through the 14 locks in about 2 hours, then it was on passed Rotherham and all the way to Mexborough, where the train took us back to collect Helen's car.  A very pleasant day.  More gentle cruising down the Don and by Wednesday afternoon we were back at Keadby ready for another tidal trip.  We had decided to do the journey in three hops even though that meant turning into West Stockwith Lock again.  But this time there was no breaking glass or bouncing television, just a gentle nudge as we pivoted on the wall and slid comfortably into the lock.  Mooring up soon after 10:00 am in beautiful sunshine there was even time to get the brushes out and paint Ramyshome's starboard gunwale.  The drama came the following day.  Barely a mile out of Stockwith the engine began to splutter and although it didn't stall clearly something was very wrong.  Not enough power to turn round and fight the tide back to the lock we just had to hope the engine would last until we reached the pontoon mooring, 3 miles upstream at Gainsborough, then that we could hit it and stop. There would be no second chance.  It did, we did.  For a few seconds it was touch and go but after tying up tight we breathed a sigh of relief.  The nice man from River Canal Rescue quickly diagnosed diesel bug and dead remains clogging the filters so starving the engine of fuel.  The immediate solution was to clean one filter, replace the other and pour a chemical into the tank to kill the bug.  Longer term we will need to empty the tank and flush it out but hopefully the short term fix will see us home.  Next problem, the tide has turned.  We cannot stay on the pontoon because the Aegir, the Trent's own tidal bore, is due with the next two tides and it could get very uncomfortable.  The solution, go back to West Stockwith and into the safety of the lock.  We have about an hour, we go pretty quickly and we make it; no breaking glass or bouncing television, of course.  The relief is only temporary as we still have to go out there again for two more days to get off the tidal stretch.  But tonight we are quietly moored on the outskirts of Newark with no more cares about tides, hoping that all the dramas are behind us and that we can sail serenely upstream the final 35 miles to Trent Lock and the end of our adventure.  Canal cruising stress free - not always.                       

Sunday, 26th August 2007 (3846 miles, 2527 locks).  At Tinsley Marina on the Sheffield & South Yorkshire Navigation.  To say the Don Valley is pretty is probably overstating things a little but long stretches of this waterway are lined with green.  Flood meadows give way to high, wooded banks then bushes and low trees edge the water as nature regains old industrial areas.  On Monday we crossed the flat lands of Thorne marshes again mooring for the night at Bramwith, the first time on mooring spikes for weeks.  Tuesday we sailed on passed Doncaster and stopped for the evening at Sprotborough; the name belies the nature of the place, rather posh with a lovely old church and some attractive old houses.  The damage done by the floods is evident everywhere, lots of timber in the water, silt spread across the banks and moorings.  The river and navigation are wider than we had expected and the locks are huge but push-button operated all the way to Rotherham.  After another overnight stop at Eastwood, just east of Rotherham, we reach the Tinsley flight where we are met by David the lockkeeper.  His "chat" continues all the way to the top of the flight but he also works hard and we climb the 13 locks with ease.  An hour later we sail into Victoria Quays, Sheffield and what a pleasant place it proves to be.  Excellent, quiet moorings within walking distance of the city centre and food market; a bus ride takes us to the colourful Botanical Gardens and a tram ride takes half way to Chesterfield, both activities we have never done before despite having spent so much time in this city in the past.  On Saturday we welcome back Cath Bolton and enjoy warm sunshine with her.  Roger gets a treat by going to Bramall Lane to support Sheffield United and the Blades win for the first time this season.  Today we have sailed back to Tinsley in readiness for an early start back down the locks tomorrow.  Roger's sister & brother-in-law, Helen & Alan, have arrived to act as locking crew and they like us are surprised at how colourful is this landscape.  Gone are the steel works and other heavy industry that filled this area not that long ago.  Progress but perhaps not as we all expected.

Sheffield Straddle Warehouse

Sunday, 19th August 2007 (3800 miles, 2500 locks).  At Keadby on the Sheffield & South Yorkshire Navigation.  It has been a bit of a disappointing week made brighter by the arrival of friends.  On Monday we sailed back to Bardney where we walked into the village before lunch.  The Witham has been straightened in several locations, presumably to improve navigation, and upstream of Bardney the old river turns east through sluice gates whilst the new "cut" continues on to the lock, below which the two waterways then come back together.  The old river is navigable upstream of this junction to a small marina and pub at Short Ferry but unfortunately for boats longer than 40 foot, like Ramyshome, the final turning point is where the Barlings River comes in.  So in the afternoon we gingerly head off upstream for about a mile before winding, coming back to the lock and finally tying up on excellent visitor moorings.  It rained all Tuesday so Ramyshome sat on her mooring and the crew hunkered down.  The day, if not the weather was brightened by the arrival of "Pogue Ma Hone" and her crew, Roger & Peggy Hart plus dog Brandy.  We had waved goodbye to them as they sailed away from Boroughbridge back in June so it was good to see them again and we spent the evening swapping new stories, drinking and playing Scrabble.  In the morning we said goodbye again but in anticipation of meeting once more before our adventure is over.  We moored a mile or so on at Fiskerton Fen Nature Reserve.  It was created out of a clay pit last year and the wildlife is only just beginning to find it, so not too much to see.  The Witham is home to a small bird called a Water Rail, much like a moorhen.  We had hoped to see them here but although we thought we heard their cry they remained hidden.  Back into Lincoln again we stopped for the day just east of the "Glory Hole", right in the centre of town but sadly not a place to stay overnight.  After shopping we met up again with Neil Ashworth & partner Sue for lunch and eventually for an evening drink at the Pyewipe Hotel a mile or so beyond the City.  So disappointing that the inadequate moorings prevent us from staying longer in Lincoln.  On Saturday we took the bus to Gainsborough but that too turned out to be a disappointment.  The Old Hall is very grand and worth a visit but the rest of the town is a bit of a let down.  Back at the boat we consoled ourselves by looking again at the maps and realised we had just enough time to go back to Keadby and take the South Yorkshire Navigation to Sheffield.  Well it seemed a shame to leave another bit of blue on our map but it did mean a long trip back down the Trent.  It rained immediately we set off, the strong wind churning the River into great waives.  It felt more like a 28 mile sea crossing and a bit scary, especially when the engine stuttered, probably the result of dirt or water in the fuel tank churned up by the bouncing.  Four and half hours later we thankfully penned through Keadby lock and back to a man made waterway again.  Phew, breaking down on a tidal river, now that would have been more than disappointing                               

Sunday, 12th August 2007 (3744 miles, 2496 locks).  At Kirkstead Bridge on the River Witham.  We like Boston.  It proved ample reward for the effort in getting there, the effort being to stay awake at the "wheel" as the last 9 miles included just two bends worthy of the word.  Ramyshome sat on her moorings for four nights but the crew were energetic in their explorations.  We visited the Maud Foster Windmill, a full time working corn mill, although on that afternoon the wind was so light the sails refused to turn; wandered the streets of this old port viewing some attractive architecture; shopped in the excellent Wednesday market; and climbed the tower of St Botolph's Church, better known as the Boston Stump.  On Thursday we took the train to Skegness, all funfairs and golden sands.  Sadly, not wall to wall sunshine but a pleasant day just the same.  The highlight of the week however was the trip out onto the Wash.  Coming into Boston we passed a trip boat and in the Tourist Information Centre, always one of our first calls, found a leaflet which indicated that as well as regular river trips it occasionally made journeys out to sea.  Back at the boat a check of their website revealed the next sailing was tomorrow.  A quick 'phone call and we were booked in for what proved to be an excellent trip, through the tidal lock, down through the town and out in to the vast waters of the Wash.  Turning around the Black Buoy after about an hour we seemed to be heading back but instead sailed up the River Welland for nearly an hour towards Spalding.  There were seals basking on the sand banks and we must have seen a dozen species of birds from herring gulls to buzzards, dippers and egrets.  Four and a half hours later we were waiting for the tide to level with the river so we could sail straight through the lock back to base.  On Friday we started our journey back up the Witham stopping after just 4 miles.  Here we found a road sign, 4 miles back to Boston, 5 miles on to New York.  With Rhodesia two weeks ago, this is becoming an international trip!  Today we have even travelled back in time, which is how Woodhall Spa feels.  A mile back from the River it hides in the woods like a lost Edwardian resort.  The old spa and hotel may have gone but the Kinema with its organ and back projection system, the posh Tea Room and the tin shack bungalow, now a museum, remain along with many of the old houses and the grand 3-storey station house.   It all made up for the disappointment of leaving another strip of blue on our map.  We were told the Drains around Boston were not navigable and although we couldn't get a definitive statement, it seemed that the Kyme Eau was similarly unavailable.  The reason - insufficient depth, i.e. lack of water.  After this summer!  Well yes, because in times of potential flood the drains, and indeed the Witham, are lowered so that after the rainstorms the fields can drain into the ditches.  The rain had come but we were too early, the water was taking its time to run off and re-fill these waterways.  Still we did like Boston and Woodhall Spa.                                         

Sunday, 29th July 2007 (3658 miles, 2488 locks).  Just south of Clayworth on the Chesterfield Canal.  What a difference a day makes.  On Tuesday we ascended the 23 locks of Turnerwood & Thorpe to the canal's summit.  The sun shone, the paddles turned easily and the gates swung with little effort, a very pleasant cruise.  Having spent Wednesday pootling up to the end of the canal and back, we came down the locks on Thursday.  It was very wet, the paddles seemed stiff and the gates heavy, a tough day.  We left Worksop on Monday in the company of Alan & Helen Makin who had arrived the previous evening.  In truth we were happy to escape another town that ignores its canal, such a shame.  We climbed 9 locks to Shireoaks, passing through Rhodesia on the way, and were welcomed into the marina that has been dug out of the old colliery basin where coal from the pit was loaded into barges.  Now it provides secure moorings for perhaps 40 boats, with well maintained facilities, just a few steps from the village.  In the evening we dined back at The Lockkeeper in Rhodesia, it was not up to much!  After Tuesday's climb, 23 locks in barely 2 miles, we moored at the top in a very quiet, wooded spot.  Like most truncated canals, the Chesterfield ends rather ingloriously in a cutting below Kiverton Park.  The last quarter mile, from the final winding hole to the bricked up tunnel entrance, is effectively abandoned and quickly becomes blocked by weed and serious plant growth.  However the towpath is good and we walked along to the top of the tunnel entrance before cruising back to our woodland mooring.  From there we walked into Thorpe Salvin; the book says Derbyshire, the map suggests Yorkshire but whatever, it is a floral, yellow stone village with an Elizabethan manor house now in a sad state of repair.  After a brief visit from friend, Jenny Greaves at Shireoaks it was back, quickly, through Worksop and Ranby, the roar of the A1M here encouraging us to cruise on, arriving back in Retford again on Saturday afternoon.  Back to the butcher, the market fruit & veg. stall and Asda.  Even if the moorings are not seductive the shops and architecture reward a stop if only for an hour or so.  Tonight we are moored under a big, blue sky looking out across the wheat fields of North Notts, the eastern edge of the Peak District far away on the horizon.  The Chesterfield is certainly one of the prettiest canals and worth the effort of riding the tidal Trent to reach the start at West Stockwith.  Hopefully one day Norwood Tunnel will re-open and the Nottinghamshire & Yorkshire stretches will again link up to the 14 Derbyshire miles down to Chesterfield and its crooked spire.  We shall be back then, if not before.                

Sunday, 15th July 2007 (3584 miles, 2396 locks).  At Thorne on the Sheffield & South Yorkshire Navigations.  Yes, we have finally escaped the River Ouse.  There was an air of expectation aboard Ramyshome on Monday morning; we awoke to discover that the previous day's rain had had no impact on the river and importantly, the flow below the weir was visibly slower.  Even the lockkeeper was optimistic and sure enough at 3:00 pm he opened the lock gates and Ramyshome, Nb. Pilgrim and a third boat penned through.  The river was wide and high so this time we could see over the banks to the drying fields but being so high the bridges became an issue.  However there was still 3 metres of air draught so no need to have them swung for us.  The 15 miles down to Selby took barely 2 hours of incident free sailing and the turn into Selby Lock completed in style, though we do say so ourselves.  Should you need to know, we did it by turning round to face upstream just above the lock, into neutral to allow the flow to drift us backwards until the bow was level with the upstream wall of the lock, then a quick burst of power and tiller hard to starboard to flip us round and into the lock.  The three boats moored overnight at Selby, the crews relieved to have completed stage one -"no problem then".  After shopping in town and at the boatyard on Wednesday morning we cruised the 5 weedy miles of the Selby Canal stopping for lunch behind a couple from Brisbane who had bought their boat over the internet and had come to England to spend 6 months getting to know her and seeing some of our canals.  They seemed to be having fun despite the weather.  With the River Aire still several feet higher than the canal we had to work the flood lock then push hard the six miles upstream until we finally locked back up to the Aire & Calder Navigation.  We slept that night amidst all kinds of chemical works happy to be back to the safety of canals.  The A&C N is wide, perhaps 100 feet in places and still used by commercial traffic like the Rix Owl tanker we had encountered at Castleford.  We were shaken on our moorings the next evening as both the Humber Princess & Rix Phoenix went by and, moored in Goole, rocked again as other big boats slipped in and out of the docks.  A very wet Friday meant we got to see little of Goole beyond the docks and the waterways museum but we enjoyed a few drinks that evening in the boatyard social club with Karen & Dave.  They are setting out on their own waterways adventure, we wish them well.  Returning west some 6 miles, we turned south on to the New Junction Canal which would take us to the Sheffield & South Yorkshire Navigation.  By now it had been confirmed that that waterway was closed due to the effects of the recent floods so, sadly, we should not be able to take Ramyshome into Sheffield.  Dining with friend Colin Butterworth in another local hostelry provided some consolation.  Today, in the rain, we have sailed east to Thorne; tomorrow we arrive at the banks of the River Trent and prepare for another tidal stretch.  At least we are moving again if not, immediately, in the direction we had planned.                      

Sunday, 8th July 2007 (3524 miles, 2388 locks).  At Naburn Lock on the River Ouse.  Just one day's sailing in the last seven days, oh how frustrating.   The rain has eased but not stopped completely and river levels are finally dropping but still not to the point where we can escape this river.  The prospects for a sail on Monday looked promising but down came the rain again on Sunday night and by morning the river was rising again.  We spent much of the next few days checking the depth marker above the lock trying to wish the water away but with little success.  On Tuesday, for a change of scene we took the bus into York and for a time wandered around in glorious sunshine but then the rain came again.  Taking the bus the other way on Wednesday we enjoyed a pleasant ride winding across the Vale of York through the little villages to Easingwold, which proved to be a pretty country town with interesting shops and houses.  Again the rain held off just long enough to keep us from getting a soaking.  Thursday we were pleased to welcome on board friends, Niki & Paul Jakeman.   They had driven all the way up from Devizes, heading north to Scotland for a short holiday.  It was nice to see them if only for a flying visit and it certainly was one of the highlights of our very slow week.  At last, on Friday the water level was down and the flow of the river eased back sufficiently to make us feel it was safe to move on.  In three hours (as against the nearly 6 hours going upstream) we were back through York and moored once again on the floating pontoon here at Naburn.  Today the river is 3 feet lower but the flow still too fast for us to risk the run down the tidal stretch to Selby.  Lockkeeper he say "Maybe tomorrow, maybe Tuesday" but of course it's been raining hard again this afternoon so who knows when we shall get off this river.  And that won't be the end of our problems as we are now hearing stories of stricken boats on the Sheffield Navigation and maybe that waterway will not be open for cruising when we do finally reach it.  Oh to be in England now the summer is here!!             

Sunday, 1st July 2007 (3508 miles, 2387 locks).  At Linton Lock on the River Ouse.  By comparison with the poor people who live around Sheffield and Doncaster our plight is somewhat insignificant but frustration is setting in as we watch water fall from the sky and river levels rise again.  We liked Ripon, especially when it wasn't raining.  It's a city almost in microcosm; a small but striking cathedral, a tiny canal basin, a wee bus station, lots of local, small shops and a little park but a big market square where each night the Wakeman blows his horn four times as he circumnavigates the market cross.  This practice has gone on uninterrupted, so the story goes, since 886 so the good citizens of Ripon may sleep soundly in their beds certain that the Wakeman is on watch for any invading hordes.  Fortunately that didn't include us or Roger's Auntie Joan who came to visit us on Monday.  At 91 she is our eldest visitor to date and despite the pouring rain we had a pleasant few hours together.  Typically, the sun came out on Tuesday and we were able to catch up on a few jobs, giving the boat a good hose down, washing, etc.  We moved back down the canal a few hundred yards to the cleanest sanitary station we have found on our travels.  Even the sluice room smelt sweet!  On Wednesday under bright skies we decided it was time to head back and although river levels were still a little high we had an easy sail back to Boroughbridge.  There we found Mv. Pogue Ma Hone & Nb. Bojangles and another sociable evening followed.  We were also entertained by our friendly seal which re-appeared in the lock cut and swam around in the lock itself, obviously eager for us to lock it down to the lower river.  Sadly we had forgotten to take our windlasses on our walk.  Boroughbridge proved to be another typical Vale of York market town with some interesting shops and architecture, although without the usual market square.  Its sister village Aldborough, by comparison, had a huge village green with a tall, striped maypole and some very posh houses and gardens.  There are remains of a roman fort here with beautiful mosaics, sadly it is shut during the week until July.  On walking back to Ramyshome we found Elsie & Mike leaning over the bridge.  They now plan to set out again from Ripon this week for a few days sail.  On Friday, with more rain forecast for the weekend, we headed on downstream to Linton on Ouse where we could tie up to a floating pontoon.  And tonight here we remain some 3 feet higher than when we arrived and every prospect that today's heavy showers will delay us further.  But then we were only heading for Doncaster & Sheffield so maybe there's no need to rush.   

Sunday, 24th June 2007 (3490 miles, 2382 locks).  At Ripon on the Ripon Canal.  Yes, we finally made it into Ripon today, a mere 12 days out from Selby and what an adventure.  The water did indeed stop rising last Sunday and by Monday evening the river banks were beginning to re-appear.  That day we took the bus into York but to get to the stop had to walk along the top of the flood bank then climb over a barbed wire fence and trek back along the road to the caravan site.  The alternative was to wade through waist high water as it crossed the lane up to the site but that seemed a little silly.  The funny thing was that for most of the time we spent at Naburn the weather was glorious and our little party of marooned mariners sat in our deckchairs on the floating pontoon soaking up the sun.  As a consequence Roger & Peggy, Mv. Pogue Ma Hone, Eric & Margaret, Nb. Bojangles and Elsie & Mike, Nb. Mojo have become good friends who we look forward to seeing again sometime, somewhere.  We felt most sorry for Elsie & Mike for they had set out at the start of last week from their base at Ripon heading for Stratford on Avon.  A week later they were still on the River Ouse and when river levels finally started to drop the weather forecast was still so bad they decided to head home and come out again when things improved.  And so on Wednesday, as the mooring bollards emerged from the flood water, the party broke up.  Bojangles were the first to sail away, followed a little later by Ramyshome and soon after Mojo set out.  By York we had caught up Bojangles and after a brief lunch stop the two boats headed on towards Linton on Ouse.  Near Beningbrough Mojo came up behind us but by then the flow was getting stronger and we all had to push hard to reach the mooring below Linton Lock.  It proved quite a battle to get the boats across the weir stream and into the lock but we made it, Ramyshome minus a fender, and came to moor on floating pontoons in the cut above. There we all stayed for two nights as the river rose two feet, the result of the Tuesday evening's thunderstorms.  Yet again the weather was good, for the most part dry and warm.  On Friday we agreed it was safe enough to go on again and sensible to get off the river that day.  There was time for a quick lunch break at Boroughbridge but by mid afternoon we were climbing through Oxclose Lock to the safety of the Ripon Canal.  By then it was pouring and we got thoroughly soaked but we had the reward of watching another seal swimming in the Ouse (last time it was the Great Ouse at Earith), indeed Mojo had the pleasure of sharing a lock with it.  After a quiet day on the visitor moorings at Oxclose and an energetic walk into Ripon, today we sailed the two miles of canal to the terminus moorings just below Ripon Cathedral.  Of course it rained as we came along and its chucking it down now, but what's new.                               

Sunday, 10th June 2007 (3411 miles, 2369 locks).  Above Kings Road Lock on the Aire & Calder Navigation.  The Pennine hills are now 20 miles behind us and the Vale of York stretching on from here to the Wolds and south to the River Trent will be our landscape for the next few weeks.  Standard size locks become wide and short, then wide and very long as we swap Rochdale for Calder & Hebble and finally Aire & Calder.   In reality we have been following the River Calder, both alongside it and occasionally on it, as it grows from the still small river at Todmorden to the wide expanse that is just across the field from where we are moored tonight.  We finally said a sad goodbye to the Rochdale Canal on Thursday as we sailed away from Sowerby Bridge.  We had been captured by its unique and dramatic scenery and its interesting, if not pretty towns; frustrated at missing out on the final 14 miles back to Manchester (although assured we had seen the best it had to offer); a little disappointed at the poor state of visitor moorings around some of the towns; but very much added to our list of canals to go back to one day soon.  Having caught up with Jenny & Michael Chadwick in Littleborough last week, on Wednesday Nb. Eva arrived in Sowerby Bridge bearing fellow South Pennine Boat Club members Tony & Val Lockwood with, in their wake, John Lord & sister Ann aboard Nb Lordy Lordy.  They had just set out on their summer trips, Lockwoods to the Lancaster Canal, Lords going south to St Ives and the IWA Show but had agreed to share the paddle turning over the Rochdale before going their separate ways in Manchester.  We spent a sunny afternoon and evening swapping charts, maps and stories before next morning saying our goodbyes and planning to meet up again sometime, somewhere, soon.  Below Brighouse the scenery starts to deteriorate and although nothing like as bad as it must have been when coal and cloth were still in ascendancy the surroundings become less than salubrious for a time.  We had remembered that the left turn into the Dewsbury Arm was nigh impossible for a 57 foot boat so spun Ramyshome around between the two Thornhill Locks and descended the lower one stern first.  After overnighting at reasonable moorings on the mainline we sailed the mile up to Saville Basin, which proved better than expected with a useful chandlery.  Turning around up there was as tight as we had been told but easily achieved and soon we were back eastward cruising.  However the heat and good moorings at Calder Grove curtailed our travel for the day.  And now the sun has finally broken through the cloud cover and the temperature soared, today we have moored just 7 miles and 4 locks further on, the River Aire can wait another day for us.  Of course, at Stanley Ferry we crossed the Calder on the other aqueduct than when we came this way back in February.  Well we are trying to cover every bit of navigable waterway we can.