The Kingfisher boys were as good as their word – in fact they were a day earlier than promised. I turned up at the boat yard last Friday with a car bulging to the seams, and then a few hours later starting putting full boxes back into it. We just had too much stuff! This boating lark is going to be a sharp learning curve.
The following morning we set off on a four-day snagging cruise, with my two shipmates, Paul and David who had arrived during the day.
All is well my friends, and while I have already put a few tell-tale marks down the gunwales, where we have been bounced around in a few locks (16 so far), everything is working, shower, loo, central heating, stove etc. We can’t get any sort of signal on the telly, and as I write this Mick from Kingfisher is investigating the reasons. There is a small leak from the stern valve, which I am lead to believe is common and will sort itself out and we have a couple of sticky drawers and one that flies out at random, but we think that is because I have too much weight in it.
The first day I was naturally very apprehensive as we went through the lock at Trent Lock and made our way out on to the Trent for our journey west on the Trent & Mersey, but now I am much more relaxed and confident. I am really glad we had the bow thrusters installed and my ship mate Paul had been invaluable in imparting bits of knowledge on helmsmanship that I had forgot or never learnt.
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| The Cat's Whiskers gets battered in Stenson Lock |
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| Looking quite professional in this one |
So we travelled from Trent Lock to Willington, via Shardlow and back again. Everywhere we have gone the boat has had admiring glances. I think she looks great and so, it appears, does everybody else.
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| Tiller Boy |
We are now back at the boatyard while Mick sorts out our TV. It’s been bucketing down all afternoon so I think we will hole up here until tomorrow and then complete our mini cruise by going up into Nottingham and back – about a six-hour cruise, although the weather forecast is for snow!
Miles travelled 30. Locks: 18
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