North of Watford

At very long last we are on the move and exploring new territories, which means I get to knit while we cruise. But sadly, we are still the official owners of a three bedroomed house, but not for very much longer. We signed the contract weeks ago but didn’t want to venture out of Bedfordshire, just in case the buyer pulled out. However, contracts were exchanged last week and our solicitor knows we’ve scarpered. We took a few pics of our journey through Milton Keynes and of the alpacas that live by Cosgrove lock, as we’ll probably not venture that far south for a good few years.

Wolverton

Cosgrove Iron Trunk aquaduct

Railway bridge near Watford Gap

So it’s fantastic being north of Watford Gap, the true north in our southern eyes!!! We had cruised to the bottom of Watford Locks many years ago when on holiday. We were 4^th in the queue for the 3 locks and staircase of 4 locks at Watford. There was an army of VLK’s that coordinate & help the boats through this narrow flight and also boaters that were 9^th & 10^th in the queue were up at the lock helping so the proceedings went smoothly and they didn’t have to wait too long. This was a practice run, as we’ll be going down Foxton Locks, next weekend which is a flight of two staircase locks, a 5 chamber drop on each. John learnt how to use these staircase locks (along with a rhyme) during his VLK training, the paddle gear are colour coded and so there’s enough water for the flight the side pounds are in use. The rhyme goes, ‘Red before white and you’re doing alright……..White before red and you’re better off dead’, although the lockies omit the last part so they don't make people too nervous. Needless to say I was so scared of getting the poem wrong I took the boat up & left the locks to John. We had thought about going to Watford Gap M1 services for a coffee as you can access it from the towpath, but we were only there a couple of weeks ago when we helped Ada & Dale move.

Queue for Watford Locks

 

Lock 1

Waiting for lock 2

1st staircase chamber

side pound filling, white paddle up

 

View from the staircase

Crab apples

 

Huge elderberries

We are currently moored in Crick a lovely little Northamptonshire village with absolutely no internet or phone signal, so this will be uploaded another day once we move. It appears Crick went all out with their Millennium celebrations by obtaining a wood and a field, which includes a footbridge over the canal to Cracks’s Hill where their Millennium beacon is. They planted lots of trees most of which have commemorative plaques celebrating births, birthdays, marriages, anniversaries and individuals, this was a pleasant change as usually trees are planted in memory of those passed. The young apple & pear trees were laden with fruit as were the established ones around the edges of the field. We took a few fruits from the young trees and lots from the damson, sloe and elderberry ones. John made a second batch of elderberry cordial and I made 6lb of blackberry and 3 types of apple (2 crab and a cooker) jam. We walked up Crack’s Hill which had a lovely view, but nothing quite like the height of The White Nancy, that we climbed when we were on the Macclesfield Canal.

Crack's Hill view, with boat going by

Cracks Hill beacon

preparing to dye

Before we left Leighton Buzzard I had a dyeing day. I had borrowed the Bedfordshire Guild of Weavers, Spinners & Dyers steamer which had to go back. When I was at Fibre-East a few weeks ago I brought some new acid dyes and I dyed the fibre I’d been given to use in the BritSpin, spinning marathon in October. In addition I made some iron transfers and put them on a bag for each of the team members. I’m spinning for the ‘Spinning in Beds’ team, may be not necessarily in Bedfordshire though. Also, we visited the Bedfordshire in Bloom exhibition at Leighton Buzzard library, all knitted.

All ready for Spinning in Beds

Magnus came to stay

No more elderflower wine left now!

 

It’s been lovely to see Heather, Jason and the children this week as they’ve been camping in Louise’s back garden in Abbots Langley. They were lucky with the weather as in true bank holiday style it’s damp and dismal now. 

 It was Magnus’ turn to come to stay, but for just two nights. We had a great time but once again we didn’t capture everything on the camera. John and Magnus went fruit picking behind the three locks and came back with cooking apples, damsons and blackberries, which were converted into 13lbs of jam. He help make blackberry muffins for our tow path picnic when the rest of the family came to pick him up.

We travelled a short distance from Linslade down the Soulbury three lock and Magnus’ life jacket fits him perfectly now as it was a bit big for him before. He steered the boat out of the second lock and then got off to help grandad with a serious bit of lock keeping. 

 

Filling up with water

Magnus the muscles

 I just loved watching John’s face when Magnus hammered the mooring pins in. It could have been a trip to hospital if he’d have missed the pin and got John’s hand.

He had a go a using my spinning wheel and produced a lovely bit of handspun wool.

Washing his handspun wool

It’s a shame all the events have been washed out this weekend. We attended the first evening of music at ‘Lockstock’, the beer & music festival at The Three Locks pub. There was a very good band playing and we stayed until the end but it was SO cold and wet with a temperature of just 9c.

Today John’s made 2 gallons of mead and it’s now in the fermenting bucket in front of the fire to keep it warm. We’ve collected lots of local honey over the last few months which was taking up valuable cupboard space and I got some more from Stoke Hammond lock yesterday and it just so happens we went back up Soulbury three locks with a chap that’s just started keeping bees so I brought 3 jars of his honey from him. Once the kitchen was free I’ve done lots of baking and preparing as Edmund’s coming for a few days tomorrow.

The rain has come

The rain has come today and it’s feeling quite cool and that’s because it’s 15c cooler than a couple of days ago. I know how wilting flowers must feel as I’ve had no energy or inclination to do anything really. John has just got caught in the downpour while he was out picking 6lbs of elderberries to make wine. We hope there will be lots of rain in the north too so all the canals can re-open for the end of the summer.

We spent a week at Slapton where we celebrated our 36^th wedding anniversary by having a, not so nice meal at a rather expensive gastro pub, The Carpenters Arms. While we were at Slapton we had a BBQ and stayed up in the warm evening until 01.30, watching the bats and looking at the stars, whilst drinking John’s amazingly lovely elderflower wine.

Sunset towards The Grove

Misty morning towards The Grove

Misty reflections towards Church Lock

We then moved to below Church lock, near The Grove to be nearer Leighton Buzzard. It was quite an exposed spot, which meant we had amazingly huge sky views. I was up early most mornings, (most unlike me) as it was SO hot, this meant I snapped some lovely misty sunrises and sunsets too. Plus, we met a massive carp that came, like the ducks to be fed. It was wonderful to see sparrows feasting on seed in bird feeder and watching the young starlings bickering with each other and devastating the fat balls. We’ve had to do a shopping trip to stock up on bird food. 

Each morning a heron walked along the tow path & peeped into each of our portholes!!!!

 

 

Last weekend we hired a van to help Ada & Dale move to Lancashire. I had the camera with me but didn’t take a single photo. We had to do two trips to get all their things moved and Dale’s dad did a trip in his van too. Their little house in Chorley is lovely. We couldn’t be a few miles away without visiting our other Lancashire family on the Sunday. Heather was at work all day so we didn’t see her but had a great time with the kids and Jason cooked us a lovely curry.

And we are STILL sitting waiting patiently for our house sale to got through because the buyer is going on a 2 week holiday tomorrow!!!

Festival weekend

What an amazingly busy weekend, Linslade Canal Festival Saturday and Fibre-East Sunday.

 

 

We were already moored in Linslade and saw all the trade boats go by to the festival site. After all the beautiful weather we’ve had these last few weeks it rather changed for the worse with thunder & a few heavy downpours, but no ones spirits were dampened. I got a good bit of my Christmas & birthday shopping done from the trade boats and the stalls around Tinderfoot Lake. We got Cheese from The Cheese Boat, jam & chutney from The Jam Butty, bags from Bags by Jane boat, yarn from The Wool Barr boat and most importantly beer & English wine from The Beer Boat, a floating off licence, plus bits and bobs from the other stalls & boats. We were joined by our friends Yvonne and Mike for the day and just as they were about leave Louise, Paul and their dog-in-law, Dottie arrived for the evening. 

Rain on the porthole

 

The pox or just rain reflection from porthole

 

Sunday I got a lift to Fibre-East the annual fibre festival in Ampthill with a lovely lady I’ve been chatting to on the towpath. She was very interested in my spinning and dying she’d seen me doing on the towpath, we both belong to the virtial knitting forum, Ravelry. I’d not been to Fibre-East for a couple of years as we were travelling in the north, which made it extra special. In the morning I strolled around the event and bumped into several boating friends and friends that had stands there. I treated myself to some wool combs, flick carder so I can finally process the Wensleydale fleece I got way back in 2010, plus, I got some dye stuff. I was very fortunate to actually be given 3 lots of fibre to spin from a couple to the wool mills that had stands. I really enjoyed demonstrating drop spindling & chatting to the visitors, when I helped man the Bedfordshire Guild of Weavers Spinners & Dyers stand in the afternoon.

We are still waiting patiently to hear from the solicitor as to when we need to pop over to them to sign the contract for the house sale.

Oh and I spoke too soon in my previous blog, the water levels are severely down in Leighton Buzzard and we’ve been listing to starboard for a week. John keeps telling everyone it’s ruined his soufflé!!!