Shackerstone to Snarestone and back to Bosworth Battle site
Sunday 14th July
Something I forgot to mention in the previous blog, the
reason Dave and Jackie have their boat up for sale is because they have bought
a Park Home, just a short way from the boat moorings. Funnily enough Sheila and
I have been discussing that very thing of late, because we’re not getting any
younger and the time will come when, not only will we get tired of the same old
routine of wintering over, followed by cruising the same canals, but it will
become ever more difficult to manage.
Not that there’s any fear of that happening any time soon.
Oh no! But, when Dave mentioned that, compared to the 60 or 70k we saw
advertised for such a place, back at Coven, the prices at their site are very
much less, well, there’s certainly room for more thought on the matter.
Tuesday 16th July
Yesterday we left Shackerstone just after 8 am and took a
leisurely cruise through to Snarestone, where we managed to moor ourselves in
the shadiest spot we could find. So, lucky, little doggie that she is, our wee
pooch will not have to suffer the heat for a couple of days.
As soon as we had downed our obligatory cup of coffee, we
headed for the bus stop to catch the No 7 into Ashby de la Zouche. As soon as I
spotted this monster I almost turned around and went back to the boat. Goodness
knows how old it was, but it was an ancient looking double decker and should
have been in a museum.
Now, I had looked up the timetable for this route, so I knew
that it should have returned at 47 minutes past the hour. Well, after a visit
to the nearby Co-op, we were left with about 15 minutes to wait. And we waited,
and we waited until, after about an hour, Sheila took a look at the posted
timetable, only to find that it only runs every two hours and the next one was
another 20 minutes away.
I have since re-checked the online, official Cresswell’s
timetable and, you’ve guessed it, it’s wrong. We were hoping to take that same
bus into Nuneaton this morning, but that trip is over an hour long, so Wifey
will have to wait a few more days for her haircut, by which time we’ll be
basking in the usual rain-sodden summer.
Whatever happens though, we’ll be obliged to move from here
tomorrow because the local Angling Club has a match on in the evening. These
moorings are not designated as such and, since the Anglers do lease this
stretch of canal, we are obliged to clear the way. At least we have been warned
about it because, being a popular mooring place the anglers know there will be
boats here, so they’ve posted notices along the canal towpath.
Wednesday 17th July
After a morning of lazing about, we took Rusty for a short
walk and, on the way back we got chatting to a holiday boater. During the
conversation I mentioned that, as it was such a fine day Sheila and I would
probably spend an hour or so in the local, and we did just that at about 1.30
pm.
Our new boating friend had much to tell us regarding his and
his wife’s profession. He was on his own because his missus was in France
working; they both ‘work’ for the London Philharmonia, and he’s done so for the
past 41 years, his instruments being Timpani.
Apparently he enjoys taking this boat out on a regular basis
and, when he retires next year he’ll be buying the boat he’s hiring, from the
Ashby Boat Company and will be spending quite a lot of time on it. With his
wife being quite a bit younger, he won’t live on board straight away, but he’s
hoping to do so at some stage.
Of course, not wishing our new friend to think living on a
boat was all sunshine and flowers, we imparted some of our trials and travails
from the past seven years. Although our Andy Smith lives and works in London,
he won’t be mooring the boat there, because he prefers this part of the country
for his cruising.
Talking of which, Andy informed us that, at the far end of
the canal, just a few hundred yards from where we are now, there are some new
pontoons and, he thinks, these pontoons are just waiting for new boats to
occupy them. So, if the price is right; and we’ll be asking the nice man who
looks after that area about it when we leave this morning; we might just find
ourselves moored there this winter.
I haven’t a clue as to where we’ll moor up today, and
neither does Sheila. I guess we’ll just play it by ear.
Thursday 18th July
Well, we decided to stop at Shackerstone again yesterday
morning, and we managed to slip into the most sheltered spot. Even so we still
suffered from the heat although, happily, no more problems with Rusty. Later in
the day, when it was really warm and sticky and Rusty was lying on her bed,
panting, we dunked her feet into a bowl of water, which she didn’t seem to
mind. She then went back to bed. Strange animal!
Today could be a bit of a problem as we can’t decide whether
to stay here and get a cab into Market Bosworth, or go on to Market Bosworth
and face the completely open moorings. Whilst we’re not desperate for eatables,
Sheila really would like to get her Barnet shorn; I think she plans on getting
it down to a Jarhead look, but I could be wrong about that.
The walk into town is long and uphill and, although we’re
pretty sure that buses do run from fairly close to the canal, the only one I
can find online comes from Leicester and doesn’t pass that way, so it looks
like a long tramp up that accursed hill.
If we do go on to Market Bosworth, we won’t stay there, not
in this hot weather. Instead we’ll push on to the moorings at Bosworth Field,
where it is pretty sheltered. Unfortunately the moorings that serve the battle
site are closed off, so we can’t moor there and pay the place a visit.
Friday 19th July
Hot, hot, hot! According to the BBC News yesterday was 12
days continuous hot weather, well, I made it 13 days.
We stopped at Market Bosworth as I said and trundled up the
hill and into town. I don’t think I would have bothered had I known it was over
a mile and uphill all the way, but I did.
When we arrived Wifey checked out the local hairdressers, of
which there were three, only one of which could accommodate her straight away,
so off she went. Meanwhile, I went looking for a drinky poohs at, what I
thought was a pub, but in fact was a restaurant. So, I retraced my steps and
bought a newspaper and paid a visit to the local coffee shop.
This lies at the end of a passageway that once was a pub
courtyard. At the current count, MB is short of four of its pubs. These are the
restaurant I mentioned earlier, the courtyard where the coffee shop stands,
another restaurant in the Market Square and, lastly, the block of flats that
now replace a pub part way down the hill. I think this town now has only two
pubs. What a shame!
So, having enjoyed a coffee and quick scan through The Mail,
I went searching for the missus, minus a good deal of her hair. She still
hadn’t been finished, so I stood around, and stood around until, finally I
got fed up with this game of soldiers
and crossed the street to the Market Square and a seat, in full sunlight.
After soaking up the sun for about 10 minutes, and becoming
most uncomfortable in the process, I re-crossed said street and hovered outside
the hairdressers until, finally, my shorn missus emerged, looking none the
worse for her ordeal.
The return walk to the boat was nowhere near as much of a
struggle as the upward journey and, once the shopping was disposed of, we set
off for Bosworth Battlefield moorings, where we arrived about ¾ of an hour
later. Sadly, there was no fanfare of trumpets to welcome our arrival. Indeed,
with the actual moorings closed off; although there were two boats moored
there, somewhat thick I suppose; we moored a little way before them and on the
towpath side. And there we stayed and will probably stay for today also.
Saturday 20th July
For the past couple of weeks we have felt the heat, so much
so that we have done our best to find shady spots to moor up in. So far, on the
Ashby canal, we’ve not done too badly, with Shackerstone, Snarestone and, for
the past two days, just above the Bosworth Battle Fields, all three of which
have provided pretty good tree cover.
Watching the BBC News yesterday, where they threatened us
with even hotter weather to come for next week, we have decided to return to
Snarestone, where we’ll stay until Tuesday morning, with a break on Monday to
catch the bus into Ashby de la Zouche again, only, this time we’ll be prepared
to spend a lot longer there, knowing full well that the bus doesn’t return to
Snarestone unto 1 pm.
I really don’t mind the warm weather but, along with our wee
pooch I don’t like it when it gets unusually hot, as it has for the past two
weeks. So, back to Snarestone and hopefully, a break in this sticky stuff by
the middle of the week.
So, you have been warned, there won’t be much of anything
out of the ordinary in the blog for a few days.
On that happy note I’ll post this latest scribe.
Cheers me dears.
Dave, Sheila and Rusty.
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