Shiralee: Cruise 2014 # 20

Monday 18^th August to

 Tuesday 19^th August

 Since the day started out bright and dry; a temporary aberration, as it turned out; we decided to risk with the 12 Bosley locks and nine miles back to Congleton.

 As we passed through the 10^th one of these, we saw a holiday boat coming up from the one below and, as is the usual practice with locks that are so close together, I waited inside the lock until they came out and we passed in the middle of the pound.

 These holiday boaters were on their first time out so, what followed didn’t come as too much of a surprise, even though we hadn’t come across it before. After passing through that 11^th lock I then hovered until Wifey opened the gates to the final lock, which should still have been full. However, much to Wifey’s surprise, it was completely empty.

 Now, there are some locks around the system, that leak so badly that, over a good length of time will empty themselves, but the Bosley locks aren’t too bad in this respect. This final lock certainly couldn’t have done so in such a short space of time.

 So, the only solution to this anomaly was that, after filling the lock and passing through it, they then closed the top gates and proceeded to empty the lock again. Goodness knows why they did so, other than perhaps they thought it was normal practice to do so. We’re still puzzled by this!!

 The accepted rule of thumb when calculating how much time it will take to travel from A to B is to add the miles to the amount of locks and divide by three. So, with nine miles and 12 locks we would expect to take about seven hours, which of course is a load of poppycock. With practice however; and we’ve had lots of that over the past eight years; nine miles and 12 locks would have taken about 3 to 3½ hours. However, when you take into account the dreadful state of the Macclesfield canal; which is well and truly knackered, with tall weeds and saplings lining the towpath almost all the way along its 27 mile route; we found ourselves going along very slowly in places, simply because we couldn’t see what may have been coming towards us. Yes, it really is that bad!

 So, having left bridge 46 at 7.45 am, we finally arrived at Congleton at 12.15 pm, only to find a day boat just that little bit too close to the next boat along, making the gap too small for me to pull into. There was plenty of space nearer to me as I approached them, but they were using the nearby bench for cooking up a barbecue, and I really didn’t want the smell permeating our boat.

 Eventually, although they seemed somewhat reluctant to do so, they did move along by just enough for me to squeeze in, but only just. But, we had to wonder why, if they were going to use that bench for their barbecue, they didn’t tie up nearer to the bench. Even my Wifey couldn’t see the logic of it, and she’s usually pretty laid back about such unfathomable behaviour.

 Avast:

 Back to this sorry saga, I regret to say. Yesterday, having received more useless information about how to run this Grime Fighter programme, I emailed them again with reasons as to why their advice would not work. One of those reasons was that perhaps the downloaded .exe file had not completely downloaded, or perhaps it had become corrupted in cyber space. Did they listen? Absolutely not! Instead I received even more useless information and have now advised them that the programme only partially downloaded and asked for a link leading to the download. We’ll see what happens next.

 However, I finally received a reply to my question as to why I had been charged an extra £2 for the Secure Line programme, which is the one we use when we’re at Crick and going online with their WiFi. For some odd reason it is not possible to print out their emails and, when I use the snipping tool on the laptop, to copy the email, I am unable to scroll down the page, so I couldn’t send them a copy of the payment. Instead I have copied and pasted some of it into a Word document and sent that instead.

 But, I have to ask myself, why didn’t they look up my recent payment for themselves? Surely they have the wit to carry out that simple chore. My next payment is due today and, sure as eggs is eggs, that one will be wrong too. I tell you, I’m really getting quite annoyed with Avast and their inability to solve simple problems. I’m even doubtful that the reply I sent about Grime Fighter will even get through, because they normally make it impossible to reply to emails. Instead they insist you raise another ticket through their, so-called, Customer Service. Ye gods and little fishes, what has happened to common sense these days?

 Looking on the bright side, no sooner had we moored up here than it started to rain and our day boat people moved off. Whether they had finished cooking their bar-b we have no idea, but it allowed us to pull our boat back a little, giving us some extra space between us and the next boat.

 Eventually, after all this faffing about, we had our cup of coffee; well-earned in this instance; and took a walk into town. Guess what? We’re doing it again today because it’s Market day in Congleton. Yeah!!

 Wednesday 20^th August

 Avast:

 Yesterday morning I decided to telephone Avast about this problem with Grime Fighter and spoke to a representative. After determining that this number was not a Premium Rate number, I explained my problem and told him that, having checked my recent downloads, the programme had only partially downloaded. I then asked for the link to the download again, so that I might start again. From there onwards our discussion became rather heated, on my side of course.

 Like most people who have a computer these days, we do all our banking and some of our purchases online. We therefore have quite a bit of sensitive information stored on our computers, none of which we want to allow access to by outsiders, not even if they do represent a security company like Avast. After all, I’ve only been using their free anti-virus so far, along with their Secure Line.

 So, when this person suggested that I allow him remote access to my laptop in order for him to determine why I had been unable to download their programme, I told him that I would prefer to re-download the programme and requested the link again. He then suggested that, in that case I should go to their Customer Service page and and…… well, I didn’t get the rest because, out of the blue, our conversation was interrupted by an automated message asking me how satisfied with their service, ‘on a count of five to one, with best satisfied to very unsatisfied’. I responded with ‘one’, to which I heard ‘please respond’. I tried again and received the same message again, at which point I gave up and ended the call.

 Following all that I decided to email this person, Selma, who is currently dealing with the matter of that £2 price hike in my Secure Line programme, and explained my problem with the Grime Fighter and requested that she arrange to cancel my order and repay my fee to my PayPal Account. I received an email from Selma this morning, assuring me that she had now forwarded my information about that price hike to the relevant department. I am still awaiting a response regarding Grime Fighter.

 The good news; if it can be called that; is that, having paid through PayPal, I have 180 days in which to raise a dispute regarding the transaction. So, that’s something I suppose.

 After that disastrous telephone call, we walked into Congleton, did a bit of shopping, stopped for a coffee and sticky bun, then walked back to the boat.

 This morning is looking a bit calmer, weather-wise, so we’ll probably trot along to Kidsgrove, where Alan and Chris will be meeting us on Friday.

 Thursday 21^st August

 Thinking that we only had three miles and one lock to do before reaching the aqueduct at Kidsgrove, we put off leaving Congleton until 8.30 am and, just as we were leaving another boat passed us. This didn’t bode well for a reasonable speedy trip because, ahead of that one was a holiday boat, which was crawling along, with the holiday makers taking photos along the way. Needless to say, a trip that should have taken 1 ½ hours, now took three, in part because there was no space on the aqueduct, which meant another half a mile and another lock.

 After coffee and a quick read of the paper, Wifey suggested we might take a walk up to the shops and so, despite the rain, off we went and spent a pleasant hour walking.

 The rest of our day passed very much as normal until, whilst sitting down to dinner I suggested we might take another walk, this time down to the Red Bull pub, where we enjoyed a pleasant half hour over a drink; Wifey with a latte and me with a lager. Just the one!!

 While checking her emails a couple of days ago, Sheila found one from our son David, in which he told her that he had bumped into my old friend Chris Green’s wife Marilyn. I can’t remember the last time I actually saw Chris and passed some time, but it was certainly long before we bought the boat. Anyway, Marilyn passed her email address over to David, who then passed it along to Sheila.

 On Tuesday morning I emailed Marilyn and, since it hasn’t returned as undeliverable, I assume the details are correct. However, it seems that Marilyn wasn’t in any hurry to hear from me, because she hasn’t replied yet. I’m hoping she contacts me soon, because it would be good to renew an old friendship, even if it is only by email.

 It seems that we are not going to spend our time with Alan and Chris here at Kidsgrove after all. Instead, as Alan suggested, they’re coming here to meet us and then taking us to Tunstall, where we’ll visit the market and lunch at The Snead, whatever that is; probably a local watering hole.

 Friday 22^nd August

 Moored here at Kidsgrove between two locks, we have excellent Internet and mobile access, which is more than can be said for the TV. Apart from the fact that we are sandwiched between a couple of train lines, we can think of nothing else that could cause such a problem, but while we’re sitting here, off stays the tele.

 Anyway, yesterday evening after dinner we decided to watch the third film in the Steig Larson films: The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest. After wasting time watching three trailers of other films we finally got this film rolling. This film is well over two hours long so, about ¾ of the way through, and much to our surprise, it stopped rolling and inched forwards now and again.

 This was a new and unwrapped disc that we bought during the closing down sales at HMV, so we really shouldn’t have had a problem. The hand set for the TV doesn’t seem to have a Fast Rewind button, so we decided to try watching the rest of the film on the laptop. Luckily the Fast-Forward controls are there and it took several minutes to move it along to where it had stopped. Even then we found we had skipped over that bit, but we did at least get to watch the final and best parts, even if the dialogue was in American English and didn’t follow the sub-titles.

 Avast:

 Finally, after all the fuss and bother I’ve had with Avast, I received an email from a technician with a new link to the programme download. I have now downloaded it again and checked that it is the real McCoy but, from the info that came up on the screen, the Grime Fighting process can take quite some time, so it will have to wait until I have the laptop plugged in to 240 volts.

 A simple matter of providing a link to download has taken about eight separate Help Tickets. I dread to think what will happen if it still doesn’t work.

 Finally for this blog, something strange is happening to my WiFi. When I downloaded the Grime Fighter prog, I immediately double clicked to run it, which was when I noticed that the process of cleaning up the laptop would take quite some time. I now find that, just above the System Tray in the right hand bottom corner, there’s a wee box telling me that I have 3Mobile Internet Access. This doesn’t normally appear once I’m connected, so I must assume that Grime Fighter is to blame.

 Right, enough already. Let’s put this blog to bed and post it.

 Take care folks and have a good weekend.

 Dave and Sheila

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Shiralee: Cruise 2014 # 19

Monday 11^th August to Monday 18^th August

 Tuesday 12^th August.

 From Upper Poynton yesterday we made our way towards Marple, the end of the Macclesfield canal. About half way along this six mile stretch, the clouds started to build up but, as luck would have it the rain stayed away.

 As we arrived at bridge 3 Sheila jumped off and walked ahead to see if there were any spaces. Sadly there were none available but, as we were pulling in and deciding what to do, along came a boat from the Marple moorings, so we quickly moved along and took his empty space.

 However, this spot wasn’t really ideal, because it was pretty dark and dismal, what with being so far below the trees and houses. But we only had to stay a few hours in that spot, before we noticed a big gap in the ‘lighter’ moorings ahead, so we quickly moved along to that.

 Just as we were doing so, the people on the boat behind us came back from shopping and decided they would do the same. Unfortunately, what they didn’t realise and neither did we, was that one of the spaces was about to be filled by the boat that had, temporarily, moved across the canal to fill up with water, and he was just about to move back into his previous position. All they could then do was to fill up with water themselves and dispose of rubbish, then return to the moorings they had vacated.

 Wednesday 13^th August

 There are times, especially when the weather is not kind to us, like yesterday, when the only thing to do to pass the time is to take the bus into town. So, at about 9.20 in the morning we strolled down the hill, past the locks and waited for the bus.

 The bus from Marple to Stockport; I misremember the number; is something of an anomaly in that, rather than keeping to the same route both ways, it does a round-robin and returns to the same bus stop, passing through different areas on the way back. Most peculiar and not something we’ve come across anywhere else.

Anyway, we spent an hour or so wandering around the shops, enjoyed a coffee and sticky bun, then made our way back home. Sadly the weather didn’t relent, so we still didn’t get the timber cut up. Today looks to be no better but, since our 48 hours is up, we’ll have to turn around and return whence we came and find somewhere in the sticks. Hopefully, by the time we’ve achieved that the day will have brightened up enough for us to get to work.

 Thursday 14^th August

 Despite a bad start to the day weather wise, we decided to leave Marple and find somewhere quiet and peaceful to moor up, in hopes that we would be able to cut up our decking.

 Wifey thought there were proper moorings just the other side of bridge 11 but, as sometimes happens in these cases, we should have stopped before that bridge. Of course we realised this when it was too late and finally ended up back at Higher Poynton.

 Now, since we needed to top up with diesel, we pulled in behind another boat that was having a pump-out and also topping up with diesel. Then, during the time it took for that job to finish, the heavens opened up and soaked us all. Not an auspicious start to our day. However, the rain did stop for us to top up and find a mooring spot but, since it continued to rain, on and off, for the rest of the day, we still haven’t cut the decking up. But, since these moorings don’t have a time limit on them, we’ll stay until the job is done.

 Saturday 16^th August

 On Wednesday, despite the bad weather, we decided to try out my new Scorpion electric saw and cut up the decking, which was when I discovered that this really wasn’t the right tool for the job. Unfortunately; even though the makers of this wonderful instrument suggest allowing the blade to run before applying it to the wood; the darn thing simply bounces off said wood and starts cutting precisely where you don’t want it too.

 So, it was back to using a hand saw and, with the decking being 1 inch thick and, having a couple of dozen cuts to make, this turned into something of a sweaty chore and exactly why I bought the electric saw in the first place.

 So, having completed this chore, I texted Alan and asked if he would like it as a Christmas present. To which he replied that I should have bought a circular saw. To which I asked how and where I was supposed to mount such a tool, bearing in mind the limited space on the boat. He then asked how much it cost and suggested we sort it out when we get back to Crick and I pay him a visit. Should have gone for a new hand saw, eh Bruv?

 On Thursday afternoon, whilst sitting there with my nose in a book, I heard the tiller arm clatter; a sound that warns me that the boat behind has moved off rather too quickly. I thought this was rather strange because, when we pull in and moor up I always tie the thing down with a strap attached to a tiller pin.

 Anyway, I shouted after the receding boat, complaining that the tiller pin had sprung free due to their carelessness. You can imagine my dismay when, having turned around and stopped for a chat, that they had moved along at tick-over speed, so they couldn’t have caused the problem.

 Of course, feeling rather shamefaced, I apologised and, after a few more pieces of not-too-friendly dialogue, they went on their way. But this didn’t explain my missing pin. So, I looked inside our storage box, and there it was.

 The fact that I hadn’t even fitted the blessed thing ensured that my guilt made me feel even worse. Maybe I need to go on an anger management course!! And, the reason I hadn’t fitted the pin, was because it had been raining pretty heavily when we arrived here and I simply forgot. Thimple!!

 We decide to take the bus into Stockport yesterday morning. Unfortunately the bus had other ideas and dropped us off at Hazel Grove, which just so happens to be its final destination these days.

 Hazel Grove is rather noisy and, if we had really wanted to go to Stockport, another bus trip would have been necessary. However, since we didn’t need much by way of supplies, we walked to the Asda store.

 From there we crossed the road to a small coffee shop in which, despite a family gathering going on, we did manage to find seats and ordered a scone and coffee.

 The coffee soon turned up and, a few minutes later, so did the scone, along with a couple of pats of butter. Both of the scones were rock hard – literally. Indeed, I only just managed to cut mine in half. It was plain to us that there was no way we could eat them and so Wifey took them back to the young lad serving at the counter, whereupon he returned them to the kitchen.

 A couple of minutes later the owner of the shop came along with a big grin on her face, although we could see nothing amusing about the situation at that point. That is, until she explained that the lad had served us with their ‘demo’ scones. Ho, Ho, Hoo!! Rock hard indeed, take your pick!!

 Upon returning to the boat we decided to renew our almost empty gas bottle and, whilst we were at it, buy a couple of bags of coal. Not that it’s all that cold in the mornings, but we like to be prepared, especially now that we’re told, by those lovely forecasters, that the early mornings are set to become cooler, and there’s no fun to be has sitting here feeling chilly. Aaaaah!

 Sunday 17^th August

 It’s almost 6.30 on Sunday morning and I am about to have a moan. So, if you don’t want to read this bit, please ignore.

 I have the Avast virus protection programme on this laptop. Not because I particularly asked for it to be installed when I bought, it’s just that the seller did so for me.

 Anyway, this laptop has, in recent weeks, taken longer than usual to boot up and, despite defragging and cleaning up the HDD, nothing has improved. So, when I received a message from Avast, telling me my computer was full of garbage – or Grime, as they called it – and that their Grime Fighter programme was at a reduced price, I bought it. At which point my problems started.

 Now, under normal circumstances, I would download a new programme and install it in one operation. However, since Grime Fighter is only licensed for a year and I was told that Installation instructions would follow immediately, I stayed my hand and waited, and waited, and waited, but no instructions arrived. So, I contacted them yesterday and, sure enough, those details arrived this morning. So far, so good, or so you would think.

 However, this set of instructions is about two pages long; much of which is unnecessary information. But, at instruction number five I was told that, ‘with these instructions I would have received my Licence details’. Well, I didn’t!! These details are necessary in order to run the programme and must be inserted after installation.

 O.K. My only recourse now was to access their Customer Service department. Well now, for the information of anybody reading this who has purchased a programme from Avast, beware, because, should you experience problems with your programme, they do NOT have a Customer Service Department. I know this because, when I clicked on their link to this office, I was sent straight to their web page and had to jump through several hoops before I could actually send a message.

 This system of giving PAYING customers the run around is pretty much the norm these days, and I for one am getting rather tired of it. One thing is for sure, I will most definitely not be renewing the licence for this programme, when it becomes due this time next year. In fact, if they don’t get their fingers out, I might even look for a different virus programme entirely.

 Right, back to normal.

 I am, as you know, in the throes of building two new flower boxes. We’ve bought all the necessary decking and, now that we’re moored near Homebase again, we’ll be paying them a visit for some extra material. Yesterday, having previously cut all that decking to the required lengths, I took a bit of time cleaning up all the rough edges. Today I will be marking out and drilling these pieces where the screws are to go. I will, of course, be enlisting the aid of herself who, after some cajoling, agreed to destroy the two previous boxes, which were looking rather the worse for wear.

 We’ll also be buying another length of decking, this time for use as a plank, which will replace the one we have now and which is also looking rather sorry for itself. Watch this space!

Monday 18^th August

 Yesterday, due to very bad weather, we decided to stay put at bridge 46. Apart from strolling around to the out-of-town centre nearby, we simply chilled out for the day. We also discovered that, due to my inability to cut a straight line with a hand-saw, those pieces of decking do not match up properly. Oh, I could probably fit them together easily enough; they’re not completely useless; but they do at least need straightening up, either by filing down or, as Wifey suggested, waiting until we return to Crick, when I can take them down to Alan for corrective measures.

 Sadly, the sorry saga of the Avast Grime Fighter programme is still ongoing. Yesterday morning, having read through the set-up instructions, that finally arrived after me chasing them, I realised that I needed a Licence key, which should have come with those instructions, but didn’t.

 This morning, after checking my emails, there was the Licence Key. Oh, goody, goody, I thought, now perhaps I can set the programme up. Nope! When I double clicked on the downloaded programme, up came a screen telling me, “It’s not, you, it’s us”, followed by some more blurb about being unable to run the programme.

 Now, as you can imagine, I’m becoming really annoyed, not only because the programme won’t run, but because I haven’t been asked to insert the Licence Key and because the licence runs from the day of purchase, not the day of installation. Already I have lost three days of usage.

 So, back to jumping through hoops at the Avast, so-called Customer Service site, where I opened yet another ticket for assistance.

 I rather suspect that, when I first downloaded this programme it became corrupted, or didn’t down load fully. Hopefully somebody; an actual person; will email me suggesting I download it again. Hopefully!

 Today, now that the weather has calmed down. We’ll be able to go down those 12 Bosley Locks this morning.

 Meanwhile, now that I’ve treated you to a lengthy moan about Avast, I’ll post this blog.

 Have a good week folks and take care

 Dave and Sheila

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Shiralee: Cruise 2014 # 18

Saturday 2^nd August to Monday 11^th August

 Sunday 3^rd August

 Yesterday was fun. There we were, sitting below the Red Bull lock and enjoying our breakfast, and there was the rain also. Thankfully it didn’t last long so we upped sticks and passed through two locks so as to be nearer to Tesco. We had to wait a while for it to stop, but we finally managed to get the shopping done.

 By the time we returned to the boat it was coming down quite hard, but we eventually managed to pass through the next lock and so on to the Red Bull aqueduct and the Macclesfield canal.

 This morning has started out bright and clear, so we might stay here and visit The Red Bull pub at lunchtime, or we may go on to Congleton.

 Monday 4^th August

 We decided to move along to Congleton yesterday morning; just one lock and five miles away; and we were there by 10 am.

 Sheila popped around the corner for the paper and, much to her surprise the pub there had been shut down and bulldozed flat about two years ago. We remember it as a very friendly, popular pub that did good food, so its closure came as a bit of a shock, especially when the only other pub near these moorings is pretty naff. However, that too was closed, for refurbishment.

 Now, if we wanted a Sunday lunchtime drink, we would have to walk into Congleton itself, which we eventually did and called into Ye Olde White Lion Inn. This is a very small pub having just the one bar, but it doesn’t seem to be bothered at overcharging for Stella, which came out at £3.65 a pint.

 Now, according to some bumpf that Wifey has about these moorings, Congleton is only 250 metres from here. Of course this is a load of rubbish, if anything it’s at least half a mile, if not more. The last time we cruised along the Macclesfield canal and stopped here, Alan and Chris met us and I had new knees. I distinctly remember having to sit down on at least two occasions on our walk into town. I can’t imagine where these people found the info, but it certainly wasn’t by walking the route themselves. On our return trip along here we took the bus into town, but that was midweek. However, since there is no Sunday bus service here, we were obliged to walk both ways. Aaaah!

 Wednesday 6^th August

 Yesterday morning we telephoned Heritage Boats; a boat hire company and marina just a couple of miles behind us; in order to book Shiralee in for her Boat Safety Certificate. Unfortunately they no longer carry out this work, but they knew a man who did and passed me over his number. Luckily for us he was able to do the job the same morning and he arrived at about 10.30 am. After giving our home a thorough going over and failing it on just three simple points, he went away at about half past one.

 The failure amounted to the re-fitting of a metal plate on the stern deck, the blocking in of a space between two of the batteries and the covering of said batteries. The aforementioned metal plate is to indicate where the Fuel Shut-off Valve is situated. The blocking in of the space between batteries is because the batteries are not a completely tight fit in their box – as if they could possibly move about anyway. The covering of said batteries is because all the terminals must either be covered individually, or have a rubber cover laid over them, to prevent the possibility of them being corroded by condensation.

 All of the above really is just so much hogwash!! But, simply because new directives are appearing all the time, and since the Boat Safety Examination only comes around every four years, there’s always something new for us boaters to contend with. In effect, because of these new rules, nobody can expect to pass muster when these tests are due.

 Now, when our friendly, local examiner, Martyn came to check for gas leaks, he actually found that there was one. Well, we’ve had this boat for eight years now and have never noticed any leaks, nor did it fail four years ago. Anyway, after tightening up all the connections along the pipe, and checking again for leaks, we still weren’t clear. Then, after a few more bits of messing about, our intrepid examiner discovered that the leak was coming from his own leak tester’s connection!! Duh!!

 The only thing that we didn’t have that would give us a pass was a sheet of rubber to lay over the batteries. For this we walked into Congleton and bought a very cheap set of car mats, which we will cut up and fit later today.

 Thursday 7^th August

 We spent yesterday and last night below the first of Bosley locks, having taken two hours to travel the five miles from Congleton. This canal is also a right mess, with tall weeds, reed beds and even tree saplings growing along the edge of the towpath. In some places the weeds and saplings are straining the support timbers and metal strips to breaking point. Indeed, the canal is a lot worse than when we came along here three years ago. It actually looks as though it’s not been touched in all that time, except at the main, designated mooring areas.

 Last time, after we had climbed Bosley locks, we were met with huge bunches of reeds, just floating in the canal waiting to wrap themselves around our prop. This year we found them between Congleton and Bosley locks, so they are still breaking away from their beds and drifting down through the locks. I’m beginning to wish I hadn’t bothered contributing my £3.00 per month to the new charity, because they certainly don’t seem to be earning it.

 Goodness knows what the Peak Forrest canal is going to look like, and that one is so much narrower than the Macclesfield.

 Friday 8^th August

 We had five miles of clear canal; no locks and just one swing bridge; to reach our planned stop at Oak Grove, where there’s a pub called The Fool’s Nook. Alas, upon reaching there and deciding to take the bus into Congleton, we found it up for sale. It didn’t look as if it was even open, but it wasn’t boarded up and we won’t know for sure because we won’t be trying it this time through.

 The bus trip to Congleton was just to pass the time but, upon our return we decided that, with that stretch of canal being overgrown with trees on both sides, it was just too dark to stay. So, for the sake of an extra half hour of cruising and two miles of clear canal, we moved along to a wide and open space, just past bridge 46. (We actually found another suitable mooring spot along the way, but soon discovered it to be too shallow along there and gave up on that idea.)

 There’s an out-of-town shopping area nearby and we gave that a visit later in the evening. I still couldn’t find a denim jacket, not even at Matalan, which is where I bought the last one. However, we did find a Homebase store and popped in to check out the price of decking, from which I intend making a couple of new flower boxes. So, after I’ve decided on how big to make them, we’ll call in and buy some, along with all the other stuff needed to put a box together.

 When I got up this morning, just before six am, there was a pretty strong wind out there. But it’s now 20 past 6 and it seems to have dropped, so we might just push on to Bollington this morning. However, should that strong wind return, we’ll be staying put. Believe me, there’s no fun to be had cruising in a high wind.

 Saturday 9^th August

 Well, that strong wind returned and so we stayed put and walked down to the next bridge, where there’s a garage, from which we bought a Daily Mail. On our walk there I suggested that we might pay a visit to Homebase for the decking with which to make her flower boxes, but Wifey thought it might be better to leave it until we got back to Crick. Now, that wasn’t such a bad idea as it goes, but she also thought I could buy the decking in Harlow, when I visit Alan, and get him to cut it all to size on his bench saw.

 My bruvver is a very helpful bloke and will always help me where needed, but I could see no good reason for lumbering him with this particular chore. So, after some deep thinking; and after Wifey relented about buying from the local Homebase; we popped round there again and had a big spend-up.

 Some time ago my re-chargeable drill burnt out and, since I will need it for the flower boxes, we bought a new one. In addition to that and knowing there would be a lot of sawing of the 1 inch thick decking, we lashed out and bought an electric saw. Then, since we were already there, we also bought the decking which, at 2.4 metres long, is now taking up space inside the boat. It took me some considerable time finding three straight lengths, but we got there in the end. I would also have bought a box of screws for the job but, after phoning Alan for advice on size of screw, I realised I already have some that will do the job.

 All I have to do now is cut the stuff up and put it all together, to make two flower boxes, thus replacing the previous ones that were showing their age. As Alan would say; since we have just enough decking to do the job; ‘measure twice, cut once’.

 Sunday 10^th August

 After spending some time deciding on measurements for those flower boxes, I finally decided that I really didn’t have enough decking to make them at the dimensions I wanted, which meant another trip to Homebase before we left bridge 46. After that it was a nine mile run to our current moorings at Higher Poynton.

 After about five miles of gentle cruising, the weather started closing in with threatening black clouds. But we soldiered on and managed to get here without getting a soaking.

 We have now decided on making two flower boxes with dimensions of 21” long, 11” wide and 9” deep, which should give Wifey plenty to play with. Hopefully, by the time we have returned to the other side of Macclesfield; where we know there to be a decent sized garden centre; the boxes will be finished and we can buy some plants to fill them with.

 Unfortunately, what with the prediction of heavy rain from the tail end of Hurricane Bertha, I doubt if we’ll get much done today. These decking strips are 2.4 metres long and first need to be cut to lengths. Perhaps I’ll at least get that part done today, using my brand new electric saw.

 Tomorrow we should be heading off to Marple, where we may, or may not take the bus into Stockport.

 Monday 11^th August

 Yesterday morning dawned wet and windy and, as we suspected, stayed that way for the rest of the day. However, we did manage a drink at lunchtime at The Boars Head pub, just a short walk down the road.

 Now, running alongside the canal, but down the bottom of the hill and adjacent to the road, lies an old railway that has been converted into a walkway and cycle path. This old track runs for 10 miles between Macclesfield and Marple and, especially at weekends, has groups of walkers, cyclist and horse riders on it. Part of it at this end has been grassed over and has garden benches also. Great for picnickers and such, four of which were sitting at one of those benches, even though it was raining.

 The rest of the day saw plenty of rain and, what with living in a steel tube, started to turn rather cold, which meant Wifey had to get the fire going. But first she had to replace the old fire-proof rope around the inside of the door. This morning is the first of many where I haven’t needed to wear my cardigan.

 I’ve never been much for fishing and, as I mentioned earlier, this section of canal is very wide and attracts anglers, especially on good weather days. When we arrived on Saturday there was a tent standing on the bank right opposite us, with several rods already out and with floats bobbing about. We kept an eye on the lads that were fishing, but didn’t see them catch anything. Yesterday, despite the seriously bad weather, they were still there and still caught nothing and they didn’t wrap things up until quite late in the evening. It takes all sorts, I suppose!

 Needless to say, no sawing and drilling got done yesterday. However, this morning has dawned clear and bright, although somewhat windy, so we’ll either stay here and take the bus into Stockport, or move along to Marple and do the shopping there. More later.

 Meanwhile, as we have a strong signal, I’ll post these pages.

 Take care and have a good week.

 Dave and Sheila

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Shiralee: Cruise 2014 # 17

Wednesday 23^rd July to Saturday 2^nd August

 Friday 25^th July             

 Yesterday was a pretty slow and easy day for us, with a gentle cruise of four miles and five locks down to Burland. Just before we moored at Burland, we stopped off at Swanley Bridge Marina for diesel.

 Once again the weather was far too hot to be working, so we settled down, read the paper and relaxed for the day. Not much different to any other day in this heat.

 Today, on the other hand, could be a bit of a struggle, because we have the four locks at Hurleston to tackle. If you remember when we entered the Llangollen through these locks, we got stuck in the first of them and had to elicit the help of another boater, who pulled us through with the bow line. So, just to ensure we get through this time, we’ll be leaving a little later than usual and hope there will be CRT people around by the time we arrive at the top.

 Once through these locks we’ll moor up just around the corner, because we don’t want to be in Barbridge until tomorrow morning.

 Monday 28^th July

 For the past two mornings I’ve spent so much time on this laptop that I haven’t managed to update the blog. This is all as a result of me deciding to spend a wee bit more time in bed and less on the laptop. So, rather than getting up before 5.30; as has been my habit for quite some time now; I stay in bed until about 5.50. Not a big difference, I know, but enough extra time to allow me to stay on the laptop until Wifey gets up. And this is all down to the useless battery power supplied with laptops these days.

 Now, on Friday we spent over 2 ½ hours on the Hurleston locks and run down to Barbridge. However, this wasn’t due to getting stuck in the bottom lock, but rather the amount of boats lining up to go through them. I did experience a slight ‘drag’ going through the third one but, with the lock keeper keeping an eye on things, managed to pass through the bottom one without problems, much to my surprise.

 Having arrived at Barbridge much later than expected, and what with it being another scorcher, we decided to leave the trip into Nantwich until Saturday morning. Needless to say, nothing got done with regards to paintwork.

 On Saturday morning we caught the bus into Nantwich and discovered it to be rather noisy; probably because there was a Farmer’s market going on, at the same time as a Town Crier’s competition. However, shopping at Morrison’s was our main objective and so, having bought a couple of things off the market stalls; Cheshire cheese, a big pork pie and a couple of vegetable burgers; off we went to the store. On the walk back to the bus stop we called in to Chatwin’s, the bakers and also M&Co for T-shirts.

 Our bus driver, both there and back, was a southerner from south London who told us he had been here so long that he was now accepted as part of the furniture. When I asked how long this had taken, he told us about 10 years. He seemed a nice bloke, all cheerful and happy to chat to a fellow southerner.

 Yesterday we were unsure as to whether to bus it into town again and find a different pub, or stay put and visit The Old Barbridge Inn. In the event, since it was still rather warm and we didn’t fancy all that walking to and from the bus stop, we settled for the local and were very glad we did.

 We had decide to have a snack there, rather than cook something later and, after scanning the menu we settled on a ‘Sunday Bap’, having no idea exactly what that entailed. When it arrived at our table we found it to be a bap filled with roast beef, mashed carrot, swede and horseradish sauce, accompanied by a very tasty bowl of gravy and a couple of roast spuds. The gravy was to die for and the beef was lovely and tender, which means that, when we come back this way we’ll make it a Sunday, of course.

 Now, a couple of weeks ago we bought some rope to replace that mucky stuff that’s currently wrapped around our lifebelt. It’s so dirty as to be almost black and in desperate need of changing. However, since the rope has been tied up in a particular way, I thought I might try to do the same. But, when I studied the knots being used, I simply couldn’t figure out what they were. So, out came the trusty Knots and Splices book that I just happen to have in my cupboard. Lo and behold, those knots are simple figure of eights. Duh! Anyway, later today, after we reach whichever moorings we decide to stop at, that will be my first job. I’m hoping that Wifey will rise from the communal pit a wee bit earlier than usual, because we need to top up with water here before leaving, and we don’t want to wait in a queue to do so.

 Tuesday 29^th July

 On April 11^th 2013, just as we were coming into Alrewas, our boat slowed right down and could barely move at all. So, we gave Andy a call; he’s our friendly mechanic from Mercia marina; and asked him to come and investigate. Now, it just so happened that, unbeknown to us, he and his wife Sandy were already in Alrewas; although Andy was at Mercia working on another boat at the time. Anyway, with some difficulty we moved the boat along and moored up with them on the 14 day moorings.

 We had already booked Andy to fit a new charging system, so this meeting was very useful. Anyway, to cut a long story short, he diagnosed a faulty gearbox and, after several days he had fitted both items and we were on our way.

 After three days at Barbridge, we left there yesterday morning and headed up the Middlewich branch of the Shroppie with the intention of stopping about six miles along. However, just a couple of miles along the route the boat slowed down and just barely moved along. At first I thought we may have something wrapped around the prop, so we pulled in to check. Nope, that was clear so we carried on. Again the boat slowed down, which was then that we started to suspect the gearbox again.

 Now, bearing in mind that we spend five months in a marina every winter, we have only had 10 months use of this gearbox. At a cost of over £600 it has cost us £60 per cruising month, so we’re a bit annoyed at present.

 I phoned Andy again yesterday and he’s going to have a word with the people who supplied the gearbox. After all, if this is a problem with the gearbox, it’s not looking good for future dealings with him. Unfortunately the supplier is away until Wednesday, so we’re going to see if we can make it to Middlewich today, so as to have easy access to whoever comes to see us next. It may well be RCR, with whom we have a Bronze membership, which states replacement parts and labour if we break down, which we most certainly have.

 Another strange thing happened yesterday, this time to do with my brand new mobile. I had been unable to phone Andy back in the evening and decided to call Sandy instead. After relaying info between us, I then handed the phone over to Sheila and the two of them chatted away for a short while and then, all of a sudden Alan’s voice broke through asking what we wanted. How odd, we thought!!

 By the time I had sorted that out, Wifey’s phone was ringing and she was off talking to Sandy again. But what caused Alan to come through? We think we may have solved the mystery though. You see, when the phone is held up to the ear there are several icons available on screen, one of which, if pressed, will send the screen back a step, which is where my list of contacts sits. We think that Wifey’s ear rested upon that icon and then rested on Alan’s number and voila, up pops my brother.

 Instructions to self and anybody who owns a Nokia Lumia 630, ‘don’t touch the screen whilst talking, not even with your ear, otherwise you could be talking to a different person.’ If you’ll pardon the pun, ‘I think I’ve ‘eard it all now’. Boom, boom!!

 Wednesday 30^th July

 After all the worry about the boat slowing down on Monday, we travelled the five miles to Middlewich yesterday morning without a problem. Admittedly I kept the speed down to below our usual 1200 revs, but I then cranked it up a notch and we still made good progress with no sign of slowing down. All we can think of now is that we had a slight fuel blockage. Today we’ll be moving off again and, hopefully, we’ll enjoy a normal cruise. If not, then I’ll have to give Andy another call.

 Many years ago the parents of a boating friend of ours, bought themselves two Clematis plants, a pink one for mum and a blue one for dad. Whilst we were still at Mercia marina mum passed away and, very shortly after, the pink plant died off, for no apparent reason. A couple of weeks ago dad also passed away and, much to our friend’s surprise, so too did the blue Clematis. Now that’s spooky!!

 Thursday 31^st July

 When I climbed out of our pit at 5.45 this morning, the sun was shining and all was right with the world. It is now almost 7 am and the sky is becoming quite dark, and the clouds are coming up behind us. Actually, belay all that, it is now raining. Whoopee, looks like we could be stuck here for a while.

 By the way, we’re now at Wheelock. We arrived here at about 10.15 yesterday morning after travelling for six miles and passing through six locks.

 We’re now on the Trent and Mersey canal and, as far as we can tell, nobody from CRT has bothered to keep the first six miles clean and tidy. In truth, it’s a mess, with overhanging bushes and trees on the opposite side and tall weeds and bushes on the towpath side. In fact there are stretches of that six miles that, due to all the foliage, is reduced down to a little over half its width. This is a disgrace and reminds us of British Waterway’s failings on other canals.

 We really do need to get away today, because we’re meeting up with Alan and Chris on Friday. We have about 14 locks to get through today and we really don’t need the rain.

 Friday 1^st August

 Thankfully the weather stayed fine for the trip up to Rode Heath. But, with 14 locks to get through, it was particularly hard going for Wifey, as most of the locks didn’t appear to have been maintained of late. Not all of the 14 locks were close together, so she did have shorts rests in between some of them. Obviously I’m far more beefy that herself, but she prefers operating the locks to driving the boat, so there are times when she struggles a bit. We think perhaps that we ought to buy a windlass that has a ratchet on it, so as to make life easier at those tricky locks.

 We had been expecting rain yesterday and we weren’t disappointed, because it came down quite strongly later in the afternoon. The weather forecast on BBC for today was not encouraging as rain is expected in this area and quite a lot of it. We have another eight or nine locks to do today, over a three mile stretch of canal, so we’re hoping it won’t be too severe. The things we do for friends, 23 locks in two days for a get together with Alan and Chris. It’s our own fault really, because we would normally meet up at Stone, on the Staffs and Worc canal but, since we decide to give the Macclesfield canal a try this year, this was the only way to go.

 It’s not looking too bad out there at the moment, so I’m keeping my fingers crossed.

 Saturday 2^nd August

 After giving us a scare about the weather for yesterday, the forecasters didn’t get it quite right, because we managed six of the nine locks to Kidsgrove without getting wet.

 Almost as soon as we arrived and moored up in came a message from Alan asking where we were and, after telling him the good news, he told me they were on their way. Unbeknown to us it is quite a long walk from their bus stop to us, as we discovered later when we accompanied them on the return walk.

 In the meantime we sat and enjoyed a cup of coffee and read of the Mail.

 With more drinks inside us and chatting for a couple of hours, off we all trotted to the Red Bull pub for lunch. The food was very good and, as it said on the nearby board, freshly cooked. If memory serves the actual words are, ‘We don’t serve fast food, only freshly cooked food served as quickly as we can’.

 Alan and Chris enjoy a lot of walking, which is just as well because whenever they visit us on the cut they always seem to have a long walk from the bus stop. Kidsgrove is way out of their way. From their stopping off point it has to be at least half a mile and from here at the moorings, all uphill. As a result of this I have promised to look up all the bus routes from Newcastle under Lyme in an effort to find more suitable meeting points.

 Alan prefers reading factual books and biographies as opposed to novels and, once finished with them, passes them on to me. Thankfully this only applies to those he’s read since being un the U.K. In this instance he brought along seven books for us to read. Goodness knows where we’re going to store them, because our bookshelf is chock-a-block at present, due to the fact that we bought a few more on our last visit to Nantwich. Still, Alan’s books do lend some variation to our usual stuff, so we’re grateful for that.

 The weather is still pretty horrid but, as we have no plans for a long cruise today; probably only a couple of locks up so that we can be nearer to Tesco; we’re not too worried.

 Anyway, tomorrow we’ll probably move along to Congleton and spend an hour in the local pub at lunchtime. We will then be on the Macclesfield and will have just a few locks to go through in the early stages, and then it’s free of locks until we hit Marple, where we’ll turn right onto the Peak Forest canal.

 And, on that note I’ll publish this blog.

 Take care folks.

 Dave and Sheila.