9hours, 9miles and 18locks!

"Listen" said Leigh. "What is that scratching?" I replied
"A rat scraping away at some berries at the top of the tree!"

We counted three different rats at the top of the Hawthorn trees nibbling away for breakfast.

We set off from our mooring at Batchworh at 9am today and the air was crisp and fresh. The engine was again running well and by the time we reached Croxley Green boatyard all was well so we decided to keep going. We now have a good list of engineers and options should anything go awry. To top this we've decided to look into and join the River Canal Rescue, like the AA for boats too.

On our journey today we achieved 9 hours of cruising over 9 miles and through 18 locks, quite an achievement.

We passed back under the M25...

the view below the motorway road, photo courtesy of Leigh...

and shared working the locks and tiller...

We have passed the thick of Hemel Hempstead and are now in the suburbs, moored for the night at Boxmoor.

And to top it all off, today I received a brilliant purple flower!

What's going on down below?

It is very autumnal these days and we are wrapping up well for the trip.

We've been doing a fair bit of research about our gear box problem, speaking to various experts in the field of vintage engines. We aren't completely clear what the problem is. It is not the oil, that's checked and fine. We now know that as we can reverse and run in neutral the hydraulics are fine so it is possibly something mechanical as the problem is with the forward gears.

We have spent the last four days going from one solution of a £3000 new gear box to being told that it could simply be a small adjustment. We may require new clutch pads and it turns out that parts are pretty sparse for the Lister engines (often parts can be found stored in an enthusiasts shed!) but there are some older mechanics around the country who are able to make the parts to order. Leigh and I don't quite feel equipped to open the gear box and do any mechanical adjustments ourselves so we plan to take the boat to a Lister engineer who can put their expert gaze over the engine.

We left Cowley today to get to a Lister Engineer in Croxley Green. The engine was running swell, things are looking good.

Here is a look underneath our stern boards at our amazing Lister SR 3 cylinder engine.

It is an air cooled engine, having three large vents...

Here is our LM150 gear box...

Also in the engine bay we have the stern gland. I give this tube of grease a turn after every day's journey to keep the prop post well lubricated.

And the weedhatch...

located above the propellor, it's exactly what it says on the tin - a hole to access weeds or tyres or umbrella's that have been churned up and wrapped around the propellor.

Here is our electricity generation. Thanks to PB and MB for their suppport in getting a new alternator making our charging more efficient.

Notice the belt and fly wheel - these were the items we replaced on our way down to London.

And below are our batteries, two 6volt traction batteries (wired up to make one 12 volt) which is what we use to run our lights and a 300watt invertor and we have one 12volt starter battery. These were all newly installed when we were in Atherstone last spring and have been a brilliant investment indeed.

We had travelled over half the way to Croxley Green today and as the night was drawing in we 'parked' at Tesco to get a bit of shopping.

Handy don't you think?!

We barged over to the towpath side of the cut to moor for the night.

Leaving the big smoke

After a good family discussion around the round table the three of us decided that it would not be feasible to spend the winter months hanging out in London. I've not had a lot of luck with jobs I wanted and so to prevent hemorrhaging money where we've got none, we decided it is a good idea to get out of the big city.

By the looks of the mooring fees for winter we'd be looking at Paddington at £22 per foot or Hackney at £18 per foot. BW are being rather antagonistic in London about overstaying in area's requesting that you notify the local 'enforcement officers' if you get frozen in and can't move and they may still charge you, etc. Compare this to last winters mooring at £7ish per foot and no BW troops seen to hassle anyone.

We decided to go for a less stressful quality of life and on the flip of a coin, set off for a cruise. Delia put her point across stating that she would enjoy a little time spent in the countryside on a journey. We've decided to head back up the Grand Union Canal towards Birmingham. There maybe opportunity for work as last year, plus I can nip across to work in Nottingham for the day or two.

Delia came home from Saltdean a little bit fatter and happier from her holiday away. Today, however, we are wondering if she might like to return and stop being such a pain in the bum. She is enjoying the burner being on at the boat and is baking herself in front of it's red rays.

We set off on Friday morning from Paddington Basin and the change in scenery was dramatic....

This stretch to Uxbridge has no locks which made it a full day's cruising. We've been encountering problems with the gears when accelerating the throttle and thought it was the gear cable going. However after a guy from High Line Yachting came to do the job, we discovered that it is in fact the clutch belt that needs replacing. We are still no further than Cowley (just before Uxbridge) waiting to get the job fixed. Tomorrow, we should know a little more.

We are a little against the clock as on the 7th November, the winter stoppages begin and BW shuts access to some areas to do repairs. This might affect us further up the GUC but we have a plan B, as I'm learning we always need more than one plan in this lark.

On our first day's cruise, we passed a work boat and filled up the diesel as well as pumped out and got some coal. Just before we left, Dominic the owner showed me this quick and secure knot he had used to secure our boat to his...

Here is a step by step (and reminder for me!)

and to quickly undo just pull!

Delia Derbyshire by the seaside

That's right, she packed her bag and took the train to Brighton to visit the Grand Parents! We aren't sure if she will decide to come back to our rough and tough lifestyle after all the creature comforts of a bungalow to explore, central heating and doting family. I'll be dropping by on Tuesday to see.

A welcome message also to Brian and June - Papa Bear told me about you. Just don't print this one out unless you have reams of paper in the printer!

Back in Paddington

October is here already and what a scorcher until today! It was a lovely weekend, beginning with the 1st October celebrating Margaret's birthday with Papa Bear...

which was full of soaking up all the sunshine, a evening pic-nic in Victoria Park, taking the Thames Clipper from Westminster to Greenwich and plenty of tea. And on Tuesday, we got things together and set off from our 14 day mooring spot in South Hackney. It took several hours through the locks, passing Kings Cross St Pancras, Camden and Little Venice. The wind was against us and once again Paddington Basin was a challenge. After a bash and scratch we squeezed into the pontoon space and moored up.

The surrounding buildings at night are illuminating! It often feels quite odd that we are allowed to moor in such a crisp environment. We've got 7 days here and then will be off on the move again. It isn't ideal for Delia as there are few hiding places but she waits until night and heads out when it is quiet and the place is hers!

Practically, there are no resources here so we planned beforehand and filled up with water in Hackney. Hopefully 'Pumpout Pete' (a name our friend mentioned) should be along soon to do the business using his pump out machine from his old boat. We have noticed a frequent stream of businesses operating from narrowboats here selling fuel and providing services to boaters - it makes life pretty easy. Plus the fact that there are few marinas with provisions or facilities in London itself.

Leigh and I have spent lots of time getting to know areas, finding shops, laundrettes, garages, banks. I have still been looking for work with very little coming back which is a bit of a pain. We have both been working hard on our creative projects and finding contacts in the area. All this is noticeably part of the lifestyle of a roamer, which makes life rich and interesting but equally challenging for the most simplest of things.

The wood burner is going this evening with many thanks to Papa Bear keeping us warm with wood and now it really does feel autumnal - you see I was right to put away summer clothes and shoes and get out the winter jackets and boots!

Where are we now then?

As our water pump ran dry we needed to leave Paddington Basin in search of a water point. So on Tuesday we untied the ropes and set off for the Regents Canal towards Limehouse Basin. Leigh and I struggled turning the boat in the great gusts of wind in the basin but eventually we got round - churning up all the debris in the corners!

We passed through Little Venice and after some troubles getting our propeller clear from the basin's rubbish we were on our way into Maida Hill Tunnell. At 272 yards long, it is one of the shorter tunnels. It is single traffic and fortunately was all clear for us. We then skirted some regal properties along the Regents Park and were heading into Camden Town and Camden Locks. Fenced off to the public, you need to use the British Waterways key to access the locks. At the locks we had a large audience to entertain! We passed through St Pancras Lock and on to Kings Cross where there are new waterside developments by the train station. After another tunnel, a little longer this time we passed City Road lock and found a tap.

Both feeling tired after a day fighting the wind, we were rather annoyed to discover the tap not working and the next water point three miles and two locks away. So we carried on through Shoreditch, Hoxton, Dalston and finally South Hackney where the water point was free and working!

We moored up against another boat outside the Victoria Park and have so far found a good community of boaters around us.

London is huge and we are slowly trying to find our feet and way around.

Today I took a bike ride to Stratford (New Town) and passed by the Olympic site. In parts it is a complete building site. But potentially it is clearly an outstanding area.

I was rather impressed. Unfortunately however, the boating community are being pushed out during the actual Olympics with a pretty penny being made out of renting moorings to those that can afford it.

Money has been spent smarting up Stratford and the main road felt like a Californian boulevard. I was in the area looking for a Maplins electronics shop as I needed a 100K resistor.

What for?

This....

Yes I am back on track with the construction of my Analogue Delay pedal! Horrah!