We have a dichotomy; do we
move or not over the next week? Moored
where we are at Hopwood has the distinct advantage that we are right next to a
water point. This could be crucial if
the forecast for a fortnight of freezing weather is correct. As much as it’s fun cruising in ice, if it
gets too thick it will damage the blacking on the boat. Also, when passing moored boats, sheets of
ice slide across to the moored boats which in turn can upset the occupants because
of their blacking.
We really wanted to get to
Lapworth over the weekend of 18th December. At least if the weather sets in really cold
we have easy access to all services there.
At the moment, Sue is coming to visit on the Friday and Mike and Lesley
coming over the next day to come down Lesley's favourite flight of locks with us. Normally we could set off this weekend and
easily get down to Lapworth, but we are stymied by bridge and lock closures
which don’t open until the weekend of the 18th. So, although we can get as far as the
closures (the cut isn’t frozen over yet) we are in danger of getting iced in at
the top of Lapworth with no access to services over the next few weeks.
Let’s just see what Friday
brings.
Each morning this week,
Buddy and I have had a five mile circular walk taking in Alvechurch and then
gone for a walk in the other direction over Wast Hill tunnel in the afternoon.
At the permanent moorings
at Lower Bittell is a relatively new boat that makes us chuckle. Karen and I first came across it eighteen
months or so ago when the owners had just picked it up from the boat
builders. We were chatting to them whilst
waiting for a lock and asked what they were going to call it as it was nameless
and just had a picture on the side. They
hadn’t decided but said they would keep the picture until they had. Eighteen months later it looks like they
still haven’t decided 😊
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Stork carrying a new 'baby'
boat
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Every month or so we come
across a Mandarin duck or two. These are
very colourful (well, the males are) and unlike most British ducks. They live naturally here now having escaped
many years ago when they were first imported from China as specimen birds. There is a sole example in Alvechurch and I
always feel sorry for him as he hasn’t got a mate.
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Mandarin duck – try as I
might he wouldn’t turn side on for me ☹
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Our mooring is next to a
pig field which has all sorts of different breeds in it and all seem very
friendly. If we walk up to the gate they
come bounding over expecting to be fed and also give Buddy the opportunity for
a good sniff.
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Moored next to the pig
field
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Snow was forecast to start
during the early hours of Friday and continue into Sunday. Both Karen and I still get excited by the
prospect of snow just like when we were children; as much as we like snow we
have long since given up skiing though.
Whenever we got up for the
loo in the night we would open the porthole to see if it had started
snowing. By the morning we were laying
there trying to ascertain whether we could hear the muffled sound of traffic –
to our delight, we could but only just over an inch had fallen so it was
surprising the road was covered.
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Through the galley window
this morning
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When Buddy first saw snow
(in Burton on Trent, on our old boat, in January 2015) he didn’t know what to do. When I took him out first thing he just stood
on the rear deck hopping from foot to foot.
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Buddy having never seen
snow before
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This morning, he couldn’t wait
to start playing and was soon tearing up and down the towpath.
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Not a lot of snow yet but
chance there may be plenty more this weekend 😉
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