Above and beyond the call of duty - 27th April

Friday 27th April 2018
Alrewas to Branston Water Park
5.75, 4 locks

We are very lucky to have so many good friends who are willing to subject themselves to a many 'layers' day with full waterproofs to come and 'enjoy' a day on the cut!  Today was just such a day.  Jane, Chris and 'part-time boat dog', Kiera were due to arrive mid morning having parked their other car at Branston Water Park.  They duly arrived plus a Tesco delivery for us and full wet weather gear and were soon kitted up and out helping first to water up and then at the first lock of the day.

Definitely the only 'fashion' to be worn on such a day.

This made a very uncomfortable locking partner at one of the locks, but unfortunately we did not spot it until the boat was in the lock.  We dropped the water levels very slowly and managed not to get wedged.  Once the boat was out of the lock I opened a top paddle before we shut the bottom gates to flush it out.  We were not, however, able to retrieve it from the canal.

 I cannot remember which bridge this is, but it definitely needs some tlc.

We popped in to Barton Turns Marina for some diesel.  It is huge.

As ever Monty needs to supervise - just to ensure it is done correctly.

65 litres of diesel and 2 bags of coal later and we moved over to the visitor moorings where you can stay for 4 hours to avail your self of the shops and eating places.

We ate lunch on board - the Alrewas' Fidget Pie' (their version of a pork pie which has won awards) and scotch eggs were really good.  After lunch Jane and I went for a nose around the shops.  Most are high end fashion and gift shops (several do have a great range of 'different' cards for all occasions), so we contended our selves with just looking.  We did not get all the way along the line- our final destination being the farm shop, which is huge and would be a great place to stock up if we had not had a Tesco delivery and shopped at the Alrewas butcher.  It is a great place to stop and I am sure you could buy a good lunch there.  I am not sure, however, that I would want to be there overnight due to the incessant noise from the A38.

This was on one of the doors - we would have been failing in our duty had we not gone in.  Sadly we failed the interview and left empty handed.

The signs heading up to the marina state that all facilities can be found in there, sadly that is no longer the case - the rubbish has been moved further along past Barton Turn Lock some 100 yards or so past the water point.  If you need an elsan, well you are out of luck.

It was getting a little dryer as we headed to Tattenhall Lock, the last for the day.

Result - the hoods are down!

The rather lovely lock 'cottage' is now a B&B

It looks as though the by wash for the lock runs through the garden and under the house.

 It was at this lock that we found the notice about the re-siting of the bins - not a lot of help to us as we had gone way past by then!

We arrived in the dry and secured a good mooring at Branston Water Park that was fairly close to the entrance and therefore convenient for the car park.

Just the other side of the towpath is a good view of the lake itself.

 Just to round off the day along came a duck with 13 ducklings - the first we have seen this year.

A quick cuppa and change into dry, non muddy gear and Jane and Chris took us to The Three Horseshoes in Barton under Needwood for dinner.  The company was excellent and the food okay, but probably not good enough to prompt a return visit. Then it was back to the boat for them to collect Kiera and the start their journey home via Alrewas to collect the other car.

Thank you both for your help and company today.  We hope to see you again soon, but suspect it will be September when Kiera becomes a boat dog for a two week holiday.

The day was good due to the company, the weather was not and the big downside was the never ending presence of the A38 which at times was so close you could not hear yourself think.  Not a place to dally and admire the view!