Finally Cruising

So, as Stella's eldest is in Spain for a few days, we thought we would get some of the journey out of the way, as the plan is to travel up the Llangollen Canal and do the other half of the Cheshire Ring through Manchester.
So, yesterday,  we travelled from Bollington to the top of Bosley Locks and moored up at the services. They are solar powered and have showers, toilets, Elsan disposal and a washing machine and tumble drier. You can get the cards from Nb Alton and each use of whichever is Four units and you get 25 units on a card.
So, managed to do four loads of washing and two dried, but I wish all services were as good.
So today, Bosley Locks and down onto the Trent & Mersey Canal
The bottom of the Macclesfield Canal is pretty and although the moorings in Congleton are OK, none of the towpaths have been strummed, so the nettles have taken hold and of course every place is 48 hours, so not encouraging to visitors.
There are some lovely views though and some of the gardens are gorgeous as well as wild flower banks
We found ourselves sadly out of practice for locks, although the Bosley Locks were good and all set up, so we were through in less than three hours,  stopped and had lunch and chatted to an Australian couple here in the UK on holiday and then set off, getting through the first three locks of Heartbreak Hill, as it is known.
Now, moored up ahead of the next five locks out of 44, curry on ready for tea tomorrow night.

The Story So Far

Check Well, after a month of doing very little due to my sprained wrist; we thought we'd get going and start cruising slowly down the Macclesfield Canal after Easter. We had a couple of nights in Poynton,  while Stella went for physio for her wrist and then got to Bollington, where we arranged for our Boat Safety Cert to be done. It was a busy day, sorting out banks etc as well and then the inspector found the wires to the relay were melting. So a fail and a call out to get the engine sorted once and for all, as it's not been right since the new starter motor was installed at the end of November last year.
The result was the solenoid had burnt out and so it had to go back to Stoke to be rebuilt and we had a week with no electricity or water. Fortunately,  there was a tap at Clarence Mill we could use and finally on Friday they came to mend it. Stella went off to the airport to meet her eldest daughter, whom she hadn't seen in 7 years and so a short family reunion was had before she flew out to Spain to see her Dad.

Easter on the cut

It's been about a month since I posted this blog and quite a bit has happened, since the last post. The wrist turned out to be a suspected scaphoid fracture (tiny bone on the inside of the wrist). So, signed off work til Easter and back to the Orthopaedic Outpatients for a check up on the 7th April. They were reasonably confident that although it wasn't broken, I had sprained it, torn tendons and damaged ligaments and advised me to stay off work until the next time they saw me and to have some physio in the meantime. So, back to hospital on the 29th April and signed off until May 1st, as I have holiday booked from 1st-28th May. So, I have been relaxing,  taking dogs out and generally pottering about. We are currently moored about a mile outside Marple,  very quiet and in a shady spot, good for keeping the boat cool in the sun, although there have been cool winds. 

We moved down here from Whaley Bridge a fortnight ago. The dogs have enjoyed the move although we have to watch them in Whaley Bridge,  Simba, in particular tends to wander round the picnic tables (middle name is Yogi Bear) and one day they got themselves completely lost when I was walking to Furness Vale to change the stop cord for a longer one and ended up on the bypass. Fortunately,  they have tags on with Boat name and Chris's mobile number and someone grabbed them and phoned. The same thing happened in Marple - sure sign we need to move on! 

We have a Boat Safety Survey to organise before 10th May, so will phone round on Tuesday to book someone and eldest arrives in less than a fortnight from New Zealand,  so once Easter is over,  we will be moving down the Macclesfield Canal towards Congleton ti be there for the 2nd May and then on round to Nantwich for the 7th May, when she joins us for our cruise down the Llangollen Canal.

I have to say, having this time off work has allowed me finally get rid of the virus that has haunted me since last November and we have also realised how much weight we have lost, both as a result of the flu, but also a complete change of diet (and correspondingly smaller portions). We tend to only have meat once or twice a week and therefore are eating more fresh vegetables and lentils, pulses etc. One of our favourite meals is baked potato done in the ash can and sautéed onions, garlic, sweet peppers and whatever other veg we have; delicious!  We find shop made dishes both very salty and sugary, actually quite a shock the other day when we had pizza and garlic bread and were still hungry afterwards. I reckon this shows that a ready meal diet is designed to make you eat more, not less!

So a cruise to look forward to - have a lovely Easter, wherever you are and whoever you are with.

. 

The start of Spring

I haven't mentioned how we rely on NBAlton and last weekend,  we had friends Onboard when Brian and Anne Marie arrived, they were most impressed with how everything flowed we do - diesel, coal, Elsan all bought within a short time. Coalboats are a lifeline to liveaboards - use them or lose them!

It was oficially the first day of Spring on Thursday - i had booked a half day holiday and went to collect my bike - the government in the UK do a cycle to work scheme - you buy a bike and get tax relief on the cost - pay over 12 months as well. So am now the owner of a red hybrid bike and a rather natty helmet with its own rear light! Watch out on the towpath for me!

Spring has definitely sprung - daffodils are out, ewes in lamb and even the sun has made an appearance.

Finally had my leave authorised - i am not sure why it has to go up.the management line if you want more than two weeks off at a time, or why it then takes nine weeks to authorise; but am now off from the second of May until the 28th May and now the cruise and holiday planning starts - Stella's eldest is over from New Zealand for that time and wanted to go.through Manchester, so.we thought we would finish The Cheshire Ring and go up the Llangollen Canal returning up the Bridgewater Canal through Manchester - the beauty of this is that she can join us and still see family and friends whilst here.

At present we are moving up the Peak Forest Canal towards Whaley Bridge and hopefully Bugsworth Basin will be open for Easter. It is typical Spring weather, brilliant sunshine one minute and pouring with rain the next. At least here the towpath is tarmac and not a mudbath as it is in Marple unfortunately.

We had an.eventful journey to Whaley Bridge - there is a swing bridge at Furness Vale and I normally get off Gracie at the previous bridge so as to have the bridge ready. Chris slowed her down; Shiva jumped offood, but Simba wouldn't - i grabbed hold of his harness to lift him off; his back.legs went in the canal, buy I got him.up and then slipped as I was getting off and fell heavily on my right wrist. Very sore .and grazed hand, got a tubular bandage and painkillers today, which are helping, but it's amazing what makes it twinge. I cycled up.to New Mills this morning as I managed to leave my bank card in the Co-op yesterday; slight flaw in my plan on my return - a headwind and changing gear was very painful! 

This is the view at New Mills - a lovely walk down to the River Goyt and along - it is a shame there are no visitor moorings here, as it . Is a friendly town with some nice shops and an indoor market. 

Once again, though the engine is playing up and so we have.a.call into River and Canal Rescue as Gracie will not start again! 

HopeFully we will be up and started soon as the engineer Is on his way.upupdate to say that the engine now working - lever had jammed owing to a frayed cable! 

Seven months Onboard and our sixth wedding anniversary

We are coming to the end of our seventh month Onboard - a steep learning curve in engines - we have had to get a new starter motor and when fitted it must have loosened the wires connecting the batteries to the alternator - apart from a valve perishing and so water was coming into the bilge. Gracie doesn't like the cold but last week it was twice we just couldn't get a charge into the batteries and had to get a neighbour to jump start her.
Of course as soon as anyone sees an engine cover off - advice is given, tea is drunk and finally on Sunday - a lovely day - we thought, up early, water up and off to New Mills; Gracie, however, had different ideas and decided she wasn't starting. We had had this before and she had started eventually once the air temp warmed up, so I took dogs, Elsan and water bottles to Marple and met Kit & Mike on Here be Dragons, who had helped us earlier and Mike went off to check heaters etc - I went off and got water and on the way back saw two other friends on their boats; who told me the engine was now going.
Turns out there were three wires loose to the alternator and once fixed, she has started like a dream and is charging the batteries up in 2.5 hours again rather than the six it was taking! Also, Chris topped the starter battery up, so that obviously helped.
So the landlubbers, now narrowboaters, learnt another lesson and a big shout out to Wayne and Mike who fixed Gracie's engine and a heartfelt thank you
It is our sixth wedding anniversary on Friday and on the 17th March 2012 we got a nine week old black Labrador, whom we named Shiva, it seems longer than that, we have had a ball really and roll on the next 56 years!

Life Onboard

Had to get my phone mended as it stopped charging and wouldn't turn on. So, no phone for three weeks - well, not strictly speaking, as I bought a basic one. Anyway, they phoned to say it was ready to collect and when I went to collect it, they had replaced it with a new one. So, have spent the last two days getting apps back (including this one!). Well impressed with SONY as the play store remembered what I had previously downloaded, so haven't had to search.

What a funny day - we were supposed to be cruising down to New Mills this morning; but Gracie had other ideas and decided she wasn't going to start! So I went and did the shopping - bones for puppy dogs was the top of the list. We had heard about a marine  electrician based in Marple - retired; so,Chris said he'd go and find him - i got back and he had finished emptying the bilge and said he'd have one last go at starting the engine and Gracie decided she would start!

Then off to find the electrician - lovely man - but can't walk far; so back to Gracie; wind and up to Marple to empty rubbish & get water. He arrived; checked wiring; fixed the horn and will,bring,a meter tomorrow to check the batteries and is replacing 2 fuses that have blown.

I am off to buy a bicycle tomorrow. This should enable us to moor a little easier, particularly in the summer and will keep fitness levels up. Both Chris and I have lost weight (a good thing) and for me I am back (virtually) to where I was when we got married six years ago (anniversary 14 March and 7th month of living Onboard NB Gracie) ;-)

We do so love this life - not saying it is easy - changing Elsan cassettes; getting drinking water falls mainly on Chris's shoulders as I am at work Monday through Thursday; but the dogs get lots of walks (and swims) and his health has improved as well as fitness levels.
So all in all the main lesson we learnt today was that Nb Gracie knows best - but also that you meet the nicest people living this life!

2014 - Hurricanes and Engines

Here we are eight weeks into 2014 and it has been somewhat of a learning curve again. The cratch cover is worth its weight in gold as it has rained, at some point, every day since the first of January. We have had a virus, which ended up with both of us having a severe chest infection and resulted in us having 1000mg of penicillin a day for a week to shift it. It also meant we were three weeks in Marple, as we were too weak to steer the boat. 

We moved, once we could to Hawke Green and we experienced our first Storm Force Winds aboard Gracie - interesting though, that when we came to move, the wind had pushed silt and mud against the bow - just as well boats are up and down the canal or you'd never get through. But when winding Gracie had an altercation with a tree and so we have a hole in the bow window (currently mended with gaffer tape) until weather is fit to get it repaired. 

We have had fun with NB Gracie, we ran out of diesel and so had to bleed the engine. Upon opening the cover we discovered the bilge full of water owing to a small washer, which had perished. Now she is sound and dry, but it would seem every cloud has a silver lining and missing the coal boat (the excellent NB Alton, run by Brian and Ann Marie McGuigan, was that blessing in disguise, as left she would have sunk!

Also, need the electrics sorting as the Bilge pump isn't working and bizarrely, the horn. We think that the wires have shorted due to the water coming in and so are in the process of getting an electrician to come and look (Don't mess with electric.)

I am getting a bicycle, so beware on the tow-paths, cyclist will be coming through! I aim ito cycle to New Mills and get the bus to and from work. In the summer, aiming to cycle to work if I can (and get rid of this tummy!) - the hills may defeat me!

Oh and now,just in case we forgot - it's raining again!

But her is a photo of me and Ann Marie gunwale dancing at Christmas.