Living in a hallway

So... What's happened this week? Thursday we drove to Cambridge to pick up the favourite daughter and our mail from Ian's. We travelled further in the car in one day then we have on the boat in a month! After the hottest summer in 40 years things have changed, the shorts have gone back in the drawer. Friday we returned the hire car to Coventry and spent the afternoon shopping and showing Kate the sights. The 181 steps to the top of  the bell tower of the cathedral took their toll on the weak girls, so we needed to stop for a pint or two at the Golden Cross, then public transport back to Braunston. We've done the trip a couple of times now and we know what we're doing, no confusion at all. Saturday, Ian came over for the boat show. What a wacky crew they are! Saturday morning's parade got chaotic, but apparently it's the festivals standard procedure. According to those involved it's all part of the fun. Sunday was a fairly lazy day, the next leg of...

Not alot of travelling this week.  We completed the Hatton Flight and cruised through Warrick to Napton.  We spent an afternoon looking around the village.  The village is at the top of a hill and for a change we had some views of the country side.  The weather was starting to warm up.  On the Friday we made our way back to Braunston, to moor for a week so we can make some changes to the boat and collect Kate. The weather has really warmed up with temperatures of high 20's and low 30's with high humidity and no breeze.  The boat gets quite warm in the afternoons as we are in full sun at the marina.  We've had to seek out the pubs to be more comfortable. The locals tell us this is the hottest summer in 40 years. We have ripped out the L-shaped lounge and the carpet.  We have bought a couple of comfortable chairs and a nice rug.  The boat now only officially sleeps four.  Yesterday we caught up with Mary and Colin who have just arriv...

What a great day. The weather has turned in our favour it was a lovely day for doing the Hatton Flight.  The down side was we were the only boat going down (south) and we only met a few boats going the other way so we had to do a lot of work. We are very suprised how quiet the canals have been since Birmingham there has not been alot of traffic. The Avon river was an experience, the locks are wide, deep and ferocious particularly when heading up stream. Fortunately we hooked up with an old fella (Paul) who was travelling solo. So we teamed up for the next couple of days.  It was much better having two boats travelling together even though we still had a couple of hairy moments.  At  one stage Linda was panicking the boat was going to capsize. (There was nothing to worry about, Paul reports our hull blacking is in good condition). Once we made it to Stratford Upon Avon we relaxed in the basin and spent a couple of days exploring and having a few pints with Pau...