Hols

Sorry about the lack of posts lately but we are currently on hols with friends in the Malvern Hills.  We have just been in to see Yarwood's boatbuilder, Ian and Steve at Lambon Hull and Stuart at Barnowl Narrowboats for quick hello and how are you and this afternoon we are going to see Evelyn and Graham Booth, she of Lockside Antiques and he of the many articles and books on narrowboat fit-outs etc.
The dogs are staying in Norfolk with my brother, Yarwood is staying in Braunston and we are dodging rain showers in Worcestershire...hey ho

Fire door update

After posting about the padlocked fire door we had encountered last Saturday at the Old Royal Oak at Hillmorton Wharf I contacted the Local Authority, Rugby Borough Council, to report the safety breach and sent photo's to back up my concern.  Within the hour I got a response to say they were on their way to visit the pub. 
Hopefully this will be an end to the stupid and careless disregard for fire regulations demonstrated by staff and management at this pub.

Walking in circles

I have a preference for circular walks rather than the linear variety, they seem eminently more satisfying and throw in the clockwise or counter clockwise option and 'Bob's yer uncle, Charlie's yer aunt', a great walking route.  The other little option that I often factor in is my ability to got lost, if only just a little lost, time  after time.   This is exacerbated by a phone with battery on it's last legs as I come to the end of my contract, so GPS and mapping on the phone is not available when I want it.
I am thinking of buying a small solar portable charger for the new phone when it is time to update so that I don't find myself minus a map when I need one.   In the meantime, I will invest in an OS map of this area because the walking in the Braunston area is really rather good.

 

Heading out across country towards the village of Barby from Braunston I have climbed a hill and looking back, what a view!

 

Barby windmill now sadly minus it's sails

A style with a difference...see the plywood board hanging down

 

Now why would I be photographing styles you might ask... Well, as Jill of Nb Matilda Rose, would testify, styles are pretty significant when out walking with Floyd.   Fletcher just bounces over a style, easey-peasey and he will bounce back again just to show Floyd how to do it. 

Floyd just sits and looks at it and getting him up-an-over when it is not a dog friendly style is a real struggle.  So this style was a real treat and recorded here specifically for Jill.

 

The plywood board was hinged and here it is propped open so I could get the photo.  This proved altogether acceptable to Floyd and I continued our walk without the potential slipped disc from hoicking him over a barrier.
Shortly after this stretch of our tramp I expected to come over the brow of a hill and see the North Oxford canal...
Someone had stolen it or I had miscalculated.
I pressed onward.
Soon I came across a couple of other walkers, the first I had seen, and asked about the canal
'Where are you heading?' they asked
'Braunston.'  I replied.
'Blimey, that s long way!'
'Is it?' heart sinking...

Well as it turned out I hadn't miscalculated, well not that much anyway.  I was soon in sight of the ditch and joined the canal at bridge 79 which has been rebuilt over the winter.  Another hour's walking and I was back where I started, circle completed.

Bridge 79, refurbished with some new coping stones

 

The cheeks of the re built bridge protected from collision damage

Posh Nosh and the Re-launch

Last night we took ourselves along to The Admiral Nelson and had a meal; it was just excellent!!!

The dogs are welcome, which is always a bonus to us, so we took the boys with us and found a table at the end of the bar and looked at the bar menu.  We were soon presented with the restaurant menu and an explanation, 'We don't normally serve this in the bar but I have asked the chef and he said it would be okay'.
We chose a starter of seared scallops with chorizo, roasted pistachio and pea vine garnish and it was Divine.   For our main course we had a fresh pesto and tomato ravioli with the chef's garlic bread.  If you are in Braunston, give this pub a whirl I don't believe you will be disappointed.

 New owners and a game change in the Admiral Nelson

So this morning was re launch day and about 9.30 the digger was fired up and chains attached and Yarwood was gently shoved back down the slipway into the canal.

And there she be, floating.  All they have got to do now is get her out around the stern of Nesta, the tug, and Joe has to reverse down the cut to wind.

Another job jobbed

Yesterday Yarwood had her first coat of bitumen and was left to dry overnight.  This morning early either someone was trying to tunnel into the boat or it was Justin applying a second coat of the black stuff while I was still in bed. When I emerged at 8.45 to take the dogs for a walk Justin was making steady progress along Yarwood's port side.

While we were here at Braunston Boats we also had another little job dealt with.  The two holes you see below are in the side of the boat and they did have two 'skin fittings' that vented the waste water from the galley sink and the waste water from the dishwasher.  The thing is that skin fittings can be vulnerable to being ripped off apparently and these two skin fittings were a bit close to the water line and we risked a flooded boat should the worst happen.

 Skin fittings ground away...ex - skin fittings

 

 Solution, two bits of galvanised pipe...

 

 These are pushed back into the boat, and welded into position.  The pipe comes out in the under-sink cupboard where it is connected to the appropriate wastes

 

 Justin welding the pipes in place

 

 Welded, ground back and ready for a coat of bitumen

 

Joe then re-plumbed the sink and dishwasher wastes to the new pipes, using two jubilee clips for each waste/pipe and ensuring that are as safe from the risk of flooding.

That's another job jobbed as my old Grandma would say!

Yarwood's slipped...Oops

Sunday late afternoon we headed from Hillmorton into Braunston in readiness for Yarwood's date with a slipway and a bucket of bitumen.  We moored up behind Parisien Star and managed to speak briefly to  Ellie and Mick as we went off the next morning to get Yarwood up the ditch to Braunston Boats slipway.
Getting 66 foot of Yarwood into position ready to come up the slipway was interesting as there was a stiff breeze blowing and things were a mite tight.  Anyway, it got done and a bit later Roger and Justin turned up to do the final preparations and get Yarwood safely out of the water.

 Joe, Roger and Justin hauling 24 ton of boat into position so that the slipway dollies will go under her baseplate.

 

 Getting there

 

 She's on and coming up

 

 Supervising the operation obviously!

 

 Justin starts the jet washing

 

 Justin finishes the jet washing

 

 And starts the blacking

 

Service with a WHAT?

Having checked the website for the Old Kings Head at Hillmorton and found that they did serve real ale and they were dog friendly we wandered along for a pint on Saturday afternoon.  This is a canal side establishment so walkers and dogs are not going to be unusual.   There was chalk board tacked on a gate outside  signposting, 'dogs this way' - thank goodness my pair are literate I thought... 
We followed the sign to the nearest open door and entered a bar, went straight to the counter and ordered a couple of pints and a packet of pork scratchings for the boys.  Half way through serving us our bar boy noticed we had dogs and waving his arms about vigorously instructed us to go downstairs, NO dogs allowed in here he exclaimed! 
'Why not?' I asked
'The food, the food, you will have to go downstairs!' and pointed to a staircase behind us, until now unknown to us.
'Ok, can we get our drinks then?' I asked - Admittedly, getting increasingly aggrieved by his antics and attitude by now.
'No, you have to go downstairs!'

We went.

Joe returned to the bar and got our drinks and I sat downstairs as instructed and seethed...

As it turned out, the door that we should have accessed the downstairs dog friendly area was a firedoor, a padlocked firedoor with the 'dogs this way' notice lying on a shelf inside and about six feet away from the door.

We did mention to a member of staff who popped down to our little dungeon that the fire door shouldn't be padlocked but you could hear the whoosh of air as it went in-one-ear-and-out-the- other' Nil comprende...
Yet more time passes and someone with keys arrives to open the door...wrong keys though and after a couple of minutes fumbling and fussing while Joe and I mentally counted the number of bodies that would/could be piling up with smoke inhalation, she went off for another set of keys.
A couple of minutes pass and staff member returns and eureka, the key works and we are released from our own little fire trap.

This is an establishment that likely pay's minimum wages, provides minimum staff training, who in turn provide minimum service and to cap it all , the Management overseeing operation is piss poor.
End of rant.
We will not be back..