Bartimaeus

We were initially very disappointed when we heard yesterday that the Radford Bottom Lock was inoperable, and even more so when Canal and River Trust (CRT) announced that it would not be open until 10am on Tuesday.  It was even more frustrating when I saw the damaged gate, as it looked almost usable.

Before we'd got out of bed this morning, I heard a boat go by.  I thought it was going the opposite way from us, but it can be difficult to tell with the curtains closed. We got up anyway and then I saw two boats rising in the lock, what's more, one of them I recognised from our walk yesterday - they had come through the "broken" lock.

I asked the driver of the first boat what was happening, he said the lock had been opened but he didn't know how long it would stay open. I hurried to cast off and get in to the lock as they left.  In case a CRT employee was supervising lock transits and might go away, I asked Clare to go ahead and tell them we were coming.

By the time I was in the lock, Bryn had appeared, ready for lock duty - just what I'd hoped.  I reached the lock to find Clare waiting patiently with the gate open, and no sign that the lock was going to be closed again.  The gate seemed to have been repaired with a thin metal strip, but perhaps there was something else I couldn't see.

Once safely through, we moored up on the lock bollards for breakfast, and to relax.  I remembered to make use of the rubbish point too, so we can manage with limited services for a long time.  Before we set off again, there was a message from CRT confirming the fix, though reminding everyone that the lock is only open between 10am and 3pm.  It was only just after 9am!  CRT had delivered a service that was far better than they'd promised, so we were now nearly back to our original plan.

We hadn't gone more than a few boat lengths when we came across the boat we'd seen untethered yesterday.  Now it was drifting and completely blocking the canal.  As we approached, two people appeared from inside looking puzzled. One said that the guy who owned the boat wasn't there, but the other thought he was in the shower, and then used their barge pole to punt them out of our way.   Strange stuff, but we were soon moving again.

The original plan to get to the top of the Hatton Lock Flight before we all return to Edinburgh was now viable again.  The forecast was for another day of hot sunshine however, so we pressed on hoping to get much of the effort done before the day got too hot.

Bryn and I worked through the Cape Locks in Warwick while Clare drove.  A hire boat, Amelia, we had seen earlier was just casting off as we arrived at the second one.  I asked if they were going up the flight, and when they said they were I suggested we buddy up.  They were happy to do so.  In the mile between there and the bottom of the flight I grabbed a sandwich as fuel.

We made great progress through the flight.  There were a large number of boats coming the other way which helped, but having five people working two boats is so much easier than four, it was easy to make sure somebody was preparing the next lock.

Nevertheless, we realised that we were not going to reach the top of the flight today.  There is a time restriction on the top section, going beyond lock 36 is not permitted after 1.30 pm, and if you try, when you get to lock 46 at the top of the flight, you'll find it padlocked.

As we were approaching lock 35 shortly before 2pm, we remembered that we had moored here before and suggested that our companions in Amelia should do the same.

We walked on up the rest of the flight though, because we knew the cafe at the top would be open.  Bryn and I had scones with jam and cream while Clare settled for an ice cream.  We checked the mooring at the top, and confirmed that we will be able to reward ourselves with lunch there again tomorrow when we finish the remaining twelve locks of the flight.

The pound above the flight looks to be perfectly navigable.  It seems our luck is still holding.