Bartimaeus

We moved on to Polesworth on another sunny morning with a hot afternoon forecast. At one end of the village I was eyeing the moorings, unsure if they would be shaded by trees, when a boat appeared around the corner ahead. As I steered around them they headed for the vacant spot, so that was a decision made.

At the other end of the village was another set of moorings.  These were in full sun and likely to remain so all day. We moored up and then went in to the village to check out the cafe for morning coffee. We bought a few supplies in the small supermarket (no other supermarket was available) and then made our way back to the boat through the grounds of the Abbey.

The road went under an interesting looking building and then through pleasant grounds. This led to St. Editha's Church, the second church with that unusual name this week.  This church was firmly shut too. If there was more to see at the abbey, we missed it.

By now it was very hot in the sun, so we retreated inside the boat. There didn't seem to be any convenient shade nearby, so we mostly cowered from the sun inside. As the day cooled a little, I put the cratch cover up at the front of the boat. We were going to have to sleep with the bow doors open, so this allows us a little privacy.

In the evening we had a stroll along the canal and found swallows doing noisy aerobatics over the water. We spotted some youngsters sitting on branches in bushes on the far side being fed by parents. Our presence seemed to deter the parents from approaching, so we reluctantly left them to it.

The next day was forecast to be even warmer. We set off early again, this time more determined to find a spot with some shade. Opposite one possible mooring spot there was a hulk that was slowly turning back in to canal. 

A mile or so before the locks, we found an ideal spot.  There was an overhanging tree to put the deckchairs under, and full sun for the panels.  It was still too hot to do much with the day, but we were a little more comfortable in the fresh air outside.  In the late afternoon, we had to move the deckchairs a few times to find the shade - the sun was uncomfortably hot even in the evening.

The following morning was a little cooler, so we got the tandem out and cycled along the towpath to Atherstone.  I wanted to scope out the mooring options to tie in with appointments in the weeks ahead. I was pleased to confirm that it was likely to be suitable at the top of the locks. We cycled back to the boat before the afternoon heat got too strong.

In the evening we drove to the water point and filled the tank, and then along to the moorings just before the locks - less than a mile altogether.  We were now poised for an early(-ish) start on the locks the next day.

Even though we started early by our standards, I was still skulking in the shade as I walked slowly between the locks the next morning. Clare was keeping the speed down to conserve the batteries too. By the time I'd done the first four or five locks, I was in need of a drink, so we swapped roles.

As luck would have it, that is when we started meeting boats coming the other way and there started to be some cloud cover.  The higher pounds were less well filled with water too. While waiting for a lock I noticed a shelf at the edge of the canal which might have been a mystery bump if the canal was at its nominal level.

We reached the top of the locks before lunch time. I was pleased to find a suitable mooring in easy reach of the railway station where we can leave the boat for a while.  We went back to the cafe we'd visited the previous day and were greeted like long lost friends. Clare had had the special (water melon and feta) last time, this time we both had it - very refreshing!

There was some light rain in the afternoon, but fortunately our washing was drying under the cratch cover and was bone dry before bed time.

Today is still hot and humid, but we are coming to the end of the official heatwave. We have only run the diesel engine for an hour or two this month, and that probably wasn't necessary. We'll no doubt need to use it more as the days start to get shorter.