Being prepared to change plans is helpful to enjoying life on a boat. Many a mood has been spoiled by having a change of plan thrust upon one. I had thought we might stay put in the cold morning, perhaps have lunch in the highly recommended nearby pub then press on in the afternoon. There was ice in the water in the morning but only a thin layer and a thaw was already underway. Shane wanted to get going. He didn’t fancy locking on a full stomach, and the rain forecast had moved to earlier in the day. We had already thought of getting Cornish pasties from the local shop, as an alternative to the expensive pub, so he thought that we should just go there early and have them in stock. We got there and in stead of there being a wide array of warm bakery products, there were none. Either there is no delivery on a Saturday, or it was yet to come, so skip that plan and browse further. There were some nice looking samosas and a wholemeal loaf and we felt equipped. Shane got the lock ready and I set off. All ran smoothly enough. I felt the steering a bit sluggish, just as I was going between locks that were not lined up in a short pond, and of course there was a family watching. Anyway I made the turn alright and Shane reported someone had said “she’s done that before” so it must have looked easy enough. Shane had noticed that it seemed like I was “weeded” and could tell from the engine sound and speed of movement in the lock. Clearly I still had a lot to learn.