Bartimaeus

We were in Edinburgh for over a week.  Despite Bartimaeus sitting in a mooring spot with a clear view of the sky, it took most of that time for the batteries to charge to 100%.  In July, the batteries would have been fully charged in a day - or two at most - the lower sun, shorter days and cloudier weather make a big difference.

As soon as we got back to the boat in the late afternoon sunshine we moved on through the two locks just ahead of us and then the rest of the mile to a handy mooring near the supermarket I'd used last month (another supermarket is available there).  The moorings were crowded, but as luck would have it, someone was about to set off.  He had politely waited for us to pass so as not to "steal" the lock, but was very happy to move on once we said we wanted his spot.

The following day Clare re-visited the supermarket to get fresh bread and then I walked ahead to get the lock ready.  I arrived at the same time as a trip boat coming the other way.  The lock had leaked to half full (or half empty?) but the man coming the other way said we should go first.  I had it open in time for Clare to drive in.  She had been anxious about a strong side current, but she used a little extra throttle and came straight in without mishap.

By the time we had come out of the lock it was clear that the trip boat had some engine trouble and was not ready to proceed.  The boat-load of trade union reps seemed engrossed in a quiz instead of watching the canal go by - perhaps that was just as well.

Despite our gentle pace, I managed to (gently) bump under a bridge.  On approach I had realised it was slightly awkward, but it seems it was slightly more awkward than I'd realised.  I usually hope the sides will be at least one of straight, symmetrical, aligned with the canal or aligned with the bridge above.  This one seems to be none of the above.

We were soon caught by another trip boat, ET2, that we'd seen before.  I pulled over to let them overtake - we continue to travel at around 1 mph which makes other boats look positively speedy.  There aren't many places to stop before Aldersley Junction a couple of miles away.  I knew we were nearly there when we went under the railway path we'd cycled on last month, because I recognised what a man on the towpath had called the Meccano Bridge.

As we reached Aldersley Junction, I could see ET2 tying up on the lock bollards.  The lock flight is still closed due to a shortage of water (re-opening this weekend apparently) so this was not a cause of conflict - except that we had planned to do the same.  Someone on the boat suggested that there was a nice mooring only ten minutes further on.  I thanked her for the suggestion, but I didn't want to wait that long for my lunch (and it would be half an hour at our pace).  Once we got close enough we could see bollards on the other side of the canal, so we were easily able to stop for lunch too.

After lunch we carried on to Autherley Junction along a section of canal that seemed to be mainly bridges of one sort or another. 

At Autherley Junction I set Clare off to prepare the lock and let me know if anything was coming.  There was a boat coming out, but we didn't have long to wait.  The lock at the junction is a "stop lock" - it has a rise of only a few inches.  New canals were generally required to be above their existing neighbours so that the newcomer couldn't steal the incumbent's water.  A lock was essential to maintain the height difference and preserve the newcomer's water supply.  Common ownership has since allowed for some of these locks to be held permanently open, but not here.

Once through we went as far as the water point, the main target for the day.  With the tank full and another boat waiting to get on to the tap, I reversed back towards the lock - the best mooring was just by the junction.  During the traverse I saw there was another boat following me.  A woman had got off it further down the canal and opened the lock gate before Clare and I had even seen the boat.  The woman asked Clare a slightly loaded question about where we had come from.  I pulled in and let them go through first, no problem for us.

The nearby moorings went up in our estimation when I heard characteristic peeping and looked out of the cabin to see two kingfishers on the other side of the canal.

This morning the weather was dull and a bit wet as forecast.  The batteries had dropped considerably and there was no prospect of the sun recharging them, especially with me on board using the kettle.  We have been entirely solar-powered throughout July and August, but it was now time to try out the new generator.

I found the generator page on the control panel and pressed "Top-Up".  The generator lives in a cocoon in the sound-proofed engine bay.  I was impressed at how quiet it is.  It is audible inside, but I didn't feel any need to turn the music volume up.  In the bedroom with the doors shut, I think I might even be able to sleep with it running.  Our plan remains to pick a time when we aren't even on the boat to run the generator, which makes it even quieter.

I watched the charging progress with more interest than I expect to in future.  The control panel allows me to see what is happening in more detail than is ever likely to be useful.  I want to understand the likely behaviour and interaction with the heating system though.  I will enquire about an entry on the control panel that makes no sense to me.  I don't know what the -10.9kW represents.

It took just over an hour for the batteries to come to full.  During that time, the cooling water for the generator reached 80°C and was also heating the contents of the calorifier (hot water tank).  We both took the opportunity to have a shower.

During the morning, the junction had been very busy.  We took what we thought was a quiet moment to go through the lock.  This time we were going to start by going backwards so that we'd be facing the right way for the pump-out.  That worked very well, but by the time the tank had been emptied there were boats all around us, so we had our lunch before setting off.

We seemed to be almost at the end of the early afternoon rush when we left.  The hire boat that had been behind us in the lock caught us up in the first half mile and I waved them past.  We soon caught them again at the start of the "narrows".  This is a section of canal cut in to the rock which is only wide enough for one boat.  There are several passing places, but folk seem reluctant to use them.  Last time we came this way I found them to be a simple solution to a simple problem.

After the boat coming the other way emerged we followed the hire boat through, meeting nothing.  There were very few boats moving during our afternoon cruise to Cross Green, where we found rings to moor on outside the pub.