Bartimaeus

We drove on to Worksop so that we were conveniently placed for our guests’ arrival.  The last pound before we reached the town was unusually low.  A short and narrow aqueduct seemed to be particularly difficult to traverse – the best speed we could manage was well under 1 mph.  We were nearly at the lock when we met a boat coming the other way.  I ran aground trying to let him pass, but the easiest thing seemed to be to sit and wait.  As he came by he indicated that there was another boat behind.  The second driver warned us that there was a trolley and a motorbike under the next bridge.  I don’t know how he thought he knew that, the water was far too muddy to see below the surface.  The young lad magnet fishing with his mum was very excited at the idea of landing himself a motorbike.

We got through the lock without any trouble and found a mooring in a handy spot for the train station.  Our guests arrived in time for dinner and a stroll around the Sandhill Lake, a former gravel pit which is now a picturesque lake in the middle of town.

The following day we set off along the canal to Shireoaks.  Working through narrow locks with a crew of four is hugely faster than wide locks with just the two of us.  We’d found the water point and filled the tank by lunch time, but decided that we didn’t want to start on the next lock-heavy section of canal that day.  Meanwhile I had an update from Canal and River Trust (CRT) saying that the section we had struggled through was now closed due to the shortage of water.

We had an afternoon stroll along the canal, and noticed a fallen tree that was partially blocking the canal.  I was sure we’d be able to squeeze by, and Roland was sure it would take no time to clear with a saw.  We walked on and found the cafe, by which time I was very keen for an ice cream.  We all thought the lady was joking when she said she’d run out, but it turned out to be true.  Fortunately we found our way instead to the Hewlett Arms which was a large building with limited opening hours.  It didn’t look open when we arrived, but looks can be deceptive.  The local beer was very refreshing.

The next day we set off as early as we could manage, hoping to avoid the heat of the day.  First stop was delivering Roland and a saw to attack the tree.

Roland made surprisingly quick work of slicing off enough branches to allow easy passage.  As we pulled the boat towards the tree, the stern was pushed against the bank, allowing Clare and Mugs to hop off.  I was then able to use the boat hook to deliver the cut branches to the bank.  They were neatly lined up along the hedge so as not to block the towpath.

We were soon on our way, with a flight of twenty three locks to occupy us.  Roland took the tiller leaving the rest of us to work the locks.  Having three crew members on shore made the flight easy.  One crew member at each side of the lock, and a third getting the next one ready is an ideal arrangement.  We reached the ice cream shop again in time for morning coffee.  I’d promised the proprietor we would come back, but unfortunately we were far too early.  The shop was shut and the delivery wasn’t due for some time, so we pressed on.

We reached the top of the flight ready for our lunch, but not too late for it.  We tied ourselves to the lock bollards, pretty confident that nobody else would come along while we were eating.  The weed in the first few boat lengths gave way to clear water which made for slow but easy cruising for the rest of the way.  We eventually reached a sign at a winding hole that warned that the towpath was inaccessible and there were no turning points beyond.

We turned and moored up for the day.  We had an exploratory walk along the towpath and found the end of the canal.  Continuing in the same direction we found horses drinking from what we assumed was what remained of the canal beyond the tunnel.

We subsequently realised that this was not the canal at all.  It was the feeder stream for the canal coming from the nearby reservoir.  The canal at this point was some distance underground in the tunnel which was more than a mile and a half long.  We found our way back via a nettle and bramble covered path on the other side of the canal.  It brought us back via a pub where we quenched our thirst before returning to the boat.

The following day we started by reversing the boat along the remaining length of the canal.  Another boater at the mooring told us that he had done this and found it quite straightforward.  Bartimaeus goes backwards very easily, and the bow thruster makes it straightforward.  While reversing we spotted a kingfisher flying away from us, making the manoeuvre well worthwhile.

We returned to our overnight mooring.  I saw a CRT employee walking along the towpath and asked him if he knew anything more about the closure at Worksop.  He phoned a colleague and confirmed that there was still a problem with a broken paddle.  They didn’t know when it would be fixed but it would probably be soon.  Meanwhile we are officially trapped on a few miles of canal.

We were quite near a village called Rhodesia, but nearer was a village called Wales.  We explored on foot and found a nice cafe there for our lunch, but couldn’t identify the pub another boater had suggested.  In the evening we identified The Beehive in Harthill as a possible dinner venue.  We phoned to confirm they were serving and were told they were, but we had under an hour to get there.  It was a pleasant walk, even though we were forced to do it at a pace that was a little too brisk.  It was worth the effort though, we all enjoyed our meals and the ale on tap was The Bees Knees (other drinks were available).