Long Itchington

Amazingly another delightful sunny day, generally very warm, up to 22.5C at lunch time. We set off very early (well just after 8 o'clock. We were ready but also wanted to make sure we were ahead of the slow boat from yesterday which tried to moor just behind us last night, failed and then went on to the top lock. As we arrived at the Napton flight there it was, moored over night on the water point!

Just after setting off

After the past few weeks of seeing very few boats, spring is definitely here and there was a steady stream of boats coming up the flight and we progressed very smoothly.

Marston Doles - Napton Top Lock

As with yesterday, some the pictures included in today's blog do not really add to the story except to rub it in just how great the weather and scenery are!

Mozarella Machine

Half way down the flight is a farm which specialises in buffalo. When we came down a few weeks ago we could not see them and wondered if the herd had been dispersed. Not so as at least two fields were well occupied - but only one came near enough to the canal for a proper portrait!

Just before the bottom lock these proud parents were carefully looking after their rather new brood.

We used the sani station immediately below the flight and then moved across to the opposite side for the water point - we had not filled up since leaving Lower Heyford.

Napton Windmill

OK, so we had a photo of Napton Windmill from afar in yesterday's blog and a nearer shot in the report on the way down but it looks so much better in the sunshine!

The clouds in front of us were beginning to take on different forms - although this did not last for long.

Brickyard Wharf

Brickyard Bridge was once alongside, guess what, a brick yard! It has long since closed and been demolished and only a few clues to the past can be seen in the limited remains of the wharf. Behind we could just make out where the clay had been dug out of the ground. See here for an interesting photo when in full working order. This link also reports that the derelict house was once the manager's house and office.

Napton Junction

This time at Napton Junction, Christine made the wide turn under the bridge and started along the long straight to Calcutt Locks.

Napton Reservoirs

The lack of leaves on the trees and shrubs meant that we had a better view of Napton reservoirs than we recall from previous times.

Below the locks, just after the first entrance to Ventnor Farm Marina we pulled in to the towpath to have a good lunch break. After some time we received en email from Andrew who thought that we were having a long break! (Today was the first time that he had been able to monitor our progress remotely using the new facilities that Mike has been adding to his CanalMap application. Later he also expressed concern that we might have sunk as the satellite image of a lock had no boat in it!)

Moored Boats at Hire Base

We were not impressed by the moorings at Kate Boats at Birdingbury - they left very little room as the boat on the left is on a permanent mooring. It would have been very difficult for a widebeam to come through. Of course, the hire bases need to be able to operate but this does seem to be stretching their rights beyond sensible limits.

We had not planned on going down the Stockton Locks today but as we were so early and we also believed that there was a shop selling newspapers at the bottom, we carried on.

Stockton Locks

Again, a steady supply of boats coming up meant that we progressed remarkably quickly. It took just over an hour for the eight Stockton locks followed by the two called Long Itchington even though they are barely separated and more than the locks in the flight.

 

Blue Lias Pub

Below Stockton Bottom lock is the Blue Lias pub, named after the special clay that is found near here. Nicholsons says that it was used in the construction of the Thames Embankment. It is noted for the prevalence of fossils and is more famously found in the cliffs at Lyme Regis.

Above Long Itchington bottom lock is the Warwickshire Fly Boat Co which seems to specialise in converted old working boats. Scenes like this line of bows would have been commonplace at one time.

As Mike worked the boat through this last lock of the day, Christine followed the sign to the shop, a genuine 'pop-to' shop as she was back by the time Mike had tied up so that he could close the gate after him. She not only returned with the newspaper but also a couple of choc ices and a report that it was an especially friendly shop.

A short while after we spotted a good stretch of bank (already well occupied by other boats) and pulled in for the night, not yet even four o'clock! hence this blog will appear rather earlier than usual.

Later, Mike took a walk along the nearby old railway line towards the former cement works at Southam. The tall chimney is an important landmark which we saw many times yesterday. He met two people walking a dog. One used to be an employee at one of the cement works - he suggested that the chimney here, together with that on the Cherwell north of Oxford, were used by German bombers on their way to Coventry.

Back at the boat and Mike looked up some of the history via the internet and it turns out to be remarkably fascinating - the works closed in 1999. We will not repeat the detail here but these are some links for anyone interested:

link link link link link link

9.3 miles - 22 locks