Bradford-on-Avon

Today's Canal : Kennet and Avon

As we set off a slight drizzle arrived but quickly cleared. Before long the skies cleared and we a wonderful bight, sunny and definitely warm day until late afternoon when clouds returned.

Grey start

We were in no hurry to set off but it was not long after 10 when we cast off. Although there were no locks for a while, a couple of swing bridges were not far away. These proved to be comparatively easy to move.

Since we were on this canal four years ago, almost all of the manual swing bridges have been fitted with a new design of restraint. In theory they need a windlass to operate but so far all of them can be unscrewed by hand.

There are five locks in the Seend flight. The top lock has an attractive cottage, now let for self-catering and much extended from the original, although the new blends well with the old.

Just a little further down the flight and the sun really came out - time for sun cream and a hat. We shared the last three locks with a shared ownership boat that was, we gathered, on a schedule. Or at least, the skipper was - crew were no so sure!

Lowes Swing Bridge

Below the locks came three swing bridges. We had been warned that they were difficult and indeed that proved to be the case. Stones have been piled on one end in an attempt to balance it. As it happened, the middle bridge was the worst (it even has a notice to say so!), but it was our turn to sail through!

Between the bridges and the two Semington Locks is a new aqueduct over a section of the A360 which was opened in 2004. Although divided by a central island rather like the North Circular aqueduct on the Paddington Branch of the Grand Union, only one side here is navigable. (Wrong - see blog for the return trip)

The lower lock has a rather substantial cottage. This, however, was at one time Semington Junction with the former Wilts and Berks canal leaving to make its northerly journey to Abingdon.

Good visitor moorings below the lock were timely as we were looking for our lunch stop, a little later than planned.

This heron did a good job of pretending to be a statue! It moved not at all as we and some cyclists went by.

Our next objective was The Boatyard at Hilperton which Christine and Andrew had driven to a couple of days ago. Both of the owners emerged from a moored boat, keen to serve us. They were very chatty and did their very best to make sure we got what we wanted. They readily exchanged the wrong-size belts (we really do have a spare now!) and we also bought a new mooring rope. Although not quite the size we wanted (16mm rather than 14mm as the only other size they had was 12mm and that seemed too thin). We also filled up with diesel as they famously have a good price, today some 13p a litre cheaper than the marina a few hundred metres further along!

The closer we were to Bradford, the more frequent the moored boats and the more likely that they looked fairly static. From here onwards is the section which has received a lot of attention in the last couple of years or so as CRT seek to find a way of controlling the situation within the out-dated laws which they have inherited. There are plenty of moorers here ready to challenge any attempt to encourage them to conform with a reasonable notion of continuous cruising - some seem to think that so long as they mover perhaps once or twice a year, for a few hundred metres, then this counts as continuously cruising!

However, we did not pass any visitor mooring that did not have at least one space, quite late in the afternoon. We pulled in just after Bridge 171 as there is a Sainsbury store close by. In the end we decided to stay put even though we had a rather poor section of the moorings. At least one end in close to a firm piece of bank with a mooring ring!

9.4 miles - 7 locks