At one stage we had not expected to be able to return to the boat until late Friday or Saturday. However, Mike's meeting on Friday was cancelled and Christine found that there were not too many bookings for CAB on Thursday. As a result we were able to leave first thing today and were on the road by 8.45.
As we finished loading the car, heavy rain arrived but we managed to overtake its progress before we reached Exeter. Until then it was quite difficult driving.
Apart from one brief stop we made good progress and arrived at Horton Bridge almost to the minute of the time predicted as we left Exeter services.
We had left the boat a short distance from Horton Bridge - too far to want to carry things so we moved the boat up to the Visitor Moorings just after the bridge and were able to stop the car just a few metres away.
Unloading was straightforward and we were able to set off well before 3 o'clock. Although there are no locks on this long pound until Wootton Rivers, we did have a couple of swing bridges. The previous hire boat passing through the bridges seemed to take rather literally the instruction to tighten the screw fixing that keeps the bridges closed. Normally they are 'finger tight' but at the first Mike had to return to the boat to collect a windlass to shift it!
No long after the bridges, the rain eventually caught up with us and continued heavy until we moored. It was very much cooler as well.
Just after a bridge where the towpath changes sides, we were perplexed to note that the grass had been cut on the non-towpath side whilst the proper towpath was almost overgrown! Did someone not spot the change?
We may have mentioned it when coming this way before, but at times the unchecked reeds growing rampantly on both sides reduce the navigable width of the canal quite substantially. Fortunately there was little traffic on the move today and we did not meet anything in the narrowest sections.
Nicholsons reports that Pickled Hill has terracing that dates back to Celtic and medieval times.
Just before passing through Lady's Bridge an interesting chimney can be seen at one end of the nearby house.
Lady's Bridge is so named because the provision of an ornate bridge was agreed by the company building the canal to appease a local landed lady who was otherwise objecting to the construction.
Initially we had not been able to pick up a mobile signal but during the afternoon caught up on emails. Alas, our mooring spot (there are not enough options to be too choosy!) is not only mobile-free but also unlikely to find a satellite tv signal. Not that there seems much to watch anyway.
8.5 miles - 0 locks
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