Another grey and less-than-warm day but apart from a couple of occasions when there was dampness in the air, it remained dry.
Before we left, Mike walked up to the shops close to Croxley Station where he bought a newspaper. His instructions also included a request for bread but only if it is really good! (we had enough bake-off bread to keep us going). Sadly the small shops did not rise to this although one did have its own bake-off products which smelled fresh.
Where we had moored was opposite the site of the former Croxley Mill, now a modern housing estate. The innocent looking bollards beside the canal are actually lights and they are bright and stay on all night. See http://trmt.org.uk/research-edu/famous-people/john-dickinson/ for details of the history - there are plenty of very interesting images available via Google! One of the key ingredients for quality paper has long been china clay. It was brought here from Cornwall by train, with a short
branch line serving the factory.
http://www.britainfromabove.org.uk/image/epw039594 shows the mill from the air in 1932. It is interesting to note that the land opposite the mill, with the Metropolitan Line in the distance is all open fields. By 1953, the housing around the station had encroached close to the canal. (http://www.britainfromabove.org.uk/image/eaw048396 and eaw048393)
The former railway bridge at Cassiobridge is close to where the new Croxley Rail Link is expected to cross on a new viaduct. This will link the Metropolitan Line that is not well used on the section from Croxley to Watford (it terminates in what is now just a housing estate) but the new link will run through to Watford Junction where passengers will be able to connect with lots of main line trains. Alas, the latest reports are that the start has been put back again as politicians argue over who is to pay for it.
Looking back down from the next lock the nearest bridge is the present Metropolitan line and the new crossing should be just beyond the road bridge in the distance.
The canal follows the route of the River Gade for some distance and every so often the river either flows in or out of the canal. Here is one place just below Lock 76.
This is a slightly different view of Grove Mill than we have used before - the old building has been converted into several apartments - perhaps 8 or 9 cars were parked outside.
Of course we have to have the obligatory shot of Grove Bridge even if the lack of sunshine means that it does not look as picturesque as it sometimes does.
The golf course around the large house (now a hotel) was quite busy this morning.
We arrived at Lady Capel's Lock with a wide beam just leaving - with the top gates wide open. When we caught up with them a couple of locks later they said that they came from the River Lee and did not know anything about shutting gates. Although they did so for this lock they reverted back to their habits thereafter.
There was a pretty display of daffodils along the edge of this lock - shame about the ugly set of railings!
We moored at Hunton Bridge for lunch - second helpings of the chicken soup. Christine also baked off a baguette to supplement the remains of the loaf we started yesterday. It is always sad to see a sunken boat. This one, next to where we moored, is an old wooden boat and is full of water. It looks as if it has been abandoned here for a while.
Kings Langley Lock is another that received new gates over this winter. We had been warned earlier in the day that it is now very slow Io fill - it still does not have gate paddles but even so it is much slower than the others along this stretch.
We have been following the development of the former Nash Paper Mills site and this seems to be the final section. As is so often the case, the developers begin farthest away from the canal, keeping the prime sites to the last.
We continued through to Apsley. The pound above Apsley Bottom Lock where we hoped to moor was fully occupied - most of the boats looked as if they have been here for some while over the winter. Before going up the next lock we took a look and the next pound was also just as full. We planned top moor here so that we can go to the nearby church in the morning - after this it is another hour or so to Boxmoor. Fortunately, a local at the previous lock reminded us that the couple of moorings close to Sainsbury can be used overnight. The widebeam we followed earlier was occupying one space but there was just enough left for us. Not the prettiest of moorings but at least it is just a short walk to the church.
7.2 Miles - 13 Locks
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