First of the boats back to base - and an unexpected choice to make

Very retrospective post for Monday 14th September

(Boat Flamingo - posted  by Alan)

After "Village at War" Cath and I stayed on on "Flamingo" overnight before the relatively short lock-free run back to her home mooring.

At the stage we did this our obvious assumption was that later in the week  "Sickle" would be moving in the opposite direction to return to her then base at Fenny Strattford.

However a casual enquiry to the moorings owner where we keep "Flamingo" prompted the unexpected reply that he could offer us a mooring for "Sickle" at the same place.

We have been dissatisfied with "Sickle's" mooring at Fenny Stratford for some time.  Shortly after we took it up a large section of bank fell in a couple of boats along, resulting in the boats that were on the site getting moved about so they could still moor, leaving the collapsed bank as it was.  There was never quite enough space for "Sickle", which actually had to be tied at one end to the entrance gate post. Subsequently parts of the bank alongside "Sickle" have fallen away, making it quite dangerous.  This was further exacerbated by the fact the mooring is nothing like the advertised 1 metre depth, and it is always a nightmare on returning to the mooring to get anywhere near the bank because of the accumulated silt.

BW and the CRT have alternated between saying the mooring is due for repair, or might in fact get closed due to lack of funding, and although it is a good location, and unusually secure for a CRT online mooring, it has become more and more problematic.

We had only just renewed our annual contract there, and any swap of mooring usually involves costs of a period of paying for two moorings, so is not to be taken too lightly.  There were advantages, and disadvantages to making the move, and we went home t contemplate them.


Stoke Bruerne to High House Wharf Weedon

Miles: 10.0, Locks: 0