It Rained - Then It Rained Some More, (Lots more, in fact).

(Boat Sickle - posted by Alan)

We've not had "Sickle" back "home" again for very long at all - and it's time to start the next trip.

Waiting for Cosgrovve lock - should have shut that hatch!

We are off to the Gala at Stoke Bruerne this weekend - quite why I wasn't initially sure, given the look of the weather forecast before we left - although, re-checking this evening, perhaps Saturday may after all be quite reasonable, (we live in hope!).

Anyway we really need to be there tomorrow, evening, (Friday).  In normal circumstances, being only a day from "Sickle's" home mooring, we would have travelled on Friday morning, but the restrictions on lock usage are still in place on many of the flights on the Southern Grand Union, meaning you can't go into them any later than mid-afternoon.  Hence, once again we are boating in the rain today, to place ourselves comfortably near, for a leisurely day tomorrow.

"Tug No 2" actually offers considerable extra living space.

Just to make sure everyone got thoroughly wet, we need to have a car at Stoke, but didn't want to have to use two cars.  So, while I set off alone with "Sickle", Cath drove a car up to Cosgrove, and then started to cycle back down the canal towards me.  I reckoned that by the time we met she would have covered a few more miles than me, and that prediction proved pretty accurate.  It seems odd to be lighting the cabin range well into June, but today its warmth is much appreciated!

Inevitably just as we got to the one shallow lock at Cosgrove the heavens opened - it could have been a good idea to pull the cabin slide over as you got off the boat, Cath!  Anyway that has left us close enough to Stoke Bruerne we don't need to get any wetter today.  We are moored just in front of one of my other favourite tugs, on its way to the same event - Stewarts and Lloyds "Tug No 2", which stated life as Grand Union Canal Carrying Co "Algol", but has for many years been cut to a similar 40 foot length to "Sickle", (another boat I first photographed, and coveted, almost 40 years ago).

Fenny Stratford to Cosgrove
Miles: 11.8, Locks:1