At Last A Proper Lock Flight.

(With both boats - posted by Alan)
(Retrospective Post for Sunday 12th August

As already reported we are doing short days and not rushing.  Specifically at lock flights, with just two of us to manage two ex working boat and two large dogs that don't particularly like being on board as we pass through locks, we have decided to work each boat through singly.  We leave one locked up at our start point in the flight, and work the other one through.  Then we tie and lock that one up, and return to the second boat to work that through to rejoin the first.

We had no need to do all 11 Atherstone locks in a single day, (so 22 in total), so today elected to go down just 5 locks, and to tackle the remaining 6 tomorrow.  (How different this all sounds from some blog posts from past trips where we have tackled 30, 40 or even 50 locks in a day!) .

There is nothing much to report really.  The locks were busy.  Three volunteer lock keepers were on duty, one at each of the top three locks.  They were efficient and polite, but are still only basically monitoring and assisting at the top three locks, so at the remaining eight, people are still on their own anyway, so I'm not certain how much they help anybody who has difficulties with an 11 lock flight.

Atherstone is a pleasant well kept flight, and the locks easy to operate, although I have lost my nerve, and no longer attempt the step from one bottom gate to the other, (something Cath generally does without too many worries).  This does make me the rather less efficient lock operator, as I end up doing more walking around.

We had no problem finding adjacent moorings for both boats in the pound that gives easiest access to the main shops in the town.  As always in this sort of case Cath went shopping for supplies, and I ended up in Aldi buying things I had no idea I "needed" before I ventured in there.  To my surprise I also easily found a store selling Wellington Boots - something I thought I would need if I was to get into the "dry" dock at Grendon to look over the boats.

 

Springwood Haven to Atherstone
Miles per boat: 3.9, Miles both boats: 7.8, Locks: 10
Total Miles both boats: 90.1,  Total Locks both boats: 31