On the Coventry

We passed through Hawkesbury Junction last Monday and have been making our way up the Coventry.  Hawkesbury Junction is a notoriously sharp turn and the Greyhound Pub is well situated for all the drinkers to watch and laugh at skippers who ‘mess up’!

 

As we were going down the Atherstone flight of eleven locks we met a single-handed boatman who has well and truly got it sussed!

He has a clever little remote-control gizmo that enables him to drive his boat backwards and forwards while the boat is in the lock and he is on the bank operating the gates and paddles. 

   Clever eh?   

Aren't we all glad it’s summer?!!   The showers keep coming, it’s dull and really quite chilly.  Time to gather some fuel I thought.  Have yet to persuade him to use some of it though. 

Passing Alvecote marina there were still lots of old working boats moored up following their celebratory ‘gathering’ last weekend.  It’s special to see so many together in one place.  They looked fantastic.              

NOW FOR SOMETHING POTENTIALLY CONTENTIOUS ………..

I’m all for the canal environment being used and enjoyed by a diversity of interested parties and, like the civilised, intelligent race we are, we all need to tolerate and respect each other’s interests.  It’s really good to see the canals being used not only by boaters but also by fishermen, joggers, dog walkers, ramblers and cyclists.  No one group is any more important than another …………… or is it?

Can they really DO this?

Can they really prevent boats going through a section of the canal for 10 hours?  If they can then I really hope that someone will think to inform all hire boat companies within a wide radius so that they can pass this information onto their hirers.  Hirers and private boat owners alike could find their schedules seriously impeded.  Hopefully they don’t actually mean to prevent boat passage, just boats being moored along this section of tow path?  That would be fair enough.

AND ….What about the way in which this notice is attached to the lovely LIVE oak tree?   It’s been screwed to the trunk of the tree in four places! Speared! The eejit who put this notice up obviously has no respect for nature.  Anyone with half a brain knows that damaging the bark of a tree like this can leave it open to infection and disease.  At this moment in time I’m feeling very concerned for the fish!      

Time to take the dogs for a walk I think!