We arrived at the canal boat at the top of Lowsonford lock. We were next to a pub called The Fleur de Lys, near Henley in Arden. We all found our cabins (not a lot of room, as is normal on a canal boat) we were given a picture of the boat showing where everything is. By the time we had all got sorted it was getting a little late to set off. So we decided to stay moored where we were and take a walk to the pub while Wendy prepared the evening meal.
We got up and had breakfast and a talk about the canal boat and the 'rules' of using a narrow boat. We then set off and travelled through the Lowsonford flight of locks all the way to the bottom lock. Tom went for a long run along the bank, following the boat. Anna, Adrian and John helped with the locks. Wendy drove the boat in the morning. We stopped for a sandwich lunch and then continued along the canal. Wendy cooked roast pork with all the trimmings and a lemon cheesecake for dessert. In the evening we watched a video.
Today we went through the Lapworth locks, a total of 18 ! The full team was helping with the locks. The ladies took a walk to a canal shop. We stopped at The Wharf Tavern for a lovely lunch before continuing on our way. In the evening we had a choice of spaghetti bolognaise or a casserole followed by bread and butter pudding. Then we had a quiz, a game and some funny stories.
An early start for us today as we have to get through the tunnel before we can turn around. When you are on the canal boat you need to plan in advance to ensure you can find the mooring you want at the end of the day. Once we have turned around we will go back through the tunnel and then on to do the locks again. Great fun with lots of "whooping" and "shreaking" and laughs to hear all the echoes from the tunnel. As you will see from the picture it went very dark while in the tunnel.
Today the weather was good and we travelled along doing the locks as we went, we are all getting the hang of this ! We stopped for a BBQ lunch and later we made a 'pit stop' at The Nags Head pub for drinks. Unfortunately the menu was not to everyone's taste at the pub so instead we opted for yummy Fish & Chips ( or pie & chips) which we bought from the local Chip shop. We were moored near to the shop so we took our meal back to the boat. This was a lovely last meal for the group.
Our last day and we have moored back at Wootton Wawen where we started our momentous holiday. We handed the boat back to the Anglo Welsh narrowboat company and said our goodbyes and made our way back home.
Our BBQ lunch during the holiday
