Onwards

Another nice day especially as we are mid December, I pootled off around 10am, fairly uneventful but calm and peaceful, a couple of very low bridges, line the boat up duck down before you lose your head and hope you got it right, I did a bit of practicing, moored up, set off, reversed back and moored in the same spot, it’s a bit hit and miss at the moment but no real issues, sometimes good sometimes “that could have gone better”.

Then I came to my first Lock at Ash, the lock mooring was on a slight bend but I have to say I bought the boat in lovely and tied up, walked over to the gates, nearly went base over apex on the slippery flagstone (another note to self, caution wins over speed) .

The lock was against me (empty) so filled it up, bought the boat in, emptied the lock, watching the boat carefully, down the ladder onto the roof, took the boat out, shut the gates etc, it was all good, nervy, slow, but no problems. 1 down 28 to go on this canal. I did not think to take a picture I was too busy worrying so no pictorial evidence of my very first solo Lock, oh well too late, but Ash Lock, you will never be forgotten J.

Not long after that I went over the Blackwater Aqueduct, I took a couple of pictures.

  

The traffic beneath me seemed weired.

I am moored up for the night at the Canal Visitor centre at Mytchett, I had some paperwork to fill in and a licence to pay for, but my passage off the Basingstoke is all sorted, there are no other boats moving apart from the Christmas special here at the centre, it goes off every half an hour on a short run along the canal, the kids seem to be enjoying it!

To Date: 1 Lock   : 1 Swingbridge,