To Rickmansworth

Well that was the idea, some days things don’t go well, you’re not in the right mood or something, but things just don’t ‘click’. Today was one of those. I thought I had seen enough of Harefield it didn’t offer any reason to stay so at 10am I moved off my mooring and headed for Wide Water Lock (86) it had to be in my favour as a boat had gone past me around nine but the gates were shut so I moored up and walked up to the lock, there was someone just moving into it to go down past me, so I assisted him through and then walked back to my boat and headed towards the lock, he was mooring up but then to my surprise he started to walk towards the lock with windlass in hand, I waved him away but he insisted he help, now I don’t know the correct etiquette but I assume there is no need for that, once you are through the lock if someone is going in you carry on happy that you don’t need to go back and shut the gates. Anyway once in the lock and before I had a chance to tie up he opened the wrong paddle very quickly, this caused my boat to surge forward and across the lock, it took all my effort on the centre line to prevent it from bashing into the opposite side of the lock, I shouted No but he didn’t seem to understand he then opened the other paddle and walked off with a wave to me oblivious that his help had in fact been the wrong sort. 

Anyway I sorted myself out and moved on to Black Jacks Lock (85), things didn’t improve, I snagged a fender and had to fish it out of the lock, then I moved onto  Copper Mill Lock (84) stopping at the water point first and taking on a top up. 

This caused a bit of panic,

it’s a by-water coming in from the right just before the road bridge before Copper Mill Lock, I was expecting  it, my Pearson’s guide highlighted it and it was signposted by C&RT (Canal and River Trust)  it’s so lively they use it for canoe slalom but I tried to take a picture at the wrong time, yes,  a bit of panic as the boat was pushed violently towards the road bridge, quick recovery, full throttle, hard across with the tiller and missed the bridge by a few inches, hah hah made me laugh afterwards, taking pictures can be dangerous  when solo! Imagine the headline “Man in Narrowboat demolishes bridge trying to get a good picture of water!

I have moored a bit earlier than anticipated as it started to rain so I am just before Stockers Lock instead of beyond it, but I am glad I stopped because the rain came down heavily after I got moored up. Tomorrow I will see if there are better moorings nearer the town and then move up a bit if there are, there is a Tesco and I’m hoping to find a Post Office that will accept post forwarding (Post Restante).

The View Opposite

Stockers Lock

Views of my mooring from the side hatch, looking across the fields and ahead to the lock.

Total Today 3.5 Miles :  4 Locks