Strange Weather.....

.....strange lock palava, strange marina set-up.

The winter mooring rules whereby you can stay almost anywhere for 14 days ended on the 29^th February and I wanted to move anyway so despite the weather looking decidedly showery I set off at 10am in the dry.

A few minutes after that it was light rain, then 10 minutes later it was light snow, then the wind got up and as I approached the Aston lock the snow got heavier, I tied up and could see someone walking around the lock so I walked up to give him a hand, the chap was stood by the top gate trying to pull his boat forward......mmmm...... he had tied the stern to the small lock bridge and the rope was tight, I told him it was tight, I wondered what he was trying to achieve but said nothing, his stern was stopping me closing the gates for him, he wandered back along the lock, down the steps and looked up at his rope, puzzled, I watched him for a minute and then walked back to my boat to get a smoke, when I returned he had finally got all of his boat in the lock and was still wandering around, he had left his windlass on the boat, I opened the ground paddle at the top and the realised the bottom gate paddles were still up so I walked back and closed them for him, he walked around to me and told me he was trying to stop his bow from getting flooded and couldn’t see what he was doing from the stern, that’s why he had tied the boat to the bridge, oh well he was happy now, I finished locking him through then bought my boat in and as I was finishing another boat arrived so I left the bottom gates open for him and headed off.

I needed gas, diesel and smokeless fuel and Aston Marina was just ahead so I headed in, I regretted doing that, what a strange set-up they have for services, the diesel point is beneath a bridge that divides the large long marina into two halves, no signs but I saw it as I passed below the bridge and had to reverse back to it, the wind was now howling and it was snowing heavily, I was getting frustrated, I tied up and looked for a ‘service attendant’, none were visible nor was where you might find one, I spotted a chap working on a boat so walked over to him and asked, the Marina office I was told, it’s at the far end of the marina, I walked along, a fair walk in the wind and snow, when I got inside I said I would take sandwiches next time I go on an expedition. The chap and I then walked back to the boat, he filled my diesel, we then had to walk back to the office area to get gas and smokeless, I paid and walked back to my boat again, lugging the gas and smokeless on a trolley up an incline against the wind, probably bearable on a sunny day but what a stupid arrangement, of course as I finished loading it aboard the sun came out, wind still howling but dry again.

I headed out and went a mile further along until I found a nice spot to moor; the wind had beaten me after my moral was lowered by the exploits of the lock and the marina experience.

I have moored in a lovely spot though, but the wind is still howling and it has been hail stoning in between sunny moments.

Today’s mooring

Butterhill Bank

Totals today: 2 miles : 1 lock