Frustrating.....

.......but sorted eventually.

On Tuesday I set off around 10am for the fairly short cruise to Hemel Hempstead where I hoped to purchase a new basin for the shower room.

As you may have gathered I like to look at other boats while passing, the names, and anything interesting like top boxes or ladders or just the way they lay out their ropes, I guess we all do it but it's not polite to stare into the windows :-) anyway this name amused.

 The weather was ok as I passed beneath this imposing railway bridge and headed for Apsley

When I passed this way early in 2015 this was just a building site

The builders are still working on the section just out of shot, but the majority is finished and looked fully occupied.

Here's another, a bit blurry, sorry

Arriving at Apsley you pass beneath a fairly narrow bridge before the canal opens out to give a quite pleasant view of the waterway.

I moved through the first Apsley lock (66) and stopped on the service point to get rid of some rubbish and do a water fill before moving to my last lock of the day.

2nd Apsley lock (65)

While I was on the landing I took a snap of the stern of the wide beam that you can see in the picture above, I liked the chains and skulls etc, must be a pirate aboard.....arrrrrrr.

Skull and crossbones flag and small skulls hanging of the chain.

As is to be expected the wind that had been forecast began just as I was locking through, and of course this lock needed to be left empty due to leakage, so it necessitated walking back to open the bottom paddles, I had to tie my stern to stop the boat disappearing, but the wind still managed to blow me across the canal at a 45degree angle by the time I'd returned, no real problem though just a bit more work!

I'm  moored up where I was on the downward leg, just before lock 64, it's handy for the town and my plans.

Totals this post: 2.5 miles : 5 locks

Project update.

The frustration referred to was my inability to purchase my choice of basin NOW, when a website says 'in stock' I for some reason expect it to be 'in stock' at the store, sadly this is not the case sometimes and actually it means 'in stock, somewhere, possibly in this country, but not definitely, and definitely not in stock in the store' , I should have been able to work that out but I am a failure :-(

I eventually sourced one, paying more ££'s than I wanted to, but hey it's only money right.
A bit of a struggle later and this is where I am with it now.

Before,.... oooohhh that's exciting !!

Can you see what I did? yep I put the laundry basket in view :-)

I manufactured the base, oh how posh, I always used to make things, now I manufacture them, from recycled bits, again from the bedroom. Still more to do, the area to the left is the next bit but I haven't worked out what exactly I am doing there.

And for anyone interested this is what lurks behind the door

Being a boat, a 12volt pump discharges the waste water
and takes up a fair amount of room, it was all a bit tight.

I don't know why, but whenever I fit a sink or a basin I always seem to get a leak on the actual waste fitting, this was no different, frustrating as there is little room inside or outside the unit, but I cured it in the end, but the resut is my poor old weak back is complaining, a rest day tomorrow methinks.