I just love the word Clattercote, I’d like to live there just so I could say it more often! OK so I’m losing the plot, our daughter Karen, thinks so too as she has suggested we rename the boat “Adventure before Dementia” !
We got away from Banbury about 11am this morning after doing a wash at the Cotton Clouds launderette, having bacon & egg at Cafe Mocha (fantastic value at £2.35) running into Andy & Helen who also used to work at Oxfordshire Narrowboats and catching up with Dusty (Mark Boardman 07986 189 074) at Banbury Lock to pay him for the fuel he put in our tank yesterday whilst we were at Heyford, it’s a trusting community here on the canal 🙂
We set off and reached Cropredy uneventfully where we stopped for water & lunch and while backing up to the water point heard a ting-ting noise which, after groping down the weed hatch, turned out to be the remains of a fisherman’s landing net wrapped round our propeller, no sign of the fisherman, fortunately!
The canal was quite busy this afternoon with hire-boaters and others including the hotel boats Duke & Duchess who were quite a help as there were always willing hands to help at the locks. It quietened down after teatime and Joy was able to try taking the boat in & out of locks which she managed quite well with just a little moral encouragement from me 🙂
We moored up for the night just past the wonderfully named Clattercote Wharf.