Hatton Locks

Friday, 24 September 2010 16:42

O Windows!

Laptops are a wonderful invention.... until they go wrong! For some time now mine has not been accepting updates from Micro$oft's Windows Updates and despite following the instructions about what to do in such circumstances, the only solution was to format the hard drive and reinstall everything.

So I decided that once I had descended the Hatton flight of locks on the Grand Union Canal I would reward myself with a new laptop installation. Big Mistake!!!!

Several days later everything is nearly ship-shape again, but there are still a few things to tidy up. One decision that I made was that the pictures on the camera would have to wait until I was ready for them, so I am grateful to Gill from narrowboat Petroc for a few pictures to whet your appetite for the day that Epiphany went down this marvel of the waterways. So this is going to be a holding blog, to record that I did it, rather than the usual illustrated narrative that must wait a few days.

It was a gloriously sunny day - one for singing "It's a Hallelujah day!" - and a perfect one to welcome friends to act as lock wheelers (though they didn't have bikes, I presume the term still applies). I set off ahead of narrowboat Petroc and moored up at the top of the locks to fill and empty. The former took very little time, as I had filled the water tank, as you may recall, near the bottom of the Lapworth flight only a few days earlier; with my absence for the weekend, I was soon ready for the off, and my crew were windlasses-ready. However, two boats had interleaved themselves ahead of Petroc, so on arrival Gill suggested they followed the single boat that had just entered the flight, followed by the Cornish mini-flotilla, us having done the necessary ablutions too.

Proof of the weather at Lock 45

Proof that there are more photos to come

Although some might say that I had the easy job, hardly turning a windlass all day, I kept myself busy recording the event for Fi and her readers, messaging Fi in hospital on progress and arranging for an unacceptably late delivery from Ikea for Craig:

One hand on the tiller, the other on the phone (legal? - I think so!)

Excuse me while I get back to my IT rebuild .... more follows.