A wet day in the Eastend

It was pouring with rain when we woke this morning, but the forecast showed that this would lessen by late morning, promting us to have a bit of a lie in. After breakfast we checked the met office site which showed the rain getting worse as the day wore on, prompting us to get a move on and set off. The met office lied - it rained for the early part of the trip and lessended significantly as the day wore on - we should have stuck to plan A!

Two cute shags and a coot

We headed south, deeper into north London, passing through some green countryside and some dismal industrial areas.


We passed this group enjoying a liquid lunch as we approached the North Circular from below

Our dog is bigger than yours!

We decided to take advantage of the facilities at Stonebridge lock, taking on water, emptying the loo and dumping the rubbish. Downstream we could see Canal & River Trust (C&RT) staff busy around the lock but we didn't take much notice - big mistake! Filling the water tank took ages and by the time we set off for the lock, the C&RT staff were packing up to to leave. It transpired that the automatic lock was out of action and we would have to use the manual lock. The C&RT staff had been there all day helping people through the lock aided by a powerful motorised windlass to operate the paddles and gates. We were going to have to operate it ourselves and it was seriously hard work. Opening a paddle involved winding a hydraulic pump for several minutes and it was extremely hard to turn. Thankfully one of the C&RT staff took pity on us and helped with the winding but it still took about half an hour to get through.

Angela wrestling with one of the hydraulic pumps



Operating instructions give no clue to the magnitude of the task!

3cm long cute lock dwelling insect

We finally made it through the lock and sailed on through Tottenham enjoying some sunshine along the way. We decided not to press on to Limehouse where there is little opportunity to walk the dogs and so stopped at Walthamstow Marshes, finding a gap in a long line of moored boats, and have moored against a bank of deep undergrowth.


Should have brought a strimmer

Angela took the dogs out into the undergrowth to relieve themselves whilst I finished hacking back weeds to find ground into which mooring pins could be hammered. After a cup of tea, we decided to walk to the Anchor and Hope pub which was opposite us. This turned out to be quite a trek along the river to the nearest footbridge and then back up the other side - about a mile each way. However, the dogs enjoyed themselves and the pint at the end made the trip well worth it.


We enjoyed a pint sitting here in the rain

View of Banjo across the river with marshes beyond

We made it back to the boat and Angela made us a gorgeous pizza. While we were eating it, we could hear voices and someone shouting commands.

These Sea Cadets were having loads of fun weaving about the river

We will set off earlier than usual in the morning, to cover the remaining few miles to Limehouse where we are due to meet up with Philip around noon. We then need to make final preparations for the trip up the Thames which we are scheduled to begin at about 15:00. Check radio, attach anchor, check oil and water, don life jackets and dig out navigation notes....