We’ve decided to take PhoenixIII back to Braunston this weekend. The forecast for next week is somewhat unsettled and that casts a doubt over whether she will be blacked and back in the water for next weekend. Rather than face uncertainty, we will just have to put the hull blacking off until another time. After dropping the car off at Braunston marina we drove back to Hinckley where we settled our mooring fees and filled the tank with diesel. Shortly after five, we started our journey towards Marston junction and the Coventry canal. With darkness due around eight, we planned to find a mooring before the turn. Stopping briefly before bridge thirteen, we dropped a bag of tomatoes fresh from the greenhouse off with our old mate Jim. We met a couple of Ashby boats heading back to base as well as a pair of working boats heading for the festival at Shackerstone. At half past six we found our mooring just beyond bridge four and the West coast main line. There was just time for dinner on the back deck before the sun went down and we retired to the lounge for the evening.

We awoke to another beautiful sunny day and after some breakfast we untied and left our mooring just after 10 o’clock. We thoroughly enjoyed the trip to Marston Junction where we met a convoy of boats heading south, the first three were all from the Ashby hire fleet, heaven help the fourth in line. We plodded on up the Ashby but the time just slipped by and soon the warehouses on the A5 came into sight. We pulled up at the Limekilns despite the fact that all the moorings were full and tied on to Jim’s boat Billie. One or two people expressed concern that we had tied up there and another boater offered a mooring alongside his. Jim has a fearsome reputation in these parts but he’s our friend and when he appeared, of course there was no problem. So we sat and had a couple of drinks with him and his friend Rosie. It took a few minutes for the penny to drop when we realised that we were in the presence of the most famous canal pair on television, Rosie and Jim.

We started the last leg of our journey with the final half an hour back to Trinity marina. The trip had been excellent, it all seemed too good to be true and unfortunately that turned out to be the case. Moments after we turned into the marina, an alarm went off indicating that the engine was overheating. We switched off and drifted until we came to rest alongside the posts at the end of the pontoons. We then manouvered using poles and ropes into our new temporary berth on ‘C’ Pontoon.

A subsequent inspection found a split hose which was replaced by the installer, so no harm done!

We had no more trouble overnight and awoke refreshed on Saturday ready for the next leg of our journey. After a delicious plateful of bacon and eggs we set off just before nine o’clock. Needlessly, I kept checking the control panel but the new engine was behaving perfectly as we made our way north on the Oxford canal. It is difficult to put into words the feeling of freedom that boating brings and on this occasion that freedom was enhanced by the feeling that our mechanical problems were well and truly behind us. We each showered along the way making the best use of the hot water being generated. There was a light rain shower just after one o’clock but by that time we had tied up after making the turn at Hawkesbury.

After spending another lovely weekend in Braunston Marina we moved the boat up to the bottom lock on the afternoon of Sunday 7th August. By Saturday 13th Justin (JG Marine) had removed the engine and welded in a pair of new engine rails. The new engine was delivered on Tuesday of the following week and by Thursday afternoon it was installed and ready to go. Later that evening we moved our boat the short distance back into the marina. The new beta38 engine seemed so much quieter than the old CMA and once again we were happy.

Friday afternoon saw us back in Braunston ready for yet another maiden voyage, this time with a new engine. After transferring our stuff from the car we were ready to set off at half past two. A long slow crawl past the many moored boats around Braunston meant that it took us more than half an hour to get under the A45 road bridge. Seven red spires were adorning the off side of the canal, some artists work no doubt. We ploughed on through the afternoon sunshine grinning and laughing as we went along, appreciative of the fact that our mechanical troubles were well and truly behind us.

There was a decent amount of traffic around as we made our way along the north oxford canal. We saw that the new marina at Barby was open although it needs a lot of work still before it becomes fully established.

After passing through the locks at Hillmorton, now singles rather than pairs, we trundled on to Rugby where we moored for the night near bridge 58. We took a walk down to the nearby Tesco before returning to the boat for our evening meal.

Later, as we sat and enjoyed some music we found ourselves under attack from some local youths who had decided to throw missiles at our boat. Armed with a halogen torch, Sue gave chase to those brave souls who could have been no more than eleven or twelve years old. They ran off into the night and that was the last we saw of them.

When we bought our narrowboat we inherited all manner of items left behind by previous owners. One of those items is a board game called “The Narrowboat Game”. We played the game and it is enjoyable without being too demanding. Subsequent internet searches yielded no clues about the background to the game. The only clues are in the box, The rule book has some credits on the back stating that the original concept was by Sue Harvey while Roy Harvey designed and produced it, the copyright is theirs, dated 1994. There is a leaflet in the box too which states:

“The Exciting Boating Game for all the family.

Captain your own narrowboat around the canal system. There are locks to negotiate, a tunnel to go through, an aqueduct to cross, as well as hazard squares and detour squares to avoid. Breakdown vans are called to repair your boat in the event of a mishap. Climb aboard and select your one or two week narrowboating holiday and Good Luck!

This family boating board game is for children of all ages. However the game contains small playing pieces and is unsuitable for small children. We recommend the playing age is from 7 upwards.

Distributed on the Inland Waterways by LOCKMASTER CRAFTS”

Sunday 10th July

I thought that it was time to complete the story of how we got back to Braunston despite having a faulty gearbox. After we tied up between locks five and six near Atherstone we decided to have a break, after all this was supposed to be our summer holiday! On Tuesday we strolled into the town of Atherstone and just put the mechanical problems behind us for a few hours. After wandering around the market we found ourselves drifting once again in the direction of the Red Lion and finding sanctuary in the Library there. We spent the evening back on the boat thinking about the rest of our journey, the situation wasn’t ideal but we were on familiar waters with hardly any locks to negotiate, heading in the right direction.

The weather was fair again on Wednesday so we had another wander around Atherstone before having lunch in our favourite venue, The Red Lion. There are many pubs and eateries in Atherstone but to be perfectly honest we haven’t tried any other simply because we have always enjoyed good food, friendly service and a warm welcome in a lovely setting. After lunch we did a bit of shopping before returning to the boat where we prepared for the next part of our journey. We crept up the remaining five locks before stopping at the top to take on water, empty the toilet and chuck the rubbish. There was a queue of boats waiting to descend when a pair of ex working boats chugged past them all and smashed into the top lock gate, claiming first place for the descent. Luckily (for them) this didn’t directly affect us so we edged past them in the opposite direction and left the other boaters to chunter. Unfortunately there are a number of ex working boat owners who seem to think that they have a right to some priority over leisure boaters. That isn’t the case and their boats are just leisure craft too. Oh, and for the record, had we been in that queue, they would have been reversing the “pair” to the back of it even if some force, reasonable or otherwise had been needed. We ended our day back at Springwood Haven where we moored up for the night.

On Thursday morning I took a walk over to the marina and had a talk with the mechanic there about our gearbox problem. He told me that the gearbox we had was still in production but any work we needed would have to be done there. We sorted ourselves out and plodded on down the Coventry canal through Nuneaton, past the entrance to the Ashby canal at Marston Jabbett and on to Sutton stop. We had a slight delay at the shallow lock and then we made our way along the North Oxford before being luckily enough to find a mooring at Ansty, almost in the place that we had abandoned ship in November 2010. We spent some time outside watching the ducks and moorhens messing about on the water.

The weather forecasters had predicted showers for Friday but I was feeling lucky so we untied and headed back to base. We weren’t lucky and after a few sharp showers, the heavens opened in the early afternoon and I got soaked, should have stayed put I suppose!

We passed Treena and Stuart on Carpe Diem heading north after we had passed through Rugby and then we saw another of our old pals, Serendipity Steve (Plays Tuba, Drives Trucks and Drinks Beer) tied up somewhere south of Hillmorton. We eventually reached the marina at half past five, tied up and after eating our evening meal, flopped in front of the telly for a while before turning in for the night.

Saturday morning dawned and after our customary morning cuppa, we got dressed and set off on our trek to get the car back from our house. The trip involved a bus trip from Braunston to Rugby railway station which took forty five minutes and then we drank coffee while we waited another fifty minutes for the train to Nuneaton. The train journey to Nuneaton only lasted twelve minutes and a fair chunk of that runs parallel to the canal that we had travelled along the previous day. Alighting at Nuneaton, we walked across the car park and down the road to the bus station where we caught the 158 service which would get us back to within walking distance of our home and the car. After dealing with the post and checking out the produce in the garden we headed back to Braunston. We’ve decided to live on the boat for the second week of the holiday, get some expert opinion on the gearbox and then decide on whether to repair it or to replace it and the engine. This might seem like a drastic move but we intend to keep Phoenix III for another five or six years and we are fed up of being blighted by the mechanical problems associated with running an obsolete engine and gearbox both of which were built in China. A modern engine and drive-train should bring us some peace of mind and improve the sale-ability of the boat when the time comes.

Monday 4th July

Of course I’m writing this with the benefit of knowing how the day turned out but you, dear reader will have to start at the beginning. We left Alvecote at 8am and made our way to Fazeley junction, a journey of two hours, two miles and two locks. After carrying out our chores at BW Tamworth we turned and made our way back to the junction. At this moment I noticed that there was a problem with the transmission, reverse was very poor but forward gear seemed alright. We moored up just around the corner and I surveyed the situation. With oil in the bilge, it was clear that the hydraulic gearbox had developed a problem. We called Streethay Wharf who sent out a marine engineer who checked the box over and decided that we would be safe to carry on if we checked the oil level regularly. Having gained this peace of mind we set off again in the direction of Birmingham. We had no issues at all on our journey towards Curdworth but after waiting for the lock at the bottom of the flight, it was clear that the problem had returned. We emptied the lock and reversed (slowly) out and passing two moored boats, we eventually reached the winding hole where with the assistance of one of the boaters we managed to turn around.

Once we had turned I put some more oil in the gearbox and we were off again, heading back to fazeley. At this stage i had a theory that the oil loss had something to do with engaging reverse gear. We ploughed on unhindered back to the junction and back on to the Coventry canal. When we reached the two locks at Glascote I was careful to keep away from reverse gear, in the event this proved to be a mistake, in actual fact the oil loss was happening when the box was in neutral. Clearing the top lock with an oil top up we ploughed on through the outskirts of Tamworth, heading for the bottom of the Atherstone flight. We reached our intended destination about 7pm and decided to ascend the first six locks to moor near the town.

Saturday 2nd July

So finally the waiting was over. With a few finishing touches, Cliff was ready to give us custody of Phoenix III. We pulled her out of the polytunnel that had been her home for the month of June, started the engine and turned her around ready for the start of her journey back to Braunston.

As I left the marina on the water, painter Cliff and carpenter Rick drove out in Cliff’s jeep with Sue taking the car back to Hinckley. I next saw Cliff as I passed through Stoke Golding wharf, home of the Ashby boat company. He sat in his jeep with a beaming smile, as proud as punch of his latest creation.

An hour later and I was pulling in at our old home, the Trinity marina. Sue of course was already there waiting for me with a cold pint of Stella Artois. After dieseling up and buying some gas we were on our way and we cracked open a bottle of bubbly to celebrate. We made a short stop for water just after the Limekilns bridge and then we were really underway with our holiday. We made the most of the summer weather as we laughed and joked our way along the Coventry canal through Nuneaton before tying up opposite Springwood Haven marina.

Sunday 3rd July

We were both awake by 6.30 so after our customary cup of tea, we got up, untied and headed off in the direction of Atherstone. The journey from Springwood Haven to Atherstone only takes an hour so just after half past eight we found ourselves in the top lock, the first of eleven on the Atherstone flight. We didn’t encounter enough boats coming up to make the descent easy but by midday we had reached the bottom of the hill. From there on in it was a pleasant cruise through Polesworth and on to Alvecote where we tied up opposite the Samuel Barlow pub.

So finally the waiting was over. With a few finishing touches, Cliff was ready to give us custody of Phoenix III. We pulled her out of the polytunnel that had been her home for the month of June, started the engine and turned her around ready for the start of her journey back to Braunston.

As I left the marina on the water, painter Cliff and carpenter Rick drove out in Cliff’s jeep with Sue taking the car back to Hinckley. I next saw Cliff as I passed through Stoke Golding wharf, home of the Ashby boat company. He sat in his jeep with a beaming smile, as proud as punch of his latest creation.

An hour later and I was pulling in at our old home, the Trinity marina. Sue of course was already there waiting for me with a cold pint of Stella Artois. After dieseling up and buying some gas we were on our way and we cracked open a bottle of bubbly to celebrate. We made a short stop for water just after the Limekilns bridge and then we were really underway with our holiday. We made the most of the summer weather as we laughed and joked our way along the Coventry canal through Nuneaton before tying up opposite Springwood Haven marina.

We discovered quite by accident that there was to be a stoppage on the Oxford canal at Ansty while Bridge 15 behind the Rose and Castle pub was demolished. This forced us into making the decision to move the boat earlier than we had intended back to the Ashby canal for repainting later in the month. We were undecided as to when we should start our journey but after dinner on Friday evening, we cast off and left Braunston marina hoping that we would be back for the historic boat gathering at the end of June. We could only travel for a couple of hours before darkness prevented further progress but that was enough to get us to Hillmorton top lock where we moored for the night.

There were showers forecast for Saturday, the first real rain for a month but the lengthening days at this time of year meant that we knew we would complete our trip with time to spare. We had a good start, meeting a couple of boats coming up the flight which eased the descent for us. A light drizzle accompanied us as we skirted our way around Rugby and we stopped for breakfast around ten o’clock. The heavens opened shortly after we had eaten our cooked breakfast so we waited until the rain had subsided before untying once again and setting off, the time was half past eleven. We have travelled this section of the North Oxford many times before so we knew that we had three hours cruising to reach the condemned bridge at Ansty. The sky was clearing as we approached Newbold on Avon and by the time we left the northern portal of the Newbold tunnel a few minutes later, we had a summer’s day to enjoy. It was all very enjoyable as we made our way through the Warwickshire countryside in the early May sunshine. We were relieved to see that the bridge was still standing as we reached Ansty and once we had passed under it we knew that our mission was essentially over. We carried on and considered ourselves lucky to find a mooring just before the lock at Sutton stop. Despite the close proximity of the famous Greyhound pub, we were going nowhere after a day’s cruising so we ate dinner and showered before settling down for the evening.

A lot of rain fell during the night but it had passed over by the time we were up and about at eight o’clock. We waited for historic boat and butty pair, Nuneaton and Brighton to clear the lock before we moved through and then around the 180 degree turn on to the Coventry canal. It took the usual hour to reach Marston junction and the beginning of the Ashby canal. We have lost count of the number of Sundays we have travelled this stretch of canal on our way back to Hinckley but unlike our previous journeys, this one would not end in the Trinity marina. We toyed with the idea of mooring at the Limekilns pub but decided to carry on a little further before we moored up near the bridge at Nutts lane, only a couple of hundred yards from our house. We walked home and then went to retrieve the car from Braunston. We would leave the final leg of the journey until the following weekend when Phoenix III will go to Stoke Golding for her nice new shiny paint job.