Glen Aqueduct (Wistow)

Today's Canal : Grand Union Leicester Branch

We awoke to feel surprisingly cold. Our heating controller is set to come on at 6.30 so by the time we usually start to make a move at 7.00 the cabins are comfortably warm. Mike checked that he had not forgotten his weekly chore of setting the timers (this controller, strangely, is 'one-shot' and so has to be reset each week) Yes, the green light was showing but it was also apparent that no heat was coming through. A second attempt to start the heater indicated it was initiating a start cycle but then shitting down. Looks like a cool wash this morning!

Over our wake-up mugs of tea we contemplated our options. There turned out not to be too many as, having left Debdale an hour behind us, the is little maintenance or service offered until after Leicester. We looked at the Webasto web site for service engineers - none very close but at least one that offers a mobile service from perhaps 20 miles away. Not looking good.

Mike then remembered from a few years back when something similar happened on our Shakedown Cruise from Droitwich to Worcester. When we called at the marina in Worcester they simply pulled put a fuse to disconnect the power supply to the Webasto, waited a short while and then put it back. This seemed to do the trick. Mike quickly dressed (he did not fancy working down in the engine bay in pyjamas, even his second - third? - best ones!) Yes! After re-inserting the fuse there was definitely warmth coming from the exhaust outlet. Gradually the radiators started to warm up although not yet as hot as they had been.

Next, he checked the header tank as on another occasion this had been diagnosed as causing a problem. We had checked this a few days ago and thought that the level was close to Max. It seemed still to be so but after finding a short stick in the adjacent towpath hedge to act as a dipstick, it was clear that what we had thought to be the water level was just a permanent tide mark and the tank was much emptier. After tracking down a funnel (yes, we have all sorts of tools and gadgets secreted away in the far recesses of the boat's cupboards!) we managed to bring the level up, conformed by the dipstick - the tide mark was still in the same place! We did turn on the engine to make sure that Christine could have a good shower but tentatively we felt that we might be close to back on track but that perhaps bleeding the radiators might also help. Now, where is that radiator key?

All that faffing about meant that is was not until 10:15 that we could think about moving. Today was even cooler than yesterday but at least the morning was dry. We are still in the SSSI and so all too frequently we had to negotiate quite narrow spaces between the towpath reeds meds and the offside tree vegetation hanging down. At least one pair of swans found that this have them an even safer nesting place than most. This must have encouraged them to be unusually aggressive to passing walkers and their dogs as CaRT had put up warning notices either side of the nesting site!

Shortly before Saddington Tunnel a feeder brings in a water supply to the canal from Saddington Reservoir, about a kilometre away to the south west. The latest published report indicates that it is 100% full.

After the earlier shenanigans, paranoia must have set in: as soon as Mike switched on the bow light ahead of the tunnel he thought that he could not see the light in the switch (remember, that this was the one problem we had right at the outset of the trip) and his concern was heightened as he could not see the light in the tunnel at first! Fortunately it was only paranoia and not another crisis! At least we could see that there was only one boat in the tunnel and that was going the same way. Yes, the dot in the photo is the light at the other end!

And to add to our new-found joy, bright sunshine emerged.

By 11:15 we were at Kibworth Top Lock. The substantial lock cottage (or was it for a more senior person) is in the process of having a significant new extension added. Looking at Google Sat View it may well be that an earlier lifed-out structure was first demolished.

As we rounded the corner to the lock we saw that another boat was waiting and we 'assumed' that we could share with them. They were a group of six men, all long time friends from school and college days who used to share canal hire boats but have not done so for 12 years. As a result we expended rather less energy in descending the five Kibworth locks.

The second lock had bottom gates that were especially difficult to close. (Mike felt smug when he closed his much ahead of the other one!)

Alongside the middle lock is Bridge House Barn. It style itself both as a wedding venue and a place to host events. However, a new promotional banner at the road entrance is advertising Sunday events for general public with a Balearic theme! It must be a very new ideas they have yet to get around to putting on their web site.

If we did not think better we might have imagined that Balearic mean something to do with tipis! Mind you, these look a bit posh for the North American plains!

After the fourth lock, Mike forgot that the final lock in the flight is actually about 700 m away! Two of the crew from the other boat also walked but overtook him by some margin.

They were continuing to the next flight but not going to go much further as they need to be careful about timing their return to Napton. We explained that we were looking for out next night's stopover before the next flight, so we bade them farewell.

Our plan for the next few days takes us to Leicester some 24 locks down to the River Soar. Alas, our reminiscences of past trips when we did 20 locks in a day (as well as 20 miles) are now but a dream and more prosaically we have based our trip plan on dividing up this section into probably five days, all but one of five locks or fewer . . . so long as no more technical hitches intervene. We do have a few days slack in the calculations . . .

Now where did that radiator key go?

3.5 Miles - 5 Locks