Our first morning routine aboard and we managed well, showering with the hot water stored overnight and then Daniel helped me clean and fold the canopy to give us more space on the bridge. We locked up through Roxton, Great Barford, Willington and then stopped at the riverbank there and took a walk in the hot sun to the Willington Garden Centre and then set off through Castle Mills but could not get through Cardington as expected as the lock was really too narrow.
After solving an engine overheating problem by clearing an inlet filter, we cruised back through the locks to The Anchor at Tempsford again and settled there for the night. We had some drinks at The Anchor pub Diana had spotted a "bouncy castle" available for customers' children to play on. I had taken care to note all of the lock and bridge heights and distances for my log and tracking the river course with the Decca and Plotter; all for subsequent cruising interest.
We had our first morning routine and everybody seemed to manage very well. The water in the domestic tank had managed to stay hot all night and we all had showered this morning, if a bit tentatively for some of the crew! I was out before breakfast washing and mopping off the boat and then, after we had some cereal to eat, I got a reluctant Daniel out on deck and we washed the canopy on the grass and then folded it up afterwards to give much more space and freedom in the bridge. We set off at 10.00am and by this time the day had become very warm and sunny and, in the absence of a breeze, we were glad to make our own. We locked up through Roxton, Great Barford, Willington and then stopped at the riverbank there and took a walk in the hot sun to the Willington Garden Centre.
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We had not taken the shortest route and were wilting as we arrived but had a nice lunch there with me eating a salmon salad which I found particularly good. The temperature had reached 80degF with a very hot sun. We walked back again and then set off through Castle Mills but could not get through Cardington as expected as the lock was really too narrow. Soon it was the boat that was suffering. The water temperature on the starboard engine had reached 100degF and I stopped and, after trying to get help from a nearby boat-yard, I diagnosed the problem as a blocked cooling water inlet pipe and freed it pumping air back down the tube. Diana had used the opportunity to walk along to Tesco's to get some supplies. We then cruised back through the locks to The Anchor at Tempsford again and settled there for the night. Diana had spotted a "bouncy castle" available for customers' children to play on and so the girls were pleased.
We had the cruiser "In the Mood" for company through the locks and I found the woman helmsman a pain. She was criticising us for not helping enough at the locks, but we were hardly being given the chance. It seems that she has split up with her husband and will soon lose the house and boat and so, perhaps, she was justifiably tense. We had some drinks at The Anchor pub, as we felt that we were using their facilities, and so should. I then sat up late with my logs again, but Diana did not mind as she was reading a book anyway. I had taken care to note all of the lock and bridge heights and distances for my log and, now that we had turned downstream, I am tracking the river course with the Decca and Plotter; all for subsequent cruising interest. It was such a hot day today, but the forecast is for more good weather to come.