Where did September go?

I am still here and having so much fun that I have forgotten to take a moment to share. So, today I will tell you about the Grand Union Canal.

I was introduced to the Canal exactly 30 years ago when I was pregnant with my first child and living in England. The Grand Union Canal leaves the River Thames at Brentford and climbs over fifty locks up into the Chiltern hills. It descends then climbs again to a new summit in Birmingham, 137 miles and 166 locks. When we took our first trip, my parents were with us and we traveled 15 miles (up and back) in 3 days. We rented a narrowboat that slept 6 and our proxy godparents went with us. The rivers have a limit around 4 mph, (about walking pace) with some wider rivers having a faster speed of 7mph. When working out the timing of a route, you need to also allow about 15 minutes per lock as well. This means that in one hour you should expect to cover either 4 miles, or do 4 locks, or a combination of them both! We operated our own locks and slept moored along the water edge. It is a great way to enjoy the country side. On the weekends you will see picnickers along the waters edge, watching the canal boats and watching the "boat people" operate the locks.

When John and Diane, friends from Bozeat, invited me for the weekend we went to Stoke Bruerne to see the canal boats. We took a short ride in one of the canal boats and visited the town. We had a beer at the pub and then ate the picnic lunch that Diane packed while watching the "boat people" operate the locks.