Narrowboat Tacet

Silent Movement - Our gap year travelling the inland waterways



Sunday 27 January 2013

Planning a Breakout

Friday dawned bright and sunny and the forecast was for it to be getting warmer and a thaw to start.
So we began to make plans to be on the move again. We had tickets to see The Hobbit at the Festival Drayton Centre in the evening, so we enjoyed a long walk round the lanes to Tyrley locks and back along the canal. Planning to use the services here in the morning before setting off towards Audlem.
It was a great surprise when we came out of the cinema at 10.30pm to find heavy snow falling and a thick carpet of sparkling snow covering the town.  It was quite magical walking back up to the canal in the moonlight with the snow still falling. The canal was beginning to get a covering of snow too, maybe we won't be off tomorrow then!
Saturday morning and there was ice across the water and still plenty of snow, but we moved along to the water point and the boat yard, filling up with water, coal and gas.
But no further............. 
Back to our spot by the aqueduct and watching the birds again.  We have seen plenty of blue tits, great tits and long tailed tits, and a camera shy coal tit and nuthatch.
During the evening it started to rain, in fact, it poured, with a bit of thunder and lightning thrown in for good measure.
So this morning much of the snow was gone, leaving very wet, muddy towpaths, the river overflowing and flooded fields below us. But it meant we could get away, which is what we did, after we had been back to St. Mary's church for the morning service.

It was such a good feeling to be on the move again, the sun was shining, and a fine shower of rain was falling too!  A load of washing was soon on, and we made our way away from Market Drayton and down the Adderly locks.
looking down
and back up
We moored above the top lock at Audlem, and we'll tackle them tomorrow.  The sun was still shining and the rain had stopped so we enjoyed a walk down to lock 3 and across to Kinsey Heath. 
Underfoot everything is wet, wet, wet, but for working locks and moving around them that is better than ice and snow.


4.5 miles, 5 locks


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