Date - 17 /02/08 Day - Sunday Start - Blue Lias 1200 hrs End - Napton Engine Arm 1715 hrs.
Last night was even colder than Friday night, by 10 pm the canal was covered in ice and over night the temperature dropped to - 8. This morning was again very bright and warm and we didn't need jackets on all day. We walked up the flight with the dog, at Stockton Marina an Ownerships boat was trying to wind using the bowthruster, I hope it was a hydraulic one because it was running for ages. When we got opposite them on the towing path I persuaded them to throw the bow rope to me so that I could pull them round. I am not sure how efficient a bowthruster is as an ice crusher, but there was plenty getting sucked through it. About 10 am a boat came up the flight but pulled over and stopped for water before continuing on his way. By 12 o'clock we were feeling sorry for him working his way up the flight through the ice so we headed off with dog and windlasses to give him a hand, we found him moored just through the bridge and not attempted the locks, so we set off ourselves. It was slow going breaking the ice behind the gates with a pole so that we could get them open both top and bottom. Three locks before the top we met a boat coming down, so from here on it was all broken ice. The new entrance to Ventner Farm Marina is interesting. Under the bridge there are wooden cheeks protecting the brick work, however there is great big angle iron protecting the wood, not very boat friendly if you don't get the line quite right. Above Calcutt locks we saw a bat skimming along the cut, this was 3 pm on a sunny afternoon in mid February! We continued on meeting the odd boat to Wigrams Turn and made our way up the South Oxford Canal, Or original plan was to stop at maybe The Bridge or The Folly but the afternoon was so nice we carried on up the flight to our moorings, tieing up at quarter past five with the sun beginning to set. -- Brian <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Visit this site and help save our waterways http://www.savethewaterways.org.uk/
