Bella holds a new family

We write from a house. Yesterday we visited Bella's new gorgeous family to help them understand her quirks and happiness. Yes, we've sold her and moved off.

For those for whom this is news, it was a sudden and unexpected decision! It was toward the end of June, a Tuesday. The idea popped into Elizabeth's head to move off Bella and live in a house. No warning, no build up of disliking Bella or the boating life. Indeed, in the months leading up, we'd bought a new mattress, replaced plumbing and continued to imagine our future in Melbourne Australia where we're to retire in just over three years. The moving off idea was tested with Pete who agreed in seconds. No shock at the idea, just immediate and sudden agreement. From that Tuesday to the Saturday of the same week, we decided to rent, found a house in Braunston and paid the deposit. That's it! We moved at the end of July, Bella went on the market in August and we had the offer two weeks ago. We signed the bill of sale exactly 14 years to the day when we moored up in Hillmorton to begin this life.

We've loved our floating life. It was a huge and challenging learning curve those first few months which is why we visited Bella's new family. A few hints and tips might help! We loved our years when we cruised a lot and loved our years when we hardly moved. We had no yearning to move off except the plan for Australia. It must just have been the right thing to do. Sealed, oddly, by this lovely family making the decision to live on a boat around the same time we decided not to. There we are. 

New Year fuel

 What a year for us all! Clearly no cruising, but we still love the life. Here we are at the sink after brunch and out the window is Star Class carrying, our fuel supplier. Mark brings us the bottled gas we use to cook along with coal and wood for the stove. We simply enjoy the experience of this close connection to the things we use to manage this life. 

Yes, we know it's coal that we use for heating, but it's what there is and we reckon it's better than gallons galore of diesel for very ineffective central heating. In the colder months, we also use the solid fuel stove to simmer stocks, sauces and casseroles.  In the months of longer days, we have much solar power to fuel the occasional fan heater, let alone all the 

leccy needed for the computers for Pete to work from home. 

Life in many ways for us is the same as ever, with Pete doing far more water management from our home desk as he manages his team. Elizabeth is alone in her studio and all of her meetings and teaching are moved to online. We're lucky to have easy access to the outdoors and quite a distance from any neighbours. We are grateful and deeply aware of so many of you for whom this time has been terribly difficult. Our hearts embrace you.

End of the week

It's been quite a week for us all. Whatever, a glass of chilled white on deck is quite a cure.

The dawn

This is one of the reasons we like being moored northabouts for the winter. In the mornings, we can stand at the sink and look up at the glowing new day. Ahh.

Tiny equinox cruise

We decided that we wanted to moor northabouts for the winter. The solar panels will get much more sun and, well get the stern deck facing open water rather than our neighbours' boats.

What a gorgeous day! The wind was in our  favour, used well by tiller man Pete who gently turned us at Norton Junction. The wind gently nudged us back to moorings. It was a short cruise, but so delicious. We spent most of the afternoon just breathing in the September light and breeze whilst sitting on deck. Even Maxwell relaxed in the afternoon shade. Gorgeous day.

Back home home

Mr Well is delighted that the day is over. He hates locks. But he loves boating!!! This trip really reinforced how much he loves the cruising. As soon as the engine starts, his tail starts to wag and he rounds us up to go on deck asap. He spends the whole cruising time watching for dogs, especially standing when we slow down to pass moored boats. He stares at the sterns expecting a friendly yelp if possible. Yet he can't bear if one of us leaves the boat while journeying. Locks are a nightmare with one of us off at each one. So for locks, we leave him inside. Then he spends the whole time with paws variously on the dining room chair or the dining room shelf or the steps to the doors. Whining, he stares at us. Outside. Whilst he's inside. Not good. So with the final day's activity being the 7 locks of the Buckby flight taking just over 3 hours, he's shattered.  T

hat lump by the radiator is one tired pooch!

We set out from Weedon this morning then moored at the bottom of the flight. One of Pete's colleagues collected him en route from Buckby to Stoke Bruerne to collect Reg. P parked up at the top of the flight then walked the 2 miles back to Bella. The work up the flight included showers of both rain and hail, but there were enough breaks to dry off between. That said there are now 2 coats, 2 hats, and various things hanging to dry!

Working our way back

We were very pleased to have the Met Office app available today. How not like our first years!!! We realised that we needed to set out immediately after breakfast and not at lunch. This is the no rush part of the trip so it was going to be a 1/2 day no matter.

We set out in sun with occasional cloud and the rain started at tie up to moorings in Weedon. Perfect. In the between showers spell, E collected kindling from the towpath hedges and P won a few killer sudokus. V holiday!

We treated ourselves with dinner at the Navigation at Stowe Hill. On the way home, we saw these cows who seemed to be in the wrong place!

Return begins

A few short bright sunny family days are now over. As we write, NY boy and partner are in the air over the Atlantic and we're moored at the heavenly country stop. We delivered loved ones to Heathrow, parked Reg, and turned on Belladonk  (engine). P handled Bella exquisitely backward to the winding hole where we turned back the way we came.

The tunnel was next, then it was as if we entered a parallel universe. We left a warm 17c Stoke Bruene, wearing sandles. After the 1.5 mile tunnel, we emerged to 13c overcast skies and the occasional light shower. Crazy!  We then had a stop at Gayton yard to empty cassettes and let Maxwell have his customary manic run. We passed some resting country cows, just seen through the trees (you have to look hard!!).

Stoke Bruerne

What a lovely finish for the cottage rendezvous. We woke to horses in the fog, then made our way to the tunnel. E and P untied and P took the tiller whilst E stayed inside cleaning and baking. Maxwell chose the deck sitting on P's feet. They did the Blisworth tunnel together then we moored in Stoke Bruerne.  A quick change of clothes, we picked up Reg and drove to Milton Keynes rail station. Runners and non runners now gathered,  we dropped bags and settled into the pub garden.  Gorgeous day on all counts!

A journey for family

Our NY boy ran the London Marathon on Sunday. Stupendous finish too!! As he was running, we were tracking him on the app and travelling down the Buckby flight.

A few days earlier, we'd parked our Reg at the cottage in Stoke Bruerne where running boy and partner were to join us. We were due to travel Saturday, Sunday, and Monday morning to have  a leisurely cruise. As it was,  storm Hannah kept us firmly moored on Saturday and we had to set out Sunday.

We were in fabulous luck, meeting up with a gorgeous boat and butty along with her crew including dog Bill. They'd already set the lock and opened it. They welcomed a companion boat as much as we did. Just as the lock started to drain, our boy started to run. We tracked each 5k as we decended the 7 lock flight and shared the news. As it was such an excellent flight with two full crews, we all finished much earlier than either expected and we were moored in Weedon to track the praise worthy finish. Fab. The pic below is our companions passing us as we moored for the finish.

We ended the day moored at the heavenly stretch near B44. Quiet, gorgeous, now neighbours to horses across the canal.

Christmas eve laundry scene

Have we ever said how much we love this life? This is one of the reasons. We stand to do the mundane thing of hang laundry from the ceiling airer and this is what we see. We love this life.

Upper Nellie after a great day

Excellent day! We set off from the lower Nellie pound late this morning to moor up near the Stop House and meet dear friends. Met well, we had lunch, toured Bella, toured the Stop House then studio and waved Trafalgar South from the Braunston iron bridge.

We turned in the Braunston marina entrance and worked our way back uphill. We're now in the upper Nellie pound ( between locks 3 & 4) ready to set off early - hopefully before the rain!

The Admiral Nelson from upper Nellie pound.

Yes the stove is lit, and no we didn't wash Bella

There we are. We've owned up. The heat wave is past and the summer is ending colder than usual. And it's been raining. So we decided for warmth. Here's Squirrel, remembering the core purpose having quite forgotten for months. P remembered how to get the fire right first time.

We were supposed to wash Bella today. Yes, you've read the past tense. The boat maintenance gods remind us regularly that we were always built to get someone else to do it and delegate we must. When we washed the starboard side, we finally had the time (never the inclination) and that's the day the heat wave broke with rain. We washed between the showers. This morning, we got going to make it before the scheduled rain. P went to get a new chimney brush to find the shop had run out. Then it rained. It cleared a bit to think we could crack on, but no. The tow path gardeners were out with the strimmer and mower, rain or no rain. So we have given in and went back to holiday mode. Bella will be cleaned properly when we book the marina to do it. The gods have spoken.

My word. We're cruising!

Our dear friends on Trafalgar are racing around the Warwickshire ring this week whilst we're having a much needed holiday. We've brought dear Bella the huge distance from Welton Hythe to join them as they cruise through on Saturday.  We set out as early as they do (we lie!!) leaving home mooring just before noon. We were moored up in the Nellie pound - the pound between locks 2 and 3 of the Braunston flight, near the Admiral Nelson, by 14:30. See? Big journey 😆.

Truth be told, we both simply looked forward to a week of sleep. Life has been packed to overflowing. As it is, we washed one side of Bella a week ago and tomorrow, now that she's other side to, we'll finish the wash.

Saturday we meet up with those dear friends at the Gongoozlers Rest for a yummy brekkie. We look forward to it!

Anyway, here's a pic through Pete and Maxwell as we entered Braunston tunnel.

A frozen morning

As ever, we love the winter mornings. Low sun rolls into the hills, slides between the trees and sheds a golden glow into our warming Bella. For a few years now, we have had fleece linings in the curtains for the winter which make Bella quite cosy. It does mean that when we open the curtains we have ice on the inside! We remember this from houses as well when it's -7 outside.

We love looking out to the frozen white hills and the reflection of the trees onto the frazzled canal. It's all good.

10 year Bellaversary

Wow. 10 years ago, this very night, was our first night sleeping aboard Bella. Who knew? Halloween is our Bellaversary. Our first night, we had exhaustingly finished all the packing of a Victorian 4 story town house into a 69ft narrowboat. Bella was still under cover in sheds as the paint was, quite literally, drying. We slept in our new narrow double bed for the first time. Our dear Josie dog was panicking for all sorts of reasons. We were so tired we could hardly be excited, but excited we were. A quick glance at Bella's log from the time shows that it was a Wednesday night.

We have never regretted the move. It has been a very big learning curve, many things we're glad we didn't know ahead of time, and many decisions have been prophetically good without our knowing. 10 years in. Life is good.

Autumn morning & return to home-home

We moored south abouts again after we came back from Braunston on Saturday.  We had the edge of storm Brian on the journey and though we had no rain, we certainly had the wind with us. We did the locks, travelled the tunnel, then the wind carried us on a lovely cruise to Norton Junction. Tiller man P brought us around the corner amazingly smoothly.

We stopped at the maintenance point first, to turn around and to take on fuel. Brian made it difficult to turn in, but we made it. We were shocked to realise that it had been two years since we took on diesel!! The fuel cap was a job to remove, rusted well in place. We knew we hadn't travelled much in the last few years, but. Two years between fill ups??? Must rectify.

We reversed back into the cut and Brian brought us so neatly into our mooring, we were amazed. A few days in, the sky has cleared, and here is our morning view.

Mr Well enjoys new towpaths

We're clearly in Braunston for the week. Each new hatch opening brings new aromas for dear Maxwell. Here he is, late on a Friday night, sniffing in the walkers around us.

Alternative light

We have been in marina so long, we lost oversight of our alternative power sources.  The second week of cruising off shore power, we have come to realise that our domestic batteries are close to expired, dead, shuttled off their mortal coil, ceasing to live. We wondered on our last outing, but on this trip with the fridge warning light blinking each morning and the lights flickering each time the water pump is on, we now know. Call Simon the Sparky. New batteries soon come. These have lasted well beyond their specified life, so we simply say thank you, good and faithful servants.