If only we had bow thrusters …

Friday 15th and Saturday 16th March; Droitwich Spa Marina

… we would be moored below the Tardebigge flight instead of still languishing in the marina. But the wind is so strong that it would be impossible to get out of the pontoon without being blown sideways into the boats opposite.  The flag on our neighbour’s boat was blowing out horizontally in various directions and flapping so violently that the photo is blurred.

We’d already delayed coming up to the boat by two days while we waited to see if the winds would abate.  When we arrived on Friday and unpacked, we discovered (as usual) what we’d forgotten.  In this case it was one of the bags of kitchen supplies.  But our neighbour checked that it wasn’t still sitting in the drive, nor inside the house.  It’s a mystery!  Anyway, as the wind was still far to strong to allow us to get away from our berth, Dave got on with investigating the battery condition meter, which had stopped working when he came up in January to check the boat.  He took the panel off

and tested the current flowing between the battery and the meter, which was ok, then used the multimeter to confirm there was a voltage between the terminals on the meter, and concluded that the battery meter itself is b*ggered.  I am taking his word for it.

Meg kept her eye on proceedings but only to make sure we hadn’t forgotten she needed a walk.  So as we weren't cruising anywhere we took her off along the towpath and up the Worcester and Birmingham.  Frustratingly it would have been perfectly possible to cruise on the canal, which is of course much more sheltered than the marina.  Still, I collected an armful of ash twigs for kindling and Meg found a crab-apple in the bottom of the hedge.  She had great fun chasing it till it bounced into the canal.  Dave tried using a stick to get it close enough for her to reach but with no luck.  He wasn’t going to risk slipping off the sloping bank trying to retrieve it himself.

Coltsfoot, which flowers before the horseshoe-shaped leaves emerge

A boat was ascending the Hanbury locks as we came back to the marina.  They have bow thrusters and had been pointing in the right direction for a quick getaway, so were able to get out of the marina.  They were hoping to cruise the Droitwich Ring, but of course the Severn is in flood.  The wind had dropped a little by 5.30, but it was getting too dark to operate the locks in safety so we stayed put.  The wind dropped during the night but by daylight on Saturday morning it was worse than before.  So we went shopping to buy the things that we were missing and picked up a sack of coal on our return.  After lunch, as the rain was still holding off, I walked down Saltway (the main road past the marina) to where I’d seen an ‘eggs for sale’ sign.  There were vegetables too.

Excellent value.  On the way back I followed a footpath sign pointing down the edge of someone’s garden.  The path continued through a little wood, and then I discovered this

It must have been one of the original locks on the Droitwich Junction Canal.  The restoration had to take a different line in order to get under the M5 motorway which had been built in the interim.  The footpath continued and came out at the picnic area by the road leading to the marina.

With the fire lit this morning, the boat has warmed up nicely.  The rain is blowing hard against the windows and we are hoping it will be calm enough first thing on Sunday to get going at last.  At least we got the Saturday paper so have plenty of reading matter!

I hope the pictures have displayed properly.  When I used I used the old method it wouldn’t publish at all.  So I have deleted the photos and will put them in via blogger to see if that works.

1 derelict lock walked past, 0 miles cruised, wind, wind, rain, wind.