Last days on the cut, September 11, 1999:
Dorothy was the head chef and always the first one out of the boat to operate the locks. Her husband Jeremy gave her an aluminum crank handle for her birthday one year because the steel ones were getting too heavy to carry. If we ever borrowed the handle, we were warned not to leave it at the locks! Apparently Jeremy had a large collection of steel cranks he found abandoned at the locks after 20 years of sailing.
The boat is either lifted or lowered depending on your location and the terrain will determine how it will be. In some cases if the water levels in some areas is so great that using a hydraulic lock system is prohibited, a large mechanical lift would be used like the Falkirk Wheel in Scotland. We were not in Scotland so NO WHEEL FOR US!
As Emily was an avid reader she was quite happy to see the rather large library in a canal boat measuring 65 feet long by 6 feet wide. Somehow all of us got along well, but Emily, not a big fan of camping remarked at the end of our journey that the experience was the best vacation she ever had and she would NEVER do it again!
As this boat’s dimensions meant that space was a premium, the concept sort of can relate to living in a “Tiny House” world. Our dining table converted into a bed in the evening and the shower stall was also the toilet stall and sink. Don’t ask how that worked.
The Unicorn is not a horse drawn boat like they were in the 19th century but powered by a diesel engine. This was an older boat that didn’t have extra motors to propel the boat from side to side called “bow thrusters” . A Bow Thruster is an additional aid to manoeuvring a boat. It provides a boost to make the bow/front go port/left or starboard/right without even moving the tiller and without throttling backward or forward. As Jeremy says “Real men don’t use Bow Thrusters!”
Roger basically kept us smiling this whole trip as he often found an interesting way of detailing our experience. He was also a good friend to us all.
We took a break in the town of Marbury and when we arrived, we heard bells chiming in the distance. As we followed the sound of the bells, when we entered St. Michael’s church yard, the bells stopped. We saw some people leaving the church an found out that these folks were the ones pulling the bell chords. They were practicing for a country wide bell chorus that was planned for the new year (You remember Y2K?)
Floating swan and duck food is the best possible feed for any wildfowl. This is because, like all animals there are certain foods that are designed for them which suit them much better. For instance, corn, grapes, oats, wheat, lettuce, vegetable trimmings and peas are all much more suitable.
So our little vacation on the cut was ending soon. The next day we sailed to our ending point in the town of Nantwitch and said good by to our friends. A cab ride to the town of Crew and then the train to London.