Tonight, Tonight,,,

Nb Andromeda's pumpkin 

On the eve of All Hallows' with only two months to go before the year end the weather continues to be mild and pleasant here on the Lancaster canal with the last of the sunshine still managing to maintain the battery bank near to 100% through the solar panel.
The annual pumpkin was carved but didn't last til Halloween as it fell in off the top of the boat when it started to rot. Nb Benjamin had a much better one!
Odd hire boaters pass as they enjoy a late break but soon the cut will be quiet.
The mooring has been deluged as the trees above shed their old leaves and the place now feels very Autumnal as I sweep up the debris. Wisps of smoke have started to emerge from the odd few little chimneys in the evenings on the moorings as the log stores are opened and start to get burnt.
It's going to get even quieter around here...

People constantly ask if it's cold on a Narrowboat but once the fire is lit in the stove the inside temperature is maintained above 20'C so even when the outside temperature drops below minus it stays cosy and warm throughout the boat as the ecofan efficiently distributes the warm air around.
There is no better place to be...

But we are not there yet, so it's time to enjoy the final days of Autumn and prepare for the winter months ahead by filling the diesel tanks and making sure the engine is serviced and de-icer topped up in readiness for the arrival of the cold snap!

Nb Benjamin's pumpkin!

Happy Halloween to all the witches!

This post blog title was inspired today by Halloween so I had to choose the US rock band ....Smashing Pumpkins....fronted by Billy Corgan and still sounding good today!

Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger...

The settled mild weather continued into the weekend as the 9th annual Lancaster Music Festival got underway with loads of bands playing all over the town day and night.

       

 

On the way The dairy cows are still out grazing the fields while the first tups are in with the ewes and now well into October it was a surprise to see contractors 'rowin' up' as another bonus cut of silage was being harvested for the winter feed.

The canal banks are still very green and on a sunny mild day it was an absolute pleasure to make the return sail back to the moorings. Once again the kingfishers were out leading the way back. On return it was time to drop the old oil while it was still warm and do a filter change and top up the coolant in readiness for the inevitable onset of winter.

Musical Ruth...!

Great views across to the Bowland hills.

                                                                   

This post blog title was inspired over the weekend by the rugby so I chose the band ....Daft Punk having enjoyed a memorable but brutal RL final that saw the Saints clash with the mighty Wigan Warriors in a tough Super League final and manage a hard fought win.

Hang Loose...

On a return jaunt up country on the wrong side of the Pennines, overnight lodgings were discovered at King Lynn, a small sea port and market town on the Wash estuary in Norfolk.

After a brief historical stroll around Purfleet Quay it was time to treat Andromeda to some new fenders and lanyards on the way home that had been kindly made the day before.

Captain Vancouver

                               
         This fella discovered a spot in Canada, apparently?          

                                              

This post blog title was inspired today by the fenders hanging loose and comes from the band..Alabama Shakes...from Athens, US and off the album 'Boys & Girls'.....in about 2013?.....nice guitar sound!

Reasons not to be an Idiot...

At 8am this morning a lone man on the towpath side wearing a pink shirt and chino's called across to ask if I had a set of jump leads?....I didn't but he went on to explain to be that he had moored at Ratcliffe Wharf last night as he had purchased a cruiser(yoghurt pot) from Morcambe(?) yesterday For a bargain price of 2 grand and this was as far as he had got solo...

....he now had a flat battery and it wouldn't start

...he was now nearly out of fuel

....he had only the clothes he wore

....he was trying to get back home but it was taking longer than he thought to get back .......to Southport!

WHAT??

I didn't have the heart to tell him that the canal didn't actually go to Southport!,...At best he would need to book the Ribble link with CRT, go through the locks and head up the River Ribble with a dodgy outboard to get in the lock at Tarleton......in a small cruiser with no experience or equipment?......but I doubt he knew this!

...he was still another days sail away from Preston?

....and the link I'm not convinced he knew about closes soon for the winter!

Good luck!

This post blog title was inspired today by...Frank Turner...from the old album 'Love, Ire & Song'.....great lyrics in a scratchy, catchy riffy folk song.