From owner-canals@blacksheep.org Tue Apr 8 17:13:29 1997 id AA26803; Tue, 8 Apr 97 17:13:19 EDT Date: Tue, 8 Apr 1997 22:07:22 GMT id aa0512942; 8 Apr 97 21:00 BST To: canals@blacksheep.org From: Judy Voets Subject: from NB BLUE HERON Good Evening All, Well, here we are moored at the Biddulph Line Aqueduct just past bridge 72 on the Macc. We watched a spectacular sunset as we ate our supper. We've fallen straight into our canal boat eating pattern. First some sort of starter with tea after we've moored up for the day. Then about an hour later a salad and then the main course. So nice... the telephone doesn't ring...no one is knocking on the door....it is quiet. We've been at Macclesfield since last Thursday evening. It took much longer to get up by car because of the bombs on the M6. It is a good thing that we decided to listen to the radio because if we hadn't we would have tried to drive straight through Birmingham!! We unpacked the boat and visited with friends through the weekend and did many errands. The marina at Macclesfield is so handy. With in a short walk we can do everything and find everything that we need. I went to the launderette and within the half hour that the clothes were washing we went to a TV shop, a jeweler, the ironmongers, and the market and were back at the launderette when the laundry finished! We also stopped at the fish shop. We have a new trolley. It folds up to the size of a purse with the wheels inside and a handle on the outside. It is the find of a lifetime!!!!! I don't know about all of you but we always seem to acquire teapots that drip. The only one that doesn't drip is the one at home that as Stan's mom's - made in the thirty's. It is a gem. Well, Stan was having mini-fits about our teapot that drips so he went to the china shop at the bottom of the hill and had a chat the the fellow that owns the shop. They then tried out teapots and Stan came home with a HUGE teapot that DOESN'T DRIP. So all of you may drop in for tea at the same time - no prob- we can serve at least 10 at a tiime!!! We discovered that we haven't forgotten how to run the boat and our skills seem to be the same as when we left last October. We really expected to have some slipage but we both feel like we were running the Blue Heron all winter. Strange...... but great. Also, some of you may remember our problems with getting coal fires to light and stay lit. Somehow that has disappeared - they all have worked! It is so great to be back...... Tim is taking us to the meeting at Wigan tomorrow night so I hope we'll see some of you there! Good night Judy and puttering Stan Judy and Stan Voets, P.O. Box 103, San Geronimo, CA. 94963, U.S.A. nb Blue Heron of San Geronimo TEL: USA (415)488-0985 UK 04686 34567 (April 3rd to June 2nd) (July 31 to Oct. 17) Email: USA jvoets@marin.k12.ca.us UK jvoets@tamal.demon.co.uk (April 3 to June 2)(July 31 to Oct.17) From owner-canals@blacksheep.org Wed Apr 30 17:25:33 1997 id AA13906; Wed, 30 Apr 97 17:25:24 EDT Date: Wed, 30 Apr 1997 22:26:16 GMT id aa1126679; 30 Apr 97 21:38 BST To: canals@blacksheep.org From: Judy Voets Subject: cruising into no color Good afternoon all, We awoke this morning to see a blue sky. Not only that it has stayed blue all day!! It didn't matter that small patches had some white spots or grey spots on it. Last night we spent the night at Gargrave. None of the books mention "you have got to go to Gargrave". Well, I want you to know - if you like tea rooms like we like tea rooms, you have got to go to Gargrave!! A three minute walk from the canal brings you to the White Cottage Tea Shop. Excellent tea and homemade goodies. This little village has 4 antique shops - they were all closed. We thought it was worth the walk. Did you know the downside of a giant tea pot is that if one wants to make a half a pot - it is really, really hard - because it is sooo steamy in there that one cannot see the sides so one does not know how much water one has put inside the pot!! I TOOK a nap this afternoon (a very rare occasion - some are nappers and others aren't) and when I woke up and looked outside (the canal at that point was heading sort of westish - southish, westish), looking in that direction and saw a scene that I have only seen in a watercolor in an artist's studio in Skipton. When my eye got to the horizon line (in this case the end of the green) I only saw white!!! Someone had snitched the blue! As my eye travelled up I saw a tiny bit of whitey,greyey,bluey - quite amazing. The sheep that was on the horizon line seemed to be hardly there at all. It is the air or the light or something..... Well, the pot of tea is ready and so are our giant mugs. Speak with you soon. Just came back to say that if you see something rusty redish that looks like a rooster out in a field, it is a pheasant. Looks lovely against the beautiful green. So far we have seen 2 mammals (wild type) a squirrel and yes, a mink. We are now moored for night at the Greenerberfield Locks. We're lamb watching - about 24 of them running and jumping around the canal bank. It is a beautiful eveing Toodle pip Judy Judy and Stan Voets, P.O. Box 103, San Geronimo, CA. 94963, U.S.A. nb Blue Heron of San Geronimo TEL: USA (415)488-0985 UK 04686 34567 (April 3rd to June 2nd) (July 31 to Oct. 17) Email: USA jvoets@marin.k12.ca.us UK jvoets@tamal.demon.co.uk (April 3 to June 2)(July 31 to Oct.17) From owner-canals@blacksheep.org Fri May 2 04:01:38 1997 id AA09590; Fri, 2 May 97 04:01:30 EDT Date: Fri, 2 May 1997 09:14:19 GMT id aa0500500; 2 May 97 8:52 BST To: canals@blacksheep.org From: Judy Voets Subject: along the L & L Hi All, Found another tea room - better in terms of canal history than Gargrave . Be sure to stop at Foulridge on the northeast side of the tunnel. I walked up to the village green which is on a slope - a very nice feeling village and today being election day the Village Hall was very busy. When I walked back to the boat I went into the Foulridge Tea Rooms and then I went and got Stan. The Tea Rooms/Restaurant are in the old wharf office and stables and it has been quite well preserved and furthermore the folks who own the shop are very, very interested in historical preservation. I don't know her name so I'll call her "she". She was terrific - I understand that Mike (Clarke) brings people to the tea rooms - right Mike?? Or are you out of town?? We had tea and scones - her scones are the best we've eaten. They also sell their baked goods - I bought a loaf of rye bread, she also had soda bread and on different days does different breads. A great lady! Now we're in the tunnel and I'm inside typing because it is to smokey for me to be outside. We will stop at Barrowford to go to the Heritage Center to find out more about the Pendle witches. Love the symbol for the Pendle walking paths - a witch on a broom. What an incredible evening!! So clear, so warm, and so many people out walking or riding their bikes! I'm still sitting here in shorts! May this weather continue. Toodle pip Judy Judy and Stan Voets, P.O. Box 103, San Geronimo, CA. 94963, U.S.A. nb Blue Heron of San Geronimo TEL: USA (415)488-0985 UK 04686 34567 (April 3rd to June 2nd) (July 31 to Oct. 17) Email: USA jvoets@marin.k12.ca.us UK jvoets@tamal.demon.co.uk (April 3 to June 2)(July 31 to Oct.17) From owner-canals@blacksheep.org Sat May 3 13:45:15 1997 id AA23063; Sat, 3 May 97 13:45:05 EDT Date: Sat, 3 May 1997 19:02:33 GMT id aa1028746; 3 May 97 18:40 BST To: canals@blacksheep.org From: Judy Voets Subject: Riley Green Bridge Hi Everyone, Pearson's says we're moored at Riley Green Bridge. It's an o.k., bridge not to old and not to new. It's shape is what I call dull and boring rectangular as opposed to the L &L stone bridges that someone put a point in the middle on the top instead of your standard curve. Oops, Stan has pointed out that there is a bit of green painted iron just under the road bed. I consider this to be to little to name a whole bridge after but just who am I to say about the naming of bridges?????.... Please don't get me wrong, rectangular bridges can be stunning and very, very classy. You know the kind I mean. The pub across the canal from us is called the Boatyard Inn. The only reason I know this is that Stan walked up on the road and saw a sign. It looks like... a restaurant or I'm not sure - I guess 'cause it is so new. The folks around here are all very friendly. That's very nice. Last night we moored between Hapton and Huncoat - we had our last view of Pendle Hill. Now that I know about the Pendle witches I think about life in the 1600's when I look around. Today when we got to the 3rd lock in Blackburn there were about 10 kids swimming in the lock. I was walking down when one of them ran up to beg me to fill the lock back up when we were finished. These kids were all in the 14 to 17 year old range. We got to talking and it turned out that NONE of them had ever been on a boat let alone go up and down in the locks. So we told them to pile on top and sit still. They were thrilled- the tough acting ones mellowed out really fast. The top was warm and they were cold - they loved it. They wanted to know why we would ever come to Blackburn. They felt that there was nothing there for them at all. It was pretty sad. Those kids would be willing to do things along the canals - helping folks lock through, etc. but they need a bit of guidence - how to get going, how to learn about the canals - not the history but the here and now. The sushi rice is ready - yup, sushi for dinner tonight. I brought the nori (toasted seaweed) from home. Here I make it vegetarian. Have seen several swans sitting on nests today. Does anyone know the incubation period/time needed before they hatch? Monday morning we will do the Wigan flight. David, if you are joining in the fun there will be fresh scones and tea if BW lets us take a break! Or a nice bit of lunch at the end. Stan and I noticed when we were walking along the Weaver River .a couple of weeks ago, that it appeared that BW has a boat that has a net attached to it that catches litter in the river. I think that they ought to bring it up here and clean out the L & L! When places are clean people tend to slow down the amount of littering that they do. Well on that note... have a great evening. Toodle pip Judy Judy and Stan Voets, P.O. Box 103, San Geronimo, CA. 94963, U.S.A. nb Blue Heron of San Geronimo TEL: USA (415)488-0985 UK 04686 34567 (April 3rd to June 2nd) (July 31 to Oct. 17) Email: USA jvoets@marin.k12.ca.us UK jvoets@tamal.demon.co.uk (April 3 to June 2)(July 31 to Oct.17) From owner-canals@blacksheep.org Sun May 4 11:50:06 1997 id AA00663; Sun, 4 May 97 11:49:54 EDT Date: Sun, 4 May 1997 17:08:29 GMT id aa0505917; 4 May 97 16:23 BST To: canals@blacksheep.org From: Judy Voets Subject: White Bear Marina Hi all, This was not a scheduled stop. We were just going to run into the chandlery to see if they had a particular hose. As we pulled up to the dock - I'm on the bow with my rope in hand. I happen to notice that we are coming in much faster than we usually do, I looked back at Stan and he says "there's no reverse!" "What do you mean???? I put the lever in reverse and the nb kept going forward - didn't even slow up." At that point we hit the pier!!!! This is NOT our style - we are slow and sedate. Stan says we can only go forward and then he announces that it doesn't matter which way he moves the handle(or whatever one is supposed to call it) nothing happens - he then further states that he's turning off the engine. By this time we have passed White Bear Marina and are heading for the bridge but we have also gone to the other side of the canal - that was good 'cause then I could hop off and so could Stan and stop the boat! Then the engine compartment is opened and we peer inside. Stan found a broken something. So I trotted off over the bridge to the marina and was informed that the engineer would be back on Tues. and he could fit us in on Wed. or Thurs. I did not have a temper tantrum or scream, or cry. I said "Oh dear, I guess we'll have to spend the night here." Then someone said well maybe so and so can help you. I want you to know that so and so is right this very instant replacing the broken cable!!!! Are we ever thrilled. I think it is good to have at least one little adventure a day. I must say it is so different travelling the canal now as opposed to 2 and half weeks ago. 1. it isn't freezing cold. 2. the trees have opened up. 3. there are other people in boats Earlier today we came down the Johnson's Hillock flight. I couldn't truly appreciate it when we went up. It really is a beautiful flight. We had helpers this time - Robert (age 7) and his father. They were great - Robert talked, wound, pushed, and rode with Stan in the boat, his first boat ride. As most 7 year olds tend to do he spoke incessantly-very intellegent little boy. Pretty soon we will move on to the Crawford Arms. By the way if you are at White Bear Marina, ask for Paul Martin - there are 2 Pauls. He's the one who has been so incredible helpful. He is a registered something or other and he certainly knows what he is doing. YES, YES, YES everything is working again. Toodle pip Judy Judy and Stan Voets, P.O. Box 103, San Geronimo, CA. 94963, U.S.A. nb Blue Heron of San Geronimo TEL: USA (415)488-0985 UK 04686 34567 (April 3rd to June 2nd) (July 31 to Oct. 17) Email: USA jvoets@marin.k12.ca.us UK jvoets@tamal.demon.co.uk (April 3 to June 2)(July 31 to Oct.17) From owner-canals@blacksheep.org Tue May 6 09:09:53 1997 id AA18598; Tue, 6 May 97 09:08:58 EDT Date: Tue, 6 May 1997 13:58:20 GMT id aa1018820; 6 May 97 13:19 BST To: canals@blacksheep.org From: Judy Voets Subject: Monday on the Blue Heron Hi All, Today is Tuesday. Monday was so busy I didn't have a minute to write. It was a great day. On Sunday night when we went to bed we set the alarm for 6:30a.m. with the intent of leaving the following morning at 7:30. We awoke to pouring rain -these raindrops were the large size. Oh well, we said, at least it isn't freezing cold! You, of course, have noticed that I haven't mentioned wind. We did have some of that but what's a little wind? Drank our tea put on all of the raingear- pants, jackets, boots, hats, hoods, umbrellas were at the ready. That particular section of the L & L is very pleasant and pretty. When we were going the other way we didn't notice many things because our eyelids were down to protect our eyes from the cold. We looked through slits. This time it was only rain!. We arrived at the top of the Wigan flight at 8:15 and there was one other boat there.EXCUSE ME, STAN JUST BEEPED. I'M BACK, HE WANTED ME TO COME OUT AND ENJOY THE SNOW FLURRIES. Right this instant we are under a cloud - there is blue sky all around this cloud - this cloud in only over our boat. Back to yesterday... the BW fellow showed up at exactly 8:30a.m. unlocked the paddles and we started off down the flight - it was great- the other boat people had years and years of experience. Emma, the daughter gave me great little tips along the way. (I just went out because we were at Plank Bridge in the snow!...no it isn't sticking which is just fine) About half way down in the pouring rain David Long showed up in raingear on his bicycle, took my tools away from me and started setting locks. A tiny bit after that this very large sized "lad" shows up with a ginger haired little girl. It was Ian Mack and his daughter, Dorothy. It is still raining. Ian had his windlass tucked under his jacket over his shoulder. What a team - I had nothing to do so Dorothy and I went inside to get the scones for everyone. We were down the flight in 3 hours. I just love listening to the Lancashire folks speaking to each other. The accents are wonderful. When they are speaking to me their accents are not as pronounced. The lengthsman that was going down with us, called Ken, said that he is always concerned that Americans won't understand him so he's very conscious of the way he is speaking. He then said that he thought I must think the same way because he could understand me! As we're going down the last half of the flight Emma came over and said, did you hear what happened up top? I said no and she said there were two boats up there and they got angry 'cause no one was there at 8:30 to let them down - so they broke the locks and started down themselves. Well, we all hurmphed, and sputtered and said they ought to call the police and they shouldn't get away with that. That info kept us going for several locks. But at 4p.m. that afternoon as Stan and I were going back to the boat from Wigan Pier we saw the lock keeper and it turned out that "they" did not break the locks. The lock filled itself and they opened the gates and went down! They were indeed angry but they didn't really do anything wrong. I forgot about paragraphs! At the bottom of the flight we moored and made tea. As we moored it began to really pour. Ian, Dorothy, and David came in for tea. It was great to have that time to talk. Great, fun, and interesting folks. Dorothy says her dad can eat 10 scones in a row! After that we turned the corner onto the Leigh branch, moored again, Ian, Dorothy, and David went on the way and Stan and I went to Wigan Pier. The great highlight was the steam engine and the demonstration of the machines that cleaned and spun the cotton. That engine is one of the most amazing things I have ever, ever seen and heard. When we were tired we returned to the boat planning to move down the canal to Dover Lock for the night. There were 2 locks in front of us and that was it. We get to the first lock open it up and go in, drain the lock and drain the lock and drain the lock and finally discover that the last boat through had left a ground paddle up and so we couldn't drain the lock - some people are so..... All right we go around the corner to the next lock and I find that "that" boat had left up all the paddles and left the gates open. Close paddles, close gates and begin to fill the lock. After filling the lock and opening the gate I turned to Stan to signal ok only to discover the boat is listing to the side and he tells me he is stuck on the concrete shelf. Back up to the last lock to run some water down to float the boat. No telling how much water was wasted by "that" boat. After about 5 mins. I walked back around the curve and Stan was floating in the center of the canal. Closed the paddles and walked back to see the Blue Heron still floating in the center, Stan shouts, "engine died and won't start... water in the fuel"! The wind really helped because it blew the boat back to the towpath side. We deecided to bowhaul boat into lock, go down and tie up at the bottom to sort out the problem. At that point in time David showed up (we were going off with him), so he helped move the boat down and lent moral support as Stan bled the engine. We think the water went into the the breather pipe for the diesel when we were coming down the Wigan flight. In order to get out of the locks the Blue Heron had to be backed up to the sill where there are these lovely waterfalls that continually splash down onto the counter ( I think that is what that flat part where one can stand is called). Stan feels very confident about getting rid of water in the deisel!!! We then continued to the Dover Lock and David showed up again to wisk us away for a lovely evening. So that's Monday's adventure with a bit of Tuesday thrown in. I just went into a Kwik Stop for a few items and I noticed something very interesting. That the girls who work there very quickly grab loose trolleys and put them back in line and the pocket the pound coin that comes out. I saw one girl collect 4 trolleys in less than 15 minutes - that's not too shabby a salary..... The other thing that I have noticed is that the trolleys do not move like crabs. Thank goodness... I hated using the crab trolleys... I was always smashing into people or things.... We're off - heading for Dunham Masey, former corn mill, a National Trust property. Toodle pip Judy Judy and Stan Voets, P.O. Box 103, San Geronimo, CA. 94963, U.S.A. nb Blue Heron of San Geronimo TEL: USA (415)488-0985 UK 04686 34567 (April 3rd to June 2nd) (July 31 to Oct. 17) Email: USA jvoets@marin.k12.ca.us UK jvoets@tamal.demon.co.uk (April 3 to June 2)(July 31 to Oct.17) From owner-canals@blacksheep.org Mon May 12 16:33:31 1997 id AA03389; Mon, 12 May 97 16:33:18 EDT Date: Mon, 12 May 1997 21:57:09 GMT id aa1000340; 12 May 97 21:08 BST To: canals@blacksheep.org From: Judy Voets Subject: from between Salterford and Barnton tunnels Hi there, Tim turned us loose from the dry dock on Sunday. He did a beautiful job on the Blue Heron. We highly recommend him. We went on down to the nursery and moored hoping to go to this lovely perenial nursery on Monday (today). Guess what, it is closed on Mondays!! We had a terrific weekend. Went to Braunston and took a Rose and Castle class from Ron Hough - sponsered by Merlin Boats - David and Margaret Cowtan. After we moored we decided to walk down to the Weaver to the Salterford Locks. On the way we stopped at the sluice gate because BW was there in force. There was also a crane there. Very exciting. Well, it turned out that the gate had come down on a very large log and everyone there was working on getting this log out. We hung around and watched people poking with a very long boat hook and getting other tools ready to try. We then walked up to the village and on the way back the crane came up to the road along with a couple of BW men. So tomorrow they have a diver coming! We also walked down to the Anderton Visitors' Center and spoke again with Ted Tomson. We took a sticker to put in our car at home. I forgot to say that this is a great mooring - John and Gill Watson suggested it. I thought it would be a bit quieter - quite a few people drive their cars down here to go fishing or to their boat. The view is great - we can see the Weaver. All the trees have leafed out - 3 weeks ago it still looked like winter here. Barb, John and Marcia - Most tunnels are two way. The tunnels that are one way are posted very clearly and give the times that one can enter. I wouldn't want to make any mistakes either - I'd hate to have to back out!! I think it's harder to go through a two way tunnel 'cause they are so narrow. Toodle pip Judy Judy and Stan Voets, P.O. Box 103, San Geronimo, CA. 94963, U.S.A. nb Blue Heron of San Geronimo TEL: USA (415)488-0985 UK 04686 34567 (April 3rd to June 2nd) (July 31 to Oct. 17) Email: USA jvoets@marin.k12.ca.us UK jvoets@tamal.demon.co.uk (April 3 to June 2)(July 31 to Oct.17) From owner-canals@blacksheep.org Thu May 15 18:06:04 1997 id AA08349; Thu, 15 May 97 18:05:55 EDT Date: Thu, 15 May 1997 23:25:50 GMT id aa1011861; 15 May 97 20:28 BST To: canals@blacksheep.org From: Judy Voets Subject: salt HI All, Yesterday we went to the Lion's Salt Works Discover Center/almost an interactive museum. Neither Stan nor myself knew anything about salt mining or bringing brine up and putting it in pans and the evaporation process. At home one goes down the peninsula (where the Colemans live) and there is Leslie Salt on the San Francisco Bay and next to the buildings is a huge salt mountain. I suppose they use the evaporation process also but the brine that is brought up from underthe ground has 8 times more salt than sea water. So how is this canally???? The salt was taken away by narrow boats. A lot of the problems with the canals is subsidence caused by the mines. The flashes are the result of subsidence. This environment is really changing - it is really very interesting. We got to Middlewich and the chandlery was closed. We spent the night close by so I could go spend a bunch of money at the chandlery including the new Waterways World and Canal Boat... I just wanted to see our good friends the Dorvals (Dorwards). Well, on the way back to the boat there was a gentleman just beginning to paint his boat. He had a table set up on the towpath so I stopped to say hello and admire his work. It turns out that his name is Mr. Appleton and he was born on a working boat and so were his 13 brothers and sisters (there were 7 of each). His family had 3 boats and 3 horses - they were Clayton boats. He is a great source of information. He and his wife cruise a fair amount with his brother-in-law who also was on a working boat. His present boat which is 3 years old is named Kalispel after a town in British Columbia that they visited 3 years ago. They had a lovely trip to California - went by coach from San Francisco all the way up into Canada, through Vancouver on to Kalispel, Jasper and Banff (sp.?). He said it was lovely. We're going to moor at Wheelock and then going into Sandbach to do a MAJOR shopping - I know we'll take a taxi back. Saturday, we pick up the nb at Heritage and go back to Kidsgrove with it 'cause on Sunday the artists arrive and we start "work". So if any of you are around the Macclesfield in the next 2 weeks come by and have a cup of tea - love to see you. Toodle pip Judy Judy and Stan Voets, P.O. Box 103, San Geronimo, CA. 94963, U.S.A. nb Blue Heron of San Geronimo TEL: USA (415)488-0985 UK 04686 34567 (April 3rd to June 2nd) (July 31 to Oct. 17) Email: USA jvoets@marin.k12.ca.us UK jvoets@tamal.demon.co.uk (April 3 to June 2)(July 31 to Oct.17) From owner-canals@blacksheep.org Fri May 23 17:04:34 1997 id AA12312; Fri, 23 May 97 17:04:29 EDT Date: Fri, 23 May 1997 16:45:28 +0100 id ab0518265; 23 May 97 21:31 BST To: canals@blacksheep.org From: Judy Voets Subject: we are still here! Hi All, Just a short note to let all of you know we are very, very busy running the 2 boats, cooking, and talking. The 3 artists appear to love the canals and the villages. I want all of you to know how lucky we are to have our own boat. The hire boat has a marvelous floorplan but the steering leaves a lot to be desired. I also realize how lucky I am that Stan usually runs the Blue Heron - I do a lot but definitely not half. When one is the steerer one certainly can not do anything else!!! I find it hard to speak to people on the bank! Being a social sort of person I miss these little chats. For instance, today I saw a lady we know polishing her chimney and we had a tiny, little chat and when I looked in front of me the nb had gone off to the left and another boat was coming out of the bridge hole in front of me - wasn't that cute. Well, everyone who was in their boat or on their boat, of course, jumped up to watch - I only said, well, I got all of you up, right? They all laughed and helped push me off so the oncoming nb could pass. Whew, at least they were all good natured about my goof. With this boat I can't take my eyes off the front for more than 2 seconds! Have to go cook dinner now. Toodle pip Judy Judy and Stan Voets, P.O. Box 103, San Geronimo, CA. 94963, U.S.A. nb Blue Heron of San Geronimo TEL: USA (415)488-0985 UK 04686 34567 (April 3rd to June 2nd) (July 31 to Oct. 17) Email: USA jvoets@marin.k12.ca.us UK jvoets@tamal.demon.co.uk (April 3 to June 2)(July 31 to Oct.17)