Victor discovers it's now 'Cox on the Rocks'

GOING for the record number of breakdowns, once again it's 'Cox on the Rocks' as Coxhead Swing Bridge on the Leeds & Liverpool breaks down once again.

But with its main opponent, Winkwell Swing Bridge on the Grand Union breaking down so many times already this year, it's needs just a few failures to sort out the record!

The Coxhead (pictures) is currently out of order and the navigation closed as problems with a barrier. Our being told that the contractors have been informed and will return as soon as safely possible to repair the damaged barrier—though if only 'informed' surely they have not yet been there!  Ah, well!

Anyway, unlike 'Wink on the Blink' that I conjured-up, 'Cox on the Rocks', I have to admit, is Keith's creation—Good one Keith!

What about the danger?

Damian, that purveyor of CaRT propaganda, has warned boaters of storm Eunice, telling them to take care in the high winds across much of the network. but only move your boat if in immediate danger. Then goes on relate...'if you are planning an amazing walk we'd love to see you tomorrow'.  Most important that, don't you know?

But dear Damian, what about the danger of mooring under trees?  Isn't that important. Oh! Sorry, forgot—mustn't mention danger must we...?

And glancing through the outputs of other supporters of CaRT, there is nothing in their comments about the danger of trees being blown down on boats, which really is a real danger indeed for those moored underneath.

But as we are so often told, 'It is better by water'—so they most certainly mustn't mention that, as no one did, especially about the fella falling with his bike in the Coventry Canal to miss a fallen tree and landing up in hospital.

All very hush, hush, don't you know?

Mystery solved

The mystery of the strange blue sign that Howard Clarke photographed on the Marsworth Flight of the Grand Union has been solved by Tony Brooks.

In his piece, to be included, he explains it is a term used by tree surgeons and refers to cut down trees.

So afraid the many other—and somewhat suspect—explanations came nowhere near it!

Oh dear!

The Daily Telegraph featured an article that would not have gone down too well at Ivory towers.

It told of one, Donna Anderton, who lives by the side of the Trent & Mersey at Barton-under-Needwood, who tells that when it rains it pours—with sewage from the canal!

The Telegraph reporting that it happens so often that she has had to install extra drainage on her drive, to protect her house from the tide of filthy water that rises up from the canal and nearby streams a few times a year.

It is thought that Severn Trent Water is the culprit that dumps sewage into the stream in Barton-under-Needwood once a month on average in 2020, the most recent year that figures are available.  Over the course of a week, the Telegraph spoke to dozens of people whose lives are blighted by the raw effluence being pumped into rivers, canals and streams by water companies across the country, it told.

Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear. Not what dear Canal & River Trust want to hear, as it certainly does not sit too well with its 'better by water' campaign, as it certainly is not.

Derwent Mouth Lock is another example, where I've noticed the unmentionable often floating down the outlet from the sewage plant there into the Trent, then down into Sawley and Cranfield cuts.

Too busy

So we are still waiting for Swarkestone Lock, that gave up the ghost back on the 10th February to be repaired, CaRT blithely informing us that its contractors are too busy attending to another breakdown.

Both it tells were caused by vandalism, but of course no details of what or how, or even the other lock named.

It is rather obvious that the contractors are rather busy these days with other things, so we shall have to wait until they decide to make an appearance, and these 'vandalisms'—that I reckon, fool no one—are eventually attended to.

Should have kept its own teams as is being proved time and time again, not only by the length of time it now takes for contractors to undertake a repair, but the poor workmanship resulting in so many jobs failing and having to be done again.

Putting a stop to that

If any of you had an extra Google advert appear at the bottom of pages, I can tell that Google is sneaking them in, definitely without permission, and our Thomas is somewhat annoyed.

For unlike others, who prefer to plaster their pages with such adverts, particularly newspapers, he has no intention of having narrowboatworld going the same way—so it will be out and most likely the others too.

Victor Swift