What a day!

What the hell is the matter with some boaters? We were at the top lock of the Atherstone Flight, travel restrictions from 8.30am to 4.00pm, writes Geraldine Prescott.

Time to set off when a very heated argument broke out, who was number what to go down, pathetic, but sorted. (Think British Waterways should have one of those number machines you find at the deli counter in a supermarket.)

Preferential treatment

Then a boat owner told a hire boater he had preferential treatment in that he could go in front of hire boats, him sorted—we know who you are!

Going well then a single handed boat came up, he drove the boat into the lock and grabbed his centre line. Whilst we were tying up our boat he started to signal that we had to do the lock wheeling—no windlass, I mean it, no windlass! Up he came and drove out the lock, don't know which was dirtier him or the boat.

Smashed into gates

He came to the next lock, smashed into the gates to open them, climbed up the ladder in the lock, he was displaying a 'Blue badge holder" sign! Holding his centre line and just stood there—waiting for a boat to come along we surmised. Oh, forgot to mention he was either tiddled or on drugs!

We got to the second to last lock to find a queue of four boats, what the devil is going on—guess what one of the paddles on the top gate was out of order, so it took ages to fill. Whilst one of the boats was going down the owner shouted help, so everyone ran to assist, to find he had got off the boat to help his wife lock wheel, but hadn't taken the boat forward enough and his rudder was stuck on the lock gate. Some fast lock wheeling solved the problem and stopped a disaster—water was running into his gas locker One and a half  hours later we cleared the locks.

We have now moored up for the night—please let it be an uneventful one!

Geraldine Prescott.

[Geraldine operates the well known cheese boat.]