Home moorings to The Bridge Inn, Napton 23 6 10

We arrived at the boat at 5 pm  to find the off side splattered with mud, BW are piling the towing path opposite and dredging back so it must have been the dredger bucket splashing things. The also have there work boats two abreast opposite us so that has probably resulted in some more of our black disappearing and also our mooring lines being on the point of giving up the ghost.

We moved down to the top lock to load the boat as it is easier than getting Magic across the lock gates and hovered above the lock while we loaded up. Mary from nb Goody Two Shoes walked down for a chat and brought her windlass with her to help us through the lock.

A hire boat moored in the next pound pulled out behind us and the girl walked ahead and assisted us with the next lock as well as one near the bottom. We met a couple of boats in the flight  but still all the locks were empty when we got to them.Its good to see that BW have repaired the bywash and the levels are now back down to normal. There was only one boat moored in the bottom pound but all the moorings by the Folly were occupied. Near the bottom of the flight we met a Kate boat, Harry and the hirer told Di she was not sure what she was doing in the locks,even though they had managed Calcutt they still left the paddles up when they left the lock. I would have expected their training to be second to none following last years accident in a lock.

We continued on past boats moored on bends and to soft towing path until we came to The Bridge Inn where to our surprise there was enough mooring for two boats. We moored at the beginning of the space just on 7 pm. and the hire boat that had followed us down the flight moored directly ahead of us a short time later. We wandered back to the pub at 8 pm to eat. Wednesday night is pie night but they only had one beef pie left which I claimed, they had also run out of fish pie, but were offering lasagna for the same price as a meat pie. A table behind us ordered soup and were a bit miffed it didn't come with a roll and butter. The pub is still run by the same family but I do wonder if they are losing bit of a grip on things, from the sweet board there was no ice cream.