Friday 7 June 2013

Dadlington–near Burton Hastings

Posted 12th June

We had a gentle start to the day, in a good sunny spot, with the scent of drying hay wafting over the hedge on the towpath side, and entertainment in the form of a herd of cattle on the opposite bank.  This splendid bull was striding around the field making sure all the cows and calves knew who was boss.  Here he is walking (very fast, you wouldn’t want to have been his side of the canal) towards some calves at the canal edge.

big daddy on a mission

  They scarpered pretty quickly as he approached and he turned his attentions to another group.

big daddy throwing his weight around

Interestingly, when we stopped watching he stopped throwing his weight around.

We set off around 10, on our way to Trinity marina for some diesel, stopping at the farm shop again at bridge 23.  This is the first day we have felt able to take our jumpers off while cruising and we certainly needed the sun cream.  We saw the first yellow wagtail this year today, and a couple of buzzards, one being mobbed by crows. 

Here is the Triumph motorbike factory on the way into Hinckley.

triumph factory

At Trinity we got some diesel and were at last able to get rid of the recycling which has been stacking up.  We stopped at the edge of Hinckley for lunch and yet another failed attempt to get an internet signal!

We decided to find a quiet spot well before the junction with the Coventry and stopped before bridge 6 near Burton Hastings.  Dave got on with painting the gunwale on one side of the boat.  When Debby came back from her run she found a hornet in the boat!  It was twice the size of a queen wasp and with a much deeper and louder buzz – think of a wartime bomber rather than a spitfire!  She was keener to get it out than take a photograph. Luckily the opening parts of the windows are easily removable so it was fairly straightforward to release it.

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