Lunching

Down through Hungerford on our own this morning. Alistair stopped for water but LJ and I walked on. We wound the second lock but QISMA wasn't the first boat to arrive. In fact she wasn't even in sight. So in went a charity trip boat on the move back to Newbury with a volunteer crew and a 10 hour day!  Despite this when QISMA rounded the corner they rewound the lock and  wouldn't let me help. I felt like a lady lunching! We went on for 3 locks with them when they stopped for lunch. The crew had their eyes on the Dundas Arms. The skipper has his on sandwiches onboard!

On we went to Kintbury. A boat just leaving the lock. A wide beam hire boat with a NZ crew tried to hurry off the water point but they just couldn't make it. In fairness, Alistair offered to let them past but they declined. More help. We didn't hold them up too much as I wound the top paddle for them on the way down. All locks against us but with the help .... We were flying - in relative terms!  We caught the boat ahead just as they stopped for lunch and they came back to help with the gates as they had found it really difficult to manage as the top gates would NOT stay closed.  All in all a day full of  the best boaters you could imagine.

This section is just lovely and best of all our favourite K&A mooring which was occupied when we came up was empty  YES!

Only downside was passing a moored boat that  had dreadful list and was losing fuel. I reported it to CRT providing the registration number.

On the non-travelling side of life I have had  some amazing Tweet chats over the  weekend and today.
Thank you. #boatsthattweet and others!