Staircase lock Marsworth, Aylesbury Arm
On the way we found some more damsons. Anne & Maggie tried the "shake the tree" technique of harvesting the fruit. It appears to work well, especially if you use a boat hook!
Damson damsels! - how to harvest damsons
Below Lock 13 the reeds, that have been there for several years, were very dense and appeared to closed off the channel.
Lots of reeds!
Broughton, and the first of the Aylesbury Locks, have key-protected mechanisms. The new padlocks don't let you remove the key once it is open. This makes for some interesting manoeuvres.
Locked to a padlock at a lock!
Just as we arrived below Lock 16, the last on the arm before Aylesbury, we found NB May Contain Nuts broken down. We towed them back to the basin in Aylesbury where they were to meet the RCR mechanic. If was the first time we had towed with Albert. It was fairly straight forward but because May Contain Nuts was leaving Aylesbury, she was towed stern first. It appears that they have a cooling water problem. RCR arrived later and were still working on the problem at 9.30PM.
Towing NB May Contain Nuts towards Aylesbury
We we welcomed into the basin by the Aylesbury Canal Society and allocated an overnight mooring by their clubhouse. We had a good meal at the National Trust owned Kings Head in the town. Good choice of beer, pleasant ambiance and good food.
