Maggie closing a lock gate at Marsworth
Taking on water by the new development at Marsworth
Passing Bates Yard at Puttenham
The locks on the Aylesbury Arm are straightforward but being close together they can be good exercise - still that's the joy of boating.
Anaerobic Digestion Plant near Buckland Lock
We moored up for lunch just above Buckland Lock where there is the massive Arla Super-Dairy which is powered by a biodigester. It appears the local Parish Council are not too keen on the odours from the plant.
Unusual style of parish council notice
Buckland Lock collapsed in 2013 and took some time to be rebuilt.
Buckland Lock with rebuilt wall
Warning plate at Buckland Lock
It is interesting that Buckland Lock still appears to have some issues with water permeating the brickwork.
A maintenance gang at work near Bierton
Close to Aylesbury we found the new, at least to us, base of the Aylesbury Canal Society at Circus Fields. A bit different from the old facilities at the town basin when we came here a decade ago.
Aylesbury Canal Society Base
We moored up for the night at the new basin in the town which is now the home to a Travel Lodge, a Waitrose, a college and The Waterside Theatre. The moorings are functional and useful, particularly if you need supplies. Only a couple of boats were moored up and we chose a pontoon near the centre. To bad that our duck friends had left their marks - a lot them. The pontoons appear to be their overnight roosts. Our first job was to scrub the sh*t off - we didn't want to drag it in all over the boat!
Scrubbing the pontoons at Aylesbury Basin
We took on supplies at Waitrose and enjoyed coffee in their cafe. Amazingly we saw a kingfisher in the brook which runs between the store and the theatre. Not often you see a town centre kingfisher.
With Ronnie Barker looking towards The Waterside Theatre
Couldn't resist sitting next to the Ronnie Barker statue. Ronnie started his acting career in Aylesbury. We contemplated going to the theatre but we didn't fancy a tribute to Dirty Dancing!
