While we were relaxing and enjoying the break, a walker came by and asked for a cup of tea. It turned out that he, David Collins, is walking from John O'Groats to Lands End (JOGLE as opposed to LEJOG) to raise money for Cancer Research UK. He's about half way and using this canal's route to enjoy some level walking along the towpath, vital considering he's carrying an 18.5kg pack. We wished him all the best and were delighted to support his magnificent effort - here's the link
David about to set off again, after a cuppa and chat
An hour or two later, we were surprised to see a small narrowboat reversing past us - with some difficulty, since narrowboats don't steer easily in reverse! The steerer and his young grandson explained that they'd reversed from the next lock but one, so actually come up backwards through the lock immediately below us. The reason being, Gothersley lock was leaking so badly that they'd been unable to open the top gate to descend the lock. This was worrying news, as we had to get to Kinver through that lock! We decided to recce it and phone the Canal & River Trust (CRT) if it seemed impassable.
An ominous sign?! Only an old puffball
Another ominous sign... had a gate fallen off??
Gothersley lock
Inspecting the damage
It turned out the problem was VERY leaky bottom gates, which meant the lock was emptying faster than it could fill.
A phone call to the CRT out of hours service, to report the leak. Hope we can get through tomorrow without too much delay.
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