Passed today through the locks at Camden and St Pancras then arrived at Battlebridge Basin. Took a chance and drove right in, hoping that the mooring outside the London Canal Museum would be free. Couldn’t help boasting as I maneuvred in perfectly, letting the breeze gently push the boat for the last few yards. (Let’s draw a veil over the departure except to say that no I wasn’t drunk and no antique tugs were actually damaged).
It’s a smaller museum than I expected but well worth a look round. It has the added interest of having once been an ice cream maker’s warehouse and retains a huge well where ice was once stored. They have a programme of interesting talks and walks and if you can’t actually visit the musem take a look at their website and its temporary webxibitions.
Leaving the museum I drove through Islington tunnel (960 yards) and emerging at the other end the driver of a waiting boat shouted out “That’s a record. Slowest ever through the tunnel.”
Ended up in Angel as evening fell.
I left the marina today but didn’t go far, just round the corner and stopped for the night. Sat on top of the wooden cabin with a cup of strong coffee and watched the sun go down and the lights of the marina come on. Nice way to start an evening.
Lots of wooden boards and rubbish drifting around this canal at the moment. And, peculiarly, coconut husks. The rubbish tends to accumulate between the boat and the towpath so I sweep it away daily with the boat pole.
What do I like about living in a marina?
The long showers every morning are fantastic. No need to run the engine or light the boiler. The hot water goes on forever. Heaven.
The laundry room has an iron and ironing board. I’ve been taking all my clothes to a shop near my workplace and paying them to do it. Thing is, I tried plugging a 240v iron into the inverter… but I didn’t even get half a shirt ironed before the inverter’s fan started making an awful whining noise and a red warning light flashed.
I don’t worry whether my boat will be where I left it when I return. There are locked gates and the police occasionally drive round.
There’s 240 volt electricity all day every day so I don’t need to run the engine. I could watch tv all night and not end up missing the end of a film. It’s cheap too: a £2.50 card lasted two weeks.
What don’t I like?
I can only get one Internet wifi connection (JustYachts) and it’s bloody expensive. No homes or businesses within range.
The other boaters keep themselves to themselves. It’s freezing cold and we’re all huddled up indoors with the heating on full. Lots of smoke drifts across the water from chimneys. It’s so quiet. I’m bored. Really bored. Nothing happens. No-one passes by the boat to chat to. There’s no wildlife. The view out the window this week is the same as the view last week.
I bought this boat because it’s a cure for itchy feet. I might as well be living in a house as a marina. Time to move on…
