Boatwif
The occasional adventures of the Cleddau crew
About Us
We are ‘The Captain’ and ‘Boatwif’, owners of nb Cleddau.
Cleddau was a five year old youngster when we took her on in 1994. She was built for cruising on the River Trent. Over time Cleddau has had internal and external adjustments but she retains her original hull, propeller, anchor and portholes.
When asked (frequently) “What does Cleddau mean?” our response is usually “In Welsh it means swords but Cleddau is the name of the river that flows into the Milford Haven deep water estuary in Pembrokeshire…”
We both grew up in Pembrokeshire; for some years we have kept a record of what we call ‘Monkton Moments’, those exchanges with boaters and non-boaters who recognise our Pembrokeshire connections.
This blog below is a record of our mainly boating adventures.
RECENT KEN & SUE LOCATION
The 518ft contour* (and a spot of fishing)
Rain, hail, thunder and winds punctuated the tranquillity of last evening’s mooring. A check this morning on...
Alternative solutions
Weather forecasters were insistent that gales would prevail by late afternoon. Hence the plan to do the relatively short...
‘Your local canal is an outdoor gym’
The motto in the title was spotted a couple of days ago, probably on the side of a British Waterways van...
Black and white
First lock of the day, about 400 yards from the overnight mooring, was lock 47. There never was going to be a...
Red and orange
Red and yellow and pink and green Purple and orange and blue… So go the opening lines of I Can Sing A Rainbow...
Bells, beers and breads at Stone
So much for plans! A hot air balloon (coincidence?), a peal of bells and huge marquees in the park alongside the towpath...
No great expectations
Another blue, hot day with meteorologists and broadcasters on the radio excitedly anticipating and quoting record...
Things domestic
“Uuh?” you may say, if you are a keen canal route follower. “Aren’t you going the wrong way? Wasn’t...
What a beautiful day...
“We’re going on a bear hunt, we’re going on a bear hunt, what a beautiful day!” go the words of Michael Rosen’s...
We will remember them
The National Memorial Arboretum is on a 150 acre site, just north of Lichfield, Staffordshire. Boatwif had spotted...
Extra boaters at Branston
There was a phone call on Sunday evening: a polite suggestion was made, a plan was formulated. Hence after a night’s rest...
Birthdays on boats – and bye to big locks!
Some stats since last Saturday: 4 train journeys 4 taxi rides 4 social chit chats* (Boatwif) 5 meetings (the Captain)...
Safe anchorage
We crept along the canal into Willington and out this morning – this appears to be another honeypot site...
Branston Pickle
Eastwards this morning – all previous destinations on this cruise have been generally south (Marsworth)...