{Snow crunching under foot}
{Music}
And this is Hillmorton. It’s a little bit south of Rugby, still on the Oxford Canal
and this lock is the start of six locks in total, but worry not,
because they’re in duplicates.
We left Rugby towards the east of the town. There’s a short canal arm at Clifton Upon
Dunsmore that’s now used for permanent mooring. Passing Rugby Golf Course, we moored up just
before Hillmorton Locks.
I stayed here for just over a week as the temperatures plummeted. It was quiet here
and we were able to moor up close to a water tap.
Michael the carpenter from Ziggy Sawdust has been busy making a tv cabinet for the inside
of Alice. I wanted a good quality piece of furniture in the narrowboat that included
some storage. The cabinet is to be made out of solid oak with an oak faced ply back. It’ll
sit under the gunnel on the starboard side and be 196cm in length and 20cm in depth.
The space in the middle will be suitable for televisions up to 80cm in width and I wanted
cupboards either side of the television as well as underneath it. I wanted shaker style doors
similar to my kitchen, stern and the side hatch. Michael is based in Hinckley in Leicestershire
and is a cabinet maker by trade and his attention to detail is second to none. Full details
of how to contact Michael are in the description below.
{Music}
After passing through the three locks we winded our way down the Oxford Canal passing Barby
Moorings, and the Category B male adult prison that has a distinctive star shape. Just to
the east of the village of Willoughby, I was able to park the car right next to the canal
in a small carpark. Lots of people ask how I can travel with both a boat and a car. Well
it can require a bus or a taxi but mainly a good walk, which of course Molly enjoys.
{Gentle water sounds}
Along the side of the canal before we moored up, there are a series of meadows with sheep
grazing in them. However, they have significant lined contours. If you know why the land is
like this, please do let me know in the comments below.
{Music}
In the next episode we travel down to Braunston and turn down the stretch where the Grand
Union and the Oxford Canals merge.
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Until next time, see ya later.