New Year at Hopwood

Captains Log



Canal Date 2nd January 2011
Travels still not possible
Current Location Still at Hopwood


Happy New year!

We survived New Year with some friends. I think that I am getting old now as I thought it may be a good idea to celebrate New Year at ten o’clock instead of mid night so as to get home to bed earlier. This was not adopted by the others so I was forced to stay awake for hours!

This is our 3rd Christmas & New Year on board. How time flies when you are enjoying yourself.

As far as boating goes, there is not much to talk about. We are still iced in and going know where. All of the snow has now gone from the towpath and fields but the ice is remaining, stubbornly on the canal. We have never been stuck in ice for this length of time before. It is a good job we are in the middle of “Global Warming” or this ice may last even longer!

We are still managing to remain comfortable on board. The log burner is worth its weight in gold. The central heating is used sparingly as the diesel is running a bit low and it has become rather too expensive to burn. So we are relying on the wood burner for most of our heating needs.

It’s good to get some space back on board now all of the Christmas presents have been distributed. Space is always a bit of an issue when you live in a 50 x 6 foot tube.

The B.W. water point is still refusing to deliver any water at all so we are taking water containers with us where ever we go.

Sit Rep:-
• Christmas decorations up and still working. Bah Humbug
• Solar panels are no more than ornaments – No sunshine for days now!
• Log burner working overtime, but running low on logs.
• Central heating working fine, but running low on diesel
• Inside a pleasant 24deg.
• Outside 3.5 deg grey cloud, light wind..
• Dog fast asleep in front of the fire. (Not a care in the world)
• We have 1/2 tank of water.
• 1/4 tank of Diesel
• We have only a small supply of wood.
• Coal is getting a bit low now.
• I empty propane cylinder. (Must change this soon before we run out altogether!)

One good point about being iced in the canal is that I have not managed to fall in at all for weeks now!