Short cruise and odd jobs

The car was returned to Enterprise this morning.  I stopped on the way to add 5L of petrol to the tank to get it back to the level when we collected it (quarter full). It was almost quarter full so I didn’t think it would take much to reach the mark.  After leaving the petrol station the damned gauge didn’t budge  So I found a Tesco and added another 5L.  It still didn’t move and in a moment of frustration I added yet another 5L.  No movement from the needle so I told myself “Stuff it… the car can go back like this!”  Just before I reached the Enterprise depot the needle quivered and then jumped to three quarter full.  To say I was annoyed would be an understatement.  Enterprise kindly gave me a 15% discount voucher for our next hire!

I called into the Morrisons supermarket in Nantwich on the way back to Waiouru.  They didn’t have any custard doughnuts so I substituted them for a hot cooked chicken!  Jan will understand!

It was a brisk walk back to the boat with a hot chicken burning my back.  Jan attended to all those small chores inside Waiouru whilst I checked everything in the engine bay and stowed the new oil.  I also took the opportunity to check the two fuel pre-filters.  The first had a small amount of “gunk”suspended in the diesel whilst the second was clean.  I’ll keep an eye on the diesel just in case we are developing the dreaded “fuel bug”.

It was a slow cruise up to Barbridge Junction.  Along the way we noticed a couple of boats that were in exactly the same spot when we passed here in the 3rd quarter of last year. 

I think they might have grown roots

We stopped at Barbridge Junction to top up the water tank (it was already three quarters full).  The water pressure was slow and it took 30 minutes to fill.  Then we motored on to the 48 hour moorings above Cholmondeston Lock.  To our surprise they were empty.  It was at these moorings where I first met Eric, Elsie and Ben the Dog from nb Bendigedig back in 2011. It was also the same location where I managed to RV with Anne and her family when they were cruising on a hire boat.

The boats have been going past all afternoon.  Some slow and some fast.  There’s no common factor to identify those going fast except for Jan calling out to the fast boats “Thank you!” I suspect the sarcasm is lost.

What’re you look’n at!