What a day..............

Certainly not a day for a daydream!  As we cast off it was starting to rain.  It rained steadily and constantly as we made our way up the Trent and Mersey Canal to Etruria.  It was easing as we turned to head up the Caldon Canal.

Then the rain eased off and we were approaching Handley Park.  This was fortunate as just entering the park there were strange noises and the boat lost way.  A burst of reverse showed a piece of thick black plastic.  Often this is enough to clear the propeller.  In this case it wasn't.

So the only solution was a trip down the weed hatch.  Kat volunteered to sort it being a little younger and more flexible than the alternative - me!  For those not familiar with weed hatches they are a sort of trap door directly above the propeller allowing you to reach to remove any thing caught.  I should point out to do this you are down by the engine with your head and shoulders under the deck.  Light comes from the square hatch above not that you can see what you are doing, you have your arm full length up to the armpit in the murky water.

Slowly we managed to disentangle things from around the prop.  I was busy keeping tension on the mass as Kat started to remove it, so no blip of the action.  You can see half of what we removed on Clickychick's blip here.  The haul included a lamp fitting, fabric, the remains of an umbrella, bits of rope, an armani belt etc.

Why do people think that throwing something in a canal/river/hedge etc is better than proper disposal.  The fight with the rubbish took about 45 minutes.  Kat deserves a medal for spending so long in a cramped position with her arms in cold water.  It would have taken much long if I had been dealing with it.