Well, the day arrived, and we left the marina. The sun was out, and we both were excited and nervous too. Steve took up the helm and did a grand job of navigating out of Stenson marina, now to go under the bridge that had kept us waiting for three weeks.
Just as we came under the bridge, the snow started coming down, and still, the sun shone. It was definitely testing us. Waterproofs were found and quickly put on. We did, however, still have smiles on our faces. I was pretty emotional as we were starting our new life. It was actually happening. Our dream had become a reality.
The weather continued to change on that very first journey; one minute dry and sunshine, the next blizzards. Mexi was not impressed, so I took her down below. Steve soldiered through; to be honest, I think he was enjoying it because, on that cruise, nothing could dampen his spirits.
We only travelled about 7 miles on that day, but it was full of testing times. We arrived at the first lock, and it was my first one for many years. I donned my gloves, grabbed the shinny windlass and jumped off once we were close to the bank. We were lucky a boat was coming out. Three chaps had emerged as I went off the boat. I walked up to the lock as Steve took charge of the rope I had jumped off with and got the camera ready to film Steve coming through the bridge. He started to wave to me; I waved back. His wave became more pronounced; I heard him shout a man had fallen in. I quickly put the camera away and sprinted, which was not a usual pastime for me. As I got there promptly for me, the poor man sat in the water, trying to get to his feet. Th either chap that was on the side, and I pulled like mad, but I wasn’t strong enough. LUCKILY Steve flagged down a passer-by, and this young chap and the other one eventually managed to help him out. He still had a sense of humour as he said his new walking shoes were obviously not waterproof. It shows how easily accidents happen, he just lost his footing, and that was it.
I went back to the lock, and Steve manoeuvred his way into the lock, and we went on our way. We then continued along the Trent & Mersey towards Shobnall, where we decided to call it a day.
We hunkered down for the evening and opened a bottle of champagne to celebrate our first journey.
I thought we were ready for everything as we had been planning this for so long. The biggest thing that has hit me is the lack of information you are verbally given when moving onto a boat. Yes, we were handed two large A4 folders full of technical information regarding all the onboard instruments and gadgets. Still, I genuinely feel that if the person was to give the boat keys to the new owner spent at least an hour going through the essential things like the engine and what you need to do daily. Then the solar panels, explaining how the app worked and what you should be looking out for, and the central heating life would be more straightforward. Anyhow, we are learning to live in a very narrow tube with each other all day, every day, and I am sure by the end of the month, we will have cracked most things to do with boat life.
Tune in a couple of weeks to see how the story unfolds as we cruise the waterways.
Never Two Late Our Journey 