About Turn

 

Sunday now and so we head back down the Ashby – Steve wanted to surprise Viv by stopping at Shackerstone, to visit the heritage railway station and the lovely Victorian tea rooms. We also met up with Linda again, as she was on to her third batch of family visitors! It was a lovely cruise and so was the lunchtime stop. A pot of tea and ham & cheese toasties. No steam trains today as the loco was unwell (that was the official reason given) . We had to buy a platform ticket, very quaint. Then after lunch we chugged on to Sutton Cheney – a nice run to get those batteries charged plus a good point for water and those very spotless showers.

A candidate for the tree of the month?

Strange little brick built harbour – belongs to the “hice” (house) above.

 

Oh no, it’s that tunnel again. A Muppet on the towpath seemed to be saying there’s a boat coming – oh, oh another purple alert? False alarm as he meant he saw one going in!

A two-seater kayak (is that the right term) and unusual sight, I give way, slightly.

One has to focus even more carefully on this canal, for it is a shallow, just a yard off centre and you could be aground.

 

In the station at Shackerstone (see blogs passim for piccies of actual steam trains), there’s a couple of rooms set aside for museums – train stuff and WW2 stuff too.

Meanwhile we sit and wait for our grub. The “tea for two” was a giant and very heavy teapot. Obviously designed to be poured by the butler.

They had some rooms inside – all decked out with excellent Victorian memorabilia. This dresser had a huge tea service.

Only a diesel service running today.

There were quite a few odd engines around – including this one? Foreign?

This one amused us as it had an RH engine:

Our chum, Simon on Empress has an RH engine on his boat!

Goodbye to Linda & Mollie – busy cleaning the boat before the next batch of visitors arrive.

As we passed through Market Bosworth, we saw the artist from Laura, busy doing a commission – a pet dog portrait!

Further along, we espied that sheep on the front of a boat – seems familiar? Yes, it’s a Welsh chap, called Neville Bond and his boat’s name?

We met him last year on our trip to Chester.

Poor Toby! That look! “Make it stop!”, “Are we there yet??” And very soon we were. Sutton Cheney wharf – time for some more of that lamb and perhaps a glass of port & a cigar. A long day.