Going for a walk in Kirkham

Kirkham is the nearest town to our village in Lancashire. The Aldi is our nearest proper supermarket, and Kirkham is where I go for my hearing aids, and for the dentist. For trains it is our nearest station. It is a pretty little market town.

Most of the time I just drive through it, paying little attention. This week I read an article about the town in a magazine, and decided it had to be worth a walk. I am a great believer that the best way to learn about places is to travel slowly, whether on a Narrowboat or on foot.

The first surprise was to see what looked like a bus shelter, just sitting by the road, and housing a weaving loom. It turns out that Kirkham was once a thriving mill town, and this was the last loom ever used, after the last mill closed in 2003. Apparently in the mid nineteenth century Kirkham was the biggest town in the area, several times the size of Blackpool.

Then I discovered the old town square, a huge mural, a fascinating church, even a Tardis.

My walk took me along a footpath called Remembrance Way which was recently put in place, with wild flowers and sculptures, and along an ancient track which once would have headed up to a fort in Roman times.

It just goes to show that there are many interesting things to find almost anywhere, if you just open your eyes. Every day is a school day, and I like school.

May 23, 2025 0

Who would go to a theme park in May?

It was my birthday last Saturday. It was also my nephew’s wedding down in London. We had such a great weekend, shared with our “little” boys and their partners and with the wider family. The sun shone the whole day and Dominic and Louise were clearly having the best time. I do love a good wedding.

But because we were celebrating the wedding, my birthday had to take a bit of a back seat. I was given some fantastic presents and cards, but I waited till I got home on Sunday to open them. I had to buy my own cake (caterpillar of course) and I decided that like the king I would have an extra birthday – on Wednesday. For the past few years I have found that I love a selfish birthday, where I go off on my own and choose my own adventures, this year I went to Blackpool Pleasure Beach.

It is term time and most children are still at school, so the theme park was not too busy, despite amazing weather. I could get on all the rides with barely any waiting. I rode The Big One, Icon (twice), Revolution, Infusion, the Big Dipper, Avalanche, Steeplechase, Launch Pad, Nickelodeon Streak, Rugrats Lost River, Wallace & Gromit’s Thrill-o-Matic, The Ghost Train and the Chinese Puzzle Maze. The only thing I bottled out of doing was Valhalla, allegedly the best water ride in the world, but one where everyone I saw was getting completely soaked.

So if the kids are at school, who goes to Blackpool Pleasure Beach in mid May? The answer seems to be three categories. There are parents with pre-school children, coming to try out the little rides. There are groups of school kids, where a teacher has somehow persuaded the head that it is a good educational experience to go to a theme park. And there are thrill seekers like myself, taking advantage of the lack of queues. In particular there was a group of Belgian roller coaster fans, who travel the world trying out the rides.

What a great week and what a great way to celebrate my birthday. I topped off the day with a visit to Notarianni’s, a famous Blackpool ice cream parlour, where I picked a sundae made with strawberries, vanilla ice cream and chocolate and pistachio sauces. Yum yum.

May 16, 2025 0

What do my podcasts say about me?

Over the years there has been a lot written about what our choice of music says about us. If you like Wagner does that make you an aggressive Teutonic? If you prefer Strauss does that make you weak willed and airy fairy? Does a taste for the Beatles mean you are out of date? Does liking Taylor Swift mean you an empowered feminist or a young teenager? Many of us claim to have eclectic music taste because we think we like such wide ranging genres. The reality is that if someone else looks at our music collection they can see a definite style, that reflects who we are and where we have come from.

I have a feeling that our taste in podcasts says even more about us. Here are some of mine.

I was an early adopter of podcasts. They arrived as an option in iTunes in June 2005 and I immediately started downloading them to my iPod so that I could listen on walks with the dogs. Many of the early ones were just repeats of radios programmes and I subscribed (not followed in those days) to several Radio 4 programmes, some of which you can still see above. I think “Last Word” was one of the first made available. I also remember the exciting day when after several years of waiting, the BBC added “The Archers” to its podcast list.

It was pretty easy in those early days because there were not that many podcasts available, so I had time to listen to all the ones I liked. In recent years, the number of podcasts has just exploded. I am now a complete old fogey because I write a blog instead of hosting a podcast. Why do so many people do podcasts? I am sure the top podcasts make a lot of money, but for many I suspect it is just an ego thing, or maybe, like this blog, it is a satisfying way of sharing what you are thinking with a few friends. What it does mean is that there is huge choice.

You can see above that my selection covers politics, drama, history, current affairs, film, comedy, science. What is the common thread? I think that all the podcasts I choose are entertaining, not too difficult to listen to, not too long. Back when I was working, I used to listen to business podcasts, but they have now gone. I am surprised I do not listen to a narrowboat podcast. Perhaps I am just bored of all the boat vloggers.

And what does my choice says about me? Maybe that I have eclectic taste. Or not.

I would welcome feedback this week. What do you think about my choice of podcasts, and what do you prefer yourself?

May 9, 2025 0

What does my narrowboat dream mean?

I had the weirdest dream last night. Normally I can’t remember dreams but this one was so vivid it is still in my mind. What does it mean?

We were travelling around the canals with a white hire boat as a partner. I was helping someone drive the hire boat and I lost concentration. The hire boat crashed out off the end of the canal and into a shopping centre. Meanwhile Alex Horne from Taskmaster was on our boat with Mandy. This situation was clearly so ridiculous that I realised it must be a dream but when I pinched myself I did not wake up so I concluded it must be reality. Then families from the shopping centre started swarming all over the boat and I couldn’t get them off.

What does it all mean?

I suspect it has something to do with the fact that we are coming to the end of our first long trip out on the boat this year. The last month in the East Midlands has been a wonderful adventure and we have many more experiences to come this year. But this weekend we go back to a house for a few weeks, with things to do including a wedding to attend, a girls weekend for Mandy, and jobs around the house,

Perhaps the shopping centre represents us mooring up for a while. Perhaps the families represent us seeing our families. Perhaps not waking up from a dream represents our ongoing retirement narrowboat dream.

But what on earth was Alex Horne doing?

I asked ChatGPT who said “Alex Horne, a creative and slightly oddball character, might represent a whimsical or unexpected influence—maybe even a part of yourself that enjoys the absurd. Mandy’s presence shows she’s part of your emotional foundation and daily life. Perhaps this suggests you’re trying to balance your grounded world with something more chaotic or silly.”

Or maybe it is just that the new series of Taskmaster has started!

May 2, 2025 0

When the memories all come flooding back

This week we have continued our narrowboat journey in the East Midlands. This is an area we have not seen before on the canals and not one I am familiar with in real life. We have mostly been travelling on the Erewash Canal, a beautiful but badly maintained and vandalised waterway through the ex-coal towns of Long Eaton, Ilkeston and ending at Langley Mill. We had a tough time, getting grounded due to low water levels, steering past sunken boats and fallen trees, and struggling to open leaky locks.

So you can imagine my surprise when we reached the extravagantly named “Great Northern Basin” at the top of the canal and I found all the fishing signs were from Matlock Angling Club.

I grew up in Matlock and just seeing the signs took me back there. Memories of school lessons, playing in a brass band, singing in a choir, going to church where my Dad was the vicar, going to pubs for the first time, learning about girls. It was not just memories. I could feel what it was to be an adolescent again. Simpler times than now, with no social media, more freedom, fewer expectations. For me they were happy innocent times and all of that came back to me from a few fishing signs.

You may wonder why Matlock Angling Club would cover such a town. the truth is that it is only a few miles away. Great Northern Basin is at the junction of the Erewash and the defunct Nottingham and Cromford canals. Cromford is very close to Matlock. Indeed we had a school reunion there last year.

But when I grew up my parents did not drive and so my view of the world was limited to Matlock and places I would visit by public transport such as Bakewell, Buxton and Derby. Funny to think that now I think nothing of travelling around Europe for a month.

I’d give the Erewash 4 out of 10 as a canal experience, but to bring back being a teenager from a couple of signs, that must be 9 out of 10. Happy days.

April 25, 2025 0

Nottingham in a Narrowboat

We have travelled most of the UK canal and river network over the past five years. There are a few loose ends and this week we ticked off another of them – Nottingham. Within a few miles this used to be a real hub for water transport. There is the wide river Trent, there used to be a Nottingham canal through the town centre and a Beeston canal past the massive Boots works. Nowadays these are merged into the Nottingham and Beeston. In addition there is the Erewash canal, the river Soar and the start of the Trent & Mersey canal. Two further canals, the Derby and the Grantham have not been navigable for many years.

These days the waterways here are no longer used for industry. There are just leisure boaters like ourselves. A wide variety of people on the cut. Around Nottingham town centre there are homeless people living in tents, and wealthy owners of gin palace yachts. Some of the canal is run down and a bit rough. Other areas have been fully gentrified and look beautiful and expensive.

We are currently moored by the steps outside County Hall, a massive piece of architecture from the early 20th Century. Rowers from the nearby National Water Centre glide past us with their coaches shouting at them from the riverside. Swans and geese keep us company. We are overlooked by Trent Bridge Cricket Ground. It all feels very different than the run down industry that dominated the local canals here a few decades ago.

I am glad we have visited Nottingham. I’m off out now to see the museums to see if I can discover more. Every day is a school day.

April 18, 2025 0

When do ducklings arrive on the canal?

Our TV on the narrowboat uses old photographs as a screen saver. It shows photos from similar dates in previous years. For two weeks I have been looking at ducklings, goslings and signets. But this year we have seen nothing – till yesterday.

First we saw a new family of red headed ducks. I didn’t get a picture sadly. And then we passed three individual ducklings, including this one. Based on previous years I now expect to see more and more over the next few weeks.

So I have two questions. 1. Why do ducklings all arrive at once? 2. Why are they later this year when the weather is really warm this year?

I am guessing the answer to the first is that being born in Spring gives them the best chance of survival. It is late enough to avoid the worst cold weather, and early enough to keep numbers of predators low. The second is more tricky. Mallards have a 28 day incubation period, so perhaps the current warm weather is irrelevant. The blog I wrote a month ago was entitled “Is it too cold to live on a narrowboat?”. So did the ducks just wait another week to incubate their eggs?

Things that make you say “hmmm”.

April 11, 2025 0

Where shall we go on our narrowboat?

After I finish writing this blog, we will be setting off on Narrowboat Thuis for our first long trip of the year. Since I retired in 2021, we have spent most of each summer on the boat, travelling around the UK. We have navigated most of the canal and river network now, so the big question is where to go this year.

We have a map of the water network on our fridge

In previous years I would have had a pretty clear view about the destination, although the journey from day to day would change, depending on weather, how much we were enjoying an area, and our mood. But this year is more complicated because we need to do things off the boat throughout the summer. Our new window shutters will be arriving at the house in a couple of weeks. My nephew is getting married in early May. We have a weekend away with Mandy’s brothers and partners in June.

Another complication, or perhaps benefit, is that we have paid for our marina mooring for the whole year. Instead of a single journey around the country all summer, we plan trips out for a few weeks, and then back to our home mooring in Stone.

So I am looking for somewhere to go that is a couple of weeks away. Mandy quite fancied heading back north again. But the Macclesfield Canal had a breach last week, so is closed to through traffic. We both love the Shropshire Union towards Wales but we have been on that route so many times. It would be nice to do something new. One of the few places we haven’t visited on the canals is Nottingham. Or we could go back to somewhere we have only visited once, such as Oxford.

Well let’s set off south and see where we end up. I often tell people that the best thing about narrowboating is that the destination is less important than than enjoying the journey. Maybe we will see a kingfisher today. Maybe we will meet fascinating people at the locks. Maybe I’ll find a stately home to visit.

The sun is shining. There is a light breeze. Time to untie the ropes and set off on our mystery trip. See you next week.

April 4, 2025 0

Five things I learnt by going to court

This week I had a day out in Liverpool. It is a lovely city, fairly well known to me from having moored the narrowboat in Salterhouse Dock a couple of times. But the reason I was here this time was to support my brother in law, Steve, who was going to court.

Steve had done nothing wrong. The case was about a car accident a couple of years ago, which was not his fault but for which the two insurance companies could not agree. And the good news is that he won. But it was a fascinating experience for me to go to court and I learnt a lot:

It is really scary. It is not like on TV. There were no robes, wigs, juries. But there was still a judge and two aggressive barristers. I was glad I did not need to answer any questions.
Court buildings are falling apart. After many years of under investment it really needed a lick of paint and new ceilings.
It can be a lottery. Right up to the final judgement our barrister was telling us that we might win, we might lose and it could be called 50/50. It does appear to depend on which judge on which day.
Insurance companies waste so much money! The case was about repairs worth a few hundred pounds. The legal fees cost thousands. Surely there must be a better way to come to agreement. It all adds to all our premiums.
If you have to go to court, make a day of it. Steve and I had a day out, travelling on trains, having breakfast beforehand and lunch afterwards and even visiting a rather smart art gallery. It was fun.

It was a really interesting day, but I will be avoiding going back if I possibly can.

March 28, 2025 0

Am I more at home in my narrowboat or in my house?

For the past few years we have had a simple life. In the winter our home was our house in Scotland. In the summer our home was our narrowboat. We were equally at home in either. This year it feels more confused. Just before Christmas we bought a new house in Lancashire. It is lovely but there are many things we want to do, such as installing solar, and sorting out the garden. And one of the reasons for moving was to be closer to friends and family, and we are enjoying seeing them. So in many ways we would like to stay at home in the house this year.

But we still love living on the boat. We have been there for the past month and have enjoyed the comforts of our marina, and so far three trips out. This week we had a lovely day with one of our sons and his girlfriend travelling on the narrowboat to a canalside pub for Sunday lunch. So in many ways we would like to stay on the boat all summer again.

Our lives are even more complicated this year because the summer is peppered with events, such a a nephew’s wedding, a weekend away for Mandy with her old school friends, a visit to Scotland, a trip to the cricket. So we can’t just set off on the boat with no plan.

We have done the right things logically. We have paid to have access to the marina in Stone all year round. We have tried to bunch some of the things to do for the house on similar dates. We have discovered that it is easy to get to and from the boat in less than an hour and a half.

But that leaves me confused on where home is. One of our dogs, Ziggy, must have similar feelings. When we went to get in the car at the marina this week to head back to the house, she planted her feet and refused to come. But now we are here she is completely settled.

I realise this is a first world problem. I am so privileged to have the choice of two lovely homes. Home is where the heart is, and my heart is in my house… and on my narrowboat. Lucky me.

March 21, 2025 0