Coming In To Land

I just caught this massive bumblebee pottering about the meadowsweet at the side of the canal and decided that should be my Flower Friday blip. Thanks to BikerBear for hosting.

I do have a selection of alternative photos so have made a couple of collages for extras.

After wandering around Uppingham and its little market we drove to Foxton Locks for a bit of gongoozling - this was far more successful than canalside viewing earlier, with three narrowboats going up the flight. This was made easier for them as a team of volunteers operated the sluices and gates (see extra 1). We saw none wishing to travel in the opposite direction. Having walked to the top lock and beyond to the Turnover Bridge (where the horse pulling the barge can change to the opposite towpath and remain attached to the vessel to continue their journey) we returned on the other side ourselves and took a path past the head of the inclined plane, with butterflies (red admiral, meadow brown and comma) feeding on brambles; we then descended past the  museum and compensation ponds, where damselflies and dragonflies flitted over the reeds.

After watching from a distance the operation of the swing bridge and a boat pass through, we crossed it on the way back to the car, passing the milestone on the way (extra 1).

Extra 2 is a selection of sundials: on the top, seen in Uppingham, there appears to be a plaque of Britannia above, I wonder if this is a Fire Insurance plaque, where individuals are rescued only by the company to which they have subscribed. Or maybe the owners just liked it... .The lower image is of two sundials attached to adjacent sides of the museum building (that's one photo of the corner). On the left is written 'I count only' and on the right 'The sunny hours'.

The ice cream cone was delicious but the heat was wearing so we drove to cool off in the Welland Park in Market Harborough before the cross-country drive to our current home.