Mallard Drake:

Wakened at 6 and coughed rather a lot until Sue brought me a cup of tea at 8.

While I typed up my holiday blips Kat made the bacon butties and I enjoyed my coffee on the foredeck again. I’ve been very agreeably surprised that the weather has been good enough for me to venture on deck most days.

The winter seems to have taken it’s toll - there seem to be a large number of fallen trees on the canal banks.

We’ve just left the end of the Dodderham staircase and as we can see Sainsbury’s through the trees Kat and G have gone shopping. I see there are a couple of large tree trunks lying close to the fence in a field and some wit has put eyes and a nose and a mouth on them.

Good it’s time now for a toasted hot cross bun.

Someone near the winding hole here has some beehives.

We’ve just changed canals – we are now on the Shropshire union. We’ve just passed a very nice Blackthorn bush. Sue tells me that's what sloes grow on.

We moored for the night at bridge 5 and I was in bed by 9 o’clock.