Sunday 3rd August, 2014 in Evesham.
We slept well and awoke to a lovely morning with a clear blue sky. We had agreed with Russ and Vicki on "Misty" to do the nearby lock together, but first we had a small excitement.
They turned off the mooring in "Misty" across the current and got pinned to the barrier by the current flowing down to the weir. Athough the current didn't seem to be very strong, they were unable to get off. It just goes to show how careful you need to be near weirs. If we ever got MM stuck like that, there is no way that we could get free on our own - a sobering thought.
The only way to get them off was to back MM very gently towards them, so that MM's bow was pointing straight into the current, grab a rope from them and then tow them back off. R was very careful as he backed MM towards them because our 19 ton steel hull would have dented their fibreglass hull extremely badly if we had hit them!
Thankfully, it all went off well and we were soon in the lock together. The lock was the only one of the day before Evesham, but it has a very poignant story attached. The restoration of the lock was funded by a young man by the name of George Bollington but unfortunately he was terminally ill at the time. He said that he very much wanted to see the new lock before he died and so the volunteers got together and rebuilt the lock in record time - just six weeks! Therefore, his wish was granted and he got to see it just before he died.
The lock also has a strange "lighthouse" dedicated to a local gentleman Eric Pritchard who was instrumental in the river's restoration movement.
The journey down to Evesham was truly lovely; the river is beautiful along this stretch. Everyone says it is a haven for kingfishers but we still haven't seen one. We keep looking!
There are very pleasant moorings just before Evesham town lock and Russ and Vicki came in to moor behind us. Costa was calling so we set off to explore the town.
The town is full of history, some of it quite bloody. Evesham town is surounded on three sides by the Avon - it comes down the east side, across the south and then up the east side in a huge loop. In 1265, Simon de Montford's army was trapped in the town by Prince Edward, later King Edward I. De Montford's army was defeated and massacred as they could not flee across the river. It was only when writing this that we noticed that the anniversary of the battle is tomorrow, 749 years ago. Simon de Montford's grave is marked by a memorial stone where the altar of the Abbey used to be - before Henry VIII destroyed it in the reformation.
M has to go home tomorrow overnight, so we will spend more time exploring the town when she returns.
Back on MM, we saw a flotilla of small steam boats come out of the lock - this was by far the smallest steam boat that we had ever seen!
We invited Russ and Vicki over to MM for tea (or wine). They chose the wine!!! They are great fun and the four of us ended up going out for an Indian meal together in the evening. They have decided to rename "Misty"; her new name will be "Chin Chin" - we approved!
Today: 4 miles, 1 lock and 2.6 hours.
Trip: 106 miles, 94 locks and 100.9 hours.
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