Back to Kinver and a Canaside Property for Sale.

Thursday 25th and Friday 26th September, 2014 back to Kinver.
It feels like we have been away for ever! Actually it is just four weeks, but that was more than we planned (and more than enough!).
The good news is that the civil court case collapsed after just two days, so R was able to come home after less than a week in Bristol. However, M, expecting to be home for three weeks, had made all sorts of arrangements so we couldn't come back to MM any earlier and then a few other things cropped up and we ended up being away for four weeks instead of just three.
Still, we finally arrived back at MM on Thursday 25th. To M's relief, her geraniums had survived remarkably well considering there had been very little rain for the four weeks we had been away.
It was quite late, so we decided to stay in the marina overnight and leave the next morning.
So, on Friday morning, we backed gently out of the marina. It was very narrow, threading our way between boats on both sides. M stayed in the front of MM to fend off any bumps but it felt remarkably like playing dodgem cars!

The entrance to the marina is at a steep angle to the canal, so having backed out, we had to go north as there was insufficient width to turn round.

To get to Kinver, we had to sail for a mile north and go through Greensforge Lock before we could turn and then sail back south one mile and back through Greensforge lock to get where we started, but facing to the south. The perils of sailing a 60ft narrowboat on a canal only 30ft wide!
Then we had a further five miles and five locks to get to Kinver.
The last lock but one was Hyde Lock, with its lovely lock cottage - and there was a "For Sale" sign outside that wasn't there a month ago.

Canalside properties are highly sought after and it is something that we have always dreamed of - but most of them are way outside our price range. However, when we moored up in Kinver and looked it up on the internet we discovered that not only could we afford it, but it had its own mooring next to the house and the agent was in Kinver High Street. So, we decided to ask for a viewing tomorrow.
"Mother Hubbard's Cupboard" was a tad bare, so we made a brief sortie into Kinver for a "few bits" from the Co-Op.
We shall see what tomorrow brings!
Today: 7 miles, 7 locks and 4.6 hours.
Trip: 267 miles, 171 locks and 194.7 hours.