Boating weather

Yes, I know all weather is boating weather, but -at last - there's a decent amount of rain falling out of the sky. Well, there is in Norfolk, anyway. Very necessary for the canal system, and the rest of the country. Although I'd rather it didn't rain too much when I'm cycling to and from work! But, when it rains, Jan and I often say to each other, "Boating weather!"


I think this stems from early boating experience when it always seemed to rain. I never minded the rain: the act of being in charge of a narrowboat on a canal was so absorbing that I almost didn't notice the weather. Now we're better protected against the wet. My leather hat is one of the most useful weapons in the battle to keep out the rain. If it's really chucking it down I wear my "greens", a waterproof jacket and overtrousers given to me years ago by Jan's dad. They were intended for use in the garden, but they work really well on the boat!


Nearly all our boating so far has been "against the clock" to some extent. Warwickshire ring in a week; Four Counties ring in a week, that sort of thing. I still like to cover a decent amount of ground (water) when cruising, hence the need to be out in all weathers. But I'm envisaging slowing down a bit in retirement - when that comes - when we have our own boat: stopping for lunch, maybe, and not being in quite so much of a hurry to get going if it's raining, perhaps.

I haven't many pictures of rain on the canal as my camera isn't as waterproof as I am. The top photo is of the Staffs and Worcs Canal during a cloudburst in Kidderminster in July 2011 taken from the shelter of (I think) Kidderminster Bridge 16. The second photo is on the Bridgewater Canal at Stockton Heath in July 2008.