We knew it would be wet. It was. But we still moved on, waterproofed as much as possible. Yesterday we had a clear view of the hills; now the cloud was down.
Nearly every bridge today was a swing bridge. Fortunately David was on hand to operate them. There was a slight delay at the top of the Bingley Five Rise locks while we waited for
Basil to water up; then it was our turn at the water point.
Calypso waited in the top lock for us. The passage down was reasonably smooth - just one very leaky gate which caused a very small flood in the engine room.
We emerged from the bottom lock to a small gaggle of gongoozlers, many with cameras. What would it have been like had it been warm and sunny?
Next came Bingley Three Rise and Dowley Gap double. The prize for the leakiest gates/paddles must go to Hirst Lock. There was so much water coming in from the top gates/paddles that it was impossible to empty the lock fully, especially as one bottom gate paddle didn't work.
David managed to push the gate open and I managed not to flood the boat so we got out unscathed. We tied up just past the Saltsports clubhouse and bar in Saltaire. After tea and a short walk round the town Jan and I went to the aforementioned bar where I had a good almost-pint of a black ale while watching a game of snooker.
Jan says the forecast is for a fine day tomorrow. Let's hope so. Did I mention that it rained all day?
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