Time to return to the canal

After a fortnight the sunken boat has at long last been refloated and removed from the lock thus opening up the canal for navigation once again.  The only evidence left are a couple of marks on the edge of the cill where the stricken boat sat. For those not familiar with the lock structure the cill is basically the floor of the upper canal level which has to extend into the lock to support the gates.  These are under water when entering the lock from above and it is vital that you do not let the rear of the boat come to rest on the cill as it will cause the boat to sink as the bow lowers.

There are clear signs on the lock beams and a white marker on the lock sides but I'm afraid you can't make them idiot proof or indeed drunk proof. 

I have spent the last couple of weeks exploring the beautiful city of Bath including the Abbey, Thermae Spa and the famous Sally Lunn's tea rooms. The house is claimed to be the oldest in Bath.

Although now baked in a modern second floor kitchen the original cellar kitchen is maintained as a museum with the original fireplace and many traditional baking tools of the period.  The current house dates from 1482 but a section of floor has been excavated by archeologists and shows evidence of building on the site as early as 1150.

While the lock has been closed the recent heavy rain has caused the river to rise by around a foot and the flow to increase to around 6mph which makes boating a bit tricky.  We have had couple of dry days and the river conditions are improving so I may be able to return to the canal later today.  While I love Bath I'm looking forward to spending a little time exploring the canal between Bath and Bradford-on-Avon in a little more detail.