The plan today was to set off early so as to get to the terminus before anybody else and fill the water tank before heading back. I woke at half past six and started to get some breakfast when I heard the steady thud of an old engine and was surprised to see a boat glide by the window at 6.45 am! My plans were scuppered, so I had a leisurely breakfast and gave them time to get well ahead before I set off.

From Congerstone onwards the character of the Ashby changes completely and there is finally variety with the village of Shackerstone, some interesting twists and turns, and a delightful stretch of woodland reminiscent of the Shropshire Union. All this before tackling Snarestone Tunnel, a fairly easy undertaking as it is short and you can see the other end as you enter. A few hundred yards further on and the canal turns to the right beneath a bridge to reveal the current terminus and winding hole. The boat that had passed earlier was moored up at the water point so I decided to wind and proceed back to find a water point further down.

Nothing to report going back through the tunnel and then Shackerstone and Congerstone but there I caught up with a Canaltime boat that was going so slowly I wondered if he was going at all. Even dropping down to tickover I had to frequently engage a burst of reverse to save bumping into him and he wasn't about to let go of the centre of the canal. The edges hereabouts were quite reedy but there was plenty of room to pass if he moved over. It was not going to happen, however, so I followed for about a mile until he finally pulled over to the bank. The crew leapt off holding ropes fore and aft and pulled the boat into the bank as I sailed past. As I looked back they all hopped on board again and set off! It seems that they hadn't quite got the idea that one boat could pass another without either stopping! A little later, near Hinckley Marina I spied another Canaltime boat in the far distance coming towards me and watched as the crew pulled the boat to the bank fore and aft opposite the marina. I couldn't figure out why they didn't moor on the marina side since it was a long walk back to the bridge to cross over but once I had passed they all hopped back on board and set off! They had obviously seen me coming and followed the same procedure as the previous boat. I was glad that I wouldn't be around when the two of them met each other!

The day so far has been overcast and windy but not unpleasant and I decided to stop at Sutton Cheney Wharf for water and lunch. Just as I was heading into the bank the heavens opened and the most horrendous rain shower lashed down. Of course I was at that point where the boat was coming into the bank and needed control so I couldn't get the wet gear on straight away. By the time I leapt off with rope in hand I was soaked through. A change of clothes was called for as I got the lunch ready and I was glad of the warmth inside the boat.

The afternoon passed by with more showers until, at a quarter to five, I was back on the Coventry Canal. My planned stop for the night was the Wharf Tavern by bridge 19 but when I got there I couldn't see the pub and the area looked decidedly grotty with lots of graffiti so I decided to carry on. I had seen a fish and chip shop on the outskirts of Nuneaton on the way up and decided that would be the dinner for tonight. Fish and chips duly purchased I set off to find a mooring outside the unpleasantness of Nuneaton and motored on to bridge 24 where I spotted a decent mooring just beyond the bridge. I headed in towards the bank when .. clunk! .. the prop stopped dead and wouldn't start up again. Luckily the boat drifted into the bank and I leapt off with centre rope in hand only for the heavens to open up again with such ferocity that I was soaked through in minutes. The wind was blowing the boat away from the bank so I just stood there holding it in until the rain stopped. What a great end to the day!

As I was soaked through and didn't fancy coming back out to the weedhatch after changing I decided to sort the problem out straight away. It was at this point I discovered a major design flaw in Slipstream for without 4 foot six inch arms it was almost impossible to reach right down into the weedhatch. I had to get right into the engine compartment which, was far from comfortable, in order to reach right down to the propeller around which I found an armchair! I hacked at the foam cushion with a knife and removed first the fabric then tons of foam pieces until the prop felt clear. Started up only for the prop to cut out again. What had happened was that the rest of the armchair (the wooden bits) were still under the boat and fouled the prop when it was started. I poked and prodded with the boat hook but couldn't get the thing clear so resorted to pulling the boat forward by hand about thirty yards in the hope that the debris would float clear. Hand down the hatch once more and it seems it was clear.

I was covered in bruises and covered in grease as well as being soaked through. My fish and chips were cold and I was not happy. Lessons learned were to bring some old clothes for the weed hatch moments and find something soft to lean on to avoid the bruises on the ribs.

Not a very good end to the day!