Rugby to Newbold-on-Avon.

Hi Folks.

Rugby to Newbold-on-Avon 1.3 miles in 35 minutes.

Yesterday evening I went and said hello to Jacquie and Stein on NB Like Ducks 2 Water. It was lovely to meet them both and to hear their news. I love to meet up with fellow bloggers.

We said cheerio to our Rugby over night mooring at 10.05am and waved goodbye to Maffi, who was leaning out of his side window. The morning was still rather damp after a night of very heavy rain, which was so welcome. It was only a short jaunt away from the industrial part of Rugby.

This bridge scribble made me smile, I may just have to make this the title of my next blog, but only when I am an Old Git.

We arrived at Newbold-on-Avon and amazingly there was a slot for us to moor in, past the signs for the winter moorings which take up 60 metres and as yet it looks like there are no takers. I wonder if no one takes up the option for the winter, whether British Waterways will take the signs down, so continuous cruisers like us and others, can actually moor there over night or for the 14 days?

All moored up a coffee was called for, I also stoked the stove. We then donned our coats, grabbed our cameras and set off for the Newbold Quarry Park.

The nature reserve has been formed around an old flooded cement quarry, which flooded many years ago. The Borough Council took it over in 1991, and have created a wonderful place for visitors and wildlife a like. The council have put in fishing piers and pier for the disabled to use with wheelchairs. There is an important population of white-clawed crayfish in the lake, which are protected. It was used as a canal reservoir until the late 1980's. The clean limey water supports lots of fish and wildlife.

We walked to the top of one of the slag heaps, to get a wonderful view of the old quarry and now nature reserve.

We saw plenty of Coots, a family of Swans, some Tufted ducks and Gulls.

It was a very pleasant stroll, I would love to see it again in the Spring, as it is a place to watch the seasons change.

Back on the boat, I did us some Oxtail Soup with Crusty Chilli Bread, which was very nice. We have a good TV signal and all channels, so this mooring will do us nicely for the weekend. After catching up on e-mails etc, we took off again to explore the village.

St. Botolphs is a delightful little church, which dates back to the fifteenth century, but there was an earlier church on the site, which gives up its secret, as there is a fourteenth century tiled floor near the chancel arch. It is mainly built of red sand stone and some lime stone rubble. It has a beautiful kept grave yard, with some very old grave stones. Apparently the old Oxford Canal used to run along side the church and the bricked up entrance to the tunnel can be seen over the hedge to the west of the tower, we will be investigating this over the weekend. In the village there is a Co-Op, a chippy, hair dressers and spa, there is also a methodist church and three pubs, The Barley Mow, The Boat Inn and The Newbold Crown. There are a lot of new build houses, because over the years the village has been drawn closer to Rugby and since 1932 it was incorporated into Rugby, in away losing its own identity. The older part of the village of Newbold, consists of red brick 18th-century houses and some timber framed of the 17th century. It does not have the charm of many of the old villages we have visited over over the years, but it is functional. As we walked back to the boat, rain began to fall so it looks like we are in for a wet evening yayyyyyy, I just hope all this rain is falling over the reservoirs on the Leicester Line of the Grand Union Canal.

At the moment we are enjoying a coffee, whilst watching "Deal or no deal", I have to think about something for tonight's dinner, something with potatoes and veg I think.

Have a lovely evening chat soon xx