harleyj

We did the Four Counties in '08 starting from Barton Turn on the Trent and Mersey with a crew of four. In that time we also had one full day without travelling and quite a few only half days. We took fourteen days but I think if we had started on the ring we could easily do it in a week.

Your photo near the Atherstone hat factory could have come straight out of our photo album as we moored in nearly that same spot in 2010 on our trip around the Leicester ring. Wonderful memories and wheting our appetite for our trip on the canals next May.

We did the Leicester ring in 2010 clockwise from Willington. Can't say which is the best way to do it but make sure you go up the Market Harborough arm and also the Ashby Canal. We loved the whole trip. Had a "big" night in Kilby Bridge and Hawkesbury Junction. Foxton Locks is to me the most impressive highlight of our four trips on the canals. Enjoy, we know you will.

Well done Ange & Doorman and anyone else that had anything to do with this wonderful thought and action. Hopefully when the Aussie flotilla arrives next May we may even see Sarah and Baloo and be able to say to our yobbo mates that we had a very small part(1.74gbp) in helping out someone less fortunate than ourselves.

Even though I'm on the other side of the world, I feel very proud of you mob with your generosity and if there is any way I can contribute ie; some sort of paypal number please.

Have some Aussie friends doing the "four counties" at the moment and hope that the weather improves for their last couple of days heading back to Autherley.

When we went past Old Trafford in May last year all the gates along the Bridgewater near the stadium were locked as we wanted to go in and have a look, but couldn't get near it.

I tried to buy a whole heap of brasses from this site after reading about it on here but it for some reason won't let me. I have tried to email them but as yet have not received a reply. We love the brasses and thought we would get all the ones from where we have been. Already have 12 and tried to buy another 23. Our previous issue with them is carting them around Europe after our narrowboat section of our holidays. Not great for excess baggage on El-cheapo Airways, so we thought why not buy them all in one hit. Hopefully we hear from them soon.

We did 27 locks one day and 26 on another last may with two boats and none of us were under "50". Tell the kids to "toughen up princesses"

We fly into Birmingham and stay our first couple of nights to get over the jetlag at The Heron's Nest on the Grand Union canal at Knowle. Very easy to get to after a 20 hour flight and very comfortable. Lots of options around "Brum" for narrowboating.