STOKE BRUERNE
We continued with what we affectionately
call our “Pub Crawl” or “Pub Cruise” to Stoke Bruerne through the Blisworth
Tunnel. It took us over 25 minutes to power through the darkness with only our
tunnel light reflecting off the walls and ceiling. These massive tunnels are
just not in my comfort zone.
The Blisworth tunnel is 1 3/4 miles long with
a number of “tubes” built into the ceiling for ventilation. When it was first
built, there was no ventilation and people were dying from the carbon monoxide
poisoning from their coal fires. As you cruise under these openings, you are
often hit by a shock of streaming water from above.
Before motorized canal boats, poles were used to move the boats through the tunnel and sometimes “Leggings” which were two men laying on boards stretched out over the sides of the boat. The men would use their feet on the tunnel walls to “walk” the boat through. It would take about an hour and a half to get through the tunnel using this method. Rigourous
The tunnel was opened in 1805 and dug out
with shovels, picks and wheelbarrows. All the materials used such as the bricks
were made right on sight. Diane and Mike got some very dramatic photos of the
inside of the tunnel, but I have not figured out a way to transfer their photos
to my blog so you are stuck with my feeble attempt.
It was difficult to see David who was standing right behind me!
Most canals were designed to flow around existing villages, but this part of the canal marched right through the center of Stoke Bruerne. It is quite a lovely setting with the Waterways Museum, coffee shop, and The Boat House Pub and Restaurant right on the canal. A tantalizing gift shop was just across the way but closed for the winter. While we were there a large group of canal volunteers were busy raking, cutting, clearing and beautifying the canal area. Their work is so essential to the livelihood and pride of the communities surrounding the canal.
The Waterways Museum was free and consisted of two floors of exhibits. I was fascinated by the artwork on the small boat on display and the buckets and water cans that were traditionally painted with “roses and castles”. I was fascinated by the photo display of the hard-working people living and laboring on the canals.
How families with many children lived
aboard in such cramped spaces is a wonder to me. They did have pull down workspaces
and beds, but most of the space on the boat was used for cargo which they
transported and sold. There were good Samaritans along the canals that provided
medical care to the families. The wives were drivers as well as taking care of
the cooking, laundry, cleaning, and child rearing. In the early days, the
families had their donkeys to attend to as they trod along the tow paths pulling
the boats along.
We were looking forward to fine dining at The Boat House restaurant but disappointed to find out the dining room was not open on Wednesday night. We ended up walking a short distance to The Navigation which was a pleasant experience. It reminded Dave and I of the restaurants and lodgings mainly in Oregon and Washington which are older simi-historic buildings, remolded to be restaurants by the McMenamin corp. The Navigation was an old farm house transformed into a pub with lots of cozy corners preserving its historical integrity.
The interior of The Boat House Pub
Before David Dare arrived to work on the washing machine on The Duchess, we needed to get water and turn our boat around. This was as far as we planned to go on this section of the canal. The area in front of the museum was wide enough to do this little180 degree trick but there was wind to contend with. David turned the bow into the opposite bank with a thump. I managed to grab the bow line and walk the bow around while David angled the boat hugging the bank. Unbeknownst to me that bump against the bank caused a bit of a spill inside the boat.
I had placed my coffee “thermos” on the
table without closing the top securely. It had tipped over and coffee had
washed all over our cruising guidebook, playing cards,my phone, sketches and notebook. Luckily, a set of guidebooks had been left
for us on the boat so we used those while ours dried out. It’s definitely a bit
fluffier now.
Diane and I took a walk while work on her
boat was being done. There was a wooded path that ended up being a squishy
muddy mess. We did find the entrance to the tunnel and then worked our way back
to the locks and took a stroll through the neighborhood and churchyard. Just
like with my buddy, Jan, I find that I am learning a lot from Diane about what
is photo worthy. Diane is very observant, and notices details that I often miss.
I just follow right behind her and click away.
We finally took off around 11:00 yesterday morning once repairs were completed. The winds were picking up and we were getting some real gusts. Dave and I decided to again tie up in Bugbrooke, stopping earlier than planned. We had found another pub in town we had not tried out and after David found the menu on their website, we were convinced that the decision to stop was the right one.
We walked to the pub which was blocks away
only to find out once we arrived that they no longer served food! There was one more pub to try that was new to
us so walked there and once again were told, “Sorry. No food service for three
weeks.” I remember reading something that hours and services may change during
the winter months at pubs and restaurants, but it really needs to be stated on
their websites.
Disappointed, we decided to return to The
Wharf Pub where we had dined before. We had our drinks, and David went up to
the bar to get menus. He returned empty handed. We were just there 2 days ago
for our “Fried Food Fest” and David had been informed that they had just discontinued
food service! Three strikes, we were out
of luck. Bugbrooke was really bugging the heck out of us.
But, alas, in our refrigerator we had lamb
chops, green beans, and beef barley soup. With some mashed potatoes added, we
had a home cooked meal aboard The Duke. David prepared a feast to match any pub
menu.
The wind was relentless all through the night. David did not sleep well. It was still going strong in the morning so decided for safety’s sake, we needed to stay put. We found a bus to Northampton which was about a 25-minute ride. Once in the big city, Dave and I needed to “top up” (renew) our mobile hot spot subscription. Once that was done, we found a whimsical restaurant called The Eccentric Englishman. It had a bit of an “Alice in Wonderland” theme going for it. We had tea and something sweet and delicious. Wasn’t really the boys’ “cup of tea” but they went along with it.
David has been on a quest for a lamb shank
dinner since the beginning of this trip. He has been disappointed more than
once when told by a waiter that even though it is on the menu, it is not being
served that evening. And with all the sheep and lambs we see along the canal,
how can this be? Diane asked the proprietor of the tearoom, and she gave us a
raving review of The Stuffed Olive. Said it was the best lamb shank in town. Our
dinner destination was decided early on.
We then walked over to the Northampton Gallery and Museum. We discovered that Northampton is the shoe making capital of the UK, and we strolled through a special exhibition of shoes throughout history as well as an exhibit of trainers and how they are made. I didn’t realize how many celebrities have tennis shoes designed by them and/or endorsed by them. Big business. We were told that the popular Broadway musical, Kinky Boots, is set in Northampton.
During our poking about we came across an olive vendor at a shopping center. We had great fun tasting and selecting our purchases. Both Mike and Diane bit into an olive stuffed with a small red pepper and had immediate discomfort. They were given a dried strawberry to help with the burn and it seem to bring some relief. There were also several types of baklava that somehow made their way into our bag.
We are such big kids. We made it back on to
the right bus to return home and even got off at the correct bus stop. Diane
remembered that branches hit the roof of the bus close to where we boarded the
bus. Once we heard the crackling of the branches, we knew we were home. Had a
few colorful characters on board with us, as well. Quite a slice of life.
Mike noticed that a store we passed was
selling Prince Harry’s new book, Spare, for half price. Both Diane and I bought
a copy. Guilty pleasure. We just wondered if the price was reduced because
sales were not going well in the UK. It
will be fun to read on the plane.
It is almost 8:00 in the morning on Saturday. We are being rocked by heavy winds again (24 mph). Hoping they will settle down enough for us to be able to continue our journey later this morning.
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