Another year, another lockdown.

Who’d have thought, this time last year, that we’d be fighting a major pandemic that’s killed nearly 2 million people globally, 76,000 in the UK. And still rising…

So here we are in another lockdown, but maybe, just maybe, there’s a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel. Mags had her inoculation last Thursday, and it looks as though the roll-out of the vaccine is proceeding moderately well. We’re just waiting to hear when she’s to go back for the second, it seems it may be some time.

Anyway, I hope you all had socially distanced fun over the festered season. We had Christmas Day with Val and Johnny, but limited outside contact apart from GP’s surgery for a blood test and The Jab. And it’ll stay that way for the next few weeks. Mags will be staying aboard and I‘ll do the shopping at quiet times.

My favourite picture of Amber to date...

We’d stayed outside The Poachers for the duration, but on Saturday we decided to head back downstream to Ellesmere. We were planning to go up to Wales, but with their lockdown in place, and now ours this side of the border, it didn’t seem such a good idea. We had to sneak over the border though to turn around just below Chirk Tunnel.

Back across Chirk Aqueduct after turning around

We didn’t go so far, pulling in near St Martins to enjoy the late afternoon sunshine.

Sunday was another short trip, we were getting very short of water so had to fill above New Marton Locks, then we dropped down and moored below.

New Marton Bottom Lock, we moored a couple of hundred yards further on.

Yesterday was a fine sunny day, but cold with a brisk north-easterly keeping the temperature in the low single figures.

We pulled in just past Bridge 4W, a regular stop for us with open views and plenty of sun. The panels went up to capture any passing photons…

…and they did quite well for an hour or so.

We stayed put today, and probably will tomorrow too. We’re well stocked at the moment so don’t need to be in Ellesmere till the weekend.

Locks 2, miles 7½