Thursday, May 14, 2020

Lockdown day 52 - Hares and regulations

Apparently, we have a family of hares living on the marina. I've only seen one, an adult, probably the male. They live under the office building which is built on a platform on sloping ground, so there's lots of space for them. I don't think I've seen more than ten all my life, so it was a pleasant surprise for me when I saw this one. Unusually, I didn't have my camera with me.

(photos from unsplash.com)


The new lockdown regulations as they apply to us as boaters are pretty much no different from previous ones in our opinion. The Canal & River Trust have recently sent this out...
From today, Weds 13 May 2020
Private boaters may undertake short boating trips – avoiding use of locks and any staff-operated structures if possible – providing, as per current government guidance, they do not stay away from home overnight and return to their home mooring (where they have one).
From Saturday, 23 May:
Mooring exemptions will come to an end and our guidance for continuous cruisers comes back in to force. This doesn’t mean that every boat without a home mooring needs to move on this day, just that we expect it to move off its current mooring within 14 days (i.e. by 6 June). Boaters in a high-risk group who need to continue to shield or self-isolate can agree special arrangements with their licence support officer if they haven’t already done so.
From Monday, 1 June:
On this date, we anticipate that our navigations will re-open in full, subject to some local exceptions, making longer journeys possible.
Life goes on as new normal for us. We'd love to be cruising, of course we would, but everyone's safety from infection is important, so we'll be happy to stay here for as long as it takes. We could do a short trip out and back for a day, but I reckon this stretch of the Grand Union - the summit of the Leicester Arm, just 20 miles long - will be packed silly by those who have less patience than us.

There is much ongoing bickering amongst boaters on social media; those who think CRT's interpretation of the government regulations is wrong, and who bloody well ARE going to start cruising now, and those who see the sense in waiting until the infection and daily mortality rates fall. Personally, I don't think we'll hit the 1st June target. So be it.

Now here's a strange thing. I took a photo the other day, through the saloon window; the beginning of a fabulous sunset. In fact, I took two - click, move a bit, click. Then I downloaded them onto my laptop, and this is what I found.


Remarkable, isn't it? A work of art, except it wasn't intentional. It was some odd glitch in the camera, I suppose. The second photo was how I expected them both to be; an okay photo of... well you can see for yourself.


I've posted the arty one in a number of Facebook groups, and the response has been overwhelming. Perhaps I could sell it, and it would adorn the living-room walls of art-lovers everywhere!

*******

2 comments:

  1. So it's condition normal, then Roger. We are also playing a waiting game. We could do a bit of cruising too, but locks are closed to pleasure craft, so we wouldn't get far. Your photos of the hare are beautiful, as are your misty marina

    ReplyDelete
  2. "New normal" so we're told! That misty photo has gone viral, it would seem. It has a certain something, doesn't it?

    ReplyDelete

I'd love to hear from you!