After some more paint touch up on the boat we left Market Harborough this morning. On the way out we were behind a day rental party boat that kept changing speed from a bit too fast to way too slow. Still, they were having a good time, and if I was in a hurry I wouldn’t be on a narrow boat.

We passed some construction machinery, driving pilings into the land near the canal.

As Paula said, “Now, that’s a drill bit.”

I saw a fisherman catch a fish.

In all the hours we have spent on the canals this is only the third time I have seen someone catch a fish, and one of those was a guy sitting next to a No Fishing sign, so it doesn’t count. Fishing the canal system is essentially meditation, but with more expensive equipment.

When we got back to the main Leicester (pron LEST-uh) Line, at the base of Foxton Locks, we moored up and walked halfway up the hill…

… to check out the museum we had skipped two days ago. It’s in the old boiler house of the inclined plane.

The whole inclined plane was so well engineered and balanced that two boats could travel in each direction driven by a steam engine that was just 25 horse power. That’s half the power of the diesel engine on Wharram Percy.

The heatwave continues, and it’s important for everyone to stay hydrated.

It’s nice being back on the canals, where there are an unlimited number of moorings, unless of course, you see those dread initials SSSI, Site of Special Scientific Interest. That means that for the next few miles the weeds clogging the edges of the canal are considered to be more important than a boat’s ability to get to the towpath. We hit one of these just north of Foxton. At least we didn’t meet any boats coming the other way. The Leicester Line gets a lot quieter up here.

Happily there was only a few miles of SSSI. We continued a bit further than planned tonight, and moored up just below Pywell’s Lock. Paula put on a wonderful dinner on the towpath.