We were going to paint today

But when the guys had finished the grinding and sanding, the sun was well up and fully out. The roof didn't get cool until after 6pm, and by then we had covered it with every duvet cover we have on board (held down by ballast bricks) to stop any condensation or dampness overnight. I bloody hope it works, or I will have David out there sanding and wire-brushing first thing!

We are going to head away by about 6am, get up the locks and through the tunnel, and hopefully moor up where we were with Laughing John a few nights ago - shade all day, so the roof will be cool for painting, the paint will go on smoothly and won't dry too fast and then crack.

So while we were waiting in vain for the roof to cool off, we went out for a walk, recommended by Dale. Across the canal to a not very inviting looking pathway with signs on the road gates saying 'No Public Access', but also sporting public pathway signs ... So on to the remains of the medieval village of Wolfhamcote, where there is a little church, St Peters, which has been on the site since the 13th century. The village (no longer there) features in the Domesday Book back in 1086. Hard to comprehend, isn't it, that it was there 1000 years ago.

Bits of the church date from the 13th century, and some from 14th,  and some from as late as the 18th century. It is protected and has been restored by a group called (I think) Friends of Friendless Churches.

After seeing the church we followed the maps (OS map for the walk, and Memory Map for the canal) to find the intersection of canal and path. On the way we went though another graveyard of sorts - that of the redundant farm vehicles and cars. Plus, something I never expected to see on a farm ...

A tank, complete with tracks and protected headlights ... Anyone know its provenance?

Clearly there is not a great store set by being able to access the footpath from the towpath, as it was a bit of a clamber and climb, but we made it and set off back towards Braunston. I thought about Barry and Pauline as we walked the towpath - lots of blackberries ...

And lots of this plant. Is it Himalayan Balsam? I looks pretty but it's ubiquitous and with such large and plentiful seed pods I worry that it is not a UK native and probably destroying native species.

Back to the boat, a wait for cooler temperatures that didn't seem to eventuate. So a decision was made to cover up the ground down metal for the morning. Nibbles, wine and cider were prepared for the evening repast, and the rest is history. Alarm is set for the early start...

And this was last night's sunset: