Herons and cormorants

A very hot, sunny day.  We spent the day on various sections of the Grand Union canal and rivers Soar and Wreak. All are indiscernible from the other, apart from the rivers having currents whilst the canal is still . Leicester came and went in a trice. The photo is of Tardis Two in front of the National Space centre, which seems quite appropriate. We also passed the old Wolsey factory, set up by cardinal Wolsey to produce the first Y front underpants.  The locks in Leicester are all hard work and in need of some TLC but the scenery is surprisingly pleasant, particularly passing the Watermead country park, confirming our impression of the city gleaned from the road journeys. We rescued a boat named Valery which had run aground trying to negotiate the wrong bridge arch, the lack of signage being firmly to blame. We had previously made a similar mistake attempting to get under a bridge via a pigeon-netted arch, fortunately stopping before becoming permanently entwined. The best lock was our last of the day, Pillings, which is a drive-through during summer months and a functional lock in the winter to help control water levels. After days of not seeing a heron we saw at least 6 today, one sunning himself with wings akimbo like a bird flasher. A cormorant also put in an appearance as did a herd of long-horn cattle with a particularly fierce looking bull, not one to pick a fight with. We have been forced to give up on our ambitious plan of returning to Stensen Saturday morning. Instead friends are going to pick up Lynne in Loughborough, reunite her with our car and she will then attend our youngest daughters boy friends birthday party in London Saturday evening, conveying my sincere apologies to all and sundry. I will return Tardis Two to Stensen for her service, where I'll stay till Lynne returns.