On Saturday the 28th of April, 2012, Ralph & I set off for the Churnet Valley taking with us the Club’s inflatable Gumotex Palava. The Valley’s WW2 re-enactment was in progress and we’d hatched a plan to lay charges to put out of action the Axis controlled railway.

Everything went to plan until I tried taking photographs of our exploits ... the memory card of my camera was still at home ... in the card slot of my laptop :-( ... no pics. Still we paddled on, laid he charges and made it to an Allied safe house (the Black Lion Pub), sustained by roast pork sandwiches & beer we paddled up river and despite portages we made it to the Boat pub. Parking was horrendous for land based vehicles but would have been no problem for us ... still, warned of encroaching German machine gunners, we headed back to our welcoming safe house. More beer ... an we headed for home.

On the return, we quietly skirted the station ... our timed charges had not yet taken this out ... and we thought we were home free ... WRONG ... we were apprehended by security also using an inflatable craft, thankfully they (Fiona & Flossie) proved to be on our side and we all made it home.

Security seem to be better at photo reconnaissance too ... so here are a few pics of our return.

We were boarded by security and thoroughly inspected ....

On Sunday the 13th of April, Fiona, Flossie & Mike returned to the Churnet Valley. The plan was to introduce Fiona’s friend to the delights of open canoeing ... but work intervened and she had to return in a southerly direction ... sad ... but some folks have to live down there.

Flossie & Fiona had missed the pub on the WW2 weekend ... it was time to put that right ... Mike’s canoe was kitted out for extra passengers, ALDI foam mats, paw purchase friendly for Flossie ... and off we set.

Flossie ignored the mats, insisted on being the figurehead at the prow, it’s the best place to worry the ducks. Fiona fashioned a dog hammock from a blanket over the front lacings of the canoe and Flossie was a happy dog ... she only fell in the once.

Strangely my bow paddler seemed to have grown a tail ...

Then we meet a kayaker .... it must be paddling day on the Caldon Canal :-)

Righti-Ho ... we’ve done that bit ... back to the pub

The beer this time “Black Hole” ... would Flossie like it? Again ... no.

A bit gruesome but the skull of the last hog roast is being well picked over by the birds.

Tried for an aerial overshot of a sluice ...

That blue plastic barrel would now be no use as buoyancy ... but it must have taken ages to carve advertising the Pottery.

Arrrgh ... Ramming speed? ... phew, no it’s parked.

Q: Why do your knees ache when you paddle?

A: ‘Cos someone uses them as a footrest.