MATANUSKA MEANDERINGS

Dear Motley Crew, It was always going to be a difficult conversation, and of course, it ended in accusations and reproaches. “But you...

Dear Motley Crew, Here we were once again at Autherley Junction, the end point of the Shropshire Union canal, with just one lock now...

Dear Motley Crew, So, here She was then, just where we’d left her, and waiting, somewhat impatiently it must be said, for a resumption of...

Dear Motley Crew, Those of us incarcerated in the UK since the beginning of 2020 had been, for some time now, watching enviously as the...

Dear Motley Crew, It was 8 am, and we’d already done two locks. The forecast high for the day was 27 ° and unfortunately for us, the...

Dear Motley Crew, “Have you been to Liverpool before?”, he asked. “No, we haven’t”, I answered. A pause. “Actually”, I said, “We have. We...

Dear Motley Crew, It was going to be a reasonably long day today – in terms of our days at least. We’d breakfasted early, weighed anchor,...

Dear Motley Crew, We had begun our journey down the River Soar with some trepidation as to what lay ahead, but as we came to the river’s...

Dear Motley Crew, I’m certain that it is apparent to all crew members by now, that much of this adventure has seemed to involve waiting...

Dear Motley Crew, On the 10th of May, with both crew members now fully inoculated, Matanuska quietly slipped her berth at Blisworth...

Dear Motley Crew, For many years, in the latter part of his life, my father struggled with anything that was vaguely technical, such as...

Dear Motley Crew, In retrospect, our decision to forego the rush to London for a slower, more in-depth, and considered journey had been...

Dear Motley Crew, Thursday the 25th of March. The crew was up earlier than usual and there was a tangible sense of expectation in the...

Dear Motley Crew, Please find attached, for your perusal, a copy of the minutes for the briefing held onboard Matanuska, on 27th March,...

Dear Motley Crew, In the end, we need not have rushed. Two days after arriving in the marina and whilst packing clothes, and wrapping...

Dear Motley Crew, Once again, we found ourselves at Hawkesbury Junction, the point at which the Oxford Canal meets up with the Coventry...

Dear Motley Crew, “Where are you headed?” they asked. “Oh, the Ashby? You’ll love it, it’s beautiful; we spent a week up there.” After...

Dear Motley Crew, Finally, after weeks of delay due to damaged locks, we were through the Atherstone flight and on our way to Coventry....

Dear Motley Crew, We may have made it through the Harecastle tunnel without encountering the fearsome Kidsgrove boggart, a screaming,...

Dear Motley Crew, Why is it, do you think, that a group of Protestants who were fleeing religious persecution in the Czech Republic would...