Plans. Well, aspirations.

Plans for the summer are starting to take on a bit of shape. We have got some idea at least of what we want to find out about, regarding bringing Warrior to London this summer. The original impetus for coming to London started quite a long time ago when there was first talk of closing the Bow Back Rivers for the Olympic development. It's too late for that now; they've been closed since last year. But the London idea has stuck.

I hesitate to commit such vague aspirations to writing, but here are some of the ideas we're considering... I get five weeks leave, which I can take all at once provided it's not in term time. In theory that means July, August and September, but there are exam boards in July and admissions stuff in September. Last year we neatly went off for the whole of August; this year we could start, hopefully, earlier (if I plan my exam boards right). Here's one ideal scenario, of which parts (or all if we're very lucky) might happen... come down to London, but not the obvious way (save that for going back), rather via the South Oxford and the Thames... use whatever time we have left to mooch about and explore ... then - and this is the tricky bit ... we wouldn't have time to go back so would have to find somewhere, or more likely a succession of somewheres, to leave Warrior, maybe until Christmas even, or at least until we have a spare week (Canalplan gives the direct GU route as nine days so I'm pretty sure we could do it in a week. Stoppages permitting any movement at all of course, so maybe it would have to be before Christmas).

The advantage of this would be the possibility (or more likely obligation) of lots of long weekend cruises in and around London (Lee and Stort?), and I could entertain my workmates and friends from down here who with the best will in the world are not going to travel to East Anglia for the pleasure. It's the moorings that are going to be the killer, but I have asked on Canalworld and have had some encouraging noises...

So that's the shape things are starting to take. What do you think?