#192 New Inn, Long Buckby, Northamptonshire : 1986 to 2015

One of the things that I've noticed about pubs in this country is that, nine times out of ten, those that have a prime location on the inland waterways have appalling customer service and generally don't care because they don't have to. I'd like to say that the New Inn is an exception that proves the rule...but I can't!

The first time I visited the New Inn was on my very first canal trip back in 1980. In those days I wasn't taking pictures of the pubs we visited, but our logs record that we visited twice on that trip - Monday 16th April and Tuesday 24th April. They were both evening stops and I recall having a fantastic time playing skittles each time! We also stopped there on Friday 27th August 1982 and Thursday 30th August 1984 (Lunch) before the first time I took a picture on Monday 21st July 1986.

This was a lunchtime visit on a trip that would take us to Leicester and Nottingham.

In the early years Emma Jane was moored at Woodford on the River Nene, then Earlswood/Lapworth on the Stratford Canal which explains the frequent visits. Then Emma Jane was moved to Adlington on the Leeds & Liverpool Canal and then down south to Cowley Peachey/Winkwell on the Grand Union Canal which is where we pick up the story again!

For a few years our 'summer' holiday consisted of heading north on the Grand Union for a week, see how far we got then turn round for the journey back. So, our next visit to the New Inn was at lunchtime on Friday 25th September 1992.

We were also there at lunchtime the very next day! This had been an eventful trip with a fire in the 'engine room' and a 24 hour delay because the canal was flooded near Grafton Regis! In the intervening six years the pub had acquired a hanging sign and the main sign had been replaced.

We were back the next year again...twice!

First on Thursday 23rd September 1993 in the evening.

Then again on the way back at lunchtime on Sunday 26th September 1993.

We were back on Sunday 4th September 1994 on our journey back for a lunch stop.

We'd missed out on the way up because of bad timing on the locks which closed at 4pm.

In 1995 we moved Emma Jane back to Lapworth and so our visit to the New Inn should have been the last for a few years. This visit was the first example of the intransigence of the people who ran the pub. It had been a slow morning coming up through the Buckby Locks and I'd gone ahead to see whether we'd be able to get something to eat if we were running a bit late. I was assured that we could get food.

We moored up at 14:05 on Thursday 31st August 1995 and dashed into the pub only to be told that food had stopped at 2pm! This was from the same woman who'd assured me it would be OK!

We returned on the evening of Monday 25th August 1997 on our way to Leicester and Nottingham again!

No problems this time and the hanging sign had returned.

In 2001, we took a trip down the Grand Union to cover some of the ground we'd become used to in the early 1990's. So, we had two (both lunchtime) stops at the New Inn. First on Monday 27th August 2001.

...and then again on Wednesday 5th September 2001.

Although the outside of the pub has seemingly not changed over the years, inside it had slowly transformed from a proper basic country pub into a more food based establishment. It was starting to look as though the skittle table would disappear, but, fortunately, that hasn't transpired.

Our next visit to the New Inn was on a springtime trip taking Emma Jane to Nuneaton for roof repairs.

 This was at lunchtime on Monday 30th May 2005. The main wall sign had finally changed after at least 15 years!

In 2009 anothr trip to Nottingham and Leicester (and the Erewash Canal) saw us stopping at the New Inn at lunchtime on Thursday 10th September 2009.

Our most recent stop was on the evening of Sunday 30th August 2015.

Again we were running a bit late as we'd had a 50 minute delay at Watford Locks. So, I'd phoned ahead to establish that the food stopped at 8pm. We moored up at 19:50 and got into the pub at 2 minutes past eight. The manager flatly said that the kitchen was closed and there was no food. A completely different manager, but he was channelling the same 'New Inn' attitude from twenty years previously.

Our evening was saved by the young woman I'd spoken to on the phone. She overheard the manager, had a word with the chef and offered us a choice of salad or sandwiches (no hot food) which was perfect!

The exterior signage had changed again, subtly whereas inside, little had changed over the past few years.

Just to demonstrate the "New Inn Attitude" I was very amused/disturbed by the replies of Michelle R to negative reviews on Tripadvisor which I discovered in my researches!

#121 The Wheatsheaf, Braunston, Northants : 1993 to 2012

Although Braunston has been a regular stop over the years of our canal trips, it wasn't until 1993 that we finally discovered The Wheatsheaf.

This was taken on Thursday 23rd September 1993. From the canal there are two pubs before you reach The Wheatsheaf and, by the look of it, we had visited both before we got here. As I recall it was a bog standard village pub; a basic local and, much to our joy, contained a skittles table!

We obviously liked the place as we were back again the next year.

This was on the evening of Saturday 3rd September 1994. The Wheatsheaf didn't do food in those days, so we'd probably eaten at The Old Plough before strolling up the road for a game of skittles.

It was quite a few years before we returned and although there were noticeable changes to the outside, inside it was pretty much the same as before - a proper village local!

This was on Saturday 25th May 2005. That was the last time we've paid a visit whilst on a canal trip, but I was passing by and took this final picture.

Seemingly unchanged in the intervening 7 years, this photo was taken on Sunday 30th September 2012. It is good to see that The Wheatsheaf has survived and is thriving - here is an up-to-date description.

#116 Knightley Arms, Yelvertoft, Northants

The Knightley Arms is a pub we've only visited once, for a lunchtime stop, on Tuesday 22nd July 1986.

This was an unscheduled stop and it looks like we got there before the pub was open. We'd been cruising along the Leicester Section of the Grand Union Canal after having spent the previous evening in Crick. However, our propeller had become 'weeded up' and needed clearing. Unfortunately, the access to Emma Jane's weed hatch wasn't easy and we needed to let the exhaust pipe cool down before it was possible to de-weed. (Any excuse for a drinks stop, I hear you say!!)

I don't really remember too much about the pub, but it did have a skittles table and during our game, one of our party managed to nearly break the ankle of a local with a misdirected skittles cheese! We've not been back since that incident, but the main reason is that Yelvertoft falls between the 'natural' stops along this stretch of canal.

I was in the area recently and took the opportunity to revisit Yelvertoft to see whether the pub had survived.

The Knightley Arms was alive and well on Sunday 16th December 2012, but I didn't venture inside. Considering it had been 26 years, the changes were minimal compared to what might have happened. New signs and new windows, but the external layout looks to be pretty much the same as before. Note: the George & Dragon is still above the hanging sign!

#053 Barley Mow, Newbold-on-Avon, Warks : 1995 to 2011

My first ever visit to the Barley Mow was on the evening of 17th April 1980 on my first canal trip on Emma Jane. In those days I hadn't started taking a photo of every pub we visited. To get some idea of what it looked like, visit this link which shows the pub in 1976.

My next visit was a lunchtime stop on 1st September 1995 on our trip to take Emma Jane back to her 'new' moorings at Lapworth.

The Barley Mow is right by the Oxford Canal, just down a little lane close to Newbold Tunnel. The remarkable thing is that the next-door building is also a pub, The Boat. That makes it a perfect stop for a mini pub crawl!

Next time was another evening stop on 29th May 2000.

This photo is taken from outside The Boat looking back towards the canal.

Another five years later and we're back!

This was another lunchtime stop on 31st May 2005. By this time it looks like the pub was no longer an M&B house.

And finally...we move on to my most recent visit. This time we were on our way to have Emma Jane assessed for potential repairs to the cabin by Brinklow Boats who are a little further along the Oxford Canal. Unfortunately there aren't any pubs near the cut at Brinklow so we took the onerous decision to stop at the Barley Mow early in the evening on 30th May 2011.

The outside of the pub has had a complete makeover, but inside it hasn't really changed that much. There is a fairly extensive restaurant area serving very good food and, in the bar, there is a skittles table. This is always a bonus for us as we like to have a game of Northamptonshire Skittles (also known as Hood Skittles). We're not very good, but we both enjoy it having originally been shown how to play on our first ever canal trips.