Barton-under-Needwood

From Alweras, the route was rather sedate. Although we joined the river, there were a good number of long straight stretches before we rejoined the canal at Wychnor...and more long straight bits after that, bordered by the noisy A38. At Barton Marina, we moored up to walk into Barton-under-Needwood. A bit of a walk from the canal, this small town also boasted a fabulous cafe - The Skinny Kitten. Not only did they have an extensive collection of exquisite homemade cakes, the also had the biggest gin list I had seen and a selection of craft ales too! So we had more cake but this time with alcohol...rocky road with Black Powder Salted Caramel gin for me and lemon and elderflower cake for Ben with Rocky ale from Shiny Brewery. In fact the cafe was so good we stayed for a second drink - Ben trying Shiny Brewery's Affinity and me trying the Drunshanbo Gunpowder Irish Gin (lemon, lime, grapefruit and gunpowder tea). Wandering back to the boat, we stopped by Barton Marina for a coffee but the whole place had the feel of an overly-manicured gated community, so we didn't stay long.Read more