Saved by the Germans

Winning the war on the fallen tree!

Fortunately I wasn't wearing my 'Two world wars and one world cup" tee-shirt today.
We came out of Hyde Bank Tunnel below Marple locks to discover the canal blocked by a large fallen horse chestnut branch, with a couple of hireboaters moored up on the other side wondering what to do.
We phoned BW then set to with loppers and my puny woodworking handsaw to try and clear the mess but what was really needed was some help.
"Sorry, we just phoned my hire company and they said not to get involved and leave it to BW," said the hireboaters. "I guess we'll just put the kettle on and wait."
Not so the Germans! They arrived behind us in another hireboat and soon took charge. "Ve vill push it out of ze vay. Don't vorry ve are sailor-men." (actually their English was fine but we Brits always have to do the pretend German accent stuff). And they did; getting a rope under the trunk, round the T-stud and giving the engine plenty of welly.
Off to the side went the tree and off down the cut went we.
"To be honest, I don't know how they lost the war," muttered Starwoman. "We'd all be sitting around drinking tea and waiting for British Waterways and they'd be getting on with it."