UK Canals - Journey reports

Higher Poynton

We left early, anxious to get to Braidbar Boatyard at Higher Poynton before the bank holiday closure. Just after the lifting bridge round the corner we passed two boats, and then saw nothing moving until the bottom of Marple Flight.  The 16 locks in this flight are deep but easy to work.  Arriving at the top it was mayhem with boats everywhere.  I am sure that we have seen more boats moving in this short stretch of the Macclesfield Canal that we have seen moving for the last two weeks.  However, I suppose it is the bank holiday weekend!

The boat is booked in at Braidbar Boats for some maintenance.   Full report on the Maintenance Section when details are available.

Stalybridge and Portland Basin

Our moorings at Uppermill were in heavy shade alongside a bank.  The towpath in consequence was mud.  It had begun raining when we arrived and the boat was two feet out from the bank.  Rain continued on and off through the evening.  However, better weather this morning with broken cloud.  Really, the journey down to Stalybridge was uneventful passing only one boat just before the Scout Tunnel and a second just before the top Staylybridge Lock.  The canal is clearly very shallow, but going downhill we are bringing th water with us, so no problems with depth.   Going the other way, uphill as we were on the Yorkshire side might be another matter.  There is a large Tesco here, so good access to stores.  We felt very uneasy here.  No trouble but just too many people about and so decided to move on to Portland Basin.  Lock 2 has some highly geared paddle gear on the gates which make winding very easy in comparison to the rest.  Presumably to fool upcoming boaters into thinking that they will all be like that.  Opening the gates on the hydraulically operated lock one was much more tiring and left me hopelessly short of breath.  Good quiet moorings up the Peak Forest, just beyond the junction.

Standedge Tunnel and Diggle Flight

Boat preparations did not take long.  I had already removed the navigation lights at the suggestion of Fred, our BW guide and chaperone for the tunnel.  We had met him already at Lock 1E getting us floating again.  The top of the boat was cleared and water tank filled.  Hi-Viz coat and lifejackets are needed as well as hard had (I had two or three strikes in the tunnel).  BW like the engines warmed up to reduce fumes, so with all this done and clearance given from tunnel control (it seems to be run just like the railway) we set off.  A van can use the redundant railway tunnel which connects with the canal at intervals including four large evacuation points which also serve as reporting points where we had to stop briefly.   The first part was brick lined and fairly uniform with adequate headroom apart from occasional brick arches.  Then the walls became unlined rock with jagged edges and some pinch points.  Fred, our guide knows the tunnel like the back of his hand and could advise where it was appropriate to slow down for some of these narrows where it would be easy to strike the handrail.  There is also an 'S' bend near the middle where the initial tunnelers got it wrong.  Throughout the journey Fred was talking almost constantly about the history, and the features within especially the association with the railway tunnels.  For the most part the tunnel was dry, except for water coming down the ventilation shafts, in some cases copiously.  Changing airpressure caused by the passage of trains also causes brief misting in the air, easly visible in the tunnel light.  All in all, this was a great experience, and thoroughly recommended.   Having exited the tunnels we moored up and were quite happy to stay overnight.  However, we were advised that our next opportunity to descend the Diggle Flight would be on Friday, two days away.  So, in company with YESDEAR, we set off to get through lock 24W.   Descending and taking the water with us we had no depth problems at all and apart from finding one or two inoperative paddles the locks were no problem either.  We continued on to Uppermill, to find a mooring in a glade of trees and settled down to a late lunch.

Slaithwaite to Tunnel End Marsden

Today it took 7 hours to do the 2 3/4 miles and 19 locks to Tunnel End.  The mechanism for lock 24E has broken, so a BW team of three or four have to lift it with an electric winch.  Once past here we were told to wait at lock 26, of if nb "YESDEAR", which we have been partnering on and off since Dewsbury, had gone up 27E, go up, but not take the water if they were in the pound.   BW were going ahead to let water down from the Sparth Reservoir.  In fact nb YESDEAR had got as far a lock 28E when we emerged from 26E and so we went to wait n the bottom of 27E.  We took the opportunity to consume one of the pork pies purchased from the  butcher in Slaithwaite.  Magic!  The boat ahead had nearly filled their lock when BW reappeared, and told them to close the paddles immediately and wait.  The pound ahead was pretty well empty.  Then they slowly sank down in the lock.  By then, we had filled our lock too, so decided to close the top gate again and drop the paddles.  We too sank down, so effectively wasting two locks of water between us.   Below, there is a stream entering the canal which keeps the water levels up down to below Slaithwaite.  Above the canal is dependent on the reservoir.  So wasting two lockfulls was probably critical in our very slow progress from here on, scraping along the bottom, getting stuck, poling off and as a last resort, feeding water in from above, ideally as a wave to just lift the boat enough to get over the obstruction.  Getting out over the cill of the top gates meant getting off and pushing in most cases.  The worst shallows were mostly nearer the lock ahead.  Andrew, our BW shadow was most patient in getting us over these obstacles.  In many cases the pounds were over 2 feet down.  At lock 33E we came to a juddering halt with the bows by the gates.   It took about half an hour to sort this out.  Lock 33E is apparently the narrowest on the flight, but seemed that something was stopping the gate fully opening below the waterline.  When this was clear we sailed in.   The locks are uniformly deep and the last few create a very steep gradient.   Finally tunnel end appeared.  We were asked to wait for the tunnel trip boat to emerge before finally mooring up.  Rain seemed to be setting in, though cleared enough for us to visit the Tunnel End pub - a warm welcome and beer £2/pint.

Slaithwaite

After our 4 night stay at Huddersfield, we set off for Slaithwaite up the recently restored Huddersfield Narrow Canal, a whole different experience from the wide canals we have become used to. A very slow day.  It took us 8 hours to do the 5 or so miles to Slaithwaite.  We left the basin though what looked like a culvert and soon found lock 1E.  Keeping the boat well back the lock (and all subsequent locks) was very docile.  Reaching the top we found the pound about 2 feet down.  "Nothing ventured nothing gained" came to mind so we set off gingerly, but after 100 yards, and still fortunately by the towpath section, we became solidly aground.  So at about 8:15 a call was made to the emergency BW number and within about 45 minutes Fred and Nick appeared.  Nick went ahead to let some water down and when it came like a flash flood, the boat set off backwards. It was a struggle to make any headway against the flow.  Fred stayed with us through the first tunnel and then joined Nick to see us up the next few locks.
When we heard that the Huddersfield Narrow Canal was shallow we didn't realise that it meant we would be bumping on the bottom most of the way.  A low pound would be a special problem.  Above lock 6, although the water was well up, we ran aground in the narrows, but reversing off managed to find another inch of water.  Above lock 7 the water was too low to let us leave the lock over the cill.  Pat tried to let down a lockful from above, but needed help of a strong passer by to wind the bottom gate paddles.  She then had to let down more as we ran aground again later in the pound itself.  We found ourselves on the bottom again within lock 11, even though the bywashes were running.  We gave up on attempting to reach "lock landings".   The only way was to put Pat off from the front at the lock throat.   One dud top paddle at lock 12 and leaking bottom gates needed both of us and two passers by to get the top gate open.   Being Sunday there were many walkers out there and many taking an interest in our progress, astonished that we got there from London.   Fishermen were for the most part cheerful and chatty. The scenery, once it opened up near to our destination was on a grand scale with the isolated mills part of the landscape.
It was with some relief then that we arrived at the visitor moorings at Slaithwaite (Slawit to the locals).   Once tucked up it started to rain on what had been a very pleasant, if tiring, day.

Arrival at Huddersfield

An interesting couple of days!  Basically we were way ahead of our schedule, so there would be short days ahead.  Dewsbury Marina was very quiet and we seemed very welcome there.  Calder Valley Marine has all the services and there was no charge for the mooring.  Leaving the Dewsbury arm the next lock is immediately on the right after the bridge.  My instinct was that a turn into the lock would not be practicable, so I turned left onto the very wide canal by the visitor moorings with the intention of turning there where I judged there was plenty of room.  It turned out that I only had about 6 inches spare to make the turn.  We had arranged to pick up Philip, a railway friend, at the Perseverance pub, as the nearest reasonably certain point to Ravensthorpe station.  There is a recognised mooring there, but the pub looked derelict and certainly not very attractive from the outside.  Nearby were apple trees and blackberries, so when Philip and his dog Sam arrived we went picking.  Steve Atty's Canalplan software had put us at Coopers Bridge that evening, but there being no obvious mooring there according to our guide book, and with moorings and pubs at Mirfield, we decided to stop short there.  Good choice!  There is a Lidl canalside and the Navigation pub opposite the moorings had a good choice of ale.  Sam took to the boat very quickly and throughly explored it, becoming very proficient at getting on and off to command.  He did have a tendecy to wander, or explore the local scene but always returned on call.   The next morning we set off to reach Huddersfield.  The remaining Calder and Hebble Locks were cleared without problem, although it has to be said that the river locks all sit right on the river, so that the lock moorings, some better than others, are on the river itself and entry to the lock would be fun in a strong stream.  The locks too were of varying size, but again no problem. At Coopers Bridge there are good moorings, though as we suspected, no facilities.   We made the almost 180 degree turn in one to gain the river leading to lock 1 of the Hudderfield Broad Canal.  It was tightly packed with duckweed.  Naturally, Sam thought it was a nice lawn and fell in. Then he did the same, minutes later above the lock where the weed was similarly thick, blown down by the wind.  All the Huddersfield Broad Locks were consistently short, requiring bows on the cill and then moving the stern round behind the opposite gate in order to shut the entry gate. The shortest, the last but one gave us only about 3" clear.  I used a bungee to hold the rudder right back and keep it clear while the boat was rising in the lock.  It also proved more reliable to rope the front up and keep a centre rope ashore to move the boat this way and that to keep the bows from fouling the top gate and the swan neck from fouling the bottom gate walkway.  Not all the paddles were working or existed, so the rope at the front kept wild swings of the boat in check. Thus we arrived in warm weather at the loco lifting bridge.   I hadn't realised that it is used as a regular short cut and is quite busy.  It is mechanised, with interlocking gates requiring the key of course.  Philip went to perform the operation while I cast off.  Putting the boat in gear there was a nasty sound and no prop wash.  The wind was quite strong and the boat was now moving towards the opposite bank.  A bit of reverse got some action and enough forward propulsion to clear the bridge but with an ominous rasping sound.  Mooring up again a visit to the weed hatch revealed the prop frozen solid with masses of wire round the shaft, with a fleece attached to some of it.  Attempts to free it over half an hour or so using wire snips produced only cuts to my fingers, so withdrawing gracefully, I called River Canal Rescue.  Dave and Karen from Bronte Boats at Hebden Bridge arrived in about 45 minutes and set to work.  It took a very long time, slowly snipping the wire, strand by strand, but after possibly 2 hours, there was still a long way to go. As we were only yards from our intended mooring, Dave decided to return and fetch his dry suit to tackle the problem from the ouside.  This proved beneficial as with the waterproof torch throwing some light on things from above to direct the attack it was possible to make more rapid progress.   There appeared to be a skein of what appeared to be wire rope around one of the blades and removing this helped considerably.  Finally, after another half hour the job was done.  A visit to "The Aspley" and a beer followed.

Dewsbury

We set of early this morning.  Pat really wants to get some laundry done and there is a hint in the Nicholson Guide that the boatyard there has that facility.   Broad Cut Top lock was negotiated wthout incident.  No problem with a 60 foot boat here.   Nearing Figure of Three Locks were passed a moored boat who asked to join us locking up.  Subject to us getting into the lock ourselves.   The first of the two needed the fabled Calder and Hebble handspike which our companions had.   I thought I would check our makeshift one out and it fits perfectly.   The ground paddles at the next lock proved immovable and the gate paddles nearly so, but we won in the end.  Who said that the K&A was hard?   No problem with the 60 foot boat at either of these locks, but Mill Bank Lock was the real deal.  We went in first, but it was necessary to do the diagonal trick and so the other boat had to wait.   The gate paddles were again very stiff and open above the water so the fill was of necessity rather slow at first.  We stayed behind to help the other boat through and the ground paddles, worked with the handspike proved a better solution.  One of the pounds had a really bad infestation with the floating pennywort. (see picture) At the next locks (Thornhill Double) we left our friends to it and disappeared up the Dewsbury arm.  The basin at the end was stuffed with boats, but the boatyard was very friendly and helpful and found us a pontoon mooring.  There is indeed a token washing facility with dryer, so Pat got to work after I had walked to ASDA (10 mins) to get some powder.   These appear quite safe moorings and definitely worth the trip up the short arm to reach them.

Broad Cut Locks - Navigation

We are ahead of schedule, so a slow start this morning.  Shortly after leaving the mooring, the squealing alternator belt reared its head again, so progress really did become slow as the only way to suppress it was to keep the revs more or less at tickover.   Our first two Calder and Hebble Locks were passed without incident.  We got the boat in fine without any gymnastics.  Eventually we arrived outside the Navigation, a rather spartan looking pub with a large untidy looking garden looking onto the river.  There was a gate and fence to keep the patrons safe, although the towpath walk seemed very popular later in the afternoon.  As it was Sunday lunchtime we thought we would go in and see if they did Food.  Seeing a sign on a door marked "Restaurant" we went in.  The interior was in stark contrast - a recently reburbished dining area and helpful staff, a proper pint of John Smith and best of all a carvery (£7.95).  The strange thing though was that there were very few diners.

Later, ater a rest, I had another go at the alternator.  It seems that the belt tightening really relies on two hinge bolts being really tight.  A run was OK, but how about tomorrow?

Wakefield

When we woke the water was mirror like.  By Woodnock Lock the wind was getting up and at the next lock it was troublesome to the extent that I had to tie the TV aerial down on the roof.  Castleford Flood Lock was open and at Woodnock Lock we came up behind a boat just exiting.  This is a deep lock and roping up in the wind was difficult.  Had we known it ws a side fill lock, we could just have sat on the opposite wall to the pedestal and not bothered.  This was the same at the next lock where we joined Myrtle, also destined for the Huddersfield Narrow and the tunnel next Wednesday.  The wind by now was most unpleasant, unimpeded by the open nature of the canal.  At Stanley Ferry we had our last chance to aquire the mysterious Calder and Hebble handspike, allegedly necessary to work the locks.  There was nowhere to moor apart from the water point several hundred yards from the marina.  Reaching the chandlery required some gymnastics to get round the locked pub doors.  The chap in the chandlery said not to waste our money. Just use a mooring pin with the 'D' end.

The visitor moorings at Wakefield are not inspiring.

Castleford

A disturbed night, though not in any nasty way.  The boat bumping while we were asleep at midnight woke Mike who put up the periscope and determined that a large boat must have passed on the main canal as waves were making their way down towards us.   Then at about 1.00am the sound of big engines and a propellor signalled the passing of a large boat by us on the South Yorkshire Navigation followed by the bump.

Up at our normal time we set of for Castleford.  Long straight open sections of the canal were all ours and we didn't see another boat moving until above Whitely Lock where dredging was in progress.  Later we came up behind a spoil barge with its attentdant tug.  Slowly the scenery became more enclosed as the Kellingley Colliery came closer until at Knottingley we found towpaths full of garden flowers and a limestone cutting.  The Ferrybridge flood lock was open and we joined the river section, past the coal wharves of the giant power station and finally though planted greened slag heaps to Castleford.  Shortly after mooring, the oil tanker Rix Phoenix passed us as we sat inside having lunch.  It just seemed to last forever, but no banging around on our moorings this time.  I have deployed the massive fenders.