UK Canals - Journey reports

Peak Forest Canal:Furness Vale

Today we had to deliver the boat for paining.  Clearly this will take a while, 28 days in fact, so we packed up, removed unwanted item, took the curtains down and returned home.   Next visit around 30th June.   Actually the boat had to be turned, so we took it up to Whaley Bridge first thing.   Need more time to exxxplore.  Looks really interesting place.

Peak Forest Canal:Furness Vale

We left extra early as I will need to return to the marina to retrieve the car.  We leave the boat here for 4 weeks to be painted.   It took us just over 4 hours to make the trip.  Only two opposite direction boats encountered.  No trouble with the moveable bridges.  The first lifting bridge is windlass worked, the second, a larger one, is a similar design but worked from a minute pedestal on the towpath side.  I embarrassed myself trying to find how to work it by looking at the large power cabinets on the offside.   The swing bridges are standard issue with key and plunger and are easily worked unlike a previous occasion when I actually had to tie the boat to the bridge to get it to budge.   The marina here is not large with a few herringbone positions but the rest of the boats moored inline on the offside but set against a well maintained grassy area looking very attractive.  The marina manager has been more than helpful in making us welcome here.

Macclesfield Canal:Bridge 14

We left early with the intention of getting ahead of plan today.   So by 7:00 we started up the Bosley Flight of locks.   We didn’t see a single moving boat until we reached the top and no water related hold-ups.  Another boat arrived behind us at Royal Oak swing bridge just to late to come through with us, but at Broadhurst bridge they were able to leap-frog us.  Then we both got caught up behind a hire boat that was going so gingerly through bridge holes as to be virtually stopped.  Fortunately they pulled over and moored up two bridge holes later at Gurnett Aqueduct.   Macclesfield was passed uneventfully and we continued alone north to just after Higher Poynton having got at least 2 hours in hand for the morning.

  Photo: Hills above Gurnet in the background with the slow moving traffic ahead

Macclesfield Canal:Bridge 63

An hours run to the tunnel and expecting a queue there.  Just after leaving Etruria moorings we noticed a new leisure complex under construction with colourful water slides evident on the side.  The bit of canal around the old Shelton Steelworks is deep due I guess to subsidence and the boat certainly runs well in deep water.   So many changes every time we come this way.  Some of the old potteries have just disappeared under new housing, others still derelict and only Middleport in the original buildings looks to be still working, although I am sure that I will be corrected in that.   Moorings at Westport Lake were full.  By now it was 8:00am, so probably still asleep.  There was a queue at the tunnel.  Just 3 boats and we didn’t have to wait long.  The tunnel-keeper came and made his inspection (lights and horn), did his recitation, gave us a leaflet and told us to close the fire down and then we were off.   All routine and no surprises.  It is always difficult I find, to judge the distance behind the boat in front and I was holding back initially, but then saw fit to increase power to the top of my normal cruising range, then appeared to be catching up, but then it took ages for us to reach the entrance after the boat in front had left.  40 minutes the run!  On to the Macclesfield.   Slow progress at times as the canal is said to be shallow.  Lots of cuttings (no view) and lots of embankments (amazing views).  We stopped briefly at Congleton by the station looking for the alleged shops (Nicholson’s Guide), but found none of any substance.  There is a Spar a short way from bridge 77 I gather.   Then our planned overnight stopping place, a mile or son from the bottom of Bosley Locks, our sport for tomorrow.

Trent & Mersey Canal:Etruria

Thought we were early this morning.  No.  Two boats ahead of us, not that this slowed us down to start with.   Just guaranteeing that all the locks ahead would be full and there was only one opposite direction to save Pat the work emptying them.  There was a delay at  Trentham Lock as we had gained an extra in front and then at Stoke bottom Lock, more still so we were fifth. Over an hour wait as this is such a deep lock and very slow to empty.   In Stone, above the second lock adjacent to the Canal Cruising Co, there is construction work going on with footings for some new building evident.   It looks as if the old brick buildings are being dismantled rather than demolished, presumably for the heritage bricks which must be worth quite a bit.   The bone & flint mill at Etruria is in steam this weekend.  We have visited before and it is definitely worth a look.  We are moored just along from the museum.

Trent & Mersey Canal:Stone

Early start as rain threatened.  Cowlick Lock was our first “obstacle” with its shortened bottom gate beams.  That on the towpath side is very hard to shut.

We had reached the diminutive Haywood Lock with its adjacent tea rooms before our first rain shower

Needing rubbish disposal since before Fradley we were glad that an Anglo-Welsh hire boat decided to vacate the wharf just in time.  We then followed this boat all the way to Aston Lock.   Lots of traffic and queues going down but no hold-ups for us.  We did get word on the towpath telegraph, however, that Stone was very busy as boats were staying on their moorings because of the rain.  Expecting the worst we were preparing ourselves to have to do the Stone Locks as well today, but a gap presented itself near the end of the line of boats below the locks and we took it.  Interesting to note lots of new housing at Little Haywood, Weston upon Trent as well as the approaches to Stone.

 

Trent & Mersey Canal:Wolseley Bridge

It took an hour to get to Fradley and leaving just after 7 am gave us a chance of a quick dispatch of the three locks there on the T&M.   So it turned out.   There was a boat in front of us at the swing

bridge but far enough ahead to mean that they were just leaving the middle lock as we approached. There being nothing waiting to come down I gently stuck the bows into the ‘V’ of the gates to let Pat off and allow the magic of the water flow keep us there with the engine in neutral as the lock emptied.  Surprisingly the volunteer lock-keepers were already on duty, so I didn’t have to get off the boat as I would normally expect to as Pat and I usually share the work.  At Woodend Lock I did get off, but all the paddles were on Pat’s side as the top gate beam.   So nothing to do there except close the rather awkward bottom gate with it’s angled beam on the offside.  

Now we started to see opposite direction boats a plenty, often in convoy.   Pressing on we eventually arrived at the entrance of the now de-roofed Armitage Tunnel with a crew member of an opposite direction boat on the towpath standing guard as the tunnel is single file and the curve at the Shardlow end prevents the view of the rest.   We had to wait quite a while for it to become clear.   After the tunnel is a wide section given over to offside moorings and then a difficult turn into a bridge under the road.   You do not want to meet a boat coming the other way here.   Without any visibility ahead through the bridge hole before the turn it is a relay good idea to use the horn and go slow.

Reaching Rugeley a stop for shopping at the adjacent Tesco before continuing on to Wolseley Bridge, our stop for the night.

 

 

 

Photo:  Entrance to Armitage Tunnel

Coventry Canal:Kings Orchard

Tonight we are moored adjacent to the Kings Orchard Marina within range of the noise from the A38 trunk road on the other side of Streethay.   Our move yesterday to get to the bottom of Atherstone Locks paid off because we had no delay at Glascote two locks other than always in the past.   However, one striking thing is that the canal was very quiet with very few boats about or moored up.  This coming Monday is a bank holiday and we were expecting to meet a lot of traffic.   The weather has been good so far, but it is set to deteriorate over the next few days, so maybe that’s the reason.  So we had a fast run to Fazeley where we used the excuse to fill up our water tank to give Pat time to nip to the small Tesco Express for some essentials.   Then on again.   Lots of underwater clangs and prop problems at Hopwas.   No change there.   For some reason the fallout from the woods seems to collect there.   I remember last time here we were immobilised with rubbish on the prop.  After the farms a clear run through Whittington, Huddlesford Junction and then to our planned overnight.

Coventry Canal:Atherstone bottom lock

Set off early as usual.  The anticipated heavy traffic in advance of the Crick Boat Show never seemed to materialise.  So after an uneventful cruise to Atherstone we moored up for the night.  Lunch.  Then “it’s all quiet, so why not do the locks today and save a few hours on tomorrows cruise”.   Yep.  Good idea!  Then decision made, three boats passed us, one after the other.  But with the change of plan now agreed we carried on.   It worked out really well.  Apart from a bit of a wait at the top lock all the other locks worked perfectly with alternative traffic all timed well, with volockies for the first three.  So we were in the end down as fast as usual.  Another lovely day weather wise, so arriving at the bottom around 3 pm it was chairs out for a few beers.   We are still behind on our programme but should catch up tomorrow.

Coventry Canal:Hawkesbury Junction

Not really doing a cruise this spring as we often do but we are taking the boat up to the Peak Forest Canal for an appointment with the Boat Painter.   So after arriving at the marina we had a few jobs to do including fitting a slide out drawer for the inside of our middle cupboard (which doubles as a larder, bike store and wardrobe).   The thing was, the drawer had been made at home to measurements taken and the idea was that it would fit between the side walls of the cupboard, however, somewhere along the line I had not taken account of the door jambs and the door turned out to be slightly longer than expected.   Clearly measurement failure.   Anyway, somehow it fitted and the purpose, storage for the bakery, achieved.  Then we needed a pump-out.   Normally achievable at Brinklow but I was unable to raise the harbourmaster for a token so we were forced to get one done at Rose Narrowboats on the way.   A really thorough job done there, but £25!!!  The rest of the journey to our first overnight was pleasant in warm sunshine most of the time.  Plenty of moorings on the Coventry at Hawkesbury.