catch-up

22nd

A wet day. We kept the pram cover up and although it meant that John couldn’t see too well it kept us a bit drier. We stopped and emptied the cassette and filled with water at a little wharf, and I was able to get a bottle of milk. A real bottle – didn’t know they still existed!

We got as far as Lymm which showed good moorings on the map but they were all taken so we had to go around the corner and moored in a horrible spot where the grass sloped down to the canal and there was about 6” of space to put the mooring pins. This turned out to be scalpings and the little lane was a well used road so not only were the pins somewhat insecure but also the boat was covered in white mud from the cars going through the puddles along the track. UGH!

John went and investigated the village which he pronounced very pretty and he went to the supermarket and bought a few basics, but I shalln’t be sorry to move on. Back very painful from wearing flat shoes – never again – I would rather fall in from slipping with my MBT’s than suffer with my back again.

23^rd June ‘12

We left Lymm feeling tired and miserable. The moorings weren’t good and we were scared our pins would get pulled out. There was a lot of noise for such a small village and there were people on the boat behind us that insisted on talking at the tops of their voices, outside, in the early hours of the morning. What with that and my being unable to move without the use of pulleys, it wasn’t a good night!

We left the hood up but took the side panels out and the weather varied between dry and damp until we hit the outskirts of Manchester when it started to pour down. So somehow I managed to insert the side panels from the inside whilst we were on the move – not easy when you can’t move much – but at least it made the rest of the journey a bit drier!

We could see moorings at Castlefields at the base of the locks shown on the map but when we explored the ones on the left they said no mooring so with hearts in our mouths we went into the right arm and there they were! Lovely moorings with bollards and everything!

Very glad to moor and expect we shall stay here the weekend so that my back can improve and also there will be fewer people about on the locks as they don’t have the best reputation.

We had lunch in a nice bar just a couple of minutes away and then had a walk with Paddy up a few of the locks – not nice! Double locks and some of them dubious looking. All of them need anti-vandal keys which tells you something!

24^th June ‘12

Had a lie in as my back was excruciating. After breakfast (well more brunch time to be honest) we had a walk up to the Sainsbury’s up the road. John went in but it was only a small store so he wasn’t able to get much – I waited outside with Paddy.

I spent the rest of the day sat down, very still, taking tablets and playing a new game I found on my ‘3’ account! My back felt better for it.

John went to investigate Salford Quays in the afternoon on the Metro and then went to the bar to watch the football in the evening – England lost so there you go.

I’m dreading the locks tomorrow and hope we can find someone to go with, I asked John to check out any possible boaters at the pub but he said they were all young, local lads so nothing doing there. Maybe we can hang around at the foot of the locks and see if anyone turns up! Fingers crossed.

25^th June ‘12

My prayers are answered – the couple in the boat moored opposite us are moving on today and asked if we would go through the locks with them – YES!!!!!!

We are hoping to make an early start but they have been around to the lock and there appears to be a delay – there are boats in there that have been stuck for an hour and a half and yesterday a boat took 2 hours to get through it. So we are sitting and waiting. My back is much better today and with my support and enough pain-killers I can barely feel it! John and  Eric are around at the lock and both have their walkie talkies, Deb and I are back at the boats despairing of the fact that everyone here seems to have walkie talkies and the signals are getting crossed – we have both had some strange messages!

Finally some BW men arrived and are sorting the lock out – apparently a tyre was stuck on the lower cill and causing the bottom gates to stick slightly open so the water going out was equal to the water going in. They have cleared the obstruction and we get into the lock.

There are 9 locks in this flight and all double and all against us! Despite this we manage to get through by lunchtime which surprised us all! It was only 2 miles but a very long stretch. Not a single boat came down them by the way – just as well in places as there was little turning space.

We lunched at the start of the Ashton Canal, the locks were on the Rotherford so that’s another canal we have experienced.

After our success of the morning we decide to get on – there are 18 locks to get through (yes that WAS 18 I wrote and not a typo) but that seems nothing to intrepid boaters like what we are.... they are single locks but we agree that we shall go first, and crank the bottom gates for them so that they meet locks partially empty.

This worked well and by lock 7 I pointed out to Deb that there is an Asda just up ahead and we both need supplies. There are even some bollards there for boaters and so we moor up and leave the men with a beer and we head into the supermarket which is just next to the canal. About an hour later both boats are well stocked with essentials again and we head off to complete the journey.

The Ashton is the filthiest canal I have ever seen – apparently the rubbish gets cleared on a weekly basis but it is full of take-away containers, drink bottles and other paraphernalia that people feel would be better off in the canal than in their rubbish bins at home. Why are people so damned lazy? And why can’t they have some pride in their surroundings?

Anyway we continue on up the canal and eventually get to the final lock, number 18. There is a water point there which we both need and also about 100 young lads (pre-teens), all keen to climb on the boat, stroke the dog, investigate everything and ask 1,000 questions. There was no real harm in them, just no sense of boundaries.

By now it was getting late and we hadn’t eaten for hours and ...joy of  joys... we see people eating take-aways – “where is the nearest?” we ask in unison (Deb and I are twins parted at birth!) and we find that there is a choice. We tie up quickly and John and Deb go off while Eric, Paddy and I guard the boats – it felt like that sort of area!

The providers return and we quickly move around the corner under the bridge until we feel OK to moor for the night and then turn in for our curries ..... it’s no 11.00pm!

Never cruised with lights on before, never cruised this late before, never done 27 locks in a day before – never want to do it again!!!!

26^th June ’12

We left the mooring slightly later than Eric and Deb but said we’d catch them up. An uneventful cruise up the Ashton- it certainly improved once we’d left the locks behind. We came to the junction and turned onto the Peak Forest Canal.

Still suffering with my back, I jumped off with Paddy to have a bit of a walk – poor chap had hardly touched solid earth over the last few days and seen precious little grass or hedgerow so we both needed it. I caught up with the others but found that they had eaten their lunch on the go so exchanged numbers and said we’d meet up later for a drink.

I jumped back on ours and we moored up for lunch. The weather had been overcast but dry up to that point and just as we’d finished lunch the heavens opened so we stayed put for a bit. Then got a text from the others saying that they were moored at the bottom of Marple locks and there were some other spaces – this is about 45minutes away so we set off regardless of the weather (again) and found them.

The invitation was issued so we went aboard and had a few glasses of wine then I took Paddy out and got him his tea. I went and dragged John back to ours for tea and invited them back to ours afterwards.

Suffice it to say that we emptied a few bottles and made some new friends. Amazingly they knew David and Viv so they rang them and we had a chat! Small world isn’t it?

27^th June ‘12

Eric and Deb had decided that because of needing to be in Liverpool at the end of next week they would go back the way they had come rather than go on. So we said our farewells and headed towards the locks. There were 16 of them. Before getting there we crossed an impressive aquaduct that was alongside a viaduct carrying the railway. It reminded me of Chirk somewhat.

The first lock and wonder of wonders a boat coming out. Hooray thinks I, this will make the day easier. I had forgotten in my joy that another boat had gone past before we set off and sure enough, we get to the second lock and it’s against us.

On the bright side, the weather is improving dramatically and the scenery is amazing. The 16 locks climb 208feet in just under a mile, so they come thick and fast and that makes it easier in many ways. I now feel very proficient at moving the boat around and think that I tend to smirk somewhat when people are watching me cruise smoothly into a narrow opening!

There were a lot of walkers out and lots of friendly chats across the water, which is nice.

Naturally the locks continued to be against us until when I’m in lock 14 John says there’s a boat coming down. Loud hoorays once again.

As I rise up the lock I seen one of the smallest pounds in front of me and John has been chatting with the people in the lock above and they are going to come out and keep on the left so that I can get around them and we can both then move into the empty locks ahead of us. We are now in Marple and lots of people have emerged from heaven knows where and we have attracted a crowd.

As the other lock opens it appears that there are two small boats in it, one moves around to my left as expected and the other goes to my right¸ interesting I thought, as this was a plastic pig it should have been more easily steered than the narrow boat so why make things difficult? At this point the one in front swings across the pound in front of me. I am stood at the back of ours shrugging my shoulders, the crowd can smell blood and become more interested. It is decided that the narrow boat (boat a shall we say) is going to try to swing back to my left but needs to use my bow to lean on to push himself back (all crew on both boats are male by the way). I have to go back and forth until boat a has managed to get itself out of my way but boat b is happy on the other side and John confidently shouts across that there should be plenty of room. I put a confident smile on my face (the crowd are expectant) and set out. Miraculously I get around both boats and into the lock without incident. Did I get a rousing cheer from the crowd? Did I heck! No blood, no collision, no-one falling in the canal, if they’d paid admission they’d have asked for their money back. Gongoozelers!!!!

At the top of the locks we hope for liquid refreshment but as we turn north and see the entrance to the Macclesfield Canal on our right, it’s obvious that we are going in the wrong direction for facilities. In fact we barely manage to moor as the sides of the canal are very shallow and mooring was tricky. We stopped for a quick and rather late lunch and then continued up the Peak Canal. It’s not the best I have to say. Beautiful scenery but it has a bottom that is saucer shaped so it’s very easy to ground and the banks are falling into the canal in lots of places.

We moor up at Newtown and find a co-op!

28/29/30^th June ‘12

We are moored at Bugsworth Basin which is truly awesome, for the amount of work and dedication that has gone into restoration.

Tom, Francesca and Nellie came to visit for Sunday lunch and it poured! It was lovely to see them and amazing that it has taken us 3 weeks to get here and we’re only just over an hour from home by road!

 

1^st July ‘12

We filled up with water and left Bugsworth today, feeling  we’d been somewhere really special.

The return journey down the Peak Canal to Marple was as expected. It rained and we got grounded a few times when we had to move across to let others pass

We got to Marple and had hoped to moor once on the Macclesfield Canal,  but there were only 3 spaces and they were all taken so we kept on for a mile or so and after a few abortive attempts to moor because of shallow water we have finally found a space that we could get into and hopefully will be able to get out of again tomorrow.

Paddy was less than happy this morning and didn’t have his breakfast until late morning. He does have a delicate little tummy at times. He’s OK again now though.

We are on the homeward trip now I suppose. Tom brought up our mail yesterday which was useful and we have said we’ll be back by his birthday (19^th). It will be strange to be back.