Nearly Home

Last night we had a excellent meal at the Turkish restaurant in Stone. Highly recommended to any passing boater. The waiter spent some time asking us about the canals - they dont have anything like the English canals in Turkey. Sadly for him he didnt have anything else to do as we had arrived at 7pm to an empty restaurant and no-one else had come in by the time we left at 9.

Today we have been on the move from 9:30 to 15:00 with half an hour for lunch. A very long day for us. We are now moored at Great Heywood Junction where the Staffs & Worcester Canal which connects to the Severn at Stourport meets the Trent & Mersey.

The cruise was enjoyable with sunshine most of the time. To return again to wildlife we saw a soaring buzzard, which in itself is not unusual as we see them most days, carrying something in its claws. On close binocular inspection this something turned out to be a rabbit with its long ears dangling down. This is a first time I have seen a buzzard with its kill (or possibly some carrion it found).

This is the last entry for this trip. We plan to start our next trip in late May - please check the site nearer the time.

Back to Stone and a new Chimney

The weather this morning looked beautiful with blues skies and little wind. There had been a frost overnight but we had prudently set our central heating to come on at 6:30 so the boat was fairly warm when we got up.

A bit more about wildlife, this time on the boat. No, I dont mean rats or the ships cat - I am talking about spiders. After getting up we were very pleased to see a web had been made over the sink during the night and there were 4 little spiders each the size of a pin head running around it. We were able to rescue them before doing the washing up.

For some reason spiders are very common on narrowboats, they are the only creatures we normally see actually on the boat. We dont discourage them as hopefully they will remove any flies - this must be working as we rarely see any.

We left the mooring at 9:00 and travelled south through the 4 Meaford locks and the first two of the Stone locks. The Stone Boatbuilding chandlery was open and they were able to supply a new chimney, a 12 foot boat pole to replace the current one which looks like it would snap next time we had to push the boat off a shoal, and a fresh cylinder of propane for the cooker.

We have moored just past the chandlery as we intend to go into Stone tonight for a Turkish meal - we have been told the restaurant is very good.

Beware low bridges

Densie & Denise in the 12 ft deep Trentham lock

In the evenings after eating we often like to go for a short stroll. Yesterday evening we walked around Westport Lake looking at the birds. Nothing rare of course, but what we did see was a pair of Great Crested Grebe displaying their mating ritual. They floated in the water facing each other. One would bend its neck down, peck its side and then straighten up. Immediately the second bird copied the behaviour exactly. This was repeated several times, and then the male bird dived down and reappeared with a piece of weed which he offered to the female. Sadly she showed little interest and swam off - such is life!

We left the mooring at 8:55 in glorious sunshine, though a rather cold wind. An hour later we stopped outside the Wedgwood/Royal Doulton/Coalport/Waterford Crystal/Minton factory outlet to have a quick look round. Following the collapse of the original Wedgwood company last year all these "brands" are now owned by an investment company. Some of the china and glass is made in the UK but most is imported from all over the world - we saw references to China, Indonesia, Slovakia and Poland, although I believe the designs are still controlled from the UK.

We then travelled on through Stoke stopping for 30 mins for lunch and are now moored near Barlaston outside the Wedgwood factory where production moved from Stoke in the 1930s after the original works was affected by mining subsidence. We were told that the Barlaston site is still working though we cant see any evidence from the boat.

A rather sad chimney

On the way we had a slight mishap. One of the bridges is known for being very low. Unfortunately I didn't remember how low it really was with the result that our chimney was damaged beyond repair. Chimneys like most parts of a narrowboat are readily replaceable so we should be able to buy a new one in the next chandlers we see.

Back to Stoke

The weather looked much better this morning so we set off at 9:00, turned round and headed back home. We were originally going to travel a bit further up the Macclesfield Canal but the wind was strong and cold. Boating in a strong wind is arguably less fun than boating in the rain as the shape of a narrowboat makes it very sensitive to cross-winds. In extreme circumstances they can blow a 15ton boat from one side of the canal to the other with little the driver can do about it.

Luckily things weren't that bad today. Without too much difficulty we reached our previous overnight mooring point at Red Bull Aqueduct in time for lunch and a quick repeat visit to Tesco.

Dredging on the Macclesfield

On our journey we passed a floating digger dredging the canal. This nowadays is an all too rare sight as funding cuts have reduced canal maintenance to the minimum. The driver instructed us to pass by very close to the digger as the sides of the canal were extremely shallow. He told us that at one point the water was only 1 foot deep. He couldn't dredge that area because he had met puddled clay - the original waterproof liner for the canal channel.

After a quick lunch we passed through the Harecastle tunnel, again being allowed to enter almost immediately after arriving. We have moored a mile south of the tunnel at Westport Park Lake, an area created by mining subsidence which has been landscaped and provided with a Staffordshire Naturalists Trust visitor centre.

The Laziest of Days

Lying awake last night we could hear the rain falling on the boat roof. Its a bit like camping in the rain - you know from the noise that it's wet and unpleasant outside but you are dry and warm inside. As the weather wasn't that much better in the morning we decided to stay on the Congleton Embankment for the day.

In the morning I lit the stove and we stayed indoors reading, computing and crafting. The weather improved in the afternoon so we alked down the embankment and around the nature reserve at its base. We were lucky to see a dipper, a bird we have only ever seen once before many years ago in Devon.

Densie on the Congleton Embankment

The picture gives some idea of the size of the embankment which stretches right across this attractive valley. Typical Telford design - a canal that travels in a reasonably straight line across the countryside through the hills in cuttings and across the valleys by embankment unlike earlier canals which minimise the large scale engineering by following the contours of the land where possible.

Along the Macclesfield Canal

Hall Green Lock - 1 foot rise. A stoplock to prevent the two different canal companies stealing each other's water.

A "Snake Bridge" designed to allow the towpath to move from one side of the canal to the other without the need to un-hitch the horses.

As we are taking things unusually easy at the moment we didnt leave our moorings until 10:00. By 11:10 we had reached the moorings near Ramsdell Hall where we had previosuly moored on our way to Manchester last year. At that time we had contemplated walking to the top of Mow Cop, a nearby 1100ft hill but the weather wasnt too good.

Today the weather was pleasant so we decided to make the trek. Only 1.5 miles but a climb of some 650 feet from the canal. From the top allegedly you can see the Welsh Mountains, but today there was a bit of a haze. The best we could manage was a good view of Jodrell Bank, its white dishes contrasting with the green fields around.

View from our mooring on the Congleton Embankment

After returning to the boat for lunch we continued up the canal stopping for the night in the middle of Congleton Embankment where we have a spectacular view of the (unnamed on the OS map) valley from both sides of the boat.

Through Harecastle Tunnel

Site of Shelton Steel Works

Old Pottery at Middleport

Having completed the Caldon, we could get back home in 4 days, but we dont need to until Sunday next week. So having a few days spare we have decided to continue travelling north and spend 2-3 days on the Macclesfield canal, one we did last year and enjoyed.

We left Etruria at 9:40 after filling our tank with water. The canal passes through the old industrial area to the north of Stoke past the vast cleared area that was Shelton Steel Works and further on past the old potteries with their iconic bottle ovens of Newport, Middleport and Longport.

We then reached Harecastle tunnel, at 3000 yards one of the longest on the whole canal system. This magnificent tunnel was constructed by Thomas Telford in 1827 in only 3 years. It supplemented the original one built by Brindley in 1777 which became a major bottleneck as its absence of a towpath meant that boats had to be propelled through the tunnel by leggers - men who lay on the cabin roof and "walked" along the tunnel side.

Telford's tunnel is straight so that one can see the pinprick of light signifying the north end of the tunnel from the other end which is very useful as it assists the boat driver in steering a straight course. The tunnel has no lighting, the only illumination being the single spotlight on the front of the boat.

The original towpath has been removed to provide more space, but the tunnel is still too narrow to allow two vessels to pass. British Waterways therefore manage the alternate passage of convoys of boats. We were lucky as we only had to wait for the compulsory safety briefing before starting our passage. As can be imagined it could present a problem if a boat broke down a mile into the tunnel in complete darkness, without a well defined procedure.

After passing through the tunnel in 30mins we turned off the Trent & Mersey at Kidsgrove and moored on an embankment at the start of the Macclesfield. This is about half a mile to a Tescos where we have stocked up with groceries for the next 4 days.

Back at Etruria

Awkward obstruction in canal

Objet d'art by the side of a lock

Denise operating lift bridge

First ducklings of the year

A longish trip today - returning from the Leek Branch through the outskirts of Stoke on Trent to the good moorings at Etruria outside the Industrial Museum. Total distance 10 miles with 9 locks, 3 lift bridges and a journey time of 5.5 hours.

We found that one of the locks has been fitted with ant-vandal locks since we passed through a week ago. We had heard from other boaters that the dear little local kids have taken to openning the lock paddles overnight and draining the canal. We have met the anti vandal locks in other less salubrious parts of the canal system but they are an unwelcome innovation to the Stoke area.

Pumpout & explore the Leek Arm

On the Leek Branch

Leek Tunnel - Currently Closed

View of the Churnet from our mooring

A busy day to day - 10 miles and 3 locks.

We left Cheddleton at 9:30 in glorious weather and travelled via the 3 Hazelhurst locks, Hazelhurst Junction with the Leek Branch and on to Endon where we turned around and retraced part of our journey.

The reason for this apparently odd behaviour was that our "black water" holding tank is getting full and we needed a pumpout. The pumpout connection is on the side of the boat and so we needed to be facing the correct way to make attachment of the shore pump hose easy. So the boat needed to be turned, and it is too long to turn except at an approved "winding holes", the first one being at Endon.

We then retraced our journey up the canal intending to turn round again back to Stoke. However since we have some spare time and now with no urgent demands (eg shopping or pumpout) to return to civilisation we decided to go up the Leek Branch.

This is a beautiful stretch of canal that wanders along the side of a wooded valley towards the outskirts of Leek. It no longer reaches Leek as the canal line has been obliterated by an industrial estate, and so stops nowhere in particular. However we cant even get that far at the moment because of engineering work following a major leak (with an "a").

After reaching the practical end of the Branch we turned and have moored next to an aqueduct where the Leek Branch goes over the Caldon Canal, directly overlooking the Holly Bush Inn where we moored a few days ago. There are splendid views up and down the Churnet valley and I am hoping for an impressive sunset because of the dust from the Iceland volcano.

Cheddleton & Leek

Densie near Consall Forge

Apologies for the lack of Blog yesterday - for the first time for ages we were so remote that there was no mobile signal at all. Now we do have some connection but its GPRS rather than 3G and is a little slow.

Anyway yesterday we made the short (2 mile 1 lock in 1.5 hour) jouney back to Consall Forge where the wonderful Black Lion pub is located. We are running short of groceries, there are no shops within any walking distance from the canal, so we decided to eat out. An large hot meat bap at lunch time (with a beer or two) was followed by a walk round the local RSPB nature reserve in the sfternoon and a larger stuff and chips meal (and another beer) in the evening.

Today, another short journey to Cheddleton Flint Mill. This is a 18thC water mill used to grind flint to produce very pure silica for the production of fine porcelain. Before touring the mill we had spent most of the day in the nearby town of Leek, there being a convenient bus stop close to our mooring. It was market day in the town so we were able to buy fresh fish, home made meat pie and veg, which will keep us alive for the next 3 days. Leek is worth a visist - the town is notable for having few national multiple stores and a wide range of small local shops.

The End of the Caldon

Consall Forge Railway station overhanging the canal (a little narrow here!)

Beauty - typical Caldon scenery

And the Beast - Thomas Bolton's Copper Works at Froghall

This is our 100th post!

We set off from the Holly Bush at 9:30 and continued down the Caldon. The scenary steadily improved as we got further into the Peak District as the Churnet Valley got narrower. The canal started at about halfway up the steep side of the valley and travelling down the valley dropped through 4 locks to meet the river where both waterways shared the same course for about a mile. During much of this journey the canal was remote from any sign of the modern world. There are no roads in the area, the only intrusion being the railway now managed by a preservation society who run steam train trips at weekends.

We stopped for lunch at the end of the river section at Consall Forge. This is a delightful wooded spot with the remains of old lime kilns and a pub, the Black Lion, which is unusual in having no public road access, its customers being mainly boaters,walkers. and steam train travellers.

After leaving Consall Forge we travelled on through the particularly narrow and shallow canal to finish at Froghall where in former times canal boats were loaded with limestone from the quarries in the hills. We were hoping to travel the quarter mile to the end of the canal but unfortunately Densie is slightly too high to pass safely through the short and exceptionally low final tunnel.

As a contrast to the wonderful scenery we have seen in the past two days, Froghall is dominated by a historically important large copper works which now appears fairly derelict. Wkipedia tells me that this is where the first trans-Atlantic telegraph cable was manufactured.

Densie goes over the top

Stocton Brook Top Lock - Highest point on the Caldon

Continuing on the Caldon we have climbed over the watershed between the Trent valley where the streams flow west and the Churnet valley which flows eastward. The summit pound is at a height of 484 feet above sea level. Beyond the summit we dropped through the Hazelhurst locks and moored outside a large popular pub - the Hollybush.

After mooring we spent a pleasant hour or so walking around the Deep Hayes Country Park where Victorian water engineering designed to provide water for the Potteries has been abandoned and the lakes and cascades are returning to nature.

After the walk he had little choice but to check out the Hollybush. The pint of Caledonian Brerwery beer was excellent, but the menu was of the chicken & chips variety so we will be eating on the boat tonight.

Although we are moored well out into the hills I was pleasantly surprised to find that we continued to get a good internet connection. We use an Orange dongle attachment for our laptop that connects into the 3G mobile phone network. The cost of £5 per month for a 1G max download is very reasonable - perhaps the time will come when it is cheaper to use mobile technology for one's home broadband and dispense with fixed lines completely.

Out of Stoke

Waiting to enter the second lock in the staircase

Two isolated bottle ovens - all the other pottery buildings have been demolished

A first stop after leaving Etruria was near Hanley. This trip on only just over a mile included a staircase lock, where the top gate of one lock forms the bottom gate of the next, a normal lock and a electrically operated lift bridge. These lift bridges are always enjoyable as they enable us to stop the traffic which has to wait whilst the boat passes through.

We walked into the centre of Hanley, which is regarded as the shopping centre for the whole of Stoke on Trent. We found it rather disappointing with one large mall surrounded by a few small streets. After returning to the boat for lunch we continued up the canal passing through the outskirts of, and finally leaving, Stoke on Trent.

The view of Stoke we get from the canal suggests it to be an unlovely place seriously blighted by old run-down industry. However there are signs of regeneration with modern and attractive housing estates replacing the industry. At several places we saw such an estate on one side of the canal directly facing a view of complete dereliction on the other.

Beyond Stoke, travel is slow because the canal is shallow, narrow, and winding. Fortunately there are few other boats on the move and so we had no problems with the sharp bends.

We moored at 15:00 out in the country with views across the Trent valley to the hills beyond.

Stoke on Trent - Etruria

Densie entering Stoke Top Lock

There being little to see between Stone and Stoke on Trent we decided to cruise the 9 miles and 14 locks in one non-stop run. Leaving Stone at 9:00 we were lucky to find that all the locks out of the town and been set in our favour by a boat coming down. This luck continued up to the final lock at the old industrial site of Etruria in the centre of Stoke where Wedgewood set up his first factory.

We had lunch on the move and arrived at Etruria at 15:00 where we have moored outside the Industrial Museum at the start of the Caldon Canal which will take us into the Peak District.

Into Stone

Salt Bridge

We moored at Stone at lunch time after a 3.5 hour, 8 mile & 3 lock cruise in cool but beautiful weather. The Trent valley countryside is attractive with fields mainly pasture but with few animals, and a number of old houses visible through the trees. The picture shows Salt Bridge. This unusually ornate bridge was probably built in this style to please a local landowner. Parliamentary approval to build a canal was required in the form of a specific authorising Act. If an affected landowner was dissatisfied with the proposal he could possibly impede its passage.

Our main purpose for stopping at Stone was to visit the local Morrisons. Keeping the larder and fridge full requires some planning on the canals where frequently you only pass near small villages for days at a time. As we have no transport other than the boat, for bulk shopping it is essential to find a supermarket within easy walking distance of moorings.

Stone is an attractive and lively town with a surprisingly varied range of restaurants including Turkish, Mexican, Italian, Thai and Indian as well as several pubs.

Denise has taken the opportunity to get her hair cut - another chore that is sometimes difficult to arrange as we are unable to book in advance, not knowing where we will be when.

This evening we are hoping to visit a (partially) 14th Century pub overlooking the canal, the first time eating/drinking out since we left home on Monday.

A short day

We had arranged with Dot & Derek to walk together the half mile to the nearby Great Haywood farm shop in the morning. This is a good place to buy fresh local bread, free range meat and eggs, fresh veg etc. When we got back it was time for coffee and a chat.

We left the mooring at Tixall Wide at 11:30 and carried on north, stopping at Great Haywood Junction to fill up with domestic water. We need to do this every 2-3 days, water points (taps) are provided at frequent intervals alongside the canals.

After passing through Hoo Mill lock the rain stated and as we were getting hungry we stopped for lunch. The rain continued after lunch and as it is about 4 hours journey to Stone where we want to spend tomorrow night we decided not to travel any further today. We had only travelled 3 miles and one lock today, but we have plenty of time.

The first job was to light our solid fuel stove to provide some warmth. Unlike yesterday, when the strong wind repeatedly caused the smoke to be blown out of the stove filling the cabin, today's firelighting was easy.

We are now snug and warm sitting in our reclining chairs reading.

Tixall Wide - Meeting old friends

Spring is here! We really enjoyed today's cruise travelling up the Trent valley. The birds are nesting - the picture shows a Swan on her nest bt the side of the canal. Previously we had just seen a moorhen on a nest in a branch just above the water. Blossom is begining to show on the quickthorn. The weather is getting warmer although the wind is still gusty.

We left Rugeley at 11:00 after Denise returned from the shops. We stopped for lunch at the attractive wooded moorings at Wolseley Bridge. In the early afternoon we passed through the first lock at Colwich.

Waiting at Colwich Lock

The picture shows Densie waiting for a working boat to leave the lock. Although real commercial traffic on the canals ended in the 1960's there are a number of boats that still ply a trade supplying diesel and coal for narrowboats.

After passing through the canal junction at Great Haywood we have stopped for the night at Tixall Wide. This is a glorious spot where the canal has widened to form a large reed-lined large lake. Among the attractions are a number of great crested grebes diving for fish in the water.

Here we have met up with our boating friends Dot and Derek on Gypsy Rover. They are a couple from New Zealand who have been travelling the canal system,12 months a year for the past 4 years. We originally met them on our trip down the Grand union to London three years ago, and have met up periodically since then as out paths have crossed.

Back on the Water!!!!!

After a long cold, wet winter we have finally been able to start our boating for 2010. We were begining to twitch after 6 months in the house but everything is OK now.

Yesterday, we loaded the boat with clothes and provisions for a 3 week cruise and then returned home. This morning all we needed to do was to clear the fridge into a cool-bag, turn off the central heating, and leave. After a quick trip into Waitrose to pick up a superior ready meal we embarked. Despite a fairly strong wind we were able to leave our mooring and turn the boat without difficulty and then out onto the Trent & Mersey Canal towards Stoke on Trent.

Today was a short trip of only 5 miles lock-free cruising - the main purpose being to recharge the batteries. Normally we like to cruise for at least 3 hours in order to generate sufficient electricity to power the fridge, lights, water pump, radio etc for the night, with some power left over if really necessary.

We have moored in Rugeley, a town dominated by a large powerstation, which our guidebook not unfairly calls unexciting. Sorry if there are any Rugeley inhabitants reading the blog!