Barrowford to Burnley unexpectedly!

Wednesday 17th August 2016

Up early & wandered down to the locks with the rubbish, couple of 55′ boats going down, very leaky locks & not much space behind when gates open to leave. a bit apprehensive as on the trip so far we have only ascended the locks all the way to the summit of the Leeds & Liverpool & it seems an age since we descended. Unlike some folk, I don’t mind going up but I hate going down in these short locks. We have a tarpaulin skirt around the deck now, protection for the animals but helped my worries about water gushing onto the deck.  We have had so many previous trials with this boat it is taking me a long while to get my confidence with her, but it’s coming.

Just setting off towards Barrowford Top Lock when another boater asks to share the 7 locks with us. Jeremy & Rachel on nb Phoebe Joan, what a lovely couple & they now have two mugs with their boat sign writing on.

 

They waited for us at Reedley Marina as we planned to stop there but there are no moorings outside the marina & we were told next suitable stop would be Bridge 130b outside The Wharf pub in Burnley after the embankment

Not in the plan for today but off we went.

We noticed that we have lost our picturesque scenery & the surrounding areas were a lot more industrialised & a lot of old wharf buildings & rubbish, we hadn’t seen any rubbish really since we started our trip.

We dipped in & out of old mills buildings, industry & green areas again.

Just before the embankment I thought I might be back in Yorkshire again by the name on this new widebeam!

We cruised along the mile long Burnley embankment, not very scenic but the views over Burnley were quite interesting, shops & town centre one side & the old cobbled streets lined with row of houses.

Looking back along the embankment 60ft above the town.

The end of the embankment.

We came across this oddity on the way into Burnley. I have no idea what it is or why it is there!

We moored up behind nb Phoebe Joan on Burnley wharf & have all decided a visit to town & a bit of shopping tomorrow.

9 Miles       7 Locks      0 Swing Bridges      0 Tunnels     5 Hours

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Barrowford in the shadow of Pendle Hill.

Tuesday 16th August 2016 

Barrowford is lovely but the “towpathers” are mainly joggers or dog walkers so we decided not to trade but to have a day doing something for us & we liked the pretty town so we ventured across the sheep field again, past the pretty flowers , along the river to the Pendle Heritage Centre.

This is the old Toll House at the bridge just before the Heritage centre.

The heritage centre occupies Park Hill, a two-storey former farmhouse which has a 1661 date stone but was developed over an extended period between the 16th century and the beginning of the 18th century. The centre has an 18th-century walled garden and woodland walk, and houses the Pendle Arts Gallery.

Park Hill is an old farmhouse that has been restored using traditional building techniques to provide visitors with an insight on how the house has been developed and adapted from the 15th century.

I found the explanation of the holes in the wall of Park hill fascinating & any of my acquaintances  from Golcar & Holmfirth will probably already know about these as they appear in buildings there.

We walked around the walled garden, picked some of the purple pod peas & enjoyed them as we wandered. We looked at the timber framed barn, a massive barn, the main arches made from a suitably bend log, split in half to form the arch. You can see the stables too.

One thing i did notice in the exhibition was the beautiful handwriting in some of the old documents. I wish I could have handwriting like this & that we still taught good handwriting to kids.

 

The Pendle Witches

The rest of the exhibition is dedicated to the story of The Pendle Witches. The trials of the Pendle witches in 1612 are among the most famous witch trials in English history, and some of the best recorded of the 17th century. The twelve accused lived in the area around Pendle Hill in Lancashire, and were charged with the murders of ten people by the use of  witchcraft.   It was a time when witchcraft was not only feared but also fascinated those from common village folk to King  James I  who had been greatly interested in witchcraft even before he took the throne in 1603 The scepticism of the king became reflected in the feelings of unrest about witchcraft among the common people.

It is important to understand the background to the events of these trials. Six of the eleven “witches” on trial came from two rival families, the Demdike family and the Chattox family, both headed by old widows in their 80’s, Elizabeth Southerns known as “Old Demdike”and Anne Whittle “Mother Chattox”.

Old Demdike had been known as a witch for fifty years; it was an accepted part of village life in the 16th century that there were village healers who practised magic and dealt in herbs and medicines. The extent of the spate of witchcraft reported in Pendle at this time perhaps reflected the large amounts of money people could make by posing as witches.

The story began with an altercation between one of the accused, Alizon Device, and a pedlar, John Law.  Alizon, either travelling or begging on the road to Trawden Forest, passed  John Law and asked him for some pins (it is not known whether her intention was to pay for them or whether she was begging). He refused and Alizon cursed him. It was a short while after this that John Law suffered a stroke, for which he blamed Alizon and her powers. When this incident was brought before Justice Nowell, Alizon confessed that she had told the Devil to lame John Law. It was upon further questioning that Alizon accused her grandmother, Old Demdike, and also members of the Chattox family, of witchcraft. The accusations on the Chattox family seem to have been an act of revenge. The families had been feuding for years, perhaps since one of the Chattox family broke into Malkin Tower (the home of the Demdikes) and stole goods to the value of £1 (approximately the equivalent of £100 now). Furthermore, John Device (father of Alizon) blamed the illness that led to his death on Old Chattox, who had threatened to harm his family if they did not pay annually for their protection.

The deaths of four other villagers that had occurred years before the trial were raised and the blame laid on witchcraft performed by Chattox. James Demdike confessed that Alizon had also cursed a local child some time before and Elizabeth, although more reserved in making accusations, confessed her mother had a mark on her body, supposedly where the Devil had sucked her blood, which left her mad. On further questioning both Old Demdike and Chattox confessed to selling their souls.  Also Anne (Chattox’s daughter) was allegedly seen to create clay figures. After hearing this evidence, the judge detained Alizon, Anne, Old Demdike and Old Chattox and waited for trial.

 

The story would have ended there had it not been for a meeting held at Malkin Tower by James Device (Alizon’s brother), for which he stole a neighbour’s sheep. Those sympathetic to the family attended but word reached the judge who felt compelled to investigate. As a result, a further eight people were summoned for questioning and then trial.

Nine year old Jennet Device was a key supplier of evidence for the Pendle witches’ trial which was allowed under the system from King James; all normal rules of evidence could be suspended for witch trials, someone so young would not have been able to supply key evidence normally. Jennet gave evidence against those who attended the meeting at Malkin Tower but also against her mother, sister and brotherer son John Bulcock, Alice Nutter, Katherine Hewitt, Alice Gray, and Jennet Preston.  Many of the allegations resulted from accusations that members of the Demdike and Chattox families made against each other, perhaps because they were in competition, both trying to make a living from healing, begging, and extortion.

The trials were held at Lancaster between 17th and 19th August 1612.  Old Demdike never reached trial; the dark, dank dungeon in which they were imprisoned was too much for her to survive & she died there in the arms of her daughter.

After all that we had a coffee in the centre’s coffee shop & wandered back across that sheep field.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Foulridge Tunnel

Saturday 13th August 2016

According to the weather forecast the wind is supposed to have dropped & no rain is forecast………well, it’s still blowing a hooley & it’s pouring with rain. I’m putting it down to the fact that we are at the summit of the Leeds & Liverpool Canal & on the Yorkshire Lancashire border.

Even the cows are still laying down, looking very content though.

When we walked down to have a look at the moorings by the tunnel yesterday we spotted some good firewood from a tree fallen on the opposite side of the canal, it must of fell right across as big logs were in the undergrowth down by the dry stone wall along the towpath side…….todays job! A lot of the logs were far too big for our tools but we added some to the winter stock pile. Why is it when you are new to this, you know you are not breaking any laws & not on private land but you feel guilty? I could never be a real criminal!

This metal plaque on the towpath of the Leeds Liverpool Canal explains how wooden rollers protected bridges from the tow ropes used by horses when towing the canal boats.

    

The sun eventually came out after lunch, we had gained a few logs & moved down to moor at The Wharf just before the Foulridge Tunnel.

Café Cargo is well worth a visit & if you are a trader gets very busy. It is quite wide on the wharf as is at a winding hole, so plenty of room.

We decided to trade tomorrow, Sunday as the weather is supposed to be much improved.

  

So this afternoon we took a short walk to the village.

The plague below explains about the water trough situated outside the village hall that faces the village green.

It has a pretty village green, just up the steps is a Butchers, Café & Chinese T/A & Florist.

It turned out to be a beautiful evening after the rainy, windy start.

Sunday 14th August 2016

We awoke to a lovely warm, still, sunny morning, ideal for some trading.

We set up the shop, not expecting too much but were pleasantly surprised. we had a rush on “Touch Wood” Key Rings & sold quite a few mugs, one Witchy mug going to Japan to back up the story of the Pendle witches! another going to Spain to remind a lady of home Lancashire. As we were on the border we hedged our bets on stock, whilst Caley the dog supervised all day.

Tomorrow will be a challenge as I hate being underground, I get very panic stricken & we have to go through the Foulridge Tunnel, but tonight a glass of wine will do after a successful & enjoyable day.

1 Mile    0 Locks     0 Swing Bridges      30 minutes

 

 

 

 

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Onwards to Salterforth

Thursday 11th August 2016

The wind was still blowing a hooley & the rain was lashing, the Great British summer in all its glory, so we decided to have a day making soup & baking scones.

Newbie single hander Jayne moored behind us asked if she could travel up Greenfield locks with us tomorrow. of course will enjoy the company.

Friday 12th August 2016

It was still blowing a gales but was dry so we had some breakfast, gave Jill a knock both secured cats inside & set off.

             

The canal is very windy on this stretch & with the strength of the wind it was quite hard going, only lost it a bit at one bridge which was a very tight turn going into the wind, then the 3 Greenfield locks. unexpectedly there was a volunteer lock keeper on duty, we think it was maybe because of the hire boat incident a couple of days before. He was a cheery chap & told me to hug the towpath between locks 1 & 2 to avoid being caught by the wind.

the tight turn into a bridge where the wind caught us.

 

We completed the locks & said cheerio to Jill as she headed off in front of us, we wanted to stop at Barnoldswick to get a few supplies in so we moored up just before Lower Park Marina. We walked back to Long Ing Bridge which is just a short walk to the co-op & other shops.

Near the county border with North Yorkshire, it is just outside the Yorkshire Dales National Park.

Barnoldswick is the highest town on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal, lying on the summit level of the canal between Barrowford Locks to the south west and Greenberfield Locks just north east of the town.

We walked back to Long Ing Bridge which is just a short walk to the co-op & other shops.  The Dolphin Fish & Chip shop was open so on the way back we popped for some chips…….don’t bother, the worst yet. Very greasy & very overcooked.

Barnoldswick, with 12 letters, is one of the longest place names in the UK which doesn’t  repeat any letters. Only Buckfastleigh,  Buslingthorpe West Yorkshire and Buslingthorpe Lincolnshire are longer, each have 13 letters.

Lower Park Marina

Looking back at boats lined up at Lower Park Marina

Barnoldswick used to be a major cotton producing town, now it is the home base for Silent Night Beds who had the longest running strike by workers from 1985-1987.   Rolls Royce is also a major employer in the town, the model number of many Rolls Royce jet engines start with the initials RB  which stands for Rolls Barnoldswick, as Rolls Royce Aero design centre was  in Barnoldswick.

We set off again hoping to get a mooring at Salterforth outside the pub to trade for the weekend.

Lovely spot but too high for me & the animals.

A lot more narrow stretches & tight bends then we happen upon the pub, private moorings before the bridge & only two moorings under the bridge adjacent to pub car park, both taken, nowhere else close suitable for trading. Oh, well we carry on & find a lovely spot about 1/2 mile on but unfortunately once moored up it was too high  & dangerous for the animals, so we upped pins & found a better spot  Hatters Bridge just past the private boat club,

moored up then the boat was surrounded by hundreds of wasps…….oooops must of blocked a nest in the bank, moved just under the bridge & finally moored up for the day with a fab view over the Dales.

From here the towpath provides a picturesque walk back to Barnoldswick or forwards to Foulridge.

3.5 Miles    3 Locks      0 Swing Bridges     2.5hrs

 

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Thoughts for the future….

So, who would have thought that we would decide to embark on a career change from Timber Frame Designer & Sales Manager to Fish & Chip Shop proprietors? not us & by the comments certainly not our friends & family!

All very exited now, seems like a plan. Give up two very good jobs, move to a new area work together for ourselves. #boatsthattweet all very encouraging, lets ask them about the area we have found a potential business in…..Stalybridge.  Apparently not “fabulous” but we can see potential however premises need completely kiting out, everything including frying range has been removed, so let’s try to raise some extra finance & find a house to rent, our BIG dog mentioned previously on the blog is still in fine fettle & going strong but cannot manage the boat steps so we will have to rent whilst he is still with us but at least we can get That’s D’riculous closer.

This is the Hudderfield Narrow Canal as it is now restored running through Stalybridge, the potential premises are approx 500yds to the south canalside. We managed to find a suitable house however the way this countries finances are currently means that no extra finance can be raised to support our project.

Now is the time for a re-think, we’ve thunk! We love the scenery around this part of the UK, slightly further north it becomes less Manchester & even more scenic, lets look for some more Fish & Chip Shops with potential & maybe not so ambitious this time.

A quick weekend trip down to the marina in the middle of June meant we could go & do some official viewing around the Huddersfield area.  Beautiful scenery , very impressed & of course Yorkshire is the home of Fish & Chips. First stop was Batley north of Hudderfield, not for us, then Milnsbridge right on the canal just south of Hudderfield, the shop is on the left in this picture of the main street, could be a possible but at the top of our budget.

Next stop Slaithwaite (Slawit) ……lovely, a bit further south than Milnsbridge, feels like you are in the country, infamous Saddleworth Moor very close, Hudderfield Narrow Canal runs through the lower part of the village, natives seem very friendly, well within the budget……..this is the one!

This is where the Huddersfield Narrow Canal come into the northerly end of Slawit & runs alongside the main street.

Towards the south of the village there is a permanent Narrow Boat Cafe called Moonraker, she does a good bacon butty! a nice walks along the towpath. Just past Moonraker there is a guillotine lock. looking forward to getting to know the village better if we can make this dream happen.

This is the outside of the currently closed premises, in amongst the “chimney pots” at Hill Top, one of the higher points of the village away from the main street but only 5mins walk from the canal.

The view above shows how the village is on the hills both sides of the Colne Valley, this is looking toward the main part of the village, we have managed to find a possible a house just 200yds from the shop situated at the middle level just above the railway line which runs through the village adjacent to the canal as always. Getting very excited now!

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End of May, long weekend

Friday 25th May 2012

Aqueduct Marina to Beeston Castle

After a rather warm night on the boat, (as the winter duvet was still on & arriving in the marina at 30mins past midnight I did not have the energy to find the summer one & change them over, so it was on top of the quilt & all windows open) we awoke to a beautiful clear warm Friday morning.

I was still cursing about Lochabers packing of the car on Thursday night resulting in the case of Guinness we had brought with us falling out when I opened the tailgate on arrival at the marina! Hissing cans of Guinness in a silent slumbering marina at midnight!

I emptied the rest of the bags from the car, it was really warm even at 7am, it was going to be a hot one! I popped some bacon in the oven & unpacked the bags. Lochaber decided to check the engine room just to make sure that we had no more exploding batteries before we set off instead he found a fan belt that needed replacing! This is a new boat with 174 running hours is it really time for a new fan belt? Anyway luckily we had spares so in half an hour a new one was fitted.

It was still really calm & getting warmer, so at 8.30am we decided to get going planning to stop around 11ish for a bite to eat & some” tweeting”.

The new marina entrance is making life so much easier getting in & out, so this trip we were off! Hang on, Lochaber is shouting frantically from the front of the boat “we have to go back, we have to go back!”  Why? ……Caley the mad Spaniel was NOT aboard, she has a very unfunny habit of sneaking off when you have your back turned for a split second. Oh great, that’s a good start this weekend, dropped Guinness, new fan belt, now the dogs gone awol!  We reversed back towards the marina, pulled in by the entrance & I MARCHED to where I knew she would be, yep there she was sitting by the car! I MARCHED back to the boat put the stupid animal on & we set off again.

Earlier I had just thrown some of the clothes on the bed to put away later, I started doing this whilst Lochaber had a turn on the tiller, the complete rail in the wardrobe decided to collapse dropping everything in the wardrobe to the floor, I shut the door & walked away, it was only 9.30am & we hadn’t even reached Barbridge yet!

It was quite busy at Barbridge alot of boats passing, for the first time we turned right at the junction, we had decided that due to missing the trip to Chester last time after the battery explosion we would do that trip this time instead.

Calveley was quite a busy spot on the way, cafe, water etc.

I had been worried about the double locks especially the staircase at Bunbury, only two locks together but quite daunting when it is the first time, as we pulled up behind another boat waiting for the locks I heard a load banging noise from the rudder area, a big tree branch! We got that out-of-the-way, now for the lock. The boat that was in the lock already had apparently grounded as the crew had not used the correct procedure with the paddles & had not got the water levels correct for moving from one lock to the next, eventually they got it sorted. As they had raised the water right back to the top & noticed a queue forming they opened one gate & we joined them hoping that with Lochabers help they would get it right this time.

We conquered our first double staircase! we accompanied them through the next lock at Tilstone too then went ahead to find a mooring, we wanted a relaxing weekend but after the events earlier we felt quite stressed so decided the sun was really hot & we needed some food & one of the remaining Guinness each. I made lunch & poured the Guinness whilst Lochaber went delving into the weed hatch to see if any more of the earlier tree debris had got entangled further, instead, on lifting the engine covers we were met by an overpowering smell of paint, paint? how can this be? On closer inspection the large tin of blue paint for our bodywork that had been left for us by the builder & always been stored here has had the bottom of the tin completely dissolved by the battery acid from the explosion even though all items in the engine room including the paint tins were washed down during the clean up. It was a 2.5litre tin & over half full, the paint had seeped out but luckily stayed on the upper shelf, however it is the type of paint that needs a hardener & of course that hadn’t leaked so the blue paint was still wet & would stay that way. The 5litre tin of blacking next to it was going through the same process although the bottom was still in tact but leaking, numerous swear words, hands full of black bags & wads of blue roll later we had it under control. I was so incensed I didn’t think about taking a photo but Lochaber looked like a “blue & white minstrel” by the time we had finished. He had gloves on to start with but due to the paint being so sticky & wet he couldn’t work with them on, some thirty minutes later, one knackered scrubbing-brush, half a bottle of Fairy Liquid his hands were very sore but clean!

The lunch was still waiting to be eaten & another Guinness each poured, I stepped off the side of the boat lunch in hand missed judged the corrugated style canal edge & oops, lunch in the air, leg in the water, dignity bruised!

How much more can we take today, all we wanted was a quiet weekend.

After remaking & eating lunch, we both felt so hot, bothered & stressed that we decided to have a siesta & carry on a bit further in the cool of the evening, about 20mins into my sleep…..bang!….Oh, Sorry about that! a passing boat trying to go between us & an oncoming boat rather than wait or slow down, hit us! Enough, I’m going back to sleep, can’t take anymore.

After a couple of hours rest & a nice cup we decided to do another hour to get a bit closer to Beeston Castle, the wind that had started around lunchtime had died down a bit so we headed off, it was quieter now so we did Beeston Stone Lock & Beeston Iron Lock on our own without any problems, quite happy getting the hang of these double locks now! all the mooring spaces had been taken so we headed on to Whartons lock & decided to stop after that one for the night. Went in with another smaller boat which had around 6 passengers so all paddles & gates were manned, all was going smoothly until our boat started to tilt to starboard……more &.more……something is wrong……things flying off worktops inside, cupboard doors flying open, I shouted up to those at the top “put water back in”……water back in quickly”…she was still tipping, a mad flurry of people above then suddenly she levelled out, I couldn’t see anything on the side of the lock that had snagged us, was it something in the bottom? we still have no idea as she stayed level on the second attempt.

Beeston Castle, nice reward for a rather tiring day.

This is just too much stress for one day, I’m mooring up for some supper & another Guinness. Lovely mozzarella & cherry tomato pizza in the oven, Guinness poured, a few tweets done……..Oh no! the pizza is burned!

Today 8 miles, 6.5hrs, 7 locks & a bucket load of stress!

Saturday 26th May 2012

Beeston Castle to Tattenhall Marina

Well, I am managing to sit & type this blog post a bit more calmly than yesterday!

After a good nights sleep with the winter duvet removed & the very light summer duvet on we awoke around 8am to a glorious day already started & warmed up without us. We decided to take a deep breath gather the thoughts on yesterday & have a relaxing day.

As I opened the side window the fabulous site of a young family of swans greeted me.

This was a better start, we had a good bacon sarnie & a cup of tea, did a few odd jobs, took Caley for a walk. It was quite breezy today but would have been too hot without it & the wind was behind us on the short run to Tattenhall Marina where there is a winding hole to turn.

As we started to leave the mooring at Beeston some canoeists appeared on the canal, battling a bit against the wind, especially the lady in the inflatable style canoe.

It was easy going with the wind behind us no locks on this short journey today, need a rest from locks after yesterday! We could see Beeston fading in the background. The Shroppie was quite busy today, must be the glorious weather.

We turned at Tattenhall & made our way back into the wind this time. It was only about lunch time but we said we wanted a relaxing day will be a longer day tomorrow with these double jeopardy locks again!

We got back to Beeston & stopped just before The Shady Oak pub on a quiet mooring & decided to go for some lunch. The pub garden was packed & right on canalside. The Black Sheep real ale was good, the cajun chicken in pitta bread with spicy fries was fabulous.

These two expensive toys were parked in the carpark, when they left the roar of the quads engine was impressive.

Suitably chilled today we made our way back to the boat for a few G & T’s  & some more canalside sun, plenty of passers by wanting to chat, one old fella telling us he had just been on holiday to Lochaber in Scotland! Moored just down from us is a Caraboat, Lochaber wants one!

 The family of swans we had seen earlier were on the way back to the nest after an outing, bless!

As I am sitting here typing the blog Lochaber is watching Eurovision, I have to say the evening bird song I can hear from the side window is far more beautiful than anything on the TV!

A picturesque end to a chilled out day, thank goodness.

Beeston Castle to Tattenhall, 1hr 20 mins, 2.5 miles, 0 locks, zero stress

Sunday 27th May 2012

I awoke around 7am feeling a lot more rested after a relaxing day yesterday.  We have decided to make our way south towards Barbridge today & leave our idyllic mooring just north of Bates Mill Bridge & the Shady oak Pub.  I was still a bit apprehensive about returning through the dreaded double locks, but when I pulled the blinds the sight that faced me put a smile on my face, what a perfect start to any day.

Egg rolls for a change today. a quick engine, fuel & battery check done we set off around 8am, it was far less windy today & therefore felt warmer.

We reached the dreaded Whartons Lock where we had tipped on the way north, but all was well locking up going south. She sighs with relief as we rise to the top.

We carried on at a leisurely pace towards Beeston Iron Lock, the gates, & sides are all made from iron panels, I don’t think it is as nice as the traditional locks.

Between BeestonIron Lock & Beeston Stone Lock is  a section of canal that is very close to the railway line, you can see the signal box  & just pass that is an area which looks like a stock/goods yard but we noticed it has alot of pill boxes……I think it may be something to do with a german Prisoner of war camp or transprtation of prisoners but i will try to do some more research & find out more detailed facts.

Beeston Stone Lock has a row of lock cottages alongside screened by some small trees, we noticed that one was for sale.

Rising up in Beeston Stone lock as a fibreglass boat waits to come in.  We headed onward to Tilstone  Lock. This is looking back northwards from Beeston Stone Lock.

The canal meanders along towards Tilstone lock, we noticed some very pretty looking side pond along this stretch.

It was very hot by now about 9.30am, but the canal was still fairly quiet, just how we like it, so we just cruised along very slowly enjoying the day.

We approached Tilstone lock, which was set in our favour, this morning had been kind to us either the locks were set in our favour or another boat was just coming out.

Tilstone Locks was set ready for the boat waiting to come in. One of the paddles is a bit sticky at this lock.

We carried on & decided to get Bunbury staircase locks out of the way before a lunchtime stop.

We arrived just north of bridge 104 at Calveley the mooring we almost empty & looked really peaceful, so we moored up for lunch…Reggae Reggae Spicy pasties & a cold Guinness….tasty!  Within half an hour three more boats arrived, you can see that’s D’riculous facing the camera second in the line. I walked across the bridge to the sanitary station to off load some rubbish. The view from the bridge looking north along The Shroppie was fabulous in the sunshine, happy holiday makers!

The other side of the bridge at Calveley was a different story & much busier.

As I wandered back after disposing of the rubbish, I decided that we could easily make it back to aqueduct tomorrow morning so we could stay here tonight, it was such a lovely spot.

By the time I got back Lochaber had come to the same conclusion & was pouring another Guinness.

Caley the spaniel has got a taste for it this weekend as well! So we let her have a few sips before sending her in for a swim, she had been very good after her initial disappearing act this weekend & not attempted to jump in at all, well maybe once but we tie her on whilst we are travelling now.

So that was us, we feasted on pork pies,  Chicken & pineapple freshly baked baguettes with chilli mayo enjoyed the sun, made friends with our neighbours from March in Cambridgeshire who had a recently repainted Black Prince boat that they are over the moon with. They have not renamed her yet & have travelled from the Middle Level & will be returning in September.

We managed to get some reflective mirror film on the front windows in the bedroom so we can have the sun streaming in at daybreak but without eyes peering in. I’ll let you know how it is when I wake up tomorrow.

Another beautiful sunset ends another lovely day on the Shroppie.

Bates Mill Bridge 109 to Calveley bridge 104 3.5 miles,  3.75hrs,  5 locks,

 

The next day the weather was glorious again & it was just a few hours back to the marina, through Barbridge an area we had got to know so well,

 

 passing Blue Meon on the way, I love this paintwork it is so clear & bright.

 

then on to, through & looking back at Minshull Lock,

It is 2012 the year of the Queens Diamond Jubilee & the London Olympic Games & the whole country seems to be celebrating despite the weather!

 

 

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Mayday Holiday weekend

Thursday 3rd May 2012

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!” Yes today is my birthday & this weekend we are off to  the boat for my birthday weekend treat & hoping to go to Chester & back, long weekend, off till Tuesday, great, the new gear box has been fitted with the required new gear cable going on today, so we can have a good run out hopefully problem free!

That was a very short lived “Happy Birthday” I have just received a phone call from Aqueduct Marina, the guys have just been to fit the new gear cable for us arriving tomorrow & they have found an exploded leisure battery! They have stressed the utmost urgency of getting the engine room steam cleaned & washed down with a neutralising detergent immediately & checking all the other four leisure & one starter batteries. OMG! I’ve never heard of this before, but I know how damaging battery acid can be & this has exploded spraying acid all over the engine room.  Obviously I gave them the go ahead to do whatever needs doing immediately. I phoned Lochaber at work & he was as surprised as me at the situation, but at least we are going down tomorrow & can see for ourselves & sort things out. “HAPPY  EXPENSIVE BIRTHDAY TO ME!”

Friday 4th May 2012

Over the shock of yesterdays news, still looking forward to the planned run out to Chester. Lovely to have the light evenings back to drive down to Cheshire, car packed left the house at 5.50pm, ten minutes away from home & my mobile rang, it was Aqueduct Marina……………….Clean up had been done, new battery installed, gear cable fitted but she won’t start! They think acid could have got into starter motor, bank holiday weekend & no qualified person to deal with this until TUESDAY!!!! We are on our way, we are not going home but looks like our planned weekend is not to be.

We are both absolutely deflated, how many more times are we going to have trips ruined? is our boat cursed? are we cursed? how much more bad luck can we cope with?

We arrived at the marina around 11.30pm, found our boat as she was near the slipway not on her normal mooring as they had moved her to get the engine room cleaned down but could not mover her to get her back to her mooring, now there’s a thought, if she started to get her to the slipway after the explosion why would she not start after the clean up, maybe it’s not the starter!  In the dark at 11.30pm after a 5hr drive was not the time to be raising our hopes, a good nights sleep & a positive approach is what is required.

We made sure the shore line was plugged in & that the charger was off just in case this was faulty & fell into bed hoping Saturday would bring hopeful news.

Saturday 5th May 2012

We woke up this morning after a cold night to the sound of “electrical” beeping! Oh, no what now! could this be another battery about to explode? could it be the inverter or the charger malfunctioning? Quickly switch everything off….its still “beeping” outside & unplug the shoreline! Once outside the hatch we discovered the reason for the “beeping”….Paul from the marina had decided to come over with the spare keys we always leave on site & have a tinker around to see if he could get her started for us or at least confirm the problem, we took a deep breath & stopped panicking!

Paul tried numerous things but nothing seemed to work, as it was a Bank holiday no suppliers were open now until Tuesday & he still suspected the starter. This was our first opportunity to survey the damage in the engine room.

The weather was not brilliant so we decided to go into Crewe & get some paint for the engine room & a couple of relay switches as they seemed like they had acid penetration & that could be the simple answer to the problem,  wishful thinking!

Paint & brushes purchased, relay switches tracked down at Nantwich Basin Chandlery along with new fender which we had been meaning to replace for a while we made our way back to the marina. When we got back Paul was still around & asked if we had seen the exploded battery at the side of the workshop, this was what we saw…………

So, now you can imagine the amount of acid that had been sprayed all over the engine room, these pictures are quite frightening as if someone had been working in the engine room when this happened the outcome would have been far worse. We have established that Albion Batteries are the own brand of Midland Chandlers. I have contacted them & sent these photos to them but to date have not had a reply!

On a lighter note, we had a lot of concern & well wishes from #boatsthattweet on Twitter, thanks everybody. One of my twitter contacts @narrowboatruth had let me know they might be in our area over the weekend on the start of a 2 week break aboard. When we got back from looking at the battery they tweeted to say they were moored just outside the marina, it was lovely to meet Johnny & his family & see their nb, she was so homely & comfortable compared to the sparse newness of ours. We had a cuppa & a good laugh for a while, I don’t know if they realised how much we needed a laugh that day, but thanks to them our spirits were somewhat lifted when we said goodbye.  They stayed the night there & tweeted as they left early on Sunday morning heading for Chester where we were supposed to be!

So Saturday had been quite emotional, seeing the exploded battery, seeing the damage left in the engine room & still not being able to get her started. The new relay switches made no difference, but can at least be kept as spares. we felt that we had not achieved a lot today so a few glasses of Guinness were consumed along with a very spicy curry, tomorrow I think we will open the paint weather permitting!

Sunday 6th May 2012

We awoke this morning to clear skies, beautiful sunshine & with a more positive attitude, we were not going to get away this weekend so we would make the most of the time to do all the odd jobs & get the engine room repainted & enjoy the marina as the spot near the slipway had a better outlook than our usual mooring, so it was rather pleasant. More people passed here as some of the boats on Brokerage were moored just along from us.

The weather forecast for today was good, we took all the deck boards off, made sure the mad boat dog, Caley the spaniel was securely tied up on the grass next to the mooring so that she didn’t jump on board & into the hole of the engine room! it was a beautiful warm sunny day & it was a pleasure to  be working on our boat, Lochaber wire brushed & repainted the metal surfaces of the engine room & the metal supports for the decking boards, I did all the blue touch ups that were needed around the boat & completely emptied & tidied the hold at the bow. Cleaned all the windows on the starboard side as we can only get to the port side when she is back on her usual mooring.

Wow! what a difference, this is the newly painted engine room, job well done now lets hope it stays dry into the evening so it can all dry before the forecasted rain comes on later tonight!

A large hot air  balloon came across the sky as we enjoyed the afternoon sunshine, it was very low & looked as if they were admiring the mass of colourful narrowboats in the marina maybe not realising that we were admiring them, every time the burner lit up we could hear it they were that close.

We  relaxed with a few more Guinness for the rest of the day whilst doing a bit of internet research into the makers of Albion batteries & exactly how our Victron charger should be set up, so to ensure that it is not overcharging the batteries, as this could cause an explosion.

A beautiful evening in the marina.

Monday 7th May 2012

The heavy rain had woken us a couple of times during the night & we knew that there would be a certain amount of water in the newly painted engine room, we just hope that the paint had enough time & sun on Saturday to be completely dry before the water got in. It was still raining when we got up but because we had actually managed to have a productive Saturday we decided to go to Bunbury locks by car as we could not get there by boat.

It was rainy & very cold all day but we still enjoyed getting by the cut even if we had to do it in the car this time. Bunbury is a staircase of two double locks.

We watched a couple of boats make their way through the locks, then decided to take a walk along the towpath towards the winding hole south of Bunbury locks.

If anyone can tell me what these holes on the canal bank are I would be very grateful, they seem to resemble tunnels or overflows of some sort.

We turned around & despite the biting cold & the drizzly rain decided to walk back towards the Anglo Welsh Hire base at the locks & a bit further along the towpath northward. The canal was very quiet probably due to the seasonally cold weather!

It was now mid afternoon & we were freezing so we decided that as I had not yet had a birthday treat due to all of the chaos of the weekend we would drive back & stop in the newly refurbished Badger Public House at Church Minshull, I can highly recommend it the food was lovely & the Real Ale was good!

On that note we made our way back to the marina just as the sun decided to appear.

Tuesday 8th May 2012

We awoke to sunny skies again & warmer temperatures, the wash out May Day Monday seemed to have passed, we were a bit down today as we had to leave for home later & we still did not have an answer to the non starting problem. At around 9am, Joe Aqueduct’s electrics genius appeared at the boat, still convinced that it was the starter he embarked on some electrical testing. Would you believe that after all our worrying & not being able to start her all weekend a 20 minute job revealed that this was the offending object…..

……..the insulator switch for the starter battery had been corroded inside by the acid spillage! New switch fitted & she started first time, however this was no good as we were now due to start thinking about packing up & going back up to Scotland, oh, what the hell, the sun is shining, the boat is running we need to test the new gear box lets take her out for a few hours!

We went a few miles along the canal towards Middlewich & turned at the first winding hole just past bridge 16. She seemed to have more power now & just needed a light touch the move the throttle unlike before when I needed two hands to make any adjustments or change gear. How nice it was to get moving if only for a few hours, sausage sandwiches & jam scones on the move, the wind in our hair & a quiet drive plate beneath our feet.

We arrived back at the marina around 3pm, this is the first time we had used & appreciated the benefits of the new widened marina entrance, last time I was more concerned with no reverse gear than the width of the entrance, this time it was a pleasure to take her in with ease not having to take such a tight turn into the mooring.

Now she is back on her own mooring repaired, repainted & ready for a less eventful time at the end of May when we return for another long weekend.

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Easter holiday is over!

Sunday 15th April 2012

Chuch Minshull viewpoint to Aqueduct Marina.

This is the last day of our very mixed Easter holiday week.  The weather has been mixed, rain, heavy rain, really heavy rain, ice balls, hail stones, sunshine but not much wind apart from after Lochaber had the chilli con carnie!  The wildlife has given us glimpses of baby ducklings, nesting swans, numerous seemingly unafraid herons & the highlight of the week our first sighting of a kingfisher!

It flew alongside the boat for a few hundred yards darting in & out of the canal bank, beautiful shimmering colours, finally it posed just for us! Here he/she is…..

Emotionally our week has given us some respite from work but has challenged our boating skills with the near failure of the 2nd drive plate & the loss of reverse gear on the home straight. I thought that a  narrowboaters life was supposed to be relaxed & unstressed! I think the stress was actually caused not so much by the mechanical components failures but by the fact that we thought last year this problem had been resolved. I will detail things a bit more on the page dealing specifically with the drive plate issues once the promised replacement gear box  has been fitted & everything is working correctly.

I’ve had a hearty boaters breakfast. The sun is shining, the wind is minimal, the canal is relatively still, it is 10am & I have one shot at getting this 57ft of steel with no reverse gear into her mooring BN3 at Aqueduct Marina, here we go…….

We pulled her around & in through the entrance, then a small amount of forward power so I had some steering, hold your breath & hope the wind doesn’t gust, so far so good, one of the lads from the marina was at the end of our jetty waiting for Lochaber to throw the rope once I had the bow close enough & turning, at times like this never listen to anyone who says you don’t need a Bow Thruster, it has been a life saver for us the past two days & I say that unashamedly!! Power is right off & we are gliding in bow turned just enough, throw that rope, shes’ in, now guys just stop her completely before the bow reaches the opposite jetty, Yes! we made it. Sighs of relief.

I need a few minutes to get my nerves sorted, the heron on one of the boats opposite our stern who had been watching the carry on certainly helped me calm down.

So, I hope you have enjoyed my first proper boating week blog & the journey we have shared with you.

Today 1.5miles 3 bridges, o locks, 30 minutes, 1 marina

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Sad end to a mixed week.

Saturday 14th April 2012

Middlewich to Church Minshull Viewpoint

After a somewhat dissapointing end to yesterday when reverse gear was completely lost coming under bridge 168 between Kings Lock & Wardle Lock at Middlewich, we awoke with a sense of trepidation. Although we only have a couple of miles with one lock to go to reach the safety of Aqueduct Marina, we have a considerable amount of bridges some without much of a view through to the other side to see oncoming traffic.

It was dull today but at least it was dry for now. We set off around 12 midday & Lochaber walked ahead for the first couple of bridges as they were close together to warn me of any oncoming boats. Although I was only cruising very slowly it still takes considerable time to come to a stop & a breeze was starting to build up so I couldn’t keep the forward speed as slow as I would have liked.

Approaching Stanthorne lock we passed a boat whose owner told us that another boat was coming through the lock in the same direction, I slowed down to the absolute minimum that I could & just basically let That’s D’riculous go with the flow of the canal until we saw the second boat emerge from the lock, they left the gates open as they spotted us so we just glided in very slowly & I threw a centre rope up just so that Lochaber could bring her to a total stop.

So far, so good! we carried on towards Church Minshull honking the horn loudly as we approached every bridge that we could not see through, only once did we meet another boat when it was too late & frantic hand jestures & more horn blasts got him to realise that he was the only one with the option of going backwards. No contact was made & apologies for all the noise & frantic jestures were accepted on a quick explanation as we passed!

In the midst of all our tense concentration we suddenly noticed a swan following an oncoming boat very closely in its wake, as our two boats passed he immediately turned around & positioned him/herself in our wake very close to the rudder, we had never seen this behaviour before, he was that close he was pecking at the rear fender almost as if he/she was trying to hang on to it. We realised that he/she was in fact catching a free ride, using our wake to pull him/her along, this carried on for around half a mile then he just backed off.

The swan had brightened our otherwise stressful short trip back to Church Minshull. Shortly we arrived at the veiwpoint which is one of our favorite stops before entering the Marina, as once back in the marina our trips seem over, but we weren’t going home until tomorrow afternoon, so reverse gear or not we still had another night aboard & we were not going to waste it in the marina. I checked the weather for Sunday & it was supposed to be bright & sunny with very little wind, this was what we needed as Aqueduct Marina is incredibly open & even a slight breeeze can pull boats to the far end of the marina & our particular mooring takes quite a tight trun to get in & with no revorse we will only have one shot at this tomorrow!

We enjoyed the veiw & watching a couple of guys messing around in thier flying machines, they had parachute type canopies but with small engines of some sort. we are told this is power paragliding!  A nice relaxing end to a stressful day!

Now the nerves need steadying with a few glasses of white & some good food, Gammon steak & all the trimmings should hit the mark!

Today 5 miles, 1 lock, 16 bridges, 2hrs 35 mins 

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The Sunshine returns Easter week

Friday 13th April 2012 (Easter Week)

Trent & Mersey, Rode Heath to Middlewich

The next morning @coalboat posted a tweet of us still sleeping whilst he was setting off! Nice one Brian.

.

Brian McGuigan‏@Coalboat

@nbcornish That’s D’riculous on this frosty morn at Rode Heath. Have a good trip. http://yfrog.com/g03eazuj

What a nice way to start the day, the weather was warmer & brighter, the sun was shining.

We had taken it really easy yesterday as we had been contacted by the suppliers with regard to our drive plate problems & it seems that the particular gear boxes fitted a couple of years ago are faulty but an ongoing court case over the matter last year prevented them from telling us this when our first one failed. only on the second failure we have been told of this & have been offered a full replacement without charge. That is the good news, the bad is that we still have to get back to Aqueduct Marina with the existing one that takes its toll on the drive plate, I tried to use the gears a little as possible yesterday & decided on the same plan of action today as we had 20 locks to do. This is good practice however for handling your boat.

So, we left Rode Heath back along the Trent & Mersey, coming round to Thurlwood lock.

On to Lock 58 & watching the traffic rushing past on the M6.

A bit further on near lock 60 a horse from the stables was grazing near the lock gate.

At lock 63 I couldn’t help but notice the beautiful colour of the towels on the washing line, wonder how many washes before they fade to pale pink!

Isn’t it strange the things you notice when the sun is shining! we carried on & I was being extra careful with the amount of gear usage, The wind was minimal so it was easy to go very slow & just glide between the locks, so far so good. At lock 64 near Malkin’s Bank Golf Club BW are doing some work on one of the pair of locks.

Just before bridge 160 there was substantial ground works going on behind the boatyard, it looked like it may be the start of an extension to an existing industrial estate, but the heavy machines reminded me of  dinosaurs with the buckets waving around like giant heads & the engines roaring, yeah, I know some imagination!

We made a lunch stop at Wheelock & emptied the rubbish & wine bottles! lunch was Smoked haddock Chowder & hot baguette, lovely!

Just before bridge 65 there is a Dutch Barge style narrowboat moored, she is beautiful.

A bit further on towards Middlewich & all seemed well with the drive plate however reverse gear was getting harder to engage & disengage it literally took two hands, hmm worrying ,

however this heron looking liked he belonged to the ministry of silly walks took my mind off things for a while!

We passed the salt working getting closer to Middlewich, The lamentation of swans that we saw on the way out were still there we counted 30 in total.

We were approaching Kings lock  nice & slowly as we saw a boat coming up in the lock & as with everybody else today thought they would just come out leaving the gate open a we were only about 100yds away, again saving us gear usage, but no, they shut the gate & left the paddles up. when we past them it was obvious they didn’t have much care for others or themselves! One of the young children was poking at a manky dead duck with her fingers by the lock, then ate chips from chipper, parents unphased!

At this point I knew we would need to use reverse as this junction is very tight if you are turning onto the Middlewich Branch & into Wardle lock, as i was trying to carry on doing things slowly Lochaber decided that a blast of reverse was need to get round & under the bridge into the lock…..big mistake, she came out of reverse but no way was she going to engage reverse again!

So a sad end in the ongoing drive plate saga to a rather pleasant day. Tomorrow we will have to make it back to Aqueduct marina with NO REVERSE GEAR!  Somebody has a lot of stress & two spoilt holidays to answer for!

Today 11 miles, 20 locks, 6hrs & NO reverse gear now!

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