Broken Cross (there's a first time for everything)

We left a little later on Thursday morning as we had to get some admin done. We will be going through Harecastle tunnel next week and as it’s now November we have to book a passage. Boaters have to give notice of at least 48 hours to use the tunnel from November 1st to the end of March so that was one of my admin jobs 😉 Passage is only available on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8.30 or 10.30 during those months so I have gone for 8.30 next Wednesday. Eight boats are allowed on each slot and no other boats are booked so it’ll probably be like our previous three passages where we were the only boat going through.

I mentioned the other day how one of our nightmares is worrying about what we would do if we heard an emergency vehicle approaching a bridge whilst we had it open. I was reminded today of another one, well it’s not too bad but it can be a pain. At this time of year canals are covered in fallen leaves and these can easily get wrapped around the propeller. When this happens, the engine starts losing power and then, as the leaves build up, steering becomes difficult. Unlike other things that get wrapped around the prop, leaves can usually be removed without a visit to the weed hatch. Putting the motor in neutral and then into reverse for a few seconds usually releases the leaves.

Pretty but can be a pain

After about seven miles we reached Preston Brook junction where the Bridgewater canal heads right into Runcorn or left for the last mile before it reaches the Trent & Mersey canal.  We went up to Runcorn three years ago, almost to the day, and had a fascinating time seeing where the old locks took the canal down to the tidal River Mersey as a series of five double staircase locks.  When the Manchester Ship Canal was opened in 1894 the locks at Runcorn fed into that instead and after becoming disused were filled in during the 1960s. 

For those interested in the old waterways, the flight became so well used in the early days that a second flight of ten separate locks was built and a one-way system introduced.  Strangely, the remains of the original flight is easy to see but it’s hard to find any trace of the second flight.  (I know I wrote about Runcorn {Click here} when we visited in 2015 but I have only just found out about the second flight).

Preston Brook junction – Runcorn off to the right – M56 over the top

After heading left, I pulled in at Midland Chandlers as I needed a new manual sump pump. It was then off to Preston Brook tunnel which is one way only so has set times for boats to pass.

Passage time sign

We arrived practically at half past the hour so just held the boat for a couple of minutes until the allotted time.  People were moving out of a canal side cottage that had no vehicular access, consequently the removal van had reversed as far as it dared along the towpath.

Heading to the tunnel with removal van on the towpath

Entering the tunnel – note the stanking planks 😉

The entrance to the tunnel marks the end of the Bridgewater canal and the start of the Trent & Mersey canal.   Once through the tunnel we came up to Dutton stop lock which was built to overcome the slightly different levels between the two canals.  I must admit that I had always thought stop locks were built to enable tolls to be collected as freight passed from one canal company’s jurisdiction to the next but not so this one apparently.

The rise was only about 3” (looking uphill to Dutton dry dock on the left)

As we came out of the tunnel and approached the lock, we saw a boat was in the lock and heading in our direction.  This meant we could go straight in once they had finished.  For some reason the lock took an age to fill; but we got there in the end.

Karen getting ready to get the other side of the balance beam and put her back into it

The boat that came through the lock before us can be seen in the distance at the tunnel entrance waiting for their allotted passage time.  Just after the lock we passed the first Trent & Mersey mile post.

An original mile post with the date 1819 near the base

The Trent & Mersey canal has mileposts along its 92-mile length from Shardlow (in the south) to Preston Brook.  Mileposts were cast by Rougeley and Dixon in Stone in 1819 and there are still 59 left of which the example above is one.  The other 34 are replacements which have a mark of "T&MCS 1977" near the base.  T&MCS stands for Trent & Mersey Canal Society and these were cast in the mid-1970s in Bognor Regis to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the opening of the canal.  Click here for more information and our pictures of all the Trent & Mersey mileposts.

The canal runs through the 1 ¾ mile long Harecastle tunnel yet, interestingly (to me), it has mileposts either end indicating that it is only a mile long (62-30 and 61-31 miles to Shardlow and Preston Brook respectively).

The Trent & Mersey finishes at Derwent Mouth lock where it meets the Rivers Derwent and Trent.  Derwent Mouth lock is 1 ½ miles further on from Shardlow so the canal is actually 93 ½ miles long.  When Karen reads this, she will be a tad upset as she will be reminded that we (I) accidently left her favourite mug at Derwent Mouth lock a few years ago ☹

We moored up a mile further on (we were by a mile post so knew how far we had travelled 😉) on the site of the Dutton breach.  This breach happened in September 2012 and was on a similar scale to the recent/current Middlewich breach.  The canal was closed for seven months to effect the repairs.   Mooring rings were installed on the new banking making it a great place to moor if you like being in the middle of nowhere.

Thursday night mooring at the Dutton breach site with new wall, mooring rings and commemorative plaque

Close up of the commemorative plaque that we were moored alongside

Our views across the Weaver valley

Friday was another cruise day as we wanted to get to Broken Cross to meet up for drinks with our boat builder.  Darren and Sarah live on their boat and we were last meant to meet up a few months ago when they were cruising in the same area as us.  Unfortunately, plans changed because of a breach and lock closures on the Macclesfield and Peak Forest canals.  They were stuck in Cheshire and we in Derbyshire.

It was still windy but as there are few if any boats on the move at this time of year, we felt quite happy cruising.  Our first stop was at Saltersford tunnel; like Preston Brook yesterday it's another one that is one way only so has allotted passage times.

Passage allowed between half past and ten to the hour

We arrived with 15 minutes to wait so popped inside for a welcome coffee and a slice of Karen’s latest home baking – a fruit cake.  Fruit cake usually means Judith & Nigel are visiting as it’s his favourite but not so this weekend.  Funnily enough, later in the day I had a text from Judith asking where we are as they may pop in on Saturday 😊

The unusually shaped portal on Saltersford tunnel

The tunnel is one of the very few in the country where the light at the end of the tunnel cannot be seen when you first go in.  Even the longer tunnels, a mile or so long, are built in a dead straight line so a pinprick of light can be seen at the end once the eyes grow accustomed to the dark.  Saltersford tunnel has several bends in it which is quite uncanny.

Pretty soon after coming out we were approaching another one, Barton tunnel.  This one is also one-way, but passage is allowed as long as no lights of an oncoming boat can be seen.  That’s all fine but both entrances are on a tight bend, so the boat has to be taken into the tunnel to see if anything is coming.  Or you park up and walk down to have a look which I couldn't be bothered to do as there wasn't likely to be other boats around.  I gingerly took the boat in and, for the first time ever, I could see a light coming towards me.  I reversed out and waited for the boat to appear.  When they came out, they told me they weren’t being followed so off I went without meeting another boat.

Next, we were in Anderton and going past the famous Anderton boat lift that we used when we were living in our old boat.  The lift was opened in 1875 and drops/lifts boats between the Trent & Mersey canal and the River Weaver 50 feet below.

The top of the lift – a marvellous piece of Victorian engineering

We then pulled into the services at Anderton for a pump out and to get rid of our rubbish and recycling.

The marina behind the services is full of boats all snuggled up for the winter

Next was the Marston salt works museum that we have had many a happy time moored at and visiting in the past.  There were about ten boats moored there; Heidi’s boat, Rum Wench, was at the end of the line and about half way down we saw Pas Mèche.  This was a boat we seriously considered buying from friends before we decided to go for a new build.  David & Victoria gave up living aboard a couple of years ago, so it was good to see their boat is still out and about.  

Could have been our home

The rest of the moored boats were on permanent moorings and we stopped for lunch after the last of the line.   We didn’t have far to go after lunch and were soon passing Wincham Wharf where Chalkhill Blue 2 was fitted out.

The boatbuilders are clearly specialising in wider beamed boats nowadays judging by the number of new ones in the water and in the yard above

Just down from Wincham Wharf is an old ICI chemical works now owned by the massive Indian company, Tata.  Usually there are strong smells and vapour crossing the canal at this point, but all seemed quiet today.

No fumes or vapour today

We were lucky and all the moorings outside the pub at Broken Cross were empty, so we managed to moor right outside.  This was where we were moored for over two weeks in our old boat while waiting for the finishing touches to be done and the new one launched.  I say ‘we’ but Karen was still working in Warwick and staying in B&Bs down there during the week but once we took delivery it didn’t take long to get back to the Midlands.

Couldn’t be closer

We were just going out to have a walk and post a letter when Darren turned up with all his workers from the boat yard, so we ended up going for early drinks and a good old catch up and talk about boats and boating.

 

The last two days have been really easy as we only covered 10 lock-free miles each day but the locks start again on Saturday as we begin the 35-lock climb to the summit of the Trent & Mersey at Kidsgrove 😊

Thelwall (we were due a soaking)

After spending Monday night at Ince Moss we had 55 miles to go until we get to the next lock.  This means we should have a few days of gentle cruising without any lock wheeling exercise thus giving our backs a rest.  It’s not quite true that the next lock is 55 miles away as there are two locks on the Leigh branch, but they are disused, and also a stop lock on the Trent & Mersey with a fall of 6-12” so we don’t really count that either.

A boater’s nightmare: emergency vehicle approaching a lift or swing bridge

It was a mild but grey morning on Tuesday and for the first few miles we had flashes on either side of the canal.  They must be brilliant places to visit for those who have a particular interest in water fowl as some of them seemed to be covered in birds.  Flashes were formed as coal mine subsidence caused flash floods giving the term to the remaining standing water.  Further south in Cheshire we have been through flashes caused by salt mine subsidence.

Passing Ince Moss, one of the Wigan Flashes

A bit further on we arrived at the outskirts of Abram where there used to be two locks called Dover Locks #1 & #2.  The pub that stands next to #1 is called Dover Locks and is currently abandoned. 

The Dover lock chambers suffered constant problems due to the subsidence caused by a local coal mine. They were eventually replaced by the two Poolstock locks that we stayed at the previous night just outside Wigan. 

The remnants of Dover lock #1 where you can still see where the lock gates and other mechanical bits used to be in the lock narrows

Other than the lock narrows there is nothing much to see of #2 lock (Dover Lock pub on right)

Soon after the Dover locks we arrived at Plank Lane lift bridge which is closed to boaters during rush hours because of the volume of traffic but as it was after 9.30am we could use it.  We have often wondered what we would do if we heard emergency sirens approaching when a bridge is in use and thankfully it has never happened.

When we were mooring up to operate the bridge, two police vans came through with flashing lights and sirens, so we felt pretty secure that the odds of any more were now greatly reduced.

The camera just caught the blue flashing light on the police van as it left the bridge

We took on water after going through the lift bridge and then headed off for Leigh where we joined the Bridgewater canal.  Immediately, we came across a stanking plank crane and accompanying planks that are so typical of the Bridgewater canal.

   

Welcome to the Bridgewater canal sign

We stopped for lunch at Worsley, a suburb of Salford.  We couldn’t stop here on our way up as all the moorings had been taken, not so today as we were the only boat.

  

The coalmines at Worsley were the reason the Bridgewater canal was built as the coal was taken away by boat to Manchester's industrial areas.  The canal was opened in 1761 and was the first canal in the UK not to follow an existing water course.  

The entrances to the coalmines at Worsley

Soon after setting off again we went over the Manchester Ship Canal (MSC) on an aqueduct that swings when large ships are using the MSC.

Crossing the MSC and looking towards Manchester

Looking the other way with the Barton road swing bridge in the foreground and the M60 viaduct in the background

There wasn’t much to report on the rest of the journey as we covered the area in some detail when we came along in April/May time.  Also, we passed no other boats on the move other than a restaurant boat at Patricroft… 

…nice autumnal colours though

We moored up outside the Trafford Park shopping centre for the night after having covered 16 miles during the day.

Tuesday night mooring outside the massive Trafford Park shopping centre (on towpath side!)

The forecast rain didn’t come overnight on Tuesday, although it had been very windy.  Despite the wind and the forecast of rain we decided to cruise for the day and donned wet weather gear in case the rain started. 

Looking ominous as we left Trafford Park

After about a mile’s cruising we arrived at a junction known as Waters Meeting.  This is where the Bridgewater main line heads north, a few miles into the centre of Manchester and the other way heads down to the junction with the Trent & Mersey canal at Preston Brook.

Turning right at Waters Meeting

We turned right towards the Trent & Mersey canal.  We haven’t been on this particular stretch of canal for 3 ½ years so we were looking forward to see how things had changed.  We headed through Stretford and Sale and then Karen got off to walk with Buddy and that was when the rain really started so we never really took much notice of our surroundings.

Getting a bit wet

By the time we got to Lymm the rain had practically stopped so we moored up on the visitors’ moorings for lunch.  The rain held off for most of the rest of the day so we carried on a bit and moored up for the night near Thelwall.

Moored for Wednesday night at Thelwall

The Bridgewater canal is wide and relatively deep meaning most boats go a lot faster than on normal canals.  This is because not so much wash is generated and also because the sides are generally lined in concrete so do not get eroded by any wash that does break on there.  We went slightly faster than normal too so made good time and in all we travelled 14 miles in four hours.

The only boat we saw on the move during the day was a hire boat.  The steerer managed a wet wave and a smile but he couldn’t see what we could: the rest of the crew, who were inside, looked to be having a party 😊

Ince Moss (one of those days when it all goes wrong)

We only had seven miles to travel on Sunday and no locks, which meant we could have an easy morning and not leave Chorley until about 11 o’clock.  There’s nothing difficult about the cruise between Chorley and the top lock at Wigan as the cut is fairly straight and wide, no bridges on blind corners and only one sharp bend where you have to be on your guard.  There are quite a few permanent moorings though, which mean you go slow anyway, so it still took us nearly three hours.

As it was such an easy journey I took the opportunity to go through my speech for my middle daughter, Lauren's, wedding which is in just over a month's time.  So if anyone saw a deranged boater talking away to himself as he cruised along , then that was me.

We arrived at the Wigan top lock waiting area (where the Lancaster canal used to carry straight on) hoping to find other boats waiting to go down, but it was empty apart from Gypsy Darling’s plastic boat moored on the spot we were hoping to moor on and as he works on the flight I suspect he’ll be moored there a while.  We didn’t mind as it looked extra weedy where he was moored anyway.

Moored at the flight waiting area – the flight heads downhill to the right

We had lunch on board and then walked half way down the flight and then into Wigan to find the Lidl.  Yes, I know we went shopping yesterday but Lidl do the best pain au chocolate outside of France (well, in UK supermarkets that is).  You may think it an odd thing to stock up on, but they reheat in the oven well and take the same length of time as it does for Karen’s morning pot of tea to brew (I always have a cafetière of coffee if having pain au chocolate - which is seven days a week 😉).

Part of the Wigan flight

We also had a £5 Lidl voucher from our weekly (Saturday) newspaper but had to spend £30 to take advantage of it.  This meant we had a two mile walk back to the boat with heavy bags, yes, wine helped make up the cost 😊

Walking through the older parts of Wigan we found it really strange and then realised why: all the houses were brick built. Having had 2 ½ months in Yorkshire followed by a couple of months in France and Italy we had got rather accustomed to all buildings being stone built.

The other thing we noticed was that many of the side streets had been designated as play streets.  These streets, where traffic movement is banned during daylight hours, have been re-introduced in a lot of towns in the North West in the last few years. 

Play street in Wigan

Amazingly, until the mid-1930s children (or their families) were prosecuted for playing in streets and Salford and Manchester were the first boroughs to introduce play streets by getting a private members’ bill passed.  Shortly afterwards, in 1938, the Street Playgounds Act was passed and play streets started to appear all over the country and then escalated in the 1950s.

Cleminson Street in Salford in 1935 (from Manchester Evening News)

I remember seeing them as a child through the window of my parents’ car but doubt they would ever have allowed me to play in one.  They had virtually all disappeared by 1980 but over the last few years are re-emerging around the country.  Interestingly, play streets originated in New York and still thrive today having never fallen into disuse.

On the way back from the supermarket we met up with Peter Baxter (a lock keeper on the Wigan flight) and he gave us more information on which locks to be careful of and why.  We remembered some of the detail from when we came up but, of course, going down can be quite different.  For example, on the way up, leaky top gates at lock 71 washed away the nasturtiums on the bows.  On the way down, the steerer is likely to get drenched as the boat will be facing the other way.

Oh, and we passed a rare sight on the cruise today: a stanking plank store on the Leeds & Liverpool canal:

Stanking planks at bridge 69

Entry to the Wigan flight is restricted to between 8.30 and 10.00 every morning.  After ascertaining there were no boats to go down with, we set off about 8.45.  There was a lot of weed around where we had been moored so we had to be careful not to take any down the locks with us.  By the time I was going into the first lock, Karen saw we had a giant knot of weed under the bows.  If I had taken this into the lock it could well have blocker up water inlets or outlets when the paddles were opened or closed.

Poling the weed off the bows (the darker green clump)

We had 21 locks to do to get down the flight and they are notoriously cumbersome to operate. Our job was even harder as we didn’t have a boat going down with us to share the work nor were there any lock keepers (volunteer or otherwise) to help out.  We don’t expect to have help and are always happy locking on our own, I just mention the lack of keepers as there are usually some around on this particular flight to help out as it can be so difficult.

Heading into the top lock

All was going well until the half way point.  We decided to have a quick break and stop to make a cup of coffee while we were in a lock.  Whoever is driving would normally make the drinks while on the move, but we fancied a break as some of the gates and paddles had been heavy work.  We moored up in the lock and went inside and noticed the Battery Management System was showing a rather low voltage; we assumed this was because we had had the washing machine and slow cooker on at the same time.    

I went back outside and started the engine to get the batteries charging again and noticed one of the battery warning lights was on.  It was then that it dawned on me that the fan belt that drives the alternator for the domestic batteries must have snapped.

Sure enough – it had snapped

Fortunately, we carry replacements for both belts, so it was into the engine bay to fit the replacement:

   

I couldn’t seem to get the tension right as every time I ran the engine there was a loud squealing noise.  I was beginning to worry that the alternator had gone so we rang Karen’s cousin Dave who lives on his boat and is very mechanically minded.  He listened to the noise over the phone and decided it was definitely the fan belt squealing and not the alternator.  I had another go at getting the correct tension and all was well at last.

The next problem was that there were two gates on two locks that Karen couldn’t open on her own.  At the first lock a guy was walking past, and he kindly lent his weight.  At the second there was no one around so I had to moor up to help.  Normally this isn’t a problem but on this flight there are very few lock landings but we found a bollard right at the head of the lock to tie the bows to and we got the gate open.  Of course, having the bows tied to the bollard inevitably meant the boat swung across the cut and it wasn’t a small matter to right it again and get it into the lock.

At the next lock I couldn’t get a gate closed and a couple, who were walking past, stopped to watch me struggle.  Rather than offering to help all I could hear was a running commentary of things like, ‘Should’ve eaten more Weetabix’, ‘I think he’s got it moving’, ‘Oh no he hasn’t’, ‘He needs to push harder’ and so on.  Unbelievable ☹

I was setting a lock a bit later and suddenly found myself crashing to the ground.  I had my windlass in my hand and landed awkwardly crushing my thumb between the ground and the windlass.  I was winded and just lay there face down.  A guy walked past and asked if I was OK, but I couldn’t say anything and he just walked on.  Then, unbelievably again, a second bloke asked if I was alright and, getting no response, just carried on ☹

Sure sign the magnet fishermen have been in town

We got to the final lock and it was padlocked up as expected and had to wait about 10 minutes for a CRT lockie to come and open it up.  To give him his due, Joe did say we could both stay on the boat and he would close the gates in order for us to get on our way.  We did have some help in the end 😉

We were soon at Wigan junction where we turned left onto the Leigh branch towards the locks at Poolstock.

Getting ready to turn left – the main line carries straight on through Wigan, past Wigan Pier all the way to Liverpool

We stopped for lunch at Poolstock locks and then went down both of them before they were locked at 3.00 pm thus making 23 locks in the day.

We moored for the evening about ½ mile further on at Ince Moss.  We had our first roast of the winter (the slow cooker had had a chicken in it all day) and boy, was that a welcome meal at the end of a tiring day.  Karen’s walkmeter clocked her at 9.5 miles down the two-mile lock flight which goes to show the effect of walking backwards and forwards between each pair of locks several times as well as around them a couple of times on each operation.  Most double locks on the canals in the UK only need to have paddles opened on one side thus obviating the need to walk around the lock a couple of times.  Not so, those on the Wigan flight, with the heavy leakages most locks would never fill up if paddles were only opened on one side; the water would escape quicker than it comes in.

Moored for Monday night at Ince Moss

The first thing I did after mooring up was order a replacement fan belt from a boatyard we particularly like in Stone (just south of Stoke on Trent).  They had one in stock and have put it aside for us when we are passing in a couple of weeks.

It’s now a week since we left Skipton on our mission to get to Aylesbury by 2^nd December.  In that week we have cruised 64 miles through 58 locks, so we only have 220 miles and 130 locks to go.  In other words we have covered about a quarter of the way and been through nearly a third of the locks.  All looking good then as we still have another four weeks to go.

Over the last two days we have travelled 11 miles down 23 locks and just hope we haven’t buggered our batteries having the washing machine and slow cooker on, for an unknown length of time, when the fan belt had broken ☹

And, in case you wondered, I don’t think I’ve damaged my hand but have a very swollen thumb and wrist so hopefully it’s just badly bruised 😊

Chorley (Comfortably numb again)

Another good day was forecast for Friday, so we made the most of it and set off soon after eight.  We were keen to get ahead of schedule and felt, that at the current progress, we could make up a day in the first week.  All being well we will take a day off when we are on the Leigh branch and spend some time at Pennington flash, a large nature reserve outside Wigan, that we visited on our abortive trip to Liverpool earlier this year.

As the canal heads for Wigan it crosses over or under the M65 no fewer than nine times!  We had just been across one of the aqueducts that cross the motorway when a boat appeared, coming in the opposite direction.  It was Rob & Lesley Pearson who live and trade from their boat Hekla.  We have bumped into each other a few times over the last few years and this was a typical fleeting exchange of greetings as we passed.  

Rob & Lesley well wrapped up

I was well wrapped up too and even had a scarf on as there was a chill in the air.

     

Karen wasn’t on board when I passed Rob & Lesley as she was out for a run on the towpath ahead of me.  She told me later that she saw them when she was running under bridge 108 and was shouting and waving madly at them as they passed.  She didn’t think they recognised her and probably just thought she was one of the local mad women.

We soon left Burnley well behind and were nearing the outskirts of Blackburn where there are three swing bridges fairly close together.

Karen, also wrapped up well, opening one of the swing bridges

I mentioned on Thursday that we were fortunate to only have to stop once when going through Burnley to unwrap rubbish from the prop; Friday was different.  I had four trips to the weed hatch and on two occasions the engine had stopped dead.  Once again the bulk of it was heavy duty builders’ bags that were the cause.  At least they are relatively easy to extract by winding the propeller, unlike wire, mattresses, tyres etc. but I still end up with cold wet arms nearly up to the armpits and yet more crap to carry to the next rubbish disposal point.

At one point I accidently put my hand on a hot part of the engine and, as my hand was so wet and cold I didn’t realise what I had done before it was too late ☹

Burnley can just be seen in the valley

Heading into Blackburn

There are six locks in the middle of Blackburn and, unlike all the other locks on the Leeds & Liverpool, they are not subject to opening time restrictions.  We had rung CRT the previous day just to make sure that this information was correct, which it was.

The Blackburn locks are really difficult for single handers as there are no lock landings.  This means leaving the boat in a lock, walking to the next and setting it, going back to get the boat and driving it into the new lock.  The previous lock then has to be closed up which means another walk back to do it, and so on.

One of the locks on the flight

You may have noticed the balance beams are missing on the bottom gates of the lock above.  This was because a railway bridge runs across the tail of the lock so there is no room to swing a balance beam.  In their place is a winding mechanism that is operated with a windlass.  This approach is usually only seen in cities where bridges have been added since the canal was built such as in Manchester.

Flooded lock - maybe the reason there are no opening hour restrictions – too much water coming down the flight

Talking about single-handers, we met one at the penultimate lock and we teamed up to make his job easier.  It turned out that he wasn’t single handing, he had come up the first two locks with his wife and then took on water whilst she had taken their cat to the vets.  He was waiting for her at the water point, then they could wind and go back down together.  He came down the lock with us but ended up waiting for her below the lock as he didn’t want her to have to walk too far to get back home, so we ended up doing the final lock on our own again.

In the penultimate lock

We carried on another few miles through the suburbs of Blackburn until we were out in the country and then decided to moor up for the day.  The last area we went through was called Cherry Tree where we had moored temporarily back in June for Karen to visit a small supermarket with Charlie and Linda who we travelled with for a few days.  I mention that occasion as we fondly remember that they got lost on the way back and had to ring me for directions.  

Moored out in the country for Friday night (but within earshot of the M65 😉)

We set off around 8.30 on Saturday morning meaning we could have a relaxing five mile cruise to the top of Johnson’s Hillock locks which didn’t open until 10.00am.

For the second day running a kingfisher was the first bird we saw once we were on the move.  This one stayed with us quite a while as they often do, flying off its perch when we came alongside, to find a new perch further along (and I don’t mean the fish perch).  

We saw no boats on the move but when we neared the top lock, we saw two guys getting ready to cast off and they were heading in our direction so Karen told them we would wait for them and go down the locks together.  They were really pleased as they had never been down the locks before. 

James lived on the boat and his friend, Adam, had come along for the weekend to help him move it. 

James works in Chorley and therefore continuously cruises the area.  He has only been living on the boat for six months (having previously lived in a caravan for four years to make sure he could handle it) and has been stuck because of the closures for most of that time.  Of course, as a ccer working locally, that has played into his favour.

Sharing the top lock

There are seven locks on the flight and with Adam and Karen both setting the locks we got down in a respectable time.

Buddy in lock operating pose

James proudly told me he chose the name Comfortably Numb as it would be an unusual name.  I did tell him it’s quite popular but didn’t let on that there are currently 19 boats on the system that share the name.  I did think at one time about taking pictures of boats with names that were song titles but thought better of it, especially as I’m not that good on song titles.

There was a lot of water coming down the flight which made it surprising that there are still restricted opening times.

Water overflowing the top lock gates

Entering the bottom lock together

After going down the locks we stopped at Botany Bay, so we could go shopping at the Chorley Aldi which was only a mile away.  Now we are car-less again we have to carry all the shopping in big backpacks and a couple of shopping bags each making it a slow journey back to the boat.  We had lunch on our return and then I moved on a few hundred yards to the water point.

Stopped for lunch at Botany Bay

The wind had really got up making it difficult tying up at the water point and then the rain started halfway through the operation.  When I’d finished taking on water I could’ve just moved over to the towpath side and moored up for the night but I didn’t fancy staying at Botany Bay because we were right next to the noisy M61.  As I was getting wet anyway I carried on another mile or so and moored south of Chorley where the houses finished.

The rain eased off, but it was still dark and dismal:

   

Our Saturday night stopover – still a little breezy as you can see from the water but nothing like it had been earlier

We’ve covered 24 miles through 13 locks over the last two days and will have an easy day on Sunday.  We will cruise the six lock-free miles to the top of the Wigan flight, stop there overnight and go down the 23 locks to Pennington Flash when they open at 8.30 on Monday morning.  We will be going down the Wigan flight a day earlier than planned so could have a day’s rest later in the week.