This morning was our final days cruising back to the base at Preston Brook. Last night we ate at The Salt Barge pub next to the old Lion Salt Works. The Salt Barge describes itself as providing honest home cooked food and it was certainly tasty and the portions large. A nice homely pub to end the holiday in.

Our journey back this morning was a pleasant journey through the Cheshire countryside passing back through Saltersford and Barnton Tunnels. We arrived at Preston Brook Tunnel and had a short wait until we could go through due to the timing system. Freddie’s final steering lesson for the week was to steer through the tunnel which he did without hitting the sides, more than some of us can say!

We arrived back at the base at about 1:30pm and all of the boats were waiting there, cleaned and ready to go out again.

So we had a thourougly good time and enjoyed it all. We saw some great sights, some strange sights and met some great people.

So we return to the question most often asked in the boatyard, “How far can we get?”. Well with regard to the question of Llangollen I would say yes it’s possible but there’s a big BUT. If you want to cruise for long hours each day and not really stop often to see some of the places you pass through, then yes it’s possible to reach Llangollen and return in a week. However my view is the same as always, you will get to where you get to. To my mind you can have a general idea of where you want to get to but these things can always change. Queues at locks, unexpected delays, stopping because that rain is annoying, stopping because that pub was too inviting.

All of these things are what make a canal holiday so enjoyable. No plans, no time keeping other than knowing when you need to have the boat back and no worries. In a week the most important decision I’ve had to make is what to have for dinner and that has made the whole thing worthwhile.

Hooray! A day free from rain (more or less). Leaving our very peaceful mooring at the bottom of the Baddiley lock flight we headed down towards Hurleston for the last part of the Llangollen Canal. We had an easy run down the lock flight at Hurleston. All of the locks were set against us but they are all close together and so it was easy to walk ahead and set them ready for the
boat.

We turned left onto the Shropshire Union Canal once again and then right at Barbridge Junction on to the Middlewich Branch. The sun came out and is still shining on us as I write this. We are trying to eat everything in sight now so that there’s not much to take off of the boat and we are succeeding. Having said that we now have nothing on the boat for dinner so we will have to stop
at a pub for the night… oh dear… what hardship!

We’ve been teaching Freddie to steer the boat this week and he’s been doing OK. He’s nine years old and has trouble seeing over the boat cabin but I must admit he has not sunk us. With guidance he has steered us into a few locks with only a minor bump here and there and has taken to it really well. A few people have suggested to him that he needs a box to stand on or a little step so we know what he will be building the next time he goes to his Gran’s.

It was as we dropped down through the lock at Church Minshull that we spotted some vandals hard at work. A pig and several piglets had escaped from their farm and were digging massive holes in the towpath. You can see from the photo the damage they had done when we arrived. As I wandered up to take a photo the pig turned and gave me a look that said, ” You come any
closer and it’ll be the last thing you do”. I’m fairly sure I also heard the pig saying “Do you feel lucky punk?” but to be honest that could just be my over-active imagination. We phoned the yard to ask them to let British Waterways know that there was a maniac pig on the loose and hopefully they will have contacted the farmer… or employed the pig to do some dredging at the very least.

Once again we passed through Middlewich and turned onto the Trent and Mersey Canal heading back towards Preston Brook. We are either going to moor at Broken Cross or near to the old Lion Salt Works and have a pub meal. Oh, I’ve just looked out of the window and seen us go past Broken Cross so I guess we are not going to that pub then. The Salt Barge it is then. Failing that,
does anyone have a spare Pot Noodle they can send me?

Tomorrow is our last day and we will have a few hours cruise back to the base. Hirers are normally due back at 9:00am but as this boat is not going out next week we are in no hurry. Next week will also give the yard the chance to iron out a few little niggles we have with the boat so that it is ready for the seaon ahead. Well I’m off now to moor this boat and then go to the pub. So night, night, sleep tight and don’t let the bed bugs bite… unless you are into that sort of thing you cheeky thing you.

So here we are back with an internet connection moored below Baddiley bottom lock. It’s been a day filled with rain, rain and oh yes, it also rained. We headed back through Grindley Brook with the locks set for us. Back out of Shropshire and into Cheshire and back into more rain… did I mention that it rained today?

You’ll notice a distinct lack of photos from the last few days so here are a few for your viewing pleasure. If these are not of interest to you I’m sure there are other photos on the internet that will appeal. Just remember to wash your hands afterwards.

On Wednesday morning we set off from Chirk and immediately crossed the Chirk Aqueduct with it’s railway viaduct running alongside. After the aqueduct you enter the Chirk Tunnel and on exiting the heavens opened.

The rain got heavier and heavier and then the thunder and lightning started. We were fast approaching the famous Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and I wasn’t sure if it was a good idea to be 120 feet in the air, crossing a valley whilst standing on a metal boat with lightning all around us. The captain didn’t seem to concerned and informed me that the storm was at least five miles away… a few seconds later and the biggest bang I have ever heard in my life exploded around us at the same instant as a very bright flash. We decided it would be best to pull over until the storm had passed!

The storm soon calmed down to the odd rumble and so we started across what must be the most spectactular experience on the canal network. It’s quite a sensation to be in a boat with a 120 foot drop on one side and no railings. Luckily the whole thing didn’t collapse and we made it across, only to turn at the other end and go back again. We had decided not to continue up to Llangollen as we didn’t have the time.

After the excitement of the morning we had a gentle cruise back to Ellesmere. There was a bit of a queue at New Marton locks and I passed the time moving up the queue by chatting to the proud new owner of narrowboat Star Trek. He is gearing up to give the boat a makeover. Pop in to the yard if you are passing Preston Brook and show us how you got on.

We stopped for the night at Ellesmere and after mooring we rescued a Black Prince boat next to us that had been tied up badly and was floating with it’s stern across the canal. It was quite funny to see the people come back and standing, scratching their heads…

“Well I didn’t tie the boat up like that”
“Well I certainly didn’t”
“Oh you always say you didn’t do something but you can’t have changed the knot while we were shopping”
“Well someone has”
“Why would someone change the knot while we were gone?”
“Are you having an affair???” (I added that last bit for dramatic effect).

We ate in the Asian Spices Indian restaurant. The food was fine and service good. We passed a number of boats having towpath barbecues on our return and even got offered a burger for £1.50.

We left the hustle and bustle of Platt Lane, with it’s farmer, cow and burned down pub, and continued along the Llangollen Canal towards, well Llagollen actually. The weather remained sunny so no waterproof clothes just yet.

Passing the junction for the short Prees Branch and passed from England into Wales and then back into England again, all without reversing. Then passing through a wooded area next to several meres around Ellesmere. Apparently these were formed during the end of the ice age when the glaciers retreated and the water filled depressions in the ground. At certain points the towpath runs alongside both the canal and the mere. We did get a little confused when we saw a sign saying No Fishing, No Shooting, No Boating. I’m assuming it meant the lake and not the canal! I do think it should also have said No Bombing, No Heavy Petting but you can’t have everything in life.

We stopped for a short while in Ellesmere to stock up on food and wine. The town has a fantastic deli/bakers with all manner of tasty looking treats for sale. We left with cakes for the kids which seemed to disappear as soon as we left the shop.

As we left Ellesmere we had to play ‘avoid the narrowboat’ at the junction as there were a fair few moving, some of them not in the right direction. Actually I’m fairly sure one of them is still there trying to decide which was to go.

We soon passed the junction for the forever-being-restored Montogomery Canal (must go down there one day) and continued on towards Chirk. There are good moorings after bridge 21 and we stopped here for the night. Our plan was to have some food at the Bridge Inn pub but when we got there they told us they don’t serve food on Tuesday. I’m certainly not in London anymore! We decided to walk back to the previous bridge and have dinner in the Poachers Pocket pub. It was standard pub grub, cheap and the service was good. After eating we walked back to the boat in the dark and without the torch and had no problems apart from the obligatory stepping in dog crap. Ah shi….

So we’ve been away for a couple of days. I’d like to say that we were too full from food, wine and beer to respond but, whilst we were full of food, wine and beer, we couldn’t get an internet connection.

So then, here is the post that I wrote on the day following the last post.

We woke to grey skies on Monday and they stayed with us for the first half of the day. Still you know the old saying, “Grey skies in the morning, time to do the Hurleston Locks.” Admitedly it’s not the greatest saying in the world.

It didn’t take long for us to complete the flight and we stopped for water at the top… right next door to manure central. The rest of the morning was a relaxed cruise up to Wrenbury. There are a lot of boats travelling in the opposite direction to us and this has been good with regard to the locks being set in our favour. We’ve passed quite a number of queues at locks going the other way. One of the interesting points this morning was how we managed to meet a boat on nearly every blind bend or bridge hole. If there was an awkward place to pass a boat you can be sure we met on there. Personally I think they’ve read the blog and were waiting in ambush for us. Having said that, you may be the only person that reads this and so I could be wrong. In any case, thanks for joining us, it’s lovely to have you.
We stopped at Wrenbury to stock up on some bread and milk. For some reason my kids like to eat which means there’s that annoying tasks of having to buy more stuff. As I write this my daughter Maisy is sitting next to me half eating a cheese-string and half drapping it down the back of my neck. The captain went off to keep the crew stocked up but the shop at Wrenbury was closed. We headed off again, stopping the traffic for a while at the electrically operated lift bridge and the sun came out for the rest of the afternoon.

The next major attraction on route was the Grindley Brook staircase locks. Again we were lucky as we went straight in to the bottom lock, with the lock keeper on hand to assist us. As I rose from the depths of the lock I suddenly became a star attraction with about 30 gongoozelers standing at the side of the lock watching. There was much pointing at the water and explaining things to small children, although they might have been saying, “look little Billy, a dead fish”.

We stopped for the night on the mooring by bridge 43, right next door to a dairy farm. The cows were being milked as we tied up and we making one heck of a noise. Still, after they had been sucked dry, everything was quiet. It was our intention to set off to the Waggoners Inn which is about 100 yards away from the bridge in the tiny village. On walking there one of the residents asked if we were headed to the pub. When we replied yes he let us know that it was no longer there as it had burned down 15 months ago. Either we don’t have the latest Pearson’s guide or it hasn’t been updated yet. As we walked back to the boat the farmer also told us that it had burned down. Clearly big news in these parts and I’m surprised not to have seen any mention of it on Sky News. Emergency spagetti bolognese ended up on the menu.

We are now continuing our journey towards Wales.

Good evening, hope you’ve had a good day? Did you get everything done you needed to? Put the bins out? Excellent.

Starting off from Marbury Park at around 8:45 we reached Middlewich by lunchtime. We moored above Big Lock just opposite the small park and playground and made the short walk to the Tesco Express to stock up and buy Easter eggs. Unfortunately there were no eggs to be found and chickens eggs dipped in chocolate didn’t really appeal.

We left our lunchtime mooring and made our way up the flight, turning right onto the Wardle Canal, the shortest canal in the UK. A quick chat to Maureen in the lock cottage and then we left the town heading down the Middlewich arm of the Shropshire Union Canal. Open countryside surrounded us and this stretch certainly feels like the back of beyond.

On reaching Church Minshull lock we found ourselves in a queue of four boats which grew to six as we moved towards the lock. There always seems to be a queue at this lock and the one by Venetian Marina and I would imagine this is because they are both deep and slow to fill.

Turning left at Barbridge Junction we have moored for the evening at the bottom of Hurleston Locks. Quite a long day today and as her inside the boat and I walked up to the top lock to drop off a rubbish bag we were overcome… not with passion I hasten to add but with the smell of freshly laid manure. With our eyes stinging we staggered back to the boat for dinner. Italian stew thanks for asking.

Tomorrow starts the journey along the Llangollen canal.

So tomorrow we will set of from Preston Brook at some point in the late afternoon after seeing to the hirers that are booked to go. We usually cruise a little way down to Acton Bridge on the first day and moor there and so I think that will be the plan again. I shall try to do our first blog from the boat tomorrow and hope everything works OK. So I’ll see you all tomorrow. Make sure you get a good nights sleep as we have a busy day ahead.

During our trip we are trying something we haven’t done before, but which a lot of canal bloggers (are they called cloggers?) do and that is to post updates to the blog at least once a day with our progress and daily (mis)-adventures. We have the wireless USB stick at the ready and are keeping our fingers crossed that it will get a signal. So, if you’d like to follow our week long holiday… erm… I mean working fact finding mission full of hard graft and work… then we’d love you to join us (not literally of course, after all it is only a six berth boat and we are not that close yet).

All the best.

John, Paul, Caron, Freddie & Maisy
The Non-Holidaying Hard Working Crew