Whittington to Stourport

Last day today. Pleasant day but gusts of strong wind. Met a man at Debdale lock who said he was going on a coach trip to Llangollan soon and was quite interestred in our trip. A guy at both Wolverley lock and at Kiddeerminster lock came over to talk about the original Stourbridge Lion-there does seem to be quite a level of interest in both Agenoria, and sister locomotive Stourbridge Lion residing in York and USA respectively.
We have done a total of 222 miles and 158 locks most done by Joanne although I help where I can, particularly where there is no lock bridge meaning you have to walk around the lock several times. Quite a palava mooring up in Stourport due to winds .
So thats it for now. Next thing with the boat is a repaint into completely different colours in June so next time it will look quite different.

Monday Dimmingsdale to Whittington

A nice warm bright day for a change. Free range eggsa from the lockside, bacon and eggs for breakfast. Quite a lot of locks today but they are well spaced out
and no real problem. We were lucky to get through the Bratch locks as the lock keeper said
that one of the paddles was damaged affecting a side pound. I said that there had been a boat
through late last night which had come past us. I bet that’s Wotan said the lockeper. I didn’t
discover the significance. But suspect it was unlicencensed and going under cover of darkness to
avert detection. At Awbridge lock some nice hedge laying was being done by 4 men. Something
you don’t often see these days. Nice run through the delightful Smestow valley to one of our favourite
moorings at Whittington bridge.

Went to Whittington Public House for evening meal and nice pint of Banks ale. Always an interesting place to visit as parts of it lay claim to date from 1310, Whats more this was the manor house of the Whittington Family whose famous son "Dick" Whittington is connected. (Gloucester also fits in this story somewhere as well!) As well as being a pantomine character Dick Whittington did travel to London make his fortune and was Mayor of London 4 times at the end of the 14th Century. Legend has it that Dick had a cat which made him hisz fortune as it was good at catching vermin. No one knows if this part of the story is true but apparently London;s Newgate Gaol, which was partly sponsored by Dick Whittington  had a cat sculptured above the door. True or not it was good to be having a pint in a 1310 manor house.

Sunday 14th April :Gnosal to Dimmingsdale lock

Set off bright and early as weather forecast is not good for today and we have to be back
for Tuesday evening. In particular high winds are forecast. In the event winds are high but
manageable; just.

A lot of trees are decorated like the photo as part of a nature trail.
Approaching Wolverhampton a fisherman shouted “Is that boat blue in memory of Mrs Thatcher?” I’m having it repainted this year, I replied as diplomaticly as I could. Came on to rain quite hard so moored up at about 1430 above Dimingsdale lock.
Pork Chops for tea on board.
A boat came through Dimmingsdale lock very late. That would be Wotan said the Bratch lock keeper the next day.

Market Drayton to Gnosal (Saturday)

Nice bright sunshine to start the day. Went pastast a boat at Tyrely locks whose steerer said "We should repatriate the Stourbridge Lion to Stourbridge. Think he meant the locomotive.

Woodseaves cutting is as eerie as ever with a real "Land before time forgot" feel to it.

Moored at Gnosall and had a meal and a few drinks in The Boat and had a walk around the village.
Must find a way of visiting The Anchor which we passed today. Its a traditional pub set in the middle of no where and has been in the same family for years. Have not so far been able to engineer a visit.

Friday 12th april. Audlem to Market Drayton Shropshire.

Spaghetti on toast last night, Eastenders, then some music; Mike Oldfield Tubular Bells II, Caro Emerald Scenes from the Cutting Room Floor, Philip Glass Einstein on the beach (Part!), David Gilmour On an Island.
Nice morning for Locks and we have 20 today; 15 in Audlem flight and 5 in Aderley Flight.

An enterprising lady at the top lock of the Aderley flight sold us cream teas! We ate them on the boat later.

Moored at Market Drayton quite early and took a walk into the town. A pill box left over from the World War II stands by the canal. Not sure that the Shropshire Union canal and this box would really have provided a massive amount of defence to the Panzer divisions. Town has some nice old buildings but a ltttle run down in parts i thought. Found a nice coffee shop called "Jones". What do people do who live here?

Made Macaroni cheese for tea.

11th April. Wrenbury to Audlum

Slight drizzle today. First rain encountered but good to be on the move again.  Turned off the Llangollan canal, 46 miles from Llangollan, at Hurlston junction near Crewe. Rain got heavy and miserable around Nantwich.At Hack Green we passed a sign for the secret (!) nuclear bunker. 

If North Korea develop long range missiles guess this will need to be reactivated again! Unfortunately the bunker is not as secret as it might have been.(!)

And so today's journey ends at the pretty village/town of Audlem. Again following on from last nights theme lets have the lyrics of Slow Train by Flanders and Swann which was written by them as an elegy at the time of the Beeching cuts exactly 50 years ago and Audlem gets a mention by name. Fortunately some of the stations mentioned survived and some closed but subsequently opened again, sadly, at Audlem the sleepers will sleep a long sleep….

Millers Dale for Tideswell
Kirby Muxloe
Mow Cop and Scholar Green

No more will I go to Blandford Forum and Mortiehoe,
On the slow train from Midsummer Norton and Mumby Row,
No churns, no porter,
No cat on a seat,
At Chorlton-cum-Hardy and Chester-le-Street
We won't be meeting again on the slow train.

I'll travel no more from Littleton Badsey to Openshaw,
At Long Stanton I'll stand well clear of the doors no more,
No whitewashed pebbles,
No up and no down,
From Thornby Four Crosses to Dunstable Town,
I won't be going again on the slow train.

On the main line and the goods siding,
The grass grows high,
At Dog Dyke, Tumby Woodside, and Troublehouse Halt.
The sleepers sleep at Audlem and Ambergate,
No passenger waits on Chittening platform or Cheslyn Hay,
No-one departs, no-one arrives,
From Selby to Goole,
From St. Erth to St. Ives,
They all passed out of our lives,
On the slow train,
On the slow train.
Cockermouth for Buttermere
On the slow train.
Armly Moor Arram
Pye Hill and Somercotes
On the slow train.
Windmill End....

wed 10th April. Interlude

Wednesday 10^th April

So no boating  today I have to get the train to Bristol for the day. Up early for the walk to the station. I passed five or six men, separately, walking the other way; each one said “good morning”. At what point in the day does this common courtesy stop and people start looking at their feet?

 I was the only one waiting for the 0746. “Passenger numbers up by 25% at this station last year” said the optimistic poster on the platform. I held up my hand to summon the train to stop as this is a request stop. The train stopped, not so much for me as to drop off two passengers. One seemed to be off night shift and one with a dusty cement covered jacket on; presumably a supporter of an “extension to the cement works here.”

Coming back I was the only passenger who got off. No one got on.

“…no one departs, no one arrives, from Selby to Goole from St Erth to St. Ives, they have all passed out of our lives” I was reminded strongly of these laconic song lines by

Flanders and Swan in The Slow Train.

Got the train back ok the 1825 from Shrewsbury. A single coach stopping train to crewe stopping at delightful Shropshire stations of Yorton-pub and 5 houses, Wem-small village, Prees-even smaller village, Whitchurch-fair sized town, Wrenbury-my lonely stop, Nantwich and Crewe. The train had a surprising complement of passengers on board-about 20. The conductor came down the train checking tickets. A little character with a woollen hat pulled over his head and a high woollen collar adjacent to me pretended he hard of hearing. The guard made it clear he wanted to see his ticket. "Aint got a ticket" said the chap."You need to buy one said the guard "
"Where you going to"
"Crewe"
"You need to buy a ticket"
"got no money"
"You will have to get off at Wem" said the guard and continued down the train. I wernt to speak to the guard to see if he needed a hand as I didn't think the chap would get off. "He is always on the train" said the guard. "He will get off at Wem then wait two hours for the next train and be told to get off but he will have travelled a bit further and eventually he will get to where he wants to go" And right enough the chap got off at Wem and I saw him sitting on a seat waiting for the next train to take him a bit further.
I was the only passenger to get off at Wrenvbury and walked back to the boat, past the post office, through the church grounds and across a field getting back to the boat at half past seven.

Monday andTuesday 8th and 9th April Llangollan to Wrenbury

Set off at 0800 to start the 111 mile 79 lock journey back to Stourport. As we passed the wharf at Llangollan the same friendley chap who operated the horse boat we spoke to on our arival wished us well. "Hope you have a good season" I said. "Could do with it the last couple of years have been bad for trade" he replied.
Struck concrete lining the bank a couple of miles out of Llangollan causing the boat to judder. Dont know how it happened as it was on a straight section. Just one of those things.Still very cold but we made good progress back over the Pontcysalte aquaduct then the Chirk aquaduct followed by Frankton Junction the the Shropshire Meres. Moored at Hampton bank having covered 25 miles. A lot for a days boating and ahead of schedule.

Set off early again next day to cover the ground back to Grindley Brook staircase lock where a friendly lock keeper helped us on our way. “I much prefer hire boaters to people who own their own boats-they are eager to learn” he said with some truth.
Very cold still. Bought a Balaclava in Llangollan!

This seems to be the land of free range eggs with every lock advertising them. At Quoisley Lock a local farmer had several full boxes on display with a “Honesty” box for the money. As we approached this lock there was a “Gentleman of the Road” (He looked the part complete with white beard and pipe)  lurking around the table. We passed through the lock with a curt “gu’day” but as we moved on we noticed he secreted a quantity of eggs under his long flowing coat. Presumably the local farmer thinks “Those boaters are a dishonest lot they take my eggs and never leave the money”

Tomorrow I have to go to Bristol so we moored up at Wrenbury. There is a local station “request stop” (ie you flag the train down like a bus) at Wrenbury on the Shrewsbury to Crewe line so we had a walk out to find the station. About a mile and half unfortunately. Nice village though with houses displaying little posters in their windows saying “No extension to cement works here”

Went to Cotton Arms for nice pint of “Shropshire Gold” and Scampi and Chips and Joanne had Belly Pork and mash. Nice friendly pub.

Llangollan Day 2

To explore the very last 2 mile section of the Llangollan canal its necessary to forsake the Stourbridge Lion and board a horse drawn boat at Llangollan Wharf.

 The horse clops along for about two miles to the point where the river Dee joins tcanal at a point called Hirseshoe falls. Here there is a eir, built by Telford, and a hotel called the Chain Bridge hotel. Its very scenic but snow was lying and the river was running in fast. A number of canoeists wewre making the most of the fast running river tyo shoot the rapids down towards Llangollan. The journey keeps company with the railway from  Llangollan with the occasional steam train passing by. Once back in llangollan we had a relax on the boat during the afternoon before preparing a tea of Welsh lamb chops and Gurnsey potatoes bought yesterday.

The boater on the boat next to us came over for a chat. His boat seemed in a poor state of repair and he said he had found this winter particularly hard as he had spent much more money than usual on coal for his fire. He had a dog to keep him company although the dog looked very much over weight to me."keeps me safe" he said of the dog. "We are heading for Manchester next"

We went for a final walk around Llangollan before preparing for the "off" early the next day.

Llangollan Day 1

Woke to a warmish day with bright sunshine and blue sky. Went into the town bright and early for provisions. Most of the shop keepers here know the locals and seem to refer to them by name. Mrs Pugh, Mrs Hughes and Mrs Jones to name just three. Had a coffee and breakfast in a local cafe and visited a nice little green grocer who  had new Guernsey potatoes in which I couldn't resist.
 Met up with everyone for a trip on the restored steam railway to Carrog about 8 miles down the line.

 Carrog is a tiny Welsh station lying on the opposite banks of the River Dee to the village.

 The six of us had a short walk into the village and found the only public house, The Grouse Inn,  in the village where we had and a light meal. We got the train back but not before skimming some stones in the River Dee.

The steam railway trip was very pleasant with some nice views of the River Dee.
Had a cup of tea on the platform when we got back to Llangollan. Matt and Kerry and Emily and Chris left us and headed back home in Mat and Kerry's car.

Chirk to Llangollan (Friday 5th April)

Matthew and Kerry arrived about 0900 and Emily and Chris arrived off their train at 0945 so once assembled we set off on the final leg to Llangollan.

 First stretch pretty straight forward as we pulled away from Chirk. Lots of fallen trees in the canal there must have been significant storms in this area in recent weeks. Matt and Chris drove the boat which gave me a chance to try my arm at lifting a lift bridge; they are harder work than I thought! After the lift bridge at Froncysyllte, with Matthew driving, Stourbridge Lion ventured out onto the magnificent Poncycsyllte Aquaduct. (Pronounced something like Pont-cath-alty) Joanne and me stayed on the towpath to take some pictures.

 It really is quite a dizzying and disorientating experience as your mind has become accustomed over the previous week or so to seeing the boat in a very different setting and all of a sudden its travelling over 120 feet in the air with only a thin rail between the water and the tumbling river Dee below.

 Its equally dizzying for the walker on the towpath seeing this thin stream of water suspended in the air. We met a walker on the towpath who had come to visit as a result of Julia Bradbury’s canal walks TV programme. I waxed enthusiastically to him about the aquaduct and how the canal had only been saved as it had been used as a way of getting drinking water from the Welsh mountains to south Cheshire and Crewe. About halfway across a mother asked us if we could give her little girl a ride on the boat which we did.

At the other end of the aquaduct we called into the Anglo Welsh hire base to take on fuel, which required a particular difficult reverse manoeuvre,  then set off up the remaining arm of the Llangollan canal.

 The biting cold winds of the previous few days had dropped a little so it was a very enjoyable journey as the canal clings to the mountainside in many places only wide enough for one boat. Sausage cobs cwere served up to those on board  along with some Vermuelens Pork Pie from Ellesmere. This canal is very narrow in places as there is only just room for it between the mountainside and the valley below. Some sections require you to send someone ahead on foot as you cant see around the bends in the canal. Snow was still lying very heavy in Llangollen and many trees had fallen into the canal. It must have been some snow storm that hit this place. I had understood that mooring was always in demand in Llangollan and that there was a £12 charge per day but when we got there no one was around to collect the fees. I enquired at the wharf where a friendly guy who runs the horse boat there said "no one pays this time of the year. If I were you I would moor up and stay until Monday" So that is what we did.. Moored up at 1400 Wonderful view from the boats windows of the nearby mountains (see photo). 

Went out for a meal in the evening at The Corn mill in Llangollan. A three story building at the other side of the River Dee. Matthew booked us a table and we had a pleasant meal and drink.  Only Joanne and me are staying on trhe boat the others are in a nearby guest house. When we got back on the boat the stars looked bright in the clear Welsh air.

Ellesmere to Chirk

Woke to another bright day but still freezing outside. Left Ellesmere at about 0915 . Lots of traffic on the canal which slowed progress considerably. The heavy traffic on the canal was in contrast to the unpopulated tract of farmland we were traversing. Presently we came to a pl;ace called Frankton junction. This was where the Montgomery canal branches off on its 35 mile journey past the Breiden Hills through Welshpool and on to Newtown. Once a spectacular journey through delightful countryside. Sadly this highly scenic canal was abandoned by the LMS railway in 1939 but has slowly been coming back to life as various sections are restored.

The pace of restoration accelerated in the 1990s but two key sections still require work. Sadly one of the barriers to restoration is a rare type of Orchid which grows in the canal bed at one point. Paradoxically this Orchid was probably bought onto the canal the hull of boat in ages past. The conservation people are worried that full restoration would mean that passing boats propellers would destroy his plant. One possible solution if this section is restored is that all boats will be horse drawn through the affected section. Now that would be novel wouldnt it!
Two locks lift the canal to its final highest level at New Marton. And at New Maton wew encountered what felt like a hurricane.

Devoid of trees at this point the cold wind from the north east was blowing straight onto the side of the boat and across the lock.
With the vicious wind blowing across the lock at this point, boats were having trouble getting into the lock and even more trouble getting out. There had been several minor collisions between boats coming out of the lock and boats waiting to go in. It came to our turn so it was push the engine revs to maximum, making Stourbridge Lion shake, then hanging on as we cannoned out of the lock just touching a waiting hire boat. (It was fortunate it was a hire boat as the owner didnt care too much!) At the next lock a first time hirer asked if I had any advice as he had heard that things were bad at the next lock. "Just wind up the engine and hang on and hope it will be ok" I said. Which, with hindsight, probably wasnt very helpful at all. He carried on with a look of grim determination on his face.
We hit heavy snow lying on the sides of the canal approaching Chirk. Chirk aqueduct is quite a structure running parallel to the railway bridge over the Ceriog valley. It also marks the boundary between England and Wales.

 The aquduct is immediately followed by a tunnel about half a mile long. At the end of the tunnel we moored up as we are expecting our daughter,Emily, and boyfriend, Chris, to arrive by train at Chirk station, adjacent to our mooring, tomorrow and our eldest Matthew and his wife Kerry. They are coming for a ride over the spectacular Pontcysylte Aqueduct.
Tonight its Pasta, Carbonara sauce, extra bacon and mushrooms washed down with a glass of Savignon Blanc.

Whitchurch to Ellesmere

Good nights sleep in the warmth of the boat-fire burning all night at the moment.

No locks today just a few lift bridges and 5 hours cruising to the delightful Ellesmere (Not to be confused with Ellesmere Port) a small town near the Shropshire/Welsh border.

Merlin and the three of he knights of the round table passed our window at around eight o clock. I have no idea which knights they were.

Started reasonably warm and quite pleasant and the lack of leaves on the trees showed the extent of the earthworks associated with building this canal through this tumbling countryside. But as we turned away from Whitchurch the character of the canal changes as the canal enterers the deserted expanse of marshland known as Whixal Moss. There is nothing to be seen stretching each side of the boat for miles except the flat marsh. In this area the canal has been subject to a lot of subsidence over the years as it has sunk into the marsh. A consequence of this is that the canal is very deep and also very straight. It is also very straight being broken only by the occasional lift bridge carrying a track across the moss.The lift bridges were all done by Joanne.

 Presently the moss gives way to tumbling countryside again  and starts twisting and turning. Although no snow in this area a passing boater said "Llangollan is covered in snow with no sign of melting".

 Perishing cold around Bettisfield and the high embankment around Hampton Bank. After an hour or so things changed again as we moved into the Shropshire "Mere" " country sometimes known as the Shropshire lake district. The meres are left overs from melted ice from the last ice age which cant escape through rivers like a normal lake.

The canal cuts across the edge of Cole Mere and Blake Mere before plunging through Ellesmere Tunnel and into Ellesmere (not to be confused with Ellesmere Port near Liverpool which is a different place altogether and about 80 miles away). We had had a quite run up to this point with no locks today and just the occasional lift bridge. The waterway had been quiet but that was about to change. Lots of hire boats here with varying levels of skill from their drivers. We took on fresh water at the waterways workshop and did a reverse manoeuvre to get us back onto the Ellesmere arm which is a short branch canal off the main route.

We found a mooring at the end of the arm next to the town and adjacent to the old Shropshire Union wharehouse shown in the picture. A new Tesco has been built next to the canal here which was useful for taking on basic provisions. But Ellesmere is a quaint old town with old fashioned shops and no visit can be complete without visiting some of these outlets. I guess that these shops have survived as we are many miles from any other town or "retail park"

 And no shop can be more worth visiting than Vermeulen's pie and delicatessen  shop where the pork pies are still warm when you buy them. (see photo!).

 I went into a clothing shop and said "have you got a scarf" "Sold out last week" said the assistant, "do you still do Balaclava's" I ventured, "Sold out of THEM before Xmas" was the reply.
When I had left the boat to walk into the town went there were a couple of guys about 40 ish discussing planting out in the garden. When I returned after shopping 30 minutes later they were discussing the local (Ellesmere) football team. Somehow, at some level, I quite liked that.
So bought a Pork Pie but tonight its medalion steaks, onions, mushrooms, new potatoes peas and carrots cooked on board washed down with a bottle of Cotes Du Rhone. Only disturbed by "Crash, Bang" a hire boat attempting to turn at the end of the arm. They wern't doing anything wrong in the way they attempted it it was just that the wind had now got up and was playing havoc with their steering. I went out to help. Think they thought I was going to tell them off!

Nantwich to Grindley Brook (Whitchurch)

Very cold start to the day again today. Beginning to get quite a sore nose! Two miles down on from Nantwich sharp turn left at Hurleston Junction onto the Llangollan canal. Two boats in front of us so had to hang about with Stourbridge Lion in mid channel as not much space to get into the bank. Boat very tight fit in the locks and had to lift side fenders. Some boats intending to go to Llangollan dont get past these first locks as they are Very tight fit for S/Lion with only about an inch clearance.
The Llangollan canal has survived as it is used as a feeder for water from the Llangollan to feed the houses of Crewe not too far distant from where we are here at Hurleston Junction. This flow of water means that the weirs at the locks run fast making steering the boat into such tight locks quite a challenge and a number of scratches down the hull of the boat are inevitable.
 Nevertheless onto the Llangollan "proper" by 0900 but still a long way to go to destination. (44 miles from here (Hurleston) to Llangollan.
When we came this way on a hire boat in 1998 the lush fields in this part of the Cheshire plain were full of Fresian cattle. It is quite noticeable that a lot of this land has now been turned over to arable farming. I only saw three Fresian herds all day.
Towards Wrenbury the lift bridges peculiar to this canal start. Joanne did them and they are mostly lifted using a windlass to wind them up.

 The one at Wrenbury is crossed by a frequently used road so is equipped with flashing lights and gates like a railway level crossing all operated electrically from a line-side pillar by the boater.

Sun came out for the last couple of hours today. Moored up at 1645 after being helped through Grindley Brook staircase lock by the lock keeper there.  Nice mooring top of the lock in the company of several other boats. Views across the fields towards Wales of the sun going down.

19 locks  14 Miles

Market Drayton to Nantwich

Set off at 0900 down the easy to Operate Tyrley Flight of 5 locks. Half way down I had High Water Temperature alarm sound. A quick stop was called for while I topped up the radiator and repaired a minor leak on one of the radiator hoses. The work seemed to do the trick and we were on the way again in 15 minutes.  We didnt stop at Market Drayton Wharf in this direction but continued on into Betton Cutting There is supposed to be a ghost that haunts this section "having no language but a cry" we didnt see a ghost but did see a sunken boat. Was the driver "spooked" by the ghost causing him to crash!

 Yet another 5 locks at Alderley and we entered Cheshire. Bought a lemon Drizzle cake at the little stall at the top lock. Very nice with afternoon tea!

15 locks at Audlem appeared daunting on the map but on this bitterly cold day doing the locks was one way to keep warm. Joanne set the lock ahead of the boat and I drained it and opened the gates to let the boat out. A number of working boats were coming the other way following a show in Ellesemere Port.

 Towards the bottom near the "Shroppie Fly" public house we came to a stand as a working boat was unloading many bags of coal for the lock keeper there. We couldn't get past so Joanne went ahead to see what was what. The rather muscular woman on the boat said "Sorry your husband cant get the boat past" Joanne said "Thats alright make 'im wait"

At the bottom we passed a small hut selling sausages and chicken called "Georges Pork and Poultry" Inspired, Joanne went into the kitchen and made us welcome bacon sandwiches! the final two locks at Hack Green were passed without problem making today's tally 27 locks. With the exception of the one odd lock these Shropshire Union locks have been very easy. Unlike other locks on the system have their balance beams painted a distinctive grey colour.

We are now in Cheshire. Passed the site of a disused station with the rather odd, but quite contempory, name of Coole Pilot Halt. odd also to think that my dad used to travel this way in jst after the Great War when travelling from Stourbridge (Brettell Lane) to his mothers family in Manchester. Even colder from the bottom of Hack Green locks as the wind whistles over the Cheshire plain.
Pleased to moor up at 1645 in Nantwich on the embankment high above the roofs of the adjacent houses. Walked into nantwich on this Easter bank holiday Monday but not many places open so its Fish and Chips taken back to the boat for tea.

14 Miles and 27 Locks