Floating about: Day 13

Fortunately the music from Creamfields had a relatively early finish, although it was also marked by fireworks.  This morning was dull and still, and we set off at 8.45.  There are some lovely wooded sections through Walton.

At Stockton Heath, there was a huge widebeam moored outside Thorne Marine.

A bit further on there were a couple of Bridgewater work boats moored on the offside.

After a couple of hours we reached Lymm, our planned destination.  It’s a popular spot but at it wasn’t yet 11 o’clock there were plenty of free moorings.  We decided we’d turn around, to save time tomorrow, so headed through the bridge, past the house where Sooty used to live.

We turned at the very first winding hole, after Lymm Cruising Club; if we’d had more time, we’d have gone further and had a look at the breach site, but we want to make sure we’re back at Middlewich in good time, and seeing our friends here was also more important.  Back at the village centre we picked a spot and moored up.  Of course the rings (as always) were poorly spaced.  Since then, the moorings have completely filled up.

We went for a little walk around the busy village centre, which is really pretty.

After lunch, we walked up to see our friends who live about 20 minutes walk away.  The route goes through a park which has a lovely wild flower strip along the path.

We had a lovely afternoon, including having a slice of birthday cake, as our friends’ daughter is 8 today.  It was gone 6 before we left, making the short walk back to the boat.

7 miles, 0 locks.  (63 miles, 14 locks)

North West Passage: Day 20

The wind eventually died down last night, and the dock was like a millpond when we untied at 7.30 and picked our way through the floating rubbish. Things look different going the other way, so we had better views of Old Trafford and the Trafford Road Bridge.

When we got to Pomona Lock the guys were already there with the lock open and ready for us. The lock is pretty deep at around 14 feet, but they brought us up very gently.

We turned right, heading south, retracing our steps of the other day through Stretford and Sale, and across the Mersey on an aqueduct. Just after Dunham Massey you cross from Greater Manchester in Cheshire. Soon afterwards we stopped at the water point to fill the tank and get a load of washing on. After that the countryside is pretty without being very dramatic.

We moored up just before Lloyd Bridge and walked into the village of Oughtrington where our friends Nicola and Alex now live. We met their new baby, Megan, and then Ewan came home from school. The village has converted its phone box into a book swap.

It was almost 5 by the time we returned to the boat, and did the short hop into Lymm. It was fairly busy, so we're moored on a bit of a bend on the wrong side for the main part of the village. We have friends coming to meet us later, and we'll go out for dinner.

13 miles, 1 lock. (227 miles, 132 locks)

Big Trip - Day 16

We had a lovely evening last night, with Alex and her 19 month old daughter, Emma.  We went to The Grill on New York Street, where the food was excellent, and Emma behaved impeccably.  Back at Alex's flat nearby, Emma had a good run around, then went to bed.

This morning, we were expecting the other two boats in the basin to leave early to go down the Rochdale 9-- given that they'd told us they would be, and that the previous day they'd set off for the Ashton locks at 6.45am.  When they were still there at approaching 8am, and we were pretty much ready to go, we decided to go for it.  It turned out that their guide book said the locks were locked until 9am; they must have an old book, because they aren't.

Getting out of the basin and turning onto the canal was tight, and I wouldn't want to have to do it in a longer boat.  Then there are a series of right angle turns, including under a building, to get onto the Rochdale Canal and head for the locks down to Castlefield.  We got onto the lock landing, and Adrian went to prepare the lock.

There was another boat there, and as we went into the lock the chap made it clear he wanted to come with us.  We were slightly dismayed that he was a single-hander, but in fact he was very eager to do his bit, winding paddles and opening and closing gates.  The second lock is deep under a building, and is pretty gloomy and undoubtedly the scene of nefarious goings-on.

We tended to use just one gate.  Many of the paddles have hydraulic gear that take lots of turns; some of the gates are opened and closed using a windlass-powered chain mechanism, as there isn't enough room for a full-length balance beam; and there was a lot of water coming down the flight, which meant getting a level sometimes took a while.

However, in spite of the difficulties, it's an enjoyable flight.  The canal passes through the gay village of Canal Street, past old industrial buildings and new offices, alongside bars and cafes.

Having got to the top lock at 8am, we finished the flight at 10.30.  Our locking partner said we'd probably saved him a good couple of hours.

We went over to the water point and filled the tank while starting a wash load.  Then we had the lock-free Bridgewater Canal ahead of us.  We'd done the locks in the dry, but by now the rain was starting.  It was never particularly heavy, though, and wasn't nearly as bad as the forecast.  The canal passes next to Old Trafford and a container terminal, before reaching the junction at Water's Meeting, where we turned left on the main line.

There's a very long straight section through Sale, much of it lined with boats at the Sale Cruising Club.  The town has quite an attractive waterfront, with a pub one side and an arts centre on the other.

There's a mix of new and old buildings, including a linotype works, which looks in need of some work.

We stopped in Lymm, and just managed to tuck onto the end of the moorings, by tying the bow rope round the fence.  We went into the rather nice litte town for shopping (the Spar has turned into a Sainsbury's Local, and there's a good butcher, a Post Office, and lots of other shops).  There's a lake in the centre, which looked good even in the rain.

The rain has now started hard, so we're staying put.  We're also keeping an eye on the longer term forecast for Monday, when we're meant to be doing the Manchester Ship Canal.  At the moment, it looks as though it might be too windy -- but there's still time for things to change.

14 miles, 9 locks.  (185 miles, 116 locks)