Tixall Wide is a fantastic place, even when like this morning the sun isn't shining. We set off just before 8, having said our goodbyes to Jaq who came out to see us off. We went into the wider part of the Wide, where you can do a U-turn without any problem at all.
Then it was back to Haywood Junction and a left turn onto the Trent and Mersey, going north. Just beyond the first bridge we saw Marilyn and David, who'd moved for water early this morning and were waiting for their son to arrive.
The first couple of locks were empty so we could go straight in. They're all fairly deep up this stretch.
When we got to Bridge 82, I remembered that on a previous trip I had opted not to take a photo of the very decorative south side, thinking I'd get the other side after we'd gone through, so it didn't have the boat roof in the picture. It turned out the north side is not nearly as pretty. This time I got both.
Aston Lock marks the mid point of the Trent and Mersey, as marked by the mile post. We didn't come through Shardlow this trip, but we will be going through Preston Brook eventually.
It had been trying to rain on and off for a while, and the wind was getting up too. It was also rather chilly. We'd decided to stop in Stone where there's a convenient Co-op for the things we'd not got the other day, so took the first available space on the moorings below the first lock. It soon started raining properly, so we decided we'd probably stay put. We walked into town via the canal, did our bit of shopping, and came back through the main street, where virtually everything was closed. The rain has continued on and off, so I've finished writing a boat test and Adrian has been working on a project. After several very long days, it's been quite nice to have a shorter one.
10 miles, 4 locks. (104 miles, 46 locks)
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