Chester draws us: Day 9

A nice sunny morning and at last the wind had dropped.  As we were moored pretty much next to Tesco, we went for shopping for the next few days.  Once all that was stowed, we set off at about 10am, passing the same landmarks we saw on the way in.

At the first lock, Hooke Lane, a boat was coming down and seemed to take ages.  Adrian was up at the lock and said it kept getting stuck on an underwater ledge on the offside.  We eventually went into the lock, but then waited because I’d spotted a boat coming.  It was a single-hander who’d been moored near us last night. In some ways it makes it easier having two boats in the lock, because the water is quite turbulent and one boat gets knocked all over the place.

There was another wait at the third lock as a boat was coming down.  Then at the final lock, Christleton, Adrian spotted a bucket of bouquets of flowers by the fence, with a sign saying they were left over from a wedding, a little past their best but still cute, and to help yourself.  So he took one and so did our lock companion.

We wanted water at Christleton but there was a boat already there.  It was a hire boat crewed by people dressed an oompa-loompas who were not getting water but having a coffee while they decided whether to go down to Chester or turn round and head back.  They decided to reverse through the bridge and turn.  We started filling the tank, got some washing going, and had lunch.

The next stretch is lock free, but after Waverton we had the mile of moored boats to go past.  At the midpoint is a bridge, and you get views of the Peckforton hills.

It took just over 35 minutes to pass all the boats.  Some of them have sheds or summerhouses, and I liked the one with a retro library of videos and DVDs, and room for just one chair.  The final one has a mannequin fishing and a bus stop on their antenna pole.

We moored up on some piling just past Tattenhall Marina, and have resisted walking to the ice cream farm nearby.

7 miles, 5 locks.  (23 miles, 16 locks)

Chester draws us: Day 8

Another very windy day, but we’d already decided we were staying out and having a day out instead.  We booked our tickets online and then walked along to Chester Station, bound for Rhyl — as we fancied a look at the sea.  For the way there we caught a delayed Avanti train, and it was one of the new Evero trains that can switch between diesel and electric.  The journey takes about half an hour, and most of it is along the coast.  Rhyl itself turned out to be less than inspiring as a town, but we saw the Marine Lake and the UK’s oldest miniature railway before heading to the sea front.  The wind was creating white-topped waves.

A lot of work is going on so parts of the sea front were closed.  We eventually found a cafe and went in for tea, glad to be out of the strong wind for a while.  From there, we could see kite surfers enjoying the conditions, some of them better than others, and a few who could get well airborne.  From there we walked along the coast path towards Prestatyn.  Fortunately the wind was at our backs, but even so the backs of our legs were being grit blasted by the sand being blown about.

We saw a sign for a cafe so went for lunch at what turned out to be an indoor bowls centre.  Then we resumed our walk along the beach, although for this section there was no sea wall to offer any protection, so the blowing sand was even worse.  It filled our pockets, and we even found our boots were full of sand.

The

sea gulls were able to use the wind to hover quite low to the ground.

When we got to the car parks and beach cafes we turned inland to Prestatyn station and caught a train back to Chester, this time a Transport for Wales that was heading for Manchester Airport.  We have walked a long way today, and all of it in very strong winds; bracing doesn’t really do it justice.

0 miles, 0 locks.  (16 miles, 11 locks)

Chester draws us: Day 7

There was rain in the night, but by the time we headed out at about 10 it was dry, if dull.  We walked up to see my dad, who lives about 50 minutes walk from where we’re moored.   On the way back we decided to walk a different route, and it decided that was the time to absolutely chuck it down with rain.  We were pretty soaked in just a few minutes.  Of course only a little while later the sky had cleared and it was sunny.  We walked back through the city centre, covering some streets we didn’t do yesterday.  The town hall is a very impressive building.

This afternoon has been sunny, but very windy.  The boat has been buffeted about on the moorings.  I wouldn’t want to be out in it, but a few hardy boaters have been past, usually then turning at the winding hole and returning.  Again the wind is in the right direction for turning here.

From where we’re moored, we can hear the Cathedral clock striking each hour.  Yesterday evening we walked down to the CRT rubbish compound by the locks (the bins were full and overflowing unfortunately) and walked back along the walls past the Cathedral.  It has an unusual separate bell tower, built in the 1970s.

0 miles, 0 locks.  (16 miles, 11 locks)

Goodbye Canal Boat, hello Waterways World

The September issue of Canal Boat is out, and includes the second part of my review of Crick Boat Show boats.  The initial double page uses one of Andy’s stunning overhead drone shots.

This will be the last of my pieces for CB; it’s not practical to do boat tests which can be all over the country, now that we’re living on the boat.  It’s the end of more than fifteen years of contributing to the magazine.

But I will still be writing, and I’m pleased to say the new issue of Waterways World includes two of my pieces.  One is about the walk we did along the Caldon Canal feeder to Rudyard Lake, and the other is 24 Hours in Beeston.

Hopefully there will be more, inspired by the places we visit on the cut.

Chester draws us: Day 6

After a lovely few days in Christleton it was time to move on, but the forecast for today had consistently suggested we’d get very wet.  It had rained in the night, but was dry when we set off at about 9; we initially didn’t go far, just through a couple of bridges to the water point, where we filled the tank and started some washing.  Adrian then walked on to Christleton lock, while I brought the boat.  Over the course of the next few locks there was the odd shower, but the rain was seldom very hard.  By the time we were at Chemistry Lock, some of the Chester landmarks, like the water tower come into view.  Below the lock there’s a nice row of cottages on the offside.

Hoole Lane Lock was the last one we were doing, and after that there’s the lead works tower, now surrounded by flats built to look like warehouses.  The tower was used to make lead shot: molten lead was poured through a sieve at the top, and by the time it reached the bottom it had formed little balls.

A bit further along, one of the bridges has s spitfire sculpture.  We’re not sure why it’s there, and it has only one wing and no propeller, but I suppose it’s a talking point.

By now the wind was really strong.  We’d decided we’d moor along here rather than going down the staircase locks, so we turned immediately before Cow Lane Bridge.  Fortunately, for once the wind was in the right direction and whipped the bow round in no time.  There were a couple of spaces on the moorings, but neither was long enough, so we pulled into one and asked the boat in front if they could move along a little.  They were happy to do so, and we were soon tied up.

After lunch, we went to the big Tesco that’s right here, stocking up with some store cupboard items as it’s not far to carry everything.  Then as the sun was now out we went for a walk through town.  We’ve been to Chester a few times as my dad lives here, so we kind of know where we’re going.  It’s a very attractive city centre, with lots of black and white buildings, the two-level shops, and the clock.  The cathedral bells were also ringing.

On the far side of town, it was clear something was going on at the racecourse.  It turned out to be a family fun day meeting, so we walked along the road where you can see across the course, although we couldn’t be bothered to wait to see a race.

We walked along the walls until we got to the corner nearest the basin, where we went down some steps onto the towpath.  It’s just as well we didn’t come down, as all the moorings were full.

Then we walked back round the corner past the Northgate Staircase Locks, three really big locks all together, and then along the towpath where it goes through a cutting below the city walls.

The wind has dropped a bit now, but tomorrow is meant to be both wet and windy.

2 miles, 5 locks.  (16 miles, 11 locks)

Chester draws us: Day 5

A nice sunny day, although. Bit chilly to start.  We walked down to Sainsbury’s again, mostly to get a copy of The Times, because it contained the print version of a review of my podcast.  It’s always nice to see pieces in the flesh.

Going there meant we also got a fair number of steps in.  We were meeting my sister and family for lunch in Christleton, so walked up to the village and found our table at the Ring O’ Bells.  My brother-in-law’s mother is in a care home across the road, so they’d been to see her first.  We had a really nice lunch — definitely recommended — then had a little walk round the village.  There’s a green with a pump, and a bit further along there is a pond called the Pit, with almshouses overlooking it.

We wandered back to the boat and had tea.  The family had brought with them a couple of parcels I’d had delivered to their house, including a much needed new pair of boots.

0 miles, 0 locks.  (14 miles, 6 locks)

Chester draws us: Day 4

As we arrived here yesterday rather than today, and we don’t really want to be in the centre of Chester on a Friday or Saturday night, we had a non-moving day.  It was showery first thing and the temperature is nothing like August.  We needed a top up shop, so walked along the canal to Greenfield Lock, then onto the main road and down to Sainsbury’s.  It’s a fair walk, so we had to bear in mind that we had to carry everything a mile back again.

I spent the rest of the morning working on an article, and this afternoon Adrian has had more interviews to conduct.  When they were over we walked into Christleton village, which is rather pretty.

The latest episode of my podcast, The Water Road, is out today, and it’s pleasing to see that each episode takes off quicker than the previous one.  This one is about Beeston (the Nottinghamshire one, not the Cheshire one).  Available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and loads of smaller platforms including Pocket Casts.

0 miles, 0 locks.  (14 miles, 6 locks)