Stoke on Trent / hairy Harecastle

Picked up Stu on this stretch; on the Trent and Mersey towards Stoke. His able willingness a great help, meant I could sit out locks for a bit! Nice to have his cheery company on board.

We travelled into Stoke and the potteries, lots of these buildings are very interesting but mostly derelict. Stoke is miserable, summed up by the fact that we had to use an anti vandal key to operate the locks. The canal is a rubbish dump with deep dark locks, some entered through bridges and tunnels so low even I had to duck down. We ended up mooring above the last lock, beside an industrial estate and going for a beer in a Toby Carvery pub, not a great night out! And then Pete had to get up at 4am to drag the boat as the strong wind was banging us against the side.

Set off in this wind on Sunday morning to Stu's song of "rise and shine, it's tunnel time! " through Telford's Harecastle tunnel. A spooky but exciting event, 40 minutes of pitch black, dripping ceilings that get ever lower the deeper you go. Unlike our friends who did it in record time ( cant say I blame them for wanting to get through quickly ) and consequently unwittingly crashed through the doors at the end, we followed another boat in and took exactly 40 minutes. The doors had been opened for our arrival, thank goodness.

We then turned onto the Macclesfield canal at Kidsgrove, deciding against 'heartbreak hill', a flight of 26 locks on the Trent and Mersey, still going North, now in Cheshire. Moored up for lunch in The Bleeding Wolf pub, Scholars Green and stayed put for the night.

The weather still hasn't picked up although it is a little milder. Will we ever see spring?!





Dark satanic mills!

Shugborough

Wednesday night moored beside the river Trent on the Trent and Mersey canal by the Shugborough estate. This is a really pretty stretch of canal and Shugborough house and grounds make for a lovely view. The dank weather and still bald trees give it all a sad greyness, albeit atmospheric with mists flattening the distant treescape. An owl was hooting all night too, just to add to it all. When is the weather going to improve?!

I was surprised to find that the house was the home of Patrick Lichfield - his family name having been Anson, who have owned the estate since the 1700s. I took a tour of his apartment (in one wing of this vast mansion) which was fascinating with lots of his photos on show and evidence of the partying that he hosted - help yourself bar areas and music systems (cassettes!) His London studio is replicated as well, with camera equipment that now looks so dated. Across the hall from this is the original 'ladies boudoir' from the 18th century which he occasionally used as a studio with elaborately painted ceiling and 200 year old 'damask' wallpaper. What a mixed world he inhabited.

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There is a young woman living in a tent on the bank by our mooring. Hard to tell how old she is - she has a weather beaten appearance. A fellow boater told us she is very nice and not to be worried by her, which we aren't. But you wonder how/why she lives like she does with 2 big dogs and a cat! Her pitch is very tidy and her washing was hanging to dry on a line between 2 trees, so we guess she is happy enough, but she must be so cold.

Even better than that.......

Strange what you find when taking the boat rubbish to the sanitation station - one man's cast off is a Sara's joy! Herb pot for the boat?

Hmmm, must get it planted soon because as the boat approaches, it looks like a sad old teddy bear on the bow - like those ghastly 'dead' toys that dustman tie to the bumpers of their dustcarts!!

Dad's old bike

Thanks to my father, we have the means to get to a shop for the odd pint of milk or wine that we may have run out of, without having to walk miles. He kindly donated his Brompton fold-up to us( presumably after checking with Mum that she didn't want to practice her wheelies on it still) which stores neatly behind my armchair in the evening. We daren't leave it on the back deck for fear of it being lifted - it being worth more than Dad's car was!! Great little piece of equipment, now we wouldn't be without it. Thanks Pa.

Moored just outside Polesworth this evening, before Tamworth. A peaceful mooring opposite Pooley Hall which I can't find any information on! Cyclists, families and dog walkers all strolling by, glad of a semblance of spring weather finally. Yesterday(Saturday) after an icy start, the sun came out and warmed our bones. And yipee that horrible biting wind has gone. We even managed to take off our top coats whilst travelling. A lazy day as there were no locks, 11 today however - Pete did them all as the only one I tried was far too heavy, good excuse to make him do all the hard work.

Interesting fact that since part of (or all of) British Waterways has been replaced by the Canal and River Trust, run by volunteers, the locks seem to be much better maintained, with mechanisms oiled and there have been volunteer lock keepers at some locks, which is really helpful. A thumbs up to CRT.

Some boats - out there

This boat fascinates me - called 'that 70s boat' - seen it before, would love to meet the owners!

........ Or would I?!

Ice and wind and lack of water

Woke up on Tuesday morning in the crooked house. Doors had swung shut that don't normally and the whole boat was on an angle. We'd moored between two locks, perfectly natural practice, but it seemed one was leaking, so through the night whilst locks were not being used the pound had lost water. Pete out at 6am in freezing cold filling it up again to get us afloat.

A horrible day's boating in a viscous wind which pushed me to the side every time we came to a lock and then I struggled to get off. 12 years of experience and I still get it wrong, push the nose out (if you can against the wind) and the stern bangs along the metal edging taking the newly done paintwork off in chunks! Pete is far better at it of course but we needed him to do the heavy lock gates.

Anyway, eventually moored up at Braunston Turn in sunshine albeit still freezing cold. Hot showers, hot dinner and another cosy evening put it all back into perspective.

Clothes

I have on
A vest
A long sleeve t shirt
A fleece jumper
A zipped fleece
An even thicker zipped fleece
A padded body warmer
A scarf
Leggings
Jeans
Socks
Walking boots
- I am an extra lumpy Michelin Man

There is an icy wind that still gets through this lot. Patches of snow in the fields, no buds or leaves to be seen, sodden towpaths.

Inside though it's thumbs up; fire is roaring, had a wonderful dinner on friend's boat last night, slept like logs in our cosy bed cabin (probably due to consumption of Jenny and Sid's entire wine store), woke up late, fire still in so no hurry to get cruising.

All this makes up for our miserable bloody weather.

Mooring at Marston Doles, Napton top lock this evening and trudging down to the pleasant Folly pub at the bottom lock for dinner and pint with J and S. Jolly nice.

Location:Napton