Three Men and One Woman in a Boat Part 1
2nd September, 2000
3rd September, 2000
4th September, 2000
5th September, 2000
6th September, 2000
7th September, 2000
8th September, 2000
Saturday, 2nd September, 2000
ell, here we are, relaxing on board the NB Beth, after our first few rather nerve-wracking hours on the Llangollen Canal.
Chirk Marina, Chirk, Wales
e reached Bristol early and got rid of the car with no hassles. Our reserved seats were being sat in, unfortunately, by a rather moronic specimen of the travelling public and his son. After several people got in and had hassles finding their correct places because of others moving into them, he finally asked the conductor where he should be sitting - only 2 cars down! Still, we just made our connection at Birmingham New Street, and caught a sprinter to Chirk. Chirk is an unattended station, no office or anything. We found a cab company's card in a phone box, called him and he came and took us to the Chirk Marina.
Interior of NB Beth, from the Saloon
e were an hour or so early, so had lunch at the golf club on site, then we joined our boat. The Beth is very nice, extremely compact. and has a surprising amount of storage space. We collected the groceries they had bought for us, and had a lesson in boat procedures.
We went ashore to get a couple more things from the shop while Mac was fitted for a life jacket and then the rat took off without us! Geoff and I had to hail him, and the rep who was showing him how to drive had to come back for us.
Starting Off from Chirk on the Llangollen Canal
t seems to be a bit more difficult to steer than we expected - I haven't tried yet, but Mac and Geoff have, banging into the side of the bank and going aground once. It is very shallow at the edges.
Aqueduct and Viaduct, Chirk, Wales
he first thing we came to was Chirk Aqueduct and Tunnel, with one boat coming through the tunnel and one waiting to go through. So we pulled in behind it and waited while two or three boats came through the other way. Then we followed the other boat, which seemed to be private and they knew what they were doing. Beth seems to be a bit big for three people to manage. Locks are a treat in store! Not looking forward to it. We are all exhausted after the 5 a.m. start this morning and Geoff's and my coughs and sore throats are as bad as ever.
Sunday 3rd September, 2000
p reasonably early on a lovely clear day, it rained during the night but it's beautiful today. After breakfast and showers, (the shower cubicle is about the size of the one at the Guest House at Lyme Regis, and much better than on the Indian Pacific) we headed down the canal. It was lovely, leafy and rural and sunny, not too much traffic. Everyone we saw said "Good morning", dog walkers on the towpath and other boaters. We went under lots of bridges and managed to hit both banks with monotonous regularity. We had to pole ourselves off a couple of times.
Our First Lock, Marton Top Lock
hen we reached our first lock - luckily it is only a small one. A boat coming up left it open for us. I had to chase our boat down the canal because I couldn't get back on but they moored downstream and I caught them up.
Marton Bottom Lock
alf a mile downstream was the bottom lock, which did not seem a drama. It was very restful, except for driving, which is a lot more difficult than it looks.
e fed lots of ducks and a couple of swans, and saw no less than four dead rabbits in the water. They must try to hop over it or something. We also saw squirrels and lots of unidentified birds, and sheep, cattle and horses.
Ellesmere Canal Junction
t about 3.30 we came into the little canal town of Ellesmere. We didn't go into the canal basin itself but stopped on the towpath before the junction.
Ellesmere Canal Basin
e walked into the town and did some necessary shopping and had a really delicious cream tea (the scones were nearly as good as mine). We bought a couple of cheap CD's as we have a CD player, but Geoff only brought his mini discs and player.
Ellesmere Canal Junction
Colemere, Shropshire Lakes District
e turned towards Hurlstone and went on through the lovely Shropshire meres (lakes) and moored for the night between Bridge 52 and Lyneal Wharf.
Monday 4th September, 2000
Lift Bridge, near Grindley Brook
nother interesting day. We encountered our first lift bridges, our first staircase lock, very strenuous, especially for Geoff and me. We did the locks between us while Mac drove the boat (and kept it steady in the locks) and I did the lift bridges myself! It involved a windlass and ratchet and the first one I had to wait for the postman to cross (road users have right of way) and the second and third I held up for three other boats.
One of Many Canal Bridges
e have all been a bit sick, so far. Geoff and I have had sore throats and chesty coughs, while Mac seemed to contract it yesterday, as well as bumping his head on a low bridge. He is feeling better today and, hopefully, so are we all.
Canal Wildlife
ur wildlife sightings are varied, ducks, geese, herons, swans, moorfowl and two vivid blue kingfishers. Also gypsies and hippies seem to have taken to boats to live an itinerant lifestyle where they don't keep getting moved on.
e reached Grindley Brook staircase lock at about lunchtime, so had lunch and filled up with water while waiting for the lock queue to shorten. As it happened, once we had done that and some shopping, the queue had vanished, so we were free to learn about the locks without impatient spectators. There were three locks in the staircase and then another three separate ones. I had been feeling quite good yesterday, but after that and four others I am beginning to get sore again.
omorrow there will be more, heigh ho!
Tuesday, 5th September, 2000
Automated Lift Bridge, Wrenbury Mill
ell, I spoke too soon (about the good weather) as usual.
It rained most of the night, and into the morning while we tooled on to Wrenbury Mill. Wrenbury has an electrically operated lift bridge, which has red lights to stop traffic on what is obviously a well used road. We moored to investigate it and went on into the village to shop and post cards.
t looked to be clearing as we went on.
Canal Scene on the Shroppie
t 2.30, after having lunch in shifts, we reached Hurlstone Junction, a flight of four locks, leading to the junction of the Llangollen and Shropshire Union Canals. It took us an hour to get through, then we headed off down the Shroppie towards Chester. We passed through Barbridge, another junction, which had incredible numbers of boats moored on both sides of the canal. Apparently there are two good and popular pubs here and people would "rather booze than snooze" as the Canal Companion notes, because they also have a very busy and noisy major road here. Personally, I prefer solitude to pubs and main roads.
t this stage I will record that I am a little concerned about the boat. It seems to me that it has a slight list to the left and, while waiting for the top lock at Hurlstone, we noticed a large stain of diesel around the bow. I sincerely hope there is nothing wrong.
e passed the Beeston Stone Lock, very picturesque, with a tiny round lock cottage beside it and went on to Beeston Iron Lock. Some of those gates are very heavy. Luckily the weather cleared up and it has been lovely this afternoon. We moored on a very overgrown part of the towpath and settled down for the night. We are close (as the crow flies) to Beeston Castle, and I think I saw it on the horizon before the trees closed in.
Wednesday, 6th September, 2000
Geoff Steering in Wet Weather Gear, our First Bad Day
t rained again last night and this morning started out wet and wild. A very strong wind pushing the boat about and very cold as well. At least it seems to be breaking the clouds up a bit as well. Some patches of blue sky. We passed Beeston Castle ruins, proud on the skyline, and while at the next lock, paused to photograph it. It is a bit far away though. Chester is 14 K's away. I hope we can find a waterpoint before Chester or we will have to go down a staircase lock at Chester and back up it again afterwards, a right pain.
oday Geoff had his best shot of falling into the canal. Twice! First, he was helping some people down the lock, and their boat caught on the side of the lock, having to be dislodged rather roughly, losing their lifering into the lock. It drifted behind the gate and had to be retrieved or the gates wouldn't close. So Geoff lay full length with a boat hook to retrieve it for them. My heart was in my mouth because it was a very deep lock.
ater the wild wind blew his cap off into the canal and took quite a bit of retrieval. But still, he stayed dry. I hate to think what he might swallow in the canal, but it is so shallow in parts that even the ducks look as if they are only ankle deep. Lots of mud, though.
Yet Another Canal Bridge
The Rows, Bridge Street, Chester
e locked down into Chester by about 4 o'clock, and moored in the city just outside the walls, within easy reach of the Slow Boat Chinese Restaurant. We went for a walk, did some shopping, and looked for a laundromat, not easy to find.
hen we had a lovely spicy meal at the Slow Boat, courtesy of Geoff, and staggered back to the boat. I am beginning to understand the T-Shirt for sale at Chirk, which said, "Knackered - Sod Locking"!!!
Thursday, 7th September, 2000
Chester Cathedral from the Walls
hester! Mac and I took the dirty laundry and walked out to find the laundrette, which proved to be where the girl in Tesco's (where we had made enquiries last night) said it was. We got two small loads washed and dried and returned to the boat. Geoff, meanwhile, went out to find some batteries for his organiser and mini discs etc, finding what he wanted.
hen we walked around a short area of the walls, where we encountered an artist selling his pictures of Chester. I bought a small black and white sketch of the EastGate, signed by the artist, for seven pounds. He is very good.
ac is not feeling well, again, and has nearly lost his voice. So we cut the tour short and went to Burger King for lunch, before heading back to the boat; we turned around in the turning circle and headed back out of Chester. Five deep and heavy locks! Going up!! We are hoping to make Beeston Castle tonight but we are having to crawl a lot of the way past 107 moored boats (we counted them) at Barbridge. It is like a Boatyard or Ship's Graveyard or something, on and on and on.
Canal Not So Wildlife
e moored in a fairly nice stretch just before Beeston. As I was getting dinner ready a boat came by, whose dog was exercising on the towpath. It leapt onto our boat and raced through and out the back with its owner alternately apologising to us and yelling at it. The owner said the dog collected teddy bears and often stole them from other boats.
uring the locking out of Chester we shared two locks with another boat, which shared the work and time, which was good. We passed their mooring later as we were looking for ours.
ac is looking and sounding sicker every day. Geoff and I have coughs but Mac looks as though he has a temperature and he is very hoarse.
Friday, 8th September, 2000
At the Pie Shop, Beeston Stone Lock
ack up the Shroppie we went, stopping at the Beeston Stone Lock Cottage Shop for fresh made pies for morning tea. He had things like chicken and leek and meat and potato as well as cheese and onion and various fruit pies and sausage rolls. Geoff had two pies, Mac had one and I had a sausage roll.
Lengthsmans Hut, Beeston Stone Lock
t the Beeston Stone Lock is one of the funny little cylindrical buildings I noticed on the way down. I asked the pie man what it was and was told it was a "Lengthsman's Hut" Lengthsmen looked after the stretches between the locks and they kept their tools and their lunches and a brazier for bad weather in these huts.
t the lock we met a boat called "Wombat", which we had seen several times before. It is owned by an Australian whose partner is a New Zealander. It was being crewed by friends and relatives on a three months peregrination along several canals before heading back to Chester to lay up for the winter. I noticed they had a sign "Lock keys for sale - 2 - 3 pounds" and the NZ lady said that the kids fished for them in the locks with a magnet on a string, cleaned them up and sold them. Like "finding" golf balls and selling them back to golfers. I loved it!!
e went up Bunbury staircase lock and continued on. I am afraid the Shroppie is much more industrial than the Llangollen, and less scenically attractive. The contrast was startling between our slow ambling and the whizzing trains on the track just beyond the towpath and the jets in the sky. We have seen just about everything in the sky, from military jets and helicopters, to small planes, motorised hang gliders, hot air balloons and kites!
he wildlife is quite surprising though, squirrels and rabbits twitch and chitter, swan families perform ballet suites, and a surprising number of grey herons are fishing. It must mean the water is cleaner than it looks. It has a lot of mud in it but the herons' presence was used as a criterion for the Thames regeneration because it meant the water was clean enough for fish. We have also seen lots of fishermen but the fish they catch are sardine sized.
Yet Another Canal Bridge
e are back on the Llangollen now, having come up the four locks at Hurlstone Junction in record time, thanks to boats coming down all the way and leaving the gates for us. Just passing Bridge No. 1. Everything is very much narrower on the Llangollen. The Shroppie's locks took two boats at a time. We are continuing on to make as much time as possible today and tomorrow before picking up Neil at (possibly) Whitchurch on Sunday.
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