Here n there

Do we go here?  Or over there?  We went there, but ended up here!

We planned a trip south by taxi and train.  To say good by to a friend and neighbour there.

We saw our empty bungalow there and saw what our tenants left behind!  Is there no respect!

We are back here and moved up there on the Anderton Lift.  Side by side with Seyella.

Thanks Geoff for this pic of us.

Back on the Trent n Mersey and on to there.  We are now here, near Middlewich.

Our Anniversary spent there on Seyella with Margaret and Geoff the chef.  Roast beef and yorkshire pudding followed by Jam roll polly with custard or cream.  Then we watched the F1 racing here in England.

Anderton Lift

We followed Seyella down to the river Weaver. Geoff and another boat went first.

 In the lift at the top.

 On the way down.

 At the bottom.

 The 'Cathedral'.

Our mooring on the river Weaver.

Ann's computer

Ann got her refurbished Del Latitude D620 from Portable Universe at Milton Keynes by going on the internet.  When it arrived she discovered that the keys did not display what was printed on them.

A complaint to the supplier was ignored.  Our credit card statement indicated that the payment went to Easy IT at Bracknell.  A complaint was sent to them suggesting a claim for the money back.

Soon after that was sent I got a call from 'Harry' at Remarketing IT.  (How many more companies are involved?)  'Harry' asked what was on the 2 key.  When I told him he said that it was an American keyboard!  We agreed to send the computer back.

It was boxed up and sent by Interlnk Express.  Two days later I got a call from 'Harry'.  The keyboard has been changed, the battery was faulty and replaced and some adjustments were made to the mouse pad operation.

Interlink Express returned the computer in good order.

Timing tunnels

We left our mooring at half past the hour with an hour to get to Saltersford tunnel. Only three miles and we got there on time to go through. 

Several boats had come through on their time slot so we went on in to the darkness. A one way 424 yard small hole in the hillside.

Our bimini had been put down to avoid contact with the rocks and brick. There were more bends in the tunnel than the one at Braunston and being only one way proved more difficult to navigate.

The next tunnel at Barnton was longer but at least you can see through it. That one is not timed so we sounded the horn on the way through.

Is this another breach about to happen here?

The breach

It happened between Dutton and Anderton. The high bank fell away and the water escaped down the hill. The canal was closed for a while. 

The trees were lost so the gap provides a spectacular view.

A huge amount of rock replaced the sandy bank.

The towpath is just gravel and concrete but at least there are some rings to tie to.

The other side of the canal bank has also had a makeover.

We are enjoying another summer weekend now on the Trent n Mersey.

Sunshine days

Seyella and M2L were moored at Dunham but facing in different directions! I had turned ready to fetch Ann from Sale.

 Geoff and I with both dogs went off to see the deer near Dunham Massey Hall. A wonderful chance to get close and almost personal with not so wild animals. 

Geoff and Margaret joined me for the trip. Ann got a Metro Tram from Piccadilly to Timperley. Then we travelled back. Ann was looking pretty with her short hair cut and summer clothes. Molly was as pleased as I to see her back on board.

Seems Ann has bought the sunshine with her, loads of post and extra technology.

We now have a WiFi dongle for our Panasonic FreeView Recorder. It promises to connect the TV direct to the Internet. Well it does work up to a point. It does not have a full browser but can link to a selection of websites. Looking at some movies from YouTube proved that our 3G connection is not fast enough.

Ann is trying to use her reconditioned Del Lattitude D620 laptop. It came with MS Windows XP but the software does not match well with the keyboard. What you see on the key is not what you get on the screen. In particular some of the Shift characters. It is enough to put off a reluctant user.

On a very sunny Monday friends sat outside Moore 2 Life.

There was John and Rosemarie from Devon Maid, Geoff and Margaret from Seyella. 

Moving out

Ann went off on the tram to catch a train from Piccadilly.  The same Cross Country train that we often get from Stafford or Banbury to Southampton.

Geoff and I moved our boats away from Castle Quay after taking on water.  I then endured a damp trip on my own of about fifteen miles.  Thankful that our Bimini could stay up to keep me dry!

I stopped opposite Dunham Massey Hall with a view of the gardens and a green tree lined tow path.

Back to Manchester

Oh what a windy day it was. We left the Trafford centre, headed down to Waters Meeting and turned left to head for Manchester.

It was a wonder that things stayed on the roof. As it was our aerial nearly took of. Another boater had to stop to remove his plant pots that had nearly gone overboard.

The trees and factory buildings provided some shelter from the cross wind but where there were gaps the boat changed direction and at times leaned over alarmingly!

Moments before arriving at Castle Quay, Geoff rang to say we should turn left under the railway arch. He had gone right to find all the moorings taken!

As it was we went along side Seyella when Geoff arrived near the Museum of Science and Industry.

There are so many boats here obviously overstaying their welcome but there are no wardens to control the situation.

Geoff has seen NB Pilgrim and invited Malcolm and Barbara for meeting on board Seyella. 

The boat turned

While we are travelling with Seyella, Geoff's blog would have kept you all up to date with our travels and problems! 

 

We got as far as joining the Leeds and Liverpool canal near Plank Lane and the Pennington Flash. Now we head back to Manchester so that Ann can catch the train south to visit family being a long way from home.

There are plenty of places to stop on the Bridgewater canal with its well kept tow paths. Even the off side can be used as here at Boothstown. 

Technology ?

Did you know that Google Reader is to stop working soon?  I cannot add or change the subscriptions now.  Checking the latest unread blogs is what we do on our smart phone and we shall miss Reader.

There are alternative RSS feeders for that is what Reader was.  I have tried 'Feedly' on the computer and it enabled me to add and edit my existing subscriptions.  'Freedly' also has an app for Android but it did not work for me.  It just crashed.

Any body know of another to be recommended?

Now 'Smart' TV's are not so smart.  They can display internet pages but they do not have a full browser!

Just a splendid way to the shops

We moved up the Bridgewater canal a few miles north of Manchester.  There were some wonderful moorings with rings to tie to and a 'shopping centre' to explore nearby.  The tow path was excellent.

 This was the way in across the road!

This is the way to live.  Such splendour up north.  The shops were busy taking our money and everybody else's.

No cut backs up here!

All down hill to Manchester

From our mooring near the Marple bottom lock it was only 6 miles to Dukinfield Junction. Geoff had warned us about the low bridges so we put down our Bimini.

The majority of the Lower Peak Forest canal is tree lined and pleasant in the sunshine. After the Marple locks it was good to travel the long pound.

We squeezed under the low bridges and pushed through the dark tunnels.

Just one bridge to lift before our mooring for the night.

At Dukinfield Junction the Huddersfield narrow canal heads east while the Ashton canal heads west. Both canals were abandoned and left to rot when commercial traffic failed. The Ashton was reopened in 1974 and the Huddersfield in 2001. Both canals have proved to be a struggle to navigate ever since.

Now we face up to the trip down to Manchester and an early start on the Ashton canal with its eighteen locks.

The first two miles are tree lined and flat to the top lock where we topped up our water tank.

Geoff and Margaret in Seyella led the way down setting locks for us to follow. All the lock gear are vandal proof locked so they take longer to operate.

Because the canal had been abandoned many new road and rail bridges were built lower than the original canal bridges. It is a wonder that boats were able to navigate when it was reopened.

Beswick locks

It had been a cold windy day that made the seven hour trip almost too hard to complete.

The last bridge on the Ashton canal.

We finally arrived at the bottom and joined Seyela on the Rochdale canal at Picadilly above lock 84.

Ann went up to lock 83 to find the pound above it dry!

Next day when it stopped raining we moved down the Rochdale nine locks. Locks 84 to 92 pass through the city centre and we see many buildings covering and enclosing the canal.

The canal age was built of stone while the Victorians used red brick. Now we use metal, glass and concrete. The contrast could not be greater and they do not mix well in this city.

Lock 92, the bottom of the Rochdale 9.

We came down together in those wide locks and found a mooring in Castle Quay on the Bridgewater canal.

Going down the locks

We have got back to Marple and turned on the Peak Forest canal. Found some deep moorings on a bend for the long weekend.

The diesel boat Alton came by and filled our diesel tank again. Having got rid of our unwanted and filled the water tank at the junction we were all set for our decent of the Marple locks.


We went first followed by Seyella. It was a lovely sunny day as we went down 214 feet in a mile through 16 locks.

We were lucky to have several volunteers helping our two boats down with several coming up as well. 

Seyella arriving at the bottom.

At the bottom we found a quiet spot opposite a field of sheep n lambs just past the aqueduct.

Self Indulgence

We are just enjoying not doing much but reading, listening to music and not moving very far. We go for occasional walks and shopping. Geoff had hired a car and kindly offered to take us to Tesco in Macclesfield.

I am still trying to finish editing our book while discovering and converting home movies, sorting pictures and watching TV.

The news has just got so booring. There must be something else to report other than the activities of naughty old men. We seem to pay too much attention to what celebrities get up to.

The world of finance is more interesting. (If only we could get more Interest!). Money is just a concept and goes round and round. But if we do not trust it, the concept will fail. I thought that the welfare state and taxation was supposed to level off the highs and lows.

We seem to value housing too highly then cannot pay for it. Is that where the money has gone? How much does housing actually cost to build? We live on a boat and value it highly but we only paid for its cost.

Never mind the view, feel the depth

We have moved away from Whaley Bridge on the Upper Peak Forest canal and turned off on to the Macclesfield. We had stopped near New Mills for the view before leaving.

Passing other boats seem to encourage the bottom of the boat and canal to meet each other!

It has been slow going with several bridges to lift and swing on the way. Some difficulty stopping to get off to operate the bridges with the shallow edges. The mud seems to suck the boat back to the side what ever you do with the prop and rudder!

A shallow mooring near Hawk Green

Perhaps we should encourage C&RT to do a lot more dredging and repair of both sides of the canal system. It has been five years since we have been up on the Macclesfield and Peak Forest and have noticed much deterioation.

Back to Bugsworth

Oh that canal Basin is so attractive we just had to get there one more time.  So quiet now, but back in the 1900s it was very industrious and noisy.  Gritstone and Limestone quarries were up in the hills and being transported in wagons down a tramway to be processed.  Coal was bought in and the products taken away by narrowboat on the Peak Forest Canal.

We found Rock n Roll round the back near the lime kilns so turned round and moored nearby.  Then we went for a walk round to find Seyella had arrived for another weekend.

Later that evening Alton arrived and filled all our diesel tanks.

Geoff had placed an order with Tesco and when it arrived we moved alongside to pass the goodies through our side hatches.

Hanging around

We moved out of Bugsworth Basin and stopped just past Carr swing bridge. The mooring was a bit shallow and the boat often leaned over on the mud when a boat passed.

It is worth staying a while to admire the view among the hills of the Peak Forest.

The occupants of Seyella, Rock n Roll and Moore 2 Life spent time together climbing up hills and down in the Goyt valley. Perhaps needless to say I did not manage the hills! Roads cross the River Goyt on huge stone viaducts.

The river flows over its rocky bed and a number of dams create waterfalls where the old mills extracted the power.

The mills have gone now and the power is used to generates electricity. An Archimedes Screw is mounted in a trough with water flowing down, turning the screw slowly. There is plenty of water flowing over the dam but no power was being generated when we saw it.

Marple Locks

Our friends moved back to Whaley Bridge while we set off for Marple. Ann to collect train tickets and me to get medication. While there we had fish n chips sitting outside the shop in sunshine. We returned to the moorings just before Carr swing bridge. We arrived at about five o'clock having travelled for nearly six hours that day.

Rings, rocks and moorings

Many moorings on the Macclesfield canal looked inviting but there was usually too much mud preventing the rear end from getting near the bank. There were a few spaces at the visitor moorings in Marple for Rock n Roll and M 2 L. For once the boats were in deeper water and tied to rings.

We found some good shops down the hill at Marple. Having done the shopping we all enjoyed refreshments from Greggs the baker while sitting on a street seat and watching the traffic!

Back at the boats we set off to turn right at the junction of the Peak Forest canal.

It is many years since we were here and it is sad to see the visitor moorings in such a state with those rocks in the water.

It is only 6 miles to Whaley Bridge but there are a few bridges to swing or lift on the way.

George did Higgs.

And Ann did Wood End while Rocker and Lifer cruised past.

Although it was a bit misty we could see across the Goyt Valley.

Baz and Al were on their way out on Micky Jay and Al was kind enough to open this bridge for us.

We went on to Whaley Bridge for water, facilities and post while Rock n Roll went into Bugsworth Basin.

When we arrived at the basin we did a tour by boat before backing up to join the others.

Seyella and Pilgrim were also there and Malcolm and Barbara invited us all on board for tea, cake and a chat.

We intend to stay a while so felt obliged to volunteer a donation to the Inland Waterways Protection Society which maintain the moorings. This is better than getting a fine from C&RT for staying too long at these lovely moorings.