Easter 2012 - return to Calf Heath

Easter 2012
Tixall to Calf Heath
April 2012


A perfect day to end the trip - sun shining from a clear blue sky with a trace of frost covering the boat as we stated.


A few photo's to mark the end of our first cruise of the 2012 season.

 Tixall Lock

Stafford on the Staffs and Worcester Canal

 Log supply

Easter 2012 Tixall

Easter 2012

Hem Heath to Tixall

April 2012

Like football, today was a day of two halves. Spring in the morning and winter in the afternoon.

Today was a day for being sociable, catching up Lee and Becky, friends we havn't seen for nearly 10 years. And how better to do that than aboard a boat sailing from Hem Hear to Haywood Junction.

Traffic was very light, we saw maybe half a dozen boats moving but plenty moored, their crews hunkered down out of the icy blast which was sweeping over us. These boats included bloggers Sanity Again (no one home) and Rock n Roll (quick wave). 

We dropped our passengers off at Gt Haywood and moved on to Tixall for the night, settling down  for a session with the Spall's on Princess Matilda at they journey round the south coast of England. A well written and witty account of an epic trip, interspersed with an account of Tim Spall's battle with Lukemia in the 1990's.

As usual we moored beyond the wide, in the river like section where we were all on our own and out of the wind. But the day had a final and very unpleasant twist. Remember that pump out at Middlewich? Well, their over vigorous flush out left the tank 2/3rds full of fresh water with inevitable consequences. Yuk!

Easter 2012 - Hem Heath

Easter 2012

Rode Heath to Hem Heath

April 2012

14 miles - 19 locks - 8 hours

In the end our ascent Heartbreak Hill couldn't have been easier. Over the course of the rise from Wheelock as the bottom to Red Bull at the top only Thurlwood Lock stood set against us. This favourable sequence of events and steadily improving weather make the hill a joy to cruise. 

One thing about this flight, every year more of the duplicated chambers seem to be closed and none more so than Church Lock 47, its width reduced to no more then 5ft across and now braced with Acro props.

 Abandoned lock 47 duplicate

The water becomes more and more orange as you climb the hear and near the Harecastle Tunnel, the water tainted by the iron ore of Harecastle Hill. The tunnel is always something of an event, its 1.75 miles covered in 35 minutes. On this occasion we were straight in and blatting our way south. Maybe its my imagination but I am sure I could see a chink of light at the far end from soon after we entered, and long before we could hear the drone of the fans.

Harecastle - southern portal

The thing about Harecastle, and any other big tunnels now I come to think about it, i how hard it is to get a sense of scale. From the inside is a long featureless tube but get outside and time your progress and its hard not to be impressed by its length. If you glance back at the very end of the straight after the tunnel you are still only the equivalent of half way through. If you want an idea of the full length you will have to motor on to Longport Marina.

Good foraging territory

Middleport of the next area on the trip, an area of deliciously delapidated buildings, an increasing rarity on our modernised and redeveloped canals. Shelton Steelworks site has passed beyond decay and now stands empty and flattened, a huge area waiting for something new to arrive.

Canalside sculpture at Stoke

We paused for water at Etruria where we walked to Morrisons in Festival Park. On the map it looked close, but it must have been nearer two miles than one - a bit too far for comfort. The weather was much better so we pressed on out of Stoke and on to Hem Heath, a favoured suburb which we reached at 7.00pm. 

Admiralty class narrowboat below Etruria

Easter 2012 - Rode Heath

Easter 2012

Middlewich to Rode Heath

April 2012

12 miles - 19 locks - 6 hours

A lazy start to the day, and why not? It is my 51st birthday after all.

It was a peaceful, if somewhat cold night overlooking Top Flash at Clive Green and we finally coaxed the engine into life at 10.30. We were not alone at the mooring but we were one of the last to set off so we got caught in the inevitable traffic jam at the first lock. We didn't get much further than that for a while as we needed to restock and realised that is a new Tesco's maybe 10 mins walk from the canal. We moored between bridges 28 and 29 and followed a small footpath into town which threaded its way between a couple of schools.

Bottom of Wheelock Hill

With a replenished larder we dropped through Wardle Lock and turned left to Middlewich Narrowboats and their pumpout machine. They offered a vigorous rinse out but more of that in a future post, reversing back to the junction and refuelling at Kings Lock Chandlers. 100 litres at 89p subject to my own choice of declaration.

An apt name for a boat.... Mr Truth.

I had to laugh in the chandlers, there was this slightly unusual guy in front of me with a long list of obscure thing on his list. Now, if I go into a chandlers its usually for things I know chandlers stock but not this bloke. He went on and on asking for item after item which the owner couldn't supply. It was all we could do not to burst out laughing and when he had finally departed and was beyond earshot I just had to start my own request for "fork andles".

Climbing Heartbreak Hill

Then it was up the Trent an Mersey towards Wheelock. Initially we followed a single hander who was a bit slow but he eventually stopped and er pressed on with the local coal boat trying hard to catch up. I did promise that if they could reach the tail of a lock before we left the top I would let them through but with a clear road ahead there was no stopping us. We were flying.

With the weather fair and the locks set for us we started up heartbreak hill at 4.00pm an a vague aim of stopping at he Romping Donkey near the M6 crossing. With all the locks set in our favour we reached the motorway in record time but alas the pub is no more. Instead of customers there were JCB's tearing its walls down.

 Fellow celebrants at Rode Heath

So we pressed on to Rode Heath, mooring just below the bottom lock as the sun set and taking a 10 minute walk to the Royal Oak on the main road for a birthday celebration meal. AS luck would have it they do 2 for 1 on Thursdays (and Tuesdays) so the place was well patronised and reasonably priced. 

Our first rain free day for over a week, my birthday and a clear road - not bad.

Easter 2012 - Middlewich

Easter 2012 

Marbury to Middlewich

April 2012

15 miles - 10 locks - 10 hours

An amusing start to the day, a voice mail message from BW to tell me the replacement pump out card is under by gas locker lid. I crawled out of my pit and sure enough there it was, safe and sound in a poly bag. I was stunned how they had found us and gave then a all to say thanks.

Packamac Sheep

They knew within a mile or so where we would be and decided to drive over a few bridges and see if they could spot us. By chance, the first bridge they came to was just behind us so they crept up and slipped it aboard - well beyond the call of duty. Thanks guys.

Wrenbury Mill, Llangollen Canal

We met the BW team just round the corner, loading their work boat in Marbury Lock and then we were off in unsettled weather. Showers kept hitting us all the way through Baddiley and Swanley Locks, only letting up as we descended Hurleston.

Traffic increased as we joined the Middlewich Branch, a couple of working boats were coind east from the gathering at Ellesmere Port and this resulted in a short wait at Venetian Marina which  seems to me going through a major overhaul. Lots of piling and concrete mixers put us off stopping in spite of the "open for business" signs.

Middlewich Branch Canal

The evening was the best of the day so we pressed on and made the most of it, passing nb Sickle near Church Minshull with just time for a snatched "hello  and goodbye". WE finally moored between bridges 20 and 21, a great spot with views over the Cheshire Plain to the north. We settled down to the sound of church bells ringing out in the still evening air - all very English. 

Sickle heading west

We are back on familiar ground here, a route we often use to cross from the SUC to the T&M networks. Interestingly, the lock gates are mostly steel in this area - built in the 1970's when the Govt was encouraging the use of British Steel. They may not have the aesthetics of oak, but they seem to be staying the course ok.