Higher Poynton

Thursday 17 July 2014 – Higher Poynton, Macclesfield Canal

Last night I managed to moor on the part called The Deeps but quite a way down the canal and I started today by a sneaky reverse back to Bridge 15 (nearest to Braidbar).  Then I went in to see Susan about various jobs I’d like doing, some require Peter to confirm Paint Shed schedules and others can be organised now.  While sat at the Trading Post I met up with Chris & Lesley from ‘Eleventh Heaven’ who are having a paint job done at the moment.

This afternoon Andy came over and has sorted out some electrical problems and fitted a new DAB radio so I am listening to Classics without the crackles that are available free of charge on FM.

There are a profusion of Braidbar boats around but ‘Sanity’ has just come out of the Paint Shed and looks lovely in her new green livery.

The sun has been out all day and I haven’t done much in the way of getting on and cleaning the boat after her last three week journey.

Higher Poynton

Wednesday 16 July 2014 – Higher Poynton, Macclesfield Canal

The Marple Lock flight is 16 locks in just a mile with a rise of 214 feet.  We started at 07:15 and were at the first lock by 07:30.  Beryl went ahead and set the locks for Graham in Priscilla ii leaving Graham to open and go on to the next.  She then came back to set the locks for me and I then closed the locks having gone through.  The first eight locks are through woodland, then there is a road which still shows the original bridge underneath as well as the modern road widening part.  The canal then passes Samuel Oldknow’s Warehouse which has been converted in industrial units and then past houses.  Next comes Posset Bridge which is unusual as there are three tunnels underneath – the boat goes in one, the towpath and horse in another and the third is for the boatman!

There were a couple of interested families and both Graham and I gave lifts between locks to mum and child.  Perhaps they’ll be future canal enthusiasts?  We reached the top lock and turned onto the Macclesfield and moored by 11:30.  Graham has a friend visiting so we went to the Ring O’Bells pub for lunch.  Afterwards we moved the last four miles to Lord Vernon’s Wharf (home to Braidbars) as Graham and Beryl need to get home to start completing the paperwork for their house sale.

It was only on the last stretch from Marple that we got any rain but it has not lasted.

Rose Hill 'Tunnel'

Tuesday 15 July 2014 – Rose Hill ‘Tunnel’, Peak Forest & Ashton Canal

Start today was 06:45 as we have 8 miles and 21 locks down to Ashton-under-Lyne.  The run was difficult as the lock moorings were impossible to get into due to the pounds being low and in most of them we were grounding.  Our lock system was working well and the scenery made up for the difficulty.  Scout Tunnel is a baby version of Standedge as it is still rough-hewn rock.  At Millbrook the canal passes underneath an electricity grid pylon and is then in a culvert through the town of Stalybridge, parts are in good condition (blue and white painted ‘canal furniture’) but others are not so good (offensive graffiti scrawled wherever the locals can get).  At lock 5W a team of workmen from C&RT were just getting ready to do some repairs to the fencing and advised that we should take care in the pounds lock 4to3, lock 3to2 and lock 2to1 as they were low due to four boats having gone down before us.  That may explain our earlier problems.

Because of their warning we decided that we should head on to the bottom of the Marple flight as this was just a matter of miles not locks and we would be ahead of the rush tomorrow.  We finally moored after a 12 hour day having covered an additional 7 miles.

The weather started overcast but by 10:00 it was warm and sunny and still is.

Standedge to Uppermill

Monday 14 July 2014 – Standedge Tunnel,

Uppermill, Huddersfield Narrow Canal

Where to start – boaters will know all this but for my reader here is a quote from the Nicholson Canal Guide:

“All the superlatives marshalled within the confines of one extremely long tunnel: highest, longest and deepest in Britain and largely hewn out of solid rock.”

There are four tunnels joining Marsden and Diggle the canal tunnel came first (1811), then a single track for the Huddersfield and Manchester Railway (1845), the H&MR was taken over by the London & North Western Railway who had another single track (1847), then in 1894 a double track tunnel was built.  The canal was used to remove the spoil for each of the other tunnels as there are ‘access points’ which could, I suppose, be used for an emergency exit if authorised.

Now to today, up to three boats travel from East to West in the morning and from West to east in the afternoon on three days a week.  [If you have been paying attention you will know that today there are four of us – the Shire boat is a special as the Ashton Canal is closed between Locks 1 to 18 due to damage at lock 10].  I had arranged with Austin and Liz Siviter (owners of a Braidbar boat) to join me for the trip through and they duly arrived just before 08:00 when the tunnel staff arrive.  The first task is to remove chimney, satellite dish and other high bits off the roof then the staff measure the boat against their scale (a large aluminium ‘T’ square) to ensure the boats would fit.  Both boats were OK with the proviso that we remove the navigation lights.  Boats are sent through at 45 minute intervals with the first (Georgian Star) at 08:30.  Priscilla was next with a load of pics taken of Graham in his HiVis, Lifejacket and Hard Hat.  At 10:00 it was my turn with the safety gear, then my chaperone quietly tells me to go ahead at whatever speed I feel comfortable with bearing in mind that if you race you bang the walls, if you go too slowly you bang the walls, if you go at the correct speed . . . you bang the walls!

From the East the initial entry is very low and requires that you are crouched down.  Parts of the tunnel are brick lined which means that the tunnel light (set to shine on the roof ahead of the boat) shows the view I’m used to in tunnels like Braunston, Crick. Harecastle and Stoke Bruerne, this then suddenly disappears when in a rough part where the roof vanishes into a cavern.  There are also parts where the tunnel opens out into cave like dimensions and there are zigs and zags as the tunnel changes direction.  After what seems like hours the chaperone tells you to stop just here, gets off and phones back to tell control where we are.  This happens at three locations in the tunnel.

Eventually a tiny little green spot appears but you cannot relax or speed up as although this is the West end of the tunnel it is still a long way off and there are more bends to go.  Finally the end is there and it is time to give back the safety gear and say farewell to the chaperone (who now has to do the journey back with one of the boats going the other way).

G&B had time to stop for a cuppa before I finished and we then started down the next ten locks to get to Saddleworth our planned stop.  A quick look round the town for somewhere to eat produce the knowledge that Mondays are not the time to visit as the pubs don’t do food on Monday, some of the restaurants are closed and there was one fish shop and a ‘Chinese Eatery’, we finally settled on a charming Italian ‘café’ called Java.  Then it was back to the boat for a rest.

The sun was out while we were at Marsden, but since the tunnel it has been light showers.

Marsden

Sunday 13 July 2014 – Marsden, Huddersfield Narrow Canal

Yesterday evening and overnight there was very heavy rain for a few hours.

G&B had visitors again at 08:00 which meant there was assistance with the locks, however we decided to start at 07:30 and ‘do’ the first two locks to make it easier for them to find us (near a car park).  Their first lock was a guillotine lock – “oh that’s nice and easy because they are electric”, but not this one!  It was a manual wind up so once that was complete the others seemed a doddle.  We soon got into a routine with locks being set for us the Graham and I taking the boats in and all the work done by the visitors.  We completed the run of 21 locks in 3 miles by 12:50.  This was followed by a Sunday roast dinner in the Railway.  Excellent food, service and company.  Chats were continued on the boats in the sun then after the trip boats had finished for the day at 17:00 we moved the boats to the ‘Tunnel Convoy’ moorings and topped-up the water tanks ready.  Four boats are scheduled for Monday ‘Priscilla ii’, ‘Ice Breaker’, ‘Georgian Star’ and a Shire Cruiser Hire Boat ‘Hereford’.

The weather started overcast but quickly brightened up and we have had sun for most of the day.