From Stretford to Moore

We had a pretty dismal trip yesterday, rain until two o’clock, by which time we’d stopped anyway.
After a quiet night between Stretford and Sale we set off, Under the motorway and onto the long straight through Sale. Even though the weather was a bit grim, the joggers were out in force…


Old and new rub shoulders near Timperley.


The rain didn’t bother this chap one little bit!


Modern printing techniques made this factory redundant.

Linotype was a process for newsprint  Invented by German-born Otto Mergenthaler, which allowed much faster setting up of lines of type (hence Line-o type) than the previous letter by letter process. An operator using a keyboard typed in a line of text, the keystrokes selecting letter moulds. Then the assembled line was used to cast a slug, effectively one line of script, in a lead alloy. These slugs were assembled to produce a page of type in the printing press. After use the slugs were melted and re-used. Incidently, the individual letter set-ups that pre-dated Linotype gave rise to the phrase “Minding your p’s and q’s.”As the letters were mirror images of the printed form, inexperienced setters could mix up the lower case version of the two.

We left the built up area at Seamons Moss Bridge, and carried on into open country. We often stop near Dunham Massey, there’s a pleasant walk around the deer park. But not today. We pressed on, across the River Bollin Aqueduct, and moored on the offside transit moorings near Ye Olde No3 pub.

Over the aqueduct.
 
I mentioned yesterday the catastrophic effect of a major breach on this level canal. Well, it happened here in 1971. Before stop planks could be installed to stem the flow, the canal had dropped by 14 inches. That’s a whole lot of water! Considering that this waterway crosses several aqueducts around Warrington where a breach would have resulted in flooding, the fact that this one occurred above a river was a bit of a blessing…
It took 2 years to re-open the canal, building a concrete channel to carry across the river valley, at a cost of £250,000.

This morning was a huge contrast to yesterday, bright and sunny most of the morning. But we couldn’t take advantage, we were waiting for mr Tesco to deliver. He arrived at about half-eleven, then we had to fill with water before getting under way.

Lymm was busy as expected on a fine Sunday


Lots of boats about today


Although the canal is never far from Warrington and it’s suburbs, there are some pleasant wooded sections

We pulled over at Thorne marine at Stockton Heath for diesel, a couple of bags of solid fuel and a horn. I tried it the other day, and it emitted a strangled croak. We’ll need one when we get to Harecastle Tunnel, they won’t let you in without for safety reasons, so I though I’d better get a replacement.

There was a boat already on the wharf getting a pump-out and diesel, so we had a bit of a wait, but had a chance to catch up with the local gossip from Brian and Margaret.

Thorne Marine at Stockton Heath

The building once housed offices and warehousing for the canal company. A little ahead is a winding hole which was actually the end of navigation for a while, until an agreement was reached with the owner of Walton Hall. He was reluctant to allow the canal to cross his land.

Through Walton Hall Park

The hall and grounds are now owned and managed by the Warrington Borough Council as a public amenity.

We were intending to pass Moore and stop somewhere short of Preston Brook, near Red Brow. But time was pushing on so we tied up nearer Moore, in time to set up the TV to watch today’s Formula 1 race from Bahrain.

Off the Bridgewater and onto the Trent and Mersey tomorrow. Not sure how far well get though, depends on the weather.

Locks 0, miles 17½.