Testing time at Taft Wharf

Once again a beautiful sunny start to the day slipped into cooler cloudier weather by mid-morning. Still, at least we’re seeing no rain…

It was around 10 when we pulled off from our mooring near Great Haywood Junction, the initial surge of early risers had departed, the more civilised among us were just sorting themselves out. Having said that, I guess I fall into the category of the less civilised; I was up and running around Shugborough Estate by 7 this morning…

Over the last couple of days we’ve been going through the boat, BSS checklist to hand, to make sure we pass the 4-yearly examination with no problems. Things that shouldn’t be there have been removed from the garden shed gas locker, a couple of errant cables clipped up in the electrical cabinet and a general tidy up of those corners which seem to accumulate odds and ends, usually in the vicinity of the fire extinguishers!
I’ve resealed the flue pipe to the stove collar (it never seems to last more than one winter), painted said pipe and blacked the stove. And I’ve given under the cooker a good blitz, evicting spiders, dust and fluff, ‘cause this is where the gas pressure test point is hiding. No, I don’t do this just once every four years! The very thought!

We had our test appointment at Taft Wharf, formerly known as the pig farm, just Rugeley side of Bridge 69. Dave, the examiner, was busy through most of today, but we’d agreed that if he was back early enough he’d do the check this afternoon.

So we had the 3 mile cruise from Great Haywood to cover, arriving here at around noon.

A little quieter at the junction this morning.

Looking back at Shugborough Estate

Giant Rhubarb near Little Haywood

Gunnera Manicata is a native of South America, imported here for specimen gardens.









Almost inevitably there’s a queue at Colwich Lock, the first one out of Great Haywood. Only one boat in front of us today, though.

Waiting for Colwich Lock…

Meg embarks to drop down the lock

You can always tell when you’re approaching Rugeley…

The Taft, home of the Boaters Christian Fellowship.
NB Maid of Oak is, as the name implies, a wooden narrowboat. She was completed 2006, probably the last wooden narrowboat hull built in the UK.

We filled up with diesel from NB Dexta at the wharf, then waited to see if Dave could see to us this evening, or would be leaving it till tomorrow.

He was back early enough to do our examination today, and I’m pleased to say we passed, just a very minor weep of diesel on the isolation valve between the tank and engine. I can deal with that myself. Excellent.
Dave is a pleasant chap to deal with, and only charges £100 for the examination if it’s done here. Call him on 07918 677782 if you need your BSS renewing.

So now we’re going to be getting on, leaving tomorrow for Rugeley for a bit of shopping then pushing on towards Shardlow.

Tom, definitely pro –pro –proc…. wasting time!

Locks 2, miles 3

It’s getting busy…

There were a fair few boats about this weekend, although we didn’t get too involved in the mêlée, just a short trip back towards Stone, winding in the exit from Aston Marina, then returning to moor near Burston. It’s a more pleasant spot here than above Sandon Lock, but Friday night’s mooring served it’s purpose; I got the final coat of paint on the left-side gunwale first thing on Saturday before moving.

No arguing with this girl!

Then I could get the counter fenders refitted, those I’d bought to protect the stern paintwork at Anderton.

The area they cover seems to take the brunt of any scrapes collected during bankside manoeuvring.
We’ll see if they make any difference.

Yesterday we sat and watched the boats go by, a few little jobs got done but it was a cooler, damper day than of late.

Today dawned bright and sunny, turned cloudy around midday, and has now brightened up again.

We decided to get off reasonably early, thinking that we’d beat the rush of boats leaving Stone. It worked, to a degree, we had a fairly easy passage to Great Haywood with boats coming up the locks leaving them ready for us. 

Leaving Burston

Mags finds someone to talk to at Sandon Lock

There’s not much to report about today’s trip, steady, keeping a sharp lookout for oncoming boats on bends and bridges.

Pitt’s Column just rises above the trees in Sandon Park

Erected in 1806, it’s a tribute to William Pitt the Younger, by the 1st Earl of Harrowby, the owner of the Sandon Estate at the time.
Pitt the Younger was Prime Minister, elected in 1783. He is renowned for being the youngest ever Prime Minister, aged just 24 when he took office.  “A sight to make all Nations stand and stare; a Kingdom trusted to a schoolboy’s care.”
Despite his age, Pitt was a successful leader, staying in the position for 17 years. He resigned in 1801, feeling that he’d lost the confidence of Parliament and the Crown.
In 1803, fearing a Napoleonic invasion, King George III asked him to form the government again, and he reluctantly accepted. He died in office, aged just 46, in 1806.

It’s that time of year again!

Get a room kennel!

Near Great Haywood Marina bank repair works are underway…

…here’s one we did earlier!

With the number of boats up and down I’m not sure they got that much done today.

We intended to pull onto the service wharf at the junction. I say “intended”; when we arrived they were breasting up, with other boats waiting. So we dropped into a spot just beyond the junction, initially to wait for the congestion to ease, then we thought we might as well have lunch, then I went shopping. The upshot is we’re still here.

It’s been interesting watching boats going forwards, backwards, sideways, as they jostled for position to get on the water point or under the junction bridge.
It’s a good job it wasn’t windy too!

Now then, Tom. The challenge you set me turned out trickier than I’d first thought. The problem is The Great Wall of China was built over several centuries in a variety of materials, stone, brick and even wood in places. So I’m just concentrating on the Ming Period, when disparate sections were joined up, and earlier derelict parts rebuilt. Still working on it…

Locks 3, miles 6½

Stone to Sandon…

Clear skies last evening led to a rapid drop in temperature as the sun went down, but they afforded good views of the rising full moon.

We seem to have dropped back to our usual 10-ish start after a few days of earlier departures.

Understandably it was pretty busy through the locks in Stone, at least for a start. Several boats had passed by the time I’d got back from the Co-op and we were ready to go, and so we joined a short queue at the first lock, Lime Kiln.

Lime Kiln Lock, Fuller’s Boatyard on the left
Boats coming both ways meant quicker passage, NB Windsong was the boat ready to come up at Newcastle Road.

Pip and Roger, NB Windsong, finally caught up with them!
Once again it was a fleeting meeting as we waited for the lock to fill. Someday we’ll have a proper chat!

Below Newcastle Road Lock the hotel boats Duke and Duchess were having loo tanks emptied…


…the tanker appropriately painted in a Winnie the Pooh theme!

Meg needed to find a bit of shade as we worked down Yard Lock…

Mags heading for the last lock through Stone, Star Lock, named for the adjacent pub.
Either side above here are the premium moorings in the town, easy access for the town from here. This morning there was space for maybe three more boats but there’ll be taken now.

We pulled over to use the water tap below Star Lock, close to the Oatcake Boat, aka NB Che Sara, Sara.
Now, I’d never tried a Staffordshire Oatcake before, assuming they were biscuit-like. But I thought, give it a go, and I’m a convert! Oat-based pancakes with bacon and cheese filling, wow!

A trio of young sparrows was doing just what youngsters enjoy – playing in the mud!

Moving out of town, chewing appreciatively, we turned up at our last lock for today, Aston Lock.

The steeple of St. Saviours Church, Aston-by-Stone





A close look at the milepost alongside the lock reveals…

..we’re at the halfway point on the Trent and Mersey Canal.


Halfway in mileage, but two thirds of the way through the 76 locks.




A 2½ mile cruise through the delightful Trent valley took us to just above Sandon Lock where we winded and moored. I can get the second coat of black paint on the left side here, then we’ll turn around again to continue our downhill trip to Shardlow.

A flock of gulls rise screaming from feeding grounds along the river…

..and start to mob a pair of cruising buzzards.
Sorry, fuzzy picture and fluff on the lens again! But one of the buzzards is easy to spot.

Even easier to spot was a hunting sparrowhawk (I think), looking for lunch.

Sunday lunch on the hoof..

Moored near Sandon

We’ll probably stay here for the weekend, then move down to Great Haywood on Monday. Tuesday we’ll be at Taft Wharf, we’ve got our Boat Safety Examination booked there for Tuesday afternoon or Wednesday morning. Cheap diesel, too.

Tom, thanks for the info, watch this space... Do you think they used stretcher or Flemish bond?

Locks 5, miles 5

Fishy goings-on at Meaford

Well, the weatherman was right today; pretty much wall-to-wall sunshine since sunrise. I woke at half-five, dozed for a bit then decided to go for a run, such a shame to waste a glorious morning. I did the 3 miles to Stone and back, and ran into (nearly literally) a group of Environment Agency bods around Meaford Top Lock. But I didn’t quiz them at the time…

Last night, with the side hatch open on the water side, I was entertained by the varied repertoire of a thrush high in a tree opposite.

Singing his little heart out, he was. Absolutely superb.

Back at the boat this morning I showered, dressed and took Meg for a walk before we got away at around 10:00.

Leaving our overnight mooring near Wedgwood 

A large family lurking near the boats at Barlaston

Approaching Meaford we started to notice several dead fish floating belly-up, obviously the reason for the Environment Agency presence.

Testing water samples
I shouted across to them, and it turns out that the fish had suffocated, a lack of oxygen in the water.
Further on pumps were circulating water with the addition of a dilute Hydrogen Peroxide solution to replace the lost oxygen.

It was believed that a pollutant, maybe an organic fertiliser, was the culprit, but they hadn’t found the source yet.

The local anglers will be a bit miffed, they’ve lost some big fish.

Given the all-clear to proceed,we followed a boat down the four Meaford Locks, meeting up-coming boats on all but one.

Mags enjoying the cool in a lock chamber

The bottom lock had a leak, just in the right place to wet the doormat…
This is why we don’t have the side hatches open when locking! Squirts of water from lock walls as voids behind the masonry drain are known, somewhat inelegantly, as “pissers”. Appropriate, though.

We decided not to pull into Stone itself, instead mooring on the straight below the locks just to the north.

I unhooked John Sage from the rack on the stern and cycled into town to get some salad stuff for tea.

Shopping done I went looking for Roger and Pip on NB Windsong, found the boat but no crew, they must have been in the town. Maybe catch up tomorrow.

Hey Tom. Thanks for the suggestion. Do you know, off the top of your head, the standard Chinese brick size during the Chin Dynasty?
Chas and Ann, missing you out on the water too.

Locks 4, miles 3

Stoke Locks and sunshine.

It’s been mainly sunny and bright today, and for the first time in several days we’ve not had to pay for it in the form of heavy showers. Not yet, anyway…

We’re getting into these earlier starts now we have lighter mornings, we were underway today at 09:15, heading past the museum and back out onto the Trent and Mersey.

Heading off the Caldon

Unfortunately we were beaten to the line by another boat, but we only had to queue at the first, deepest lock, after that there was a steady procession of ascending boats setting the locks for us.

Down Lock 39, Stoke Top Lock above.

Stoke Bottom Lock is the one that was rebuilt during road improvements, and is a concrete monstrosity, slow to empty and fill. Consequently there are always queues here.
Our benefit today, with boats waiting to come up I was ordered back on board by the throng on the lockside.

Mob-handed at Stoke Bottom Lock
Unusual shot for me, the exposed upper gate and cill as we drop down.

Like it or loathe it, street art gives an opportunity for some of the very talented to show off their skills..

Unfortunately some of the less skilled have to get in on the act too!

Another bottle kiln, the last this trip, I promise!

The canal’s first encounter with the River Trent, humble at this point but dominant further south and east.

It takes about an hour and a quarter to get from Stoke Bottom Lock to Trentham, the canal moving out of the urban fringe of industry into a band of open country before reaching the housing estates of the large village.

Trentham Lock, on the south side of the village, was our last for today. We had a bit of a pause here while we waited for a boat coming up, then we were on our way down.

Trentham Lock

Still Life

We pulled in beyond the Wedgwood Factory, between Bridges 103 and 104.

Just the Meaford Locks for tomorrow, then a couple of days in Stone before pushing on.

These relatively early starts and lunchtime finishes are starting to get habitual. In the past I’d have had to run the engine for half an hour in the early evening to ensure we had power for showers in the morning, now the solar panels happily keep up with consumption through the afternoon.

Locks 6, miles 5½