Waiting for BW

We’ve had a fairly long but uneventful trip today. The main feature has been the several swing bridges, varying from fully manual to fully mechanised.
We dropped lucky with the first, just around the corner of our overnight. A boat was just coming through as we arrived and we were waved through. The next we had to do ourselves, but the farm access Great Score swing bridge is chained in the open position. There was another like this further along.

Bridge 30, no longer in use.Alongside Great Score bridge is moored a 1930’s Leeds and Liverpool Short Boat, Ribble.

Ribble
These steel boats were built to replace the earlier wooden versions, the dimensions of which were the same as the Mersey and Weaver flats regularly in use on the waterway. This is why the Leeds and Liverpool north and east of Wigan has such odd lock sizes (14’3 x 60’), built to accommodate existing boats.

There was a longish gap before we got to Scarisbrick Marina.

Scarisbrick Marina
Opened recently, there is still quite a bit of mooring space available here. I wish a few more of the linear moorers would move in, there’s some awfully long lengths of moored boats along this stretch.
Having space available makes the attitude I came up against here earlier this year even more incomprehensible. Not being able to use the new Liverpool Link in March to get to Albert Dock for my ½ marathon (it didn’t open till Easter), I rang them up to see if they could put us up for 3 nights, planning to commute from here. “Not worth the bother” was the reply. Obviously pointing out a berth and taking our money is uneconomical.

According to Nicholson's Guide, the canal construction is reputed to have started in a cutting between Bridges 24 and 25. I think they might be one bridge out; that length is open. The cutting is between 23 and 24.

Cutting Br23 - Br24. Start of digging?
We met up with the next swing bridge at Coxhead’s, then left the flat arable land behind as we entered the built up area around Maghull

Coxhead’s Swing Bridge.
There are four bridges to be operated through the town, and, being a fine, sunny Saturday, each was surrounded by attendant gongoozlers and anglers. Mags acquitted herself admirably, only coming unstuck once when she ran aground on a shallow mooring.
The last but one, Maghull Hall Swing Bridge, was the busiest, and there was quite a queue of traffic built up by the time I’d got the bridge shut again.

We arrived at Bridge 9, Hancocks Swing Bridge, at around 14:30, and moored. We’ve to wait here for BW, who will chaperone us through to the docks, operating the bridges and locks for us. They’re due at 09:30 in the morning.
We should be in the docks by 3 tomorrow afternoon.

Waiting at Hancocks Swing Bridge
It looks like we might be travelling on our own. No one else has turned up yet. I suppose it’s possible that someone might arrive in the morning.

On an entirely unrelated subject, did anyone see the final episode of "Ashes to Ashes" last night, with the excellent Phillip Glennister and the slightly less so Keeley Hawes? I did and I haven't a clue what happened. If you're floundering in the same morass, here's the creator himself, Matthew Graham, explaining things..... I think.
This one's a bit more revealing.......

Locks 0, miles 15.

Almost a disaster.

We had a very pleasant day yesterday, caught up with a few chores and enjoyed the countryside around here. It is a very nice spot, where we were moored above the derelict locks.

We have to run the engine for an hour or two each day, to give us power and hot water for the evening. So I fired up the “donk” at around 6 0’clock.It was nearly 7 when I smelt smoke. My first thoughts were “I wonder who’s got a fire lit in this weather”. Then I realised it was more electrical than wood. Dashing through to the back the smell got worse and the engine room filled with an acrid haze when I opened the engine cover.

I killed the engine (temperature and oil pressure readings were OK) then had to go back to the galley to disable the smoke alarm.
Checking around the engine I found the smoke to be coming from the starter motor solonoid. The paint had gone nicely crispy, and the unit was too hot to touch.

I left it to cool down, then tried to restart the engine. Nothing, rien, nada. Not a click, whimper or wheeze.

Now, if your starter goes on your car you can push start it. Not with a boat. If anything else had died I’d have been able to work around it. We can work off one alternator, for example.

But without being able to run the engine the batteries would go flat, no lights, fridge, freezer, water pump…. Even the heating wouldn't start so no hot water, even if we could get it to the tap.

So it was a round of phone calls this morning, my boat breakdown company trying in vain to locate an engineer with a replacement unit to hand (we can get one Monday, or maybe Tuesday…), (we can take the old one away to recondition, might take a week though….).

I rang Ed Shiers from Four Counties Marine Services and he took the bit between his teeth, locating a second hand unit at Acton Bridge Marina that the guy there was prepared to part with.

So he arrived at around 3, and we were up and running by 4. I reckon he should wear a cape and his underpants on the outside. Another job well done, thanks Ed.

The breakdown has put our schedule out of kilter, so we decided to have a short evening cruise to make up a bit of the lost time. I just had to make sure that we were moored and the aerial was up by 7 o’clock, Emmerdale time!

The deep single Appley Lock was full and ready for us, and we were on our way after a few minutes.

Leaving Appley, the bottom of the derelict pair on the left.
This is the last lock till the Stanley Dock flight in Liverpool. Just the swing bridges to deal with.
We did two of them today, then passed the Rufford Branch Junction before mooring up on the other side of Burscough Bridge.

Converted windmill in Parbold
Junction Bridge, Rufford Branch
Mill on the edge of Burscough.Lots of youngsters on the water now.

Cootlets
Moorhen Chicks

Ducklings at attention.
And….Wot’s this then?
Locks 1, miles 6

Two up, five down.

An earlier start today. We were moving into unknown waters and wanted to leave our options open to push on further than normal if we wanted to.
So we were on the move at 09:30, and arrived at the first of the Poolstock pair of locks an hour later.

Poolstock No 2A boat was just leaving, so that was a good omen.Through this and No 1, and we arrived at Wigan Junction.

Wigan JunctionA right turn takes you to the bottom of the Wigan flight of 21 locks, lifting the navigation 215 feet. Not going that way!
No, we turned left, dropping down now towards Liverpool.

Henhurst Lock, the first on the downhill slope.
The next is Wigan Bottom Lock.Alongside here used to be the main maintenance area at this end of the canal. It’s all been redeveloped now, and BW’s Wigan office occupies a smart new building. The only bit of the original yard is the dry-dock beside the lock.

The canal passes just south of the town, and has been attractively refurbished. Along the way are interpretation boards describing past activities in the area, accompanied by life-size reproductions of contemporary folk.

Meg was fascinated by a mill-worker from Trencherfield Mill.
This chap was staring pensively at The Orwell, across the canal. Probably wondering what all the fuss is about…..

Wigan Pier is a bit of an anticlimax. It’s been restored….Maybe didn’t cost very much, though.
In fact the structure, made famous in the title of George Orwell’s book, was a humble coal loading staithe.

Leaving the town Pagefield Lock is close to the DW Stadium, home to Wigan Athletic…..
And Ell Meadow Lock is overlooked by a new housing development.Welcome to Legoland…

We had a slow chug past Crooke, where an angling match was in progress, watered up at Dean Locks in the shadow of the M6, then arrived at Appley Lock at around 15:00.

Dean LocksYou can see this from the carriageway (so long as you’re not driving)!

Appley Locks was a recommended mooring by a couple of boaters we’ve spoken to, and I can see why.
The original pair of locks are now derelict, replaced by a new 12’ deep chamber. The old lock cut makes a superb overnight stop, away from the towpath and the new cut.

Moored in Appley old lock cut.
The derelict Appley Locks.
We’ve made more progress today than we needed to, but it was worth it and the weather has been kind.
We’ve about 20 miles, 1 lock and a scattering of swing bridges to negotiate before meeting our BW crew at Bridge 9 on Sunday morning. We might take a day off tomorrow..
Meg and I had a walk along the canal for a mile or so, to where the River Douglas swings close by the canal and is crossed by a bridge.

Thankyou, very kind.
River DouglasThis turns north a bit further on, and becomes the last bit of the Rufford Branch, taking boats down to the Ribble Estuary and across to the Lancaster Canal via the Ribble Link.
We were thinking about going up onto the Lancaster after Liverpool, but couldn’t get a booking till July. There’re only so many passages in either direction each year. The tide has to be right to navigate up Savick Brook, on the other side of the Ribble.

Thanks to Martin from the excellent Pennine Waterways who left a comment on an earlier post. He points out that the Huddersfield Narrow Canal does not actually begin at Dukinfield Junction as I stated, but at Lock 1W a little further east.
A bit more research (which I should have done first!) shows why. The Ashton predates the Peak Forest, and therefore, by definition, any connection thereto. The Ashton's terminus is where it now makes an end on connection to the HNC, at L1W, completed in 1798.

Locks 7, miles 9

What a cracking day!

Hot sunshine this afternoon, everyone’s walking around with smiles on their faces, hoping that summer has finally arrived.

We left Worsley around 11, past the Packet House and the entrance to The Delph, where the Duke brought the coal out of his mine.
Begun in 1759, by 1801 there were 52 miles of tunnels for carrying coal out and for drainage. In 1968 the closure of the last pit in the area, Mosley Common, made the underground canals redundant.

Packet House and Delph.
There’s a large green in the village, open and attractive now but 250 years ago full of industry. This is where all the craftsmen who’s work supported the mine and canal were established. The area would have been noisy with foundries, blacksmiths, farriers and carpenters.It must have been a blessing to the residents when the mine closed in 1887. But now there’s another noisy intrusion. The M60 runs just to the west of the village, a background mutter at night but almost a roar during the rush hour.

Under the M60I suppose you could say we’re out of the city now, having crossed the orbital motorway.

Heading into Leigh we spotted our first cygnets of the year.I don’t think they are much more than a couple of days old.

Leigh is another of those mill towns, and still has some of the buildings standing.

Butts Mill overshadows the canal and towpathMore mills either side of the canal.
Leigh is also where the Leigh Branch of the Bridgewater Canal meets the Leigh Branch of the Leeds and Liverpool.

Change of canal at Leigh Bridge
There’s also a change of navigation authority. We’ve moved from the Manchester Ship Canal Co. to British Waterways.
Plank Lane with it’s manned lift bridge is the next landmark, good moorings here, but there’s a lot of development work going on across the water.

Plank Lane Bridge
Birse is busy at Plank Lane, reclaiming the former Bickershaw Colliery site.
Any guesses what’s going to be here? No? A marina, housing and some form of industry, apparently.

We toddled on another 1½ miles or so to the Dover Lock Inn, where we pulled over for the night.

Dover Lock Inn. The moorings are just through the bridge.
There used to be two locks here (and one at Plank Lane) but subsidence has forced the adjustment of the canal level. These locks are now at Wigan.

Locks 0, miles 9½

Liverpool Bound

Had a good day yesterday. Apart from a bit of a breeze it was first class running weather, cool and dry. A marked contrast to last year’s wet windy and cold conditions.
I didn’t light any fires, but then I wasn’t planning to. After injury interrupted my training I was looking at a sub 47 minute time, and came in at 46:39. Still nearly 2 minutes slower than my PB for the distance, but satisfactory none the less. I completed the race comfortably, with no problems, so now I’ve something to build on for the next event in Sheffield in September.
The fantastic Haile Gebreselassie came in first, in just over 28 minutes.

Mags got a blurry shot of him near the start. “He was running fast”
At 37 most top athletes are looking to retire, but not this man. With 27 world records to his name, he’s still going strong.

35,000 runners set off in 6 waves to ease congestion on the narrow bits. We were back at the boat before the last wave got off.

Runners in the middle waves nearing the end.
There was a fair smattering of fancy dress characters on the course.
As usual an excellent event, well organised on a good course. The afternoon saw the Powerade Great Citygames, a unique event where the main street in the city, Deansgate, is converted into a running track of 250m, and top international athletes compete in sprints and hurdles.

We had our second quiet night in the basin, with the wind dropping the reflections on the water were glass clear.

The 50 storey Beetham Tower.
This is the tallest residential building in the UK. The Manchester Hilton is housed on the lower 23 floors.
The moorings were pretty full yesterday afternoon. Several hire boats arrived doing the Cheshire Ring. They were on their way early this morning, though.

Castlefield this morning
Our across the way neighbour. I hope no-one was aboard when that happened.

We had to stop for water and to empty the loos on the way out today, so it was around noon when we finally left the basin.

The Manchester Ship Canal near Pomona Lock
Goslings foraging on the towpath
We made a right turn at Waters Meeting, heading out of town through the Trafford Park industrial area.

You could be on the Canal Du Midi in France….
But lurking just behind the trees are factory units, warehouses…..

And the Trafford CentreNothing was moving on the Ship Canal this afternoon, but a container ship was loading or unloading on the staithe near Eccles.

Onto the swing aqueduct
Looking East
Looking West
We pushed on, past the unlikely lighthouse at Monton…

Lighthouse at Monton
And arrived at Worsley at around 14:30.

We moored opposite the Victorian boathouse (built to accommodate the Royal Barge for Queen Victoria’s visit in 1851), just down from The Packet House.

Moored in Worsley.
It’s been a fine, sunny afternoon after an indifferent sort of morning. The forecast is set fair for the week ahead. Just as well; we’ve 40 miles and 8 locks to go before meeting our BW chaperones at Bridge 9 near Aintree on Sunday morning. From there we’ll be escorted into Liverpool docks.

Locks 0, miles 7