Wednesday 23rd July
Ellesmere to Hindford
We set off from Ellesmere just as a hire boat was looking
for somewhere to moor. Turning round
there is tricky, as the basin isn’t square – the widest point is at the very
end. The hire boat did it first, with quite a few changes of gear. We went
next, but were helped by the bow thruster. They call it the girlie button in
Birmingham.
Leaving Ellesmere
The first stop was the facilities area, where there was no
queue. However, very soon there were other boats waiting.
James phoned Paul Dicken to make arrangements for
tomorrow. The Poachers Pocket at
Gledhill seems a good starting point, with lunch there, followed by a trip over
Chirk Aqueduct and through Chirk Tunnel before turning round and heading back
to the pub again.
We passed Tetchill where there are a few moored boats. This
is the stop off place for Roger and Mirjana.
Several mooring places along here with 48H rings, courtesy
of the Shropshire Union Canal Society.
Every canal ought to have a canal society like this to enhance the
boating experience.
We passed the turning to Frankton Locks and the Montgomery
Canal. We’ll do it on the way back.
Frankton Junction
It was very hot, and we stopped for lunch between Bridges 3
and 4, as the towpath was south of the canal, which means that it is easier to
find shade, which we did.
A little further along we spotted a familiar looking boat,
called Kiska II. It was our
first boat, then called Lystra.
The owners weren’t around.
At Maestermyn Marine we stopped to buy some long screws to
fix one of our back steps which has come unglued. We also saw a life ring which
we bought.
We stopped for the day at Hindford to visit the Jack Mytton
Pub for a drink, as it was so hot. They were just about to close. They had
Black Dragon Welsh cider, which was good. They also had another which James
said he would go back for in the evening.
In the end, we had showers on the boat and never went back to the pub.
We briefly saw the people on Stepaside (BCF – Sue
Barnett), and then we had a chat with the people on Plan B – Malcolm and
Lindsey
Then Barley Twist (Terry and Chris) came past,
followed by Mick and Suzanne on Cranley, both from Byfleet Boat
Club. It was good to have a brief chat
with them.
Mick and Suzanne
0 locks, 6 miles, 3hr35
Thursday 24th July
Hindford to Trevor
Two boats left before us, heading our way. We followed slowly behind, as the first item
on the agenda was the pair of locks at New Marton – very rural. Another boat was coming down, so the first
lock was set for us.
New Marton Locks
It was not long before we had arrived at the Poachers
Pocket, our rendezvous with the Dickens.
Then we had a phone call from Christine Dicken, saying they had too much
to do before their trip to Yorkshire at the weekend. Could we postpone the
trip? No problem. We’re flexible.
We decided to move on. We pulled out, following Sam
Hardy, and were soon at Chirk Aqueduct, which is dramatic, with a railway
viaduct on the left, and views down the valley to the right.
Chirk Aqueduct
The view through the
railway viaduct
The aqueduct leads directly into Chirk Tunnel, and there is
a waiting area with bollards, as both the tunnel and the aqueduct are only one
boat width. Amazingly, the First Mate Guide suggests mooring here to go to the
shops. Anyone doing that would not be very popular with boaters trying to
negotiate their passage.
Chirk Aqueduct and
tunnel
As we arrived at the far end of the aqueduct, there was a
boat waiting to cross the other way, and Sam Hardy waiting to enter the
tunnel, as a boat was coming through the other way. The boat in the tunnel turned out to be a hire boat travelling
very fast. He shot out of the tunnel, and did a tight zig zag to line up with
the aqueduct, where we were just emerging. We had nowhere else to go, and his
passengers in the bows put their hands over their eyes, waiting for the bump.
Thankfully our bow thruster moved us out of the way just in time as he shot
into the aqueduct, taking no notice of the other boat who had been waiting for
ten minutes. We told him he had lost
his water skier.
We entered the tunnel and found it very slow going, as the
flow was against us. After the tunnel came a cutting with gloomy moorings, then
Chirk Marina, followed by
Whitehouse Tunnel.
Whitehouse Tunnel
At Froncysyllte we had to operate Fron Lift Bridge which was
quite heavy work. Then round the corner to the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct. We spotted Peter and Lin walking towards us
so there were lots of photos, videos, hugs, and changes at the helm. The aqueduct seemed higher than last time –
perhaps because it was clear and sunny, instead of misty and wet last time
(2004). It was exhilarating to go across on the boat with nothing between us
and the sheer drop to the left. This aqueduct is iron, unlike Chirk which is
made of stone.
Pontcysyllte Aqueduct
It’s a long way down
We were still following Sam Hardy, and instead of
turning left towards Llangollen, he went straight on to the moorings beyond
Anglo Welsh at Trevor. This is where Gospel Belle and Trinity had been moored,
waiting for us. As Sam Hardy had taken
the last space, we moored alongside Gospel Belle.
A trip boat then decided to turn and banged into the side of
Sam Hardy several times in the process,and told him he was moored in a winding
hole. There was no notice to say so. Everyone moved up and then someone else
moored there. Over the next few days
several boats stopped there, so there really should be a notice.
We had a barbecue later, as there was a very suitable wide
grassy bank under trees alongside the mooring. A great time. Pete and Aud (Sam Hardy) joined us
for drinks later.
There were lots of people walking past and we had several
conversations.
Barbecue at Trevor
2 locks, 9 miles, 2 tunnels, 2 aqueducts, 1 lift bridge, 1
mouse, 4hr35.
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