Voyages of Gabriel: Kidsgrove to Stone

Mon 3^rd July Kidsgrove to Festival Park.

We had worked out that the bookable southbound convoys were at 1400 and 1600, so we guessed that southbound journeys were on the even hours, and northbound on the odd hours.

We went through our final lock, and past the entrance to the Macclesfield. On arrival at the tunnel, we found two boats in front of us, and we learnt that we were waiting for one boat to come through heading north. At 8am there had been one boat here and they weren’t ready, so the boat at the other end was allowed through first. There is no fixed timetable.

The boat in front of us was Skyfall, with Julia and Chris, a very pleasant couple. We gave them a Canal Ministries leaflet. They had only had the boat a few months, and it had a blaringly loud horn. The first time we heard it, we thought it was a train.

The CRT man lent us a powerful flood light as he didn’t think our magnetic torch was good enough. It certainly lit up the tunnel amazingly well. In the end we were third in a convoy of five.

Stoke on Trent still has a number of derelict factories, some with bottle kilns, and we tried to imagine what it might have been like in Victorian times.

We tried two more places for gas, without success. We had planned to moor by Festival Park, as we wanted to give some business to the Toby Carvery there. The moorings there were full, so we turned around and went back under the last bridge 118 and moored on rings, just as it was starting to rain.

James went for a walk later to the large Morrisons half a mile away, and bought another hedgehog mug, their last one, and another harvest mice mug. All we need now is two more hedgehog mugs, and we will have four of each. They are almost as hard to find as gas bottles!

We went for a very satisfactory carvery meal, followed by strawberries back on board. After all, it is Wimbledon tennis season!

The final lock before the summit

Macclesfield Canal entrance

Following Skyfall

Harecastle Tunnel North portal

Inside Harecastle Tunnel

Harecastle Tunnel South entrance

Derelict pottery site

Middleport Pottery

Moored near Bridge 118 Festival Park

Derelict Bottle Kiln

Evening light at Festival Park

1 lock, 6 miles, 1 tunnel. Dep 0750, arr 0815 Harecastle. Dep 0900, arr 1105.

Tue 4^th July Festival Park to Barlaston

We were woken by loud lawnmowers or strimmers at 0630! Now that we were awake, we thought we would reverse out under the bridge, turn, and set off. We passed the last remaining building of the original Wedgwood factory, before arriving at the junction with the Caldon Canal. We used the facilities by the Bone and Flint Mill, before reversing out again to use the Stoke Locks. The first three were empty, and needed filling. Cockshutts Lock, by the railway, was already full. One of the bottom paddles would only raise by three inches, presumably to avoid flooding the towpath under the railway bridge below. The lock therefore took a long time to empty, and there was severe leakage coming through the top gates. It needed strength to open the bottom gates. At the bottom lock, we met our first boat of the day, coming up. We met many more boats, but hardly any were going the same way as us, we were told. A boater, moored on rings at Hemheath Bridge, stuck his head out and swore at us, even though we were going very slowly. It spoils the day when people do that. We hope his day improved.

At Trentham Lock, we met Julia and Chris, from Skyfall, who were walking back to visit Trentham Gardens. We told them to look out for beavers, as a kit had just been born, and had been on the news.

We stopped after the Wedgwood Factory, and after Bridge 104, where we had pleasant views and piling.

James made a phone call, and finally located a place that had a gas bottle for us.

The remains of the original Wedgwood Factory

The junction with the Caldon Canal

The facilities at Etruria

Leaving the top lock

Flint and Bone Mill

Cliffe Vale Pottery

More bottle kilns

This lock is close to the railway

Underneath the railway

Stoke Bottom Lock

Industrial memorial

Another industrial memorial

The Wedgwood Factory

Moored at Barlaston

Barlaston Hall, home of the Wedgwood family

A visitor on board

Unexpected oyster catcher on the bank

6 locks, 6 miles. Dep 0700, arr 1020

Wed 5^th July Barlaston to Stone

Despite an early start, we were not the first, and at Meaford Locks there was a queue. Skyfall was the boat in front. There were boats behind us, and other boats coming up, so it was fairly busy. At Stone Locks, Skyfall stopped for the facilities, and we sang happy birthday to Julia as we passed them. We stopped at Canal Cruising Company for our gas. It was very awkward tying up as their pontoon was not long enough. We tied on OK at the stern, but the bows were tied on to one of their hire boats. Thankfully, they had the gas for us. They were the 10^th company we had tried.

We had hoped to get a mooring before the bottom lock, but the spaces were all full, so we moved on to moor after the winding hole.

We walked into the village, and had a meal at Bear, a Mediterranean restaurant. Lovely food, but a little overpriced. We went to Morrisons for a few things afterwards, but they didn’t have the mugs we wanted. We went to their café for a drink and a pudding, and they said if we included a sandwich, it would be cheaper. So, we added a sandwich, but then left it at the till by accident. One of the staff brought it over to us. When we departed, we think we absent-mindedly left the sandwich on the tray. Back via M&S foods for milk. Hood up in time for some rain.