From a Cheshire Cat to Sunset and Wine

Tuesday 30th June, 2015 at Church Minshull.
R needed a haircut - badly! So he set off into town before 8:30. M followed a little later and we met in the "Cheshire Cat" pub (a magnificent timbered building which serves breakfast, lunch and teas) where we had an excellent breakfast.

Then we set off, passing another wooden carving, this time of a canal horse made out of old lock gates. You can just see him "leaning" forward as the boat horses used to do to get the boats moving.

To the west of the main canal is a short arm that branches off the main line. It is now used for moorings by the local boat club.

On the right is the route originally planned for the canal by Telford, but when the local landowners refused to allow him to cross their land, he was forced to reroute the canal. As a result, he had to build the tall embankment and aqueduct closer to the town - expensive both in terms of manpower and construction time.

At Hurleston Junction, we passed the turning up to the Llangollen Canal; very inviting but we're saving that delight for another year!

Another junction at Barbridge could have taken us on to Chester but again, we decided to save that for another year. So we turned north-east on to the Middlewich branch of the Shroppie.

This is a much under-valued length of waterway, very peaceful with some lovely moorings. There were only two locks today, but they were both very deep at 11ft 3in - quite intimidating when you're in the empty lock!

We found beautiful moorings on another of Telford's embankments, high above the little village of Church Minshull.
The guide book indicated a footpath down through a wood, known as "Eardswick Wood".

We followed the path through the wood, across several "Pooh Sticks" bridges, down by the infant River Weaver and into the village.

It was a very hot day and our hopes for an ice cream at the village shop were dashed when it appeared the village no longer has a shop. However, the "Badger Inn" advertised that it serves food and we managed to acquire two portions of ice-cream chosen from their dessert menu. Hooray!
Back at MM, we fell into conversation with Linda, Celia, John and Paul who were on an Anderton hire boat and are seriously considering buying a boat of their own. They asked many questions about MM and so we invited them on board for the "Ten Cent Tour".

They were great fun and it was a shame that they had to move on this afternoon, otherwise we imagine the evening would have been spent sitting on the towpath sharing a bottle or three of wine.
As it was, it was just Darby and Joan (alias Merry and Pippin - or M & R) with a glass of wine sitting on the towpath and watching the magnificent sunset.

Today: 9 miles, 2 locks and 3.4 hours.
Trip: 77 miles, 46 locks and 50.6 hours.

A Weekend Away for M.

Saturday 27th to Monday 29th June, 2015 in Nantwich.
M went home for the weekend, primarily to attend the choir's summer barbecue but also to do "useful tasks" such as picking up the post at home.
R's "useful tasks" were centred around some maintenance jobs on MM including polishing and then lacquering the brass fittings; but he also managed to relax a bit and look around Nantwich, which has some beautiful buildings like these 1870 Alms Houses with beautifully tended gardens.

He photographed the very worn "mounting block" on the High Street - two years ago, when we were here with Jamie and Alex on MM, we took a picture of Alex standing on the block.

R also visited the excellent bookshop in the centre of Nantwich, which includes a coffee shop. The building was built in 1583 and upstairs there are lovely oak-panelled rooms with comfy leather wing-back chairs. Perfect!

Meanwhile, the weather at the choir barbecue was bizarre! The days either side were sunny and dry but for much of the barbecue the wind swept across Hartswood playing fields and the rain fell in buckets!

M arrived back in Nantwich after a seven hour journey including one bus and four trains! Anticipating that M would want a "few bits", R had already gone shopping at the M&S food store and carted the result back to the boat and stocked up the fridge. He was awarded LOTS of Brownie points for that and a restorative coffee at Costa! M was delighted (and impressed) that he had managed to get almost every item she needed - but still managed to buy another two bags full on the way back to MM!
R had moved MM from one set of moorings to another on the other side of the aqueduct to comply with the maximum mooring restriction of 48 hours (not that many other boaters seemed to bother). The aqueduct is a handsome structure indeed.

A rather grumpy wooden dog watched the passing boats with its beady eyes.

Another Kingsground boat, nb "Nomadic Starr", was also moored there; we saw her once before on the Llangollen Canal in 2010.
Four days Power: 8.6 hours.
Trip: 68 miles, 44 locks and 47.2 hours.

The "Overwater" Marina and Nantwich.

Friday 26th June, 2015 at Nantwich.
We heard rain during the night but fortunately, it had stopped by the time we had breakfast. Before setting off, we walked into the village to "The Deli" for a coffee and so that M could buy two more of their delicious pasties.
We topped up with water above the first lock and, after waiting for a boat coming up through the lock, set off.

Between the "Shroppie Fly" pub and the lock-keeper's cottage next to the lock, there was a hedge that seemed to be exploding!  M had no idea what it was - any ideas anyone?

By the second lock, three C&RT volunteers were cutting grass - or, more correctly, one was cutting grass while the other two watched him! Not sure why they were trimming the non-towpath side, but I am sure that they knew what they were doing. By the lock was a sort of "allotment" garden full of vegetables.

We were curious to see the new "Overwater" marina, which had recently been voted "Marina of the Year". Could it be a serious rival to our beloved Aston? So we turned in to fill up with diesel fuel and to check it out.

It certainly is very nice, very well maintained, with a well stocked shop and a small cafe - but it didn't have Aston's Bistro or Farm Shop! Hardly surprising, as it is well out into the country and does not have the large urban centres close by as Aston does.
A watchful owl looked down with a beady eye as R struggled to moor up MM in a strong wind that was doing its best to blow her off the mooring.

The hedgerows are truly lovely at the moment; honeysuckle and cascades of wild roses predominate. There are signs already of a bumper crop of sloes and blackberries this autum. Let's hope so.

We arrived at Nantwich and were lucky enough to find a good mooring spot on the popular moorings above the aqueduct.

As it was tea time we walked in to the local Costa for refreshments (!) and we also checked out Nantwich Railway Station. M is going home tomorrow for the weekend by train, back on Monday. (note from M - R will no doubt be getting up to no good in her absence!). (Reply from R - Moi??).
Today: 6 miles, 5 locks and 3.7 hours.
Trip: 68 miles, 44 locks and 38.6 hours.

Twelve Locks and a Duck of Very Little Brain!

Thursday 25th June, 2015 in Audlem.
Awoke to another sunny morning. M, while enjoying her first cup of tea, was thrilled to see her namesake boat passing by (April 1st is her birthday).

We set off after breakfast to tackle the first of the twelve locks down to Audlem. They are in a delightful rural setting, the gates and paddles are easy and the constant passing of boats going up the flight gave us a "good road" (as the old boatmen would say) and brought out the best in the boating community - everyone cheerfully helping each other through the locks.
At the first lock, the cows came down to the water to drink and to gaze curiously at the strange parade of boats passing by.

When the canal boats were horse-drawn, metal plates were put on the bridge corners to protect the stonework from the tow ropes. The tow ropes were always full of grit and they wore deep grooves in the metal.

There was a drama at one of the locks when a mother duck and her six very small  ducklings were stranded in the lock. This is not normally a problem as they will make their way out when the gates open - but this was clearly a mother duck of Very Little Brain! She hopped out of the lock, leaving her brood behind, stranded and completely panic-stricken in the lock.

When the gate opened, they were reunited - at which point she led them over to the by-wash (the overflow water flowing past the lock) and they were promptly swept down the turbulent underground by-wash to the pound below the lock. It must have been a roller-coaster ride! M held her breath, fearing the worst but thankfully all six survived and appeared safely below the lock.

The mother was now in a panic as she had lost her chicks and flew into the air, circling until she heard their plaintive cries from below. M said that the chicks must have been terrified as they were swept down the underground outflow, but R's view was that they probably said, "That was great, Mum. Can we do it again!"
We moored up at Audlem in the early afternoon and fell into conversation with three delightful ladies who were admiring MM and who were fascinated by the locks, having never seen one at close quarters before.
Chrissy and Pat are two sisters and Susie is Pat's daughter. They were so interested that we invited them on board for the "ten cent tour".  They were great fun and we had a delightful half hour together. We hope to see them again, particularly as Pat lives in Nantwich, our next port of call.

We have a prime mooring spot directly beside Audlem Mill, a handsome building now fully restored and a two storey shop offering a huge range of canal related bits and a magnificent array of needlecraft - recently awarded "Best Needlework Shop in the North West". M was in her element!

There is an excellent deli/coffee shop in the village, called "The Deli" so we walked in for some afternoon tea.

In the Deli, M had a pasty, which she declared to be the best that she could ever remember having, and we were quite surprised to see Peter Rabbit pushing a barrow of Cornish potatoes.

The town is dominated by a fine church that sits high above the shops.

We had a very agreeable and quiet afternoon moored in this lovely spot and had our supper to the accompaniment of the local church bells.

Today: 3 miles, 12 locks and 2.4 hours.
Trip: 62 miles, 39 locks and 34.9 hours.

Market Day in Market Drayton.

Wednesday 24th June, 2015 at Adderley.
Last night, we were so ahead of ourselves that we caught up our diary right up to date - but later, M took this photo of the still evening on the water - and we had to include it. Beautiful!

Awoke to a beautiful sunny morning. We had no milk, no fruit juice, in fact, not much of anything! So a shopping trip was in order! We walked into Market Drayton and had an excellent breakfast in the Buttercross Tea Room.

Wednesday is market day in Market Drayton so the town was busy. The market extended for the length of the pedestrian area in the middle of the town and, as with any good market, you could buy almost anything. R bought some fishing line (to hang a crystal in MM's window) and M bought some sewing cotton.

Then we braved Morrisons, not this time for a "few bits" but "rather a lot of bits!"
As we walked back along the towpath, we were delighted to see nb "Wanderin' Bark" and the "Jam Butty" belonging to Helen and Andy, who sell their wonderful jams, marmalades and cordials from the two narrowboats. We naturally assumed that they were there for the "Floating Market" in Market Drayton this weekend; however, there appeated to be no one aboard.

Soon after, R, while on his way to the rubbish bins, was horrified to see that "Wandering' Bark" was preparing to leave. It transpired that Helen and Andy were not aboard but that two gentlemen were taking the boats back to their permanent moorings for them. R enquired if there was any chance of buying some marmalade and, although the two chaps were very helpful, they couldn't find any - so R left very disappointed.
M was inconsolable - but insisted that R went to take a photo of "Wanderin Bark" for the blog, which he did, rather reluctantly.
What a good thing that he did!  The gentlemen had found some marmalade and we were able to acquire six jars of their "Sloe Whisky Seville Marmalade".  Paddington would have been delighted and Guy was pretty pleased too (as were we!).

Our mooring was reserved for the "Floating Market" from today, so we set off north after lunch. The sky had clouded over a bit but it was lovely cruising through rural countryside.
At the top of the Adderley flight of five locks, there was an excellent stall selling a huge variety of home produced goods including cakes, tarts, eggs, meat, bread and even home made butter and cheese (which you don't see often). As with most of these stalls, there is an "honesty box" - M bought home-made scones, a rhubarb tart and a pork pie.

The flight of locks is an attractive one and not difficult, so we were soon down the five and moored up for the day at the bottom in a pretty spot opposite a large field with calves and their mothers. It was lovely to see the young calves playing together and bounding about in much the same way as young lambs do.
This area is famed for its dairy herds and milk production, hence the large number of butter references such as Market Drayton's "Buttercross" and Nantwich's "Buttermarket".

It was touching to see the cows grooming and being so affectionate with the little calves.

As we were moored a few hundred yards below the bottom lock, we noticed that after a boat had gone up through the lock (leaving it full), the gates leaked so badly that the lock emptied in about 45 minutes! So much for C&RT's guideline for boaters to save water!
Once again, we were treated to a wonderful sunset. It is a real treat to be able to see to the horizon.

Today: 3 miles, 5 locks and 4.5 hours.
Trip: 59 miles, 27 locks and 32.5 hours.

RAF Cosford Museum, Two Years On.

Tuesday 23rd June, 2015 at Market Drayton.
Today, we decided to go and re-visit the RAF Museum at Cosford. We went there two years ago and were very impressed. A little research at Market Drayton Bus Station yeilded absolutely nothing; there are no timetables or any other information in evidence anywhere!
The internet, however, indicated that there was an hourly bus which went to Shrewsbury and a train from Shrewsbury to Cosford Station. So, at the appointed hour, we presented ourselves at the bus station and arrived in Shrewsbury an hour later.  Because it was before 9.30, we had to buy tickets! Rats!!!The first time we've had to pay a bus fare since obtaining our Old Codgers' passes a certain number of years ago!!!
Shrewsbury Railway Station is a magnificent building and serves a wide range of destinations including Birmingham and North and South Wales.

After a relatively short train journey, we arrived at Cosford and walked the 20 minutes or so to the museum. As we walked through the gate, we saw a group of young children picnicing under a Bristol Britannia - what a wonderful place to have lunch!

In the entrance hall to the museum (entrance is free!) was a magnificent one-fifth scale model of a P51 Mustang. Apparently it took 10 years to build and was accurate in every little detail. Magic!

The museum is divided into four hangers. The first is the "Test" hanger and contains the most incredible collection of test aircraft from a time when Britain led the world in jet research. Best of all is one of two surviving TSR2s that is undergoing restoration.

In the "War in the Air" hanger there is the oldest Mk1 Spitfire in existence. It has been restored as it was in 1939, which required the removal of 39 "upgrades" to get it back to its original condition.

It also contained a small exhibit of photos of bits from the Dornier recovered from Goodwin Sands and which we were fortunate enough to see two years ago when it had only just arrived at the museum, still dripping water! Unfortunately it is still being restored and is not currently on display.

The "Cold War" hanger is quite exceptional with aircraft and vehicles from the Cold War period including examples of all three V-Bombers as well as brilliant panels explaining the differences between East and West cultures at that time on everything from sport to politics.

Finally there is "No 1" hanger that contains training and transport aircraft as well as examples of engines from First World War rotary engines to an RB211 jet engine. But, perhaps best of all, the little Folland Gnat T1 trainer - R's very favourite aircraft (next to a Mosquito).

As we walked between the hangers, we heard jet engines out on the airfield and watched as two Jaguar GR3's taxied around the apron.

We later found out that these two aircraft were retired in 2007 and are now used for technical training and in this case were being used to train ground crew in marshalling jets. So about ten students were being taught by two instructors how to marshall the two aircraft around the apron in a very classic "dance".
Back in Shrewsbury, we had an hour between our train and the bus back to Market Drayton and so wandered around the town. The River Severn winds its way round three sides of the town and a trip boat does hourly excursions up and down the river. Many years ago, the river was connected to the canal network by a canal that ran up 16 locks to Norbury Junction. What a lovely journey that must have been.
In the centre of the town was a beautiful timber frame building with an impressive brick built section.

It appears that it belonged to a very successful draper and brewer, who built the brick extension as the first brick built house in the town.

So we caught the bus home - both a little foot sore as we did a lot of walking today.
The evening sun was lovely and M remarked that the beautiful tree on the opposite bank reminded her of the fact that John Constable was reputed to have used brocolli as models for his trees - but this was a case of nature following the artist! M also observed that in fact, he must have used the English Purple Sprouting variety, as the calabrese that we call "brocolli" is a relatively recent import.

Guy was so pleased to see us back on board that he immediately put on M's red hat!

Today: MM rested quietly in the sunshine and didn't move.