Back on to the Trent and Mersey.

Thursday 2nd July, 2015 on Whatcroft Flash.
 Thankfully, a much cooler day. There was a flurry of early morning activity with boats passing in both directions and suddenly - we were alone! Was it something we said?
It was with some regret that we left Church Minshull. It was a wonderful spot in which to have enjoyed the peace of rural England. Tom Rolt, author of "Narrow Boat" and one of the saviours of the waterways system, enjoyed an extended stay here in the autumn of 1939 and waxed lyrical about the village.
We set off mid-morning but soon had to stop to deal with a cruiser that had come off its moorings and was broadside across the canal. There was no one on board and the boat was in very bad condition. It also had a C&RT Enforcement Notice attached to it. R to the rescue!

While M held MM close to the side, R took a rope and attached it to the bow of the cruiser, pulled it back to the bank and re-moored it.
It's not the first time that we have had to re-moor boats floating in the middle of the canal. If a boat is abandoned, the C&RT takes years (literally) to do anything about it. Our friends Peter and Bridgett at Weston have had an abandoned cruiser (notified to C&RT) moored outside their house for well over two years - and it's still there!
There are only two locks at this end of the canal and at the first we found a queue of three boats in front of us. However, everyone passed the time gossiping, grumbling good naturedly (mainly about the C&RT) and helping each other through the lock. Everyone was fascinated by the activity of some small honey bees that were nesting in a hole next to the lock. M said she has never seen bees nesting in the ground before.

The final lock on the Shroppie Middlewich Arm is Wardle Lock, but is known locally as Maureen's Lock in honour of the lady who lived for years in the lock cottage and generally supervised comings and goings.
The very short bit of water (50 yards) between the lock and the junction with the Trent & Mersey (just the other side of the bridge) is officially a little canal in its own right - the "Wardle Canal", the shortest canal on the network!

So, farewell to our beloved Shroppie and back on to the Trent & Mersey. We turned north and went through the three narrow locks before we reached "Big Lock", so named because it is the first wide lock on the Trent & Mersey. Instead of queueing behind another boat called "Dream of Avalon" as we had done for the narrow locks, we were able to go in beside her and go down together. The first wide lock that we have done this year.

This is the last lock going north until Wigan, about 40 miles ahead.  "Hooray!" said M.
Just past the lock, we stopped to fill up with water and then set off to find a mooring for the night. Dark clouds had been gathering for some time. Earlier it had been a bit showery, but now it started to rain in earnest. Out came the waterproofs, umbrella and a few mild swearwords. Unlike the Shroppie, there are not many places to moor on the T&M and it was some time before we finally managed to find a place to moor up opposite one of the large "Flashes" or wide expanses of water caused by subsidence due to salt mining. Very companionably, it was next to nb "Dream of Avalon". R got quite wet mooring up MM although it didn't seem to worry the swans.

Would you believe it but three hours later, the clouds and rain had vanished and we were treated to a clear blue sky and a delightful evening.

Today was the full moon and as dusk fell, the moon rose over the trees, a brilliant orange/red colour reflected in the water of the Flash.  Yes, it really was this colour!

Utterly marvellous!
Today: 9 miles, 6 locks and 9.5 hours (including power yesterday).
Trip: 86 miles, 52 locks and 60.1 hours.