Whitchurch to Llangollen
Tuesday 16th June 2009
After spending a peaceful night at Whitchurch, without benefit of TV, since there was nothing worth watching on any of the terrestrial channels, we left just before 8 o/clock, with no clear decision as to how far we were going. In the event, after consulting the map whilst cruising very slowly, we settled on Platt Lane which, according to the book, has a pub called The Waggoners Inn. Sadly this pub is now defunct, as Wifey discovered when she took Rusty for a walk. This is not a problem really, but it would have been nice to have had a pub lunch for a change.
Now, how many of you listen to Wogan in the morning? We do because we like to catch up with the news at 7.30 and/or 8 o/clock and we like his banter. This morning he related a situation that I simply had to pass on. It goes something like this:
Imagine the scene in the offices of Bristol Zoo, where a member of staff has the telephone to his ear and is speaking to someone at Bristol City Council.
“Our car park attendant hasn’t turned up this morning and, despite telephoning him several times, he doesn’t appear to be at home. Could you send us a temporary replacement until we contact him?”
The gentleman at the Council asks him to hold whilst he checks this out and returns to the telephone to say, “I’m sorry, there seems to be some mistake, your car park is run from your end, we do not supply an attendant”
“But, our attendant has been employed by the Council for six days a week for the past 23 years, collecting about £400 per day”
I’m sorry sir,” says the Council person, “he’s not our employee, he’s yours, we have no record of any member of our staff covering your car park.”
Ooops! By my calculations this bogus car park attendant has secreted away almost £3,000,000, with no tax liability and has done a runner. What an absolutely fabulous scam!! Boom! Boom!
You do the math. £400 per day, six days a week, 52 weeks a year – even if he takes annual holidays and subs it to a mate – he’s been on £2,400 a week or £124,800 a year. Wow!
This scam compares very favourably to the one that took Littlewoods Pools to the cleaners when Australian football was introduced during our summer months. Somebody, who had relatives in Oz, suddenly realised that, due to time differences between us and them, he only needed to wait for the results to be ‘phoned over and he could take his completed coupon to Littlewoods office in London, pay his fee and collect a jackpot. I believe he did this for several weeks before owning up to the scam. But, since it came within the rules of gambling, he kept the money.
I should be so lucky!
Wednesday 17th June 2009
Today dawned cloudy and threatening rain but, as it hadn’t rained by 8 o/clock, we decided to get moving. Just two hours and 4 ½ miles later and we moored up at Hampton bank Bridge, by which time the heavens had opened up.
The Llangollen Canal, which resulted from original plans published in 1791, for a canal running from the Mersey to the Severn, actually covers 46 miles from Hurleston Junction, on the Shropshire Union, to Llantysilio. There are several branches along the way, the longest of which is the Montgomery Canal, which is 32 miles long from Frankton Junction to Freestone Lock, although only 6 miles is navigable and ends just past Crofts Mill Lift Bridge. Looking at the map there are other sections that are also navigable but, since they are somewhat isolated, until somebody opens up the rest of the unnavigable stretches, they are worse than useless.
The supply of water for the canal comes mainly from the River Dee, although much of it also comes from runoff from fields after heavy rain. The fact that the canal has a current makes it quite unique. However, as we discovered 15 years ago, when we hired a boat from Anglo-Welsh at Bunbury, in a dry season you’d be hard pressed to complete the trip. We were obliged to turn shortly after Chirk and didn’t make it to Llangollen.
Over those intervening years many improvements have been made, courtesy of the Shropshire Union Canal Society and there are now many more areas for mooring. Thus far we have taken 10 days to get to this point, which is 14 miles short of where we turned around all those years ago. From Anglo-Welsh at Bunbury, to that same turning point, is 40 miles, which we completed back then in a week, that’s an 80 mile round trip. Must have been bonkers. This time around we’re hoping to go the full distance.
Thursday 18th June 2009
Good afternoon from Ellesmere, that’s Ellesmere on the Llangollen as opposed to Ellesmere Port on the Shroppie, just in case you’re a little confused. No locks or lift bridges to worry about today, just the 87 yards or so tunnel a short distance from here.
We’re actually moored on the arm of the canal that ends in a small winding hole and basin and where the area looks to be preparing for redevelopment. At present a new Tesco store is being built and is due for opening on August 3rd this year. So, if they’ve got it right, we’ll be topping up when we come back this way.
The Post Office, which we visited this morning, has succeeded in finding a place in our Guinness Book or Records. It’s the first time we’ve been refused permission to have mail forwarded. All Sheila got for her enquiry was “Oh, you’ll have to ‘phone the Sorting Office”. A lot of use that would be if it was an emergency!
There’s quite a write-up about the town in our Nicholson Guide but, briefly it goes as follows: To the north east and east lie several meres, varying in size from The Mere, which is closest to the town, through Cole Mere, Blake Mere and White Mere. At the bottom of the arm is a old warehouse with the Shropshire Union Canal info on the side, which obviously dates back to the time when the 46 miles of this canal was still part of the Shroppie.
Everything a body could want by way of shops can be found in the centre, which appears to be quite old and careworn, with many buildings dating back to the 18th century. The bakery, if you’re passing this way, includes an excellent deli and the range of bread and pies, is well worth the visit. We had a bit of a spending spree, buying bread, a bread and butter pudding, individual pork pies, and a large pork pie with Shropshire Blue Cheese on top. We also topped up with bacon, eggs and sausages. Looking at the picture of the towns layout, there are at least four pubs close to the shops, one of which might benefit from a visit from us upon our return.
Friday 19th June 2009
Today dawned bright and sunny but, as expected, by the time Wifey returned from the shop, it had clouded over. Our plan today was for a short run of about 4 miles, during which we would stop at a boatyard for a pump out. This we did, although the trip was a little difficult at times with the strong headwind. We’re now moored up for the day between bridges 6W and 7W, which we take to mean west of the Montgomery Canal, which we’ll venture down upon our return.
This is another peaceful spot, marred only by the speeding holiday boaters. You would think they’d want a gentle cruise, but it seems all they care about is getting their moneys worth. Still, provided the boat is tied up securely, we don’t rock about too much.
Incidentally, having had several problems sending text messages, and assuming I eventually get to post this blog, I do not expect the sending of texts and access to the Internet to improve whilst we’re on the Llangollen. You have been warned. If you don’t always receive our daily texts, or it seems a long while between blogs, it’s no fault of ours. Strangely though, Sheila’s ‘phone seems to be more reliable than mine. Hers is pay as you go with orange, whilst I’m paying £15 a month with 3G. There must be a moral there, but I’m darned if I can see it.
Tomorrow we’re off to Chirk to pick up our mail and fill a prescription at the local chemists. We’ll probably spend a couple of nights there and sample a local watering hole on Sunday.
Saturday 20th June 2009
What a day! We left nice and early, just before eight and, after one stop for a cuppa and another, at Chirk, for Sheila to pick up our mail, we finally came to a stop at Chirk Marina, a total of seven miles, taking in two locks, Chirk Aqueduct and Chirk Tunnel, all of which took us until 12.45. The reason for taking almost five hours was, as you might have guessed, holiday boats.
Chirk Aqueduct, which is only about half the length of the famous Pontcysyllte Aqueduct, leads into a circular basin, at which boats can stop until it is clear to proceed. We followed a holiday boat across the aquaduct and, when we both arrived at the basin, had to wait for boats to emerge from the tunnel. Amazingly there were six boats coming through at the same time, five of which were holiday boats or day boats. You can imagine the delay that caused.
We had hoped to be able to stay at the moorings outside the tunnel, but it was so gloomy, with trees both sides, that we decided to push on. Which is why we now find ourselves at the marina. Tomorrow we’ll probably go on to Sun Trevor Bridge where there’s a canal side pub.
Unfortunately, being as far out in the sticks as we are, we can’t get online. Hopefully I’ll have more luck tomorrow.
If you’re in need of a bit of a chuckle, you only have to turn to the antics of the multi-nationals who look after our money. We recently arranged a Standing Order with the Halifax, which was for our annual payments to the Residential Boat Owners Association, from her on in shortened to RBOA. The initial payment, as I’m a pensioner now, was for £12, followed by annual payments in the same sum.
We received an email some time ago from a nice lady at the RBOA to say that our bank had made a first payment of £21 and offered to send us a cheque for the balance of £9. I emailed back and said we’d sort it out with the Halifax and would get back to her as soon as it was sorted.
Sheila attempted to sort it out by ‘phone, but was told she would have to fill in a form at a branch somewhere. She tried to do so at Whitchurch, without success because, as the lady pointed out, the person who deals with such matters was not available. How hard can it be?
Anyway, Wifey did succeed in altering the following years payment by going online, but that still left the outstanding £9, and so I again emailed RBOA asking for the cheque. So far so good.
We collected our mail today from the post office at Chirk and found a letter from the Halifax, which said, and I quote: “Thank you for your recent standing order instruction in favour of Residential Boat Owners. This has been set up as requested. Please check the following details:
Amount: £12.00 (initial payment today)
Start Date: 01/05/2010
Frequency: Monthly
Honestly, you couldn’t make it up. We’re now going to cancel the wretched standing order, just as soon as we can get online, and make our future payments, annually, by cheque. Ah well, you can’t win them all I suppose!
Monday 22nd June 2009
Hi from Llangollen. Yesterday we moved on to bridge 41 and the pub called Sun Trevor, which is well past the town of Trevor and lies in the Vale of Llangollen. We paid a visit to the pub and, let me tell you, it’s many years since I had a drink in a Welsh pub. The last time was when Uncle Ron was still alive and I got a real telling off from Auntie Bob for bringing Ron home in a drunken stupor. He’d actually only drunk half a pint of bitter, but he was a very good actor and had Bob convinced. Nasty old bugger!
We’re now moored up on the BW wharf here and took a walk into town this morning. It’s also quite a few years since we’ve visited Llangollen; maybe five or six; and that was when we took Auntie Bob to Ruthin. Although, every time we visited with her we would pass the town, because it lies on the A5, which goes all the way to Anglesey.
We’re staying here for two nights because, once again and after just 12 days, we need to give the batteries a charge from the mains. Actually, for only £6 per night, with free electricity, we think it’s very reasonable. At Nantwich it cost us£15 per night.
Although it was pretty hard going for me to walk into town, which is very hilly, I’m hoping to do so again tomorrow so as to take some photographs. This really is a very scenic town with the River Dee running through it. The weather has brightened up this afternoon, so we’re hoping it will stay fine for tomorrow. Unfortunately, as mush as we would like to stay longer, we’re restricted to two nights. This is so that, especially in the holiday season, everybody gets the opportunity to spend a couple of days here.
Just a little way down from here is a horse drawn boat that takes passengers to the famous Horseshoe Falls. Well, it takes them almost all the way, but they have to walk a short way. There’s also a steam train that goes to Corwen , which is another place we would pass through on the way to Aunties and it’s about nine miles away as the train goes.
The canal is not navigable by canal boat after Llangollen, but the channel does continue on to Llantysilio, passing a country hotel and a chain bridge over the River Dee.At Horseshoe Falls a large semi-circular weir across the Dee, built by Thomas Telford, provides the water which is constantly passed into the canal. It then flows past Llangollen and the aqueduct, right back down to Hurleston Reservoir to the tune of 12 million gallons a day.
Well, that’s about it for this blog.
On Wednesday we’ll be making our way back to Hurleston Junction, which should take us about three weeks. From here to our previous moorings we’ll have to navigate through two stretches of canal that narrow down to just one boats width. One is 500 metres long and the other is 300 metres. The 500 metre stretch doesn’t have any passing places, so Sheila will walk ahead to see if anything is coming our way. If it is and they are already in the narrow section, she’ll have to phone and tell me to wait. If there’s nowt coming, she’ll also have to let me know.
On the way through those two sections this morning, we were fortunate enough to have other people walking along to warn us of another boat being in the narrow section. On Wednesday though, as we’ll be leaving quite early, we may not be so lucky. We’ll hope for the best. Good fun this cruising!
Cheers for now.
Dave, Sheila and Rusty.
Monday, 22 June 2009
Monday, 15 June 2009
Hurleston Junction to Whitchurch
Hurleston Junction to Whitchurch
Monday 8th June 2009
You may remember from my last blog, how I said that we’d been running the heater, at least twice a day since Thursday and that it seemed to be working just fine. This morning, in accordance with Sod’s Law, I switched it on and nothing happened.
It just so happened that we’d decided to go to Nantwich for diesel and pump-out prior to tackling the Llangollen, so off we trotted. Nick, the guy who serviced the heating last September, was there to check out the batteries, of which we have six for domestic use and one for the engine starter. Ever single domestic battery was at very low power, several as low as 50 %, so we were now faced with a problem.
According to Nick, simply relying on the alternator to keep them topped up, especially as we live on board, is not enough. Apparently the do need a good charge from a 240 volt domestic line otherwise they simply deteriorate over time. Also, living on board, as we do, it’s not unusual, especially if relying on the alternator, for the batteries to be in need of replacement after two or three years.
Anyway, after having a chat with the manager of the yard, we moored up by a power point and will be here for two nights. On Wednesday morning Nick will stop by and check the batteries again. Hopefully they’ll be as near to fully charged as makes no difference.
The moral of this story is that, when cruising find a boatyard or marina that allows overnight moorings and give the batteries a good boost. We’ll probably have to do so about once a month or so, otherwise, at £70 to £80 a go, we’re looking at between £420 and £480 to replace them all.
Sheila, as was her intention once we’d decided to stop here to have the batteries checked, has popped off to Nantwich for a little shopping. Actually, the one good thing to come out of this is that I can have an ice cream. As you know, I don’t get to walk very far these days and, asking Wifey to bring one back from shopping would be pretty dumb. But this place has a chandlery that does a pretty good selection and it’s only a short walk away. Yummee!!
Wednesday 10th June 2009
Guess what, we’re back at Hurleston Junction having spent two nights at the marina in Nantwich. We went there on Monday in order to have our heating system checked which, as you know, has been giving us a bit of trouble of late. Nick Bancroft, the engineer who serviced it last September, was pretty sure the heating was OK and suspected that the batteries were not sufficiently charged. Unfortunately he was proved correct, and so we stayed there for two nights, with our inverter/charger hitched up to the mains. This improved things quite a bit, but the batteries still need a bit more of a charge. This we will do on our way down the Llangollen and again on our way to our moorings. With luck our six months stay there will fully charge them.
It is really tipping it down with rain at present, but we’re hoping the weather improves by tomorrow morning so we can start making our way up that Welsh stretch of water.
Thursday 11th June 2009
Hi there good people, and a very good day to you all. We are, at last, on the Llangollen Canal and moored up just past bridge 12. We spent yesterday afternoon and evening at Hurleston Junction, which joins this canal with the Shroppie, having finally received a clean bill of health where our batteries are concerned. We may have to stop at another marina on our way home, just to make sure they are still OK, but that’s really no hardship.
I received something of a shock today, from my surgery in Harlow no less. I placed a repeat prescription request online yesterday and was told today, by telephone from the person who sorts out such things that, unless I have a Diabetic Check Up immediately, my doctor will not issue further medication. The stupid man must have got out of bed on the wrong side, because his behaviour could cause serious problems. Without insulin I could quite possibly lapse into a diabetic coma. This is especially true since he’s also refused me the test strips that tell me how my blood glucose levels are and how much insulin I need to inject.
I now have precisely 20 days worth of test strips and about 35 days of insulin. However, after the 20 days it really doesn’t matter how much insulin I have left, I won’t be able to inject it for fear of overdoing it. In short, despite my GP being happy to write prescriptions for three months at a time in 2007 and 2008, since he refuses to do so in 2009, I’m pretty much stuffed.
So, what to do? Well, I’ve emailed back to the person in charge of medication, asking her to explain to my dear doctor, that I had a check up shortly before we left in April and that, if he still refuses, I will have to go to a local GP, explain the situation and hope he or she will write a prescription. In fact many live aboard boaters who continuously cruise the waterways, don’t even have a regular GP and simply register with the nearest one, on a temporary basis, then move on to the next one. Not an ideal situation, I agree, but the only alternative left open to some folks. Once we get to Pillings Lock Marina we will register with a new GP and, hopefully, he’ll be a sensible fellow who understands the quirks and foibles of us crazy boaters.
It would be a crying shame, don’t you think, if we were to allow a jumped up, high and mighty, gold dripping GP to spoil our oh so relaxing lifestyle?
Saturday 13th June 2009
Well, the problem with my sill GP is sorted. Knowing how low I am on certain medication, he has agreed to write a prescription, but it comes at an enormous price. I now have to email my blood glucose readings once a month, which covers his rear end at a legal level. The fact that he was totally unconcerned about the legal aspect last year and the year before, doesn’t seem to matter. Naturally it’s all my fault for swanning off into the wild blue yonder without so much as a by your leave. He emphasised the fact that, just as soon as we return to Harlow, we must make appointments to see him for all the usual tests. Sadly we will be unable to comply since we’ll be in Leicestershire by then. All’s well that ends well then!
Today, having spent two very peaceful days and nights at our previous moorings, we’re now at Wrenbury, just before the first lift bridge, of which there are several along the Llangollen. Fifteen years ago, when we hired a boat for a week, these bridges were hand operated. But, since the Shropshire Union Canal Society took it in hand, most are now operated by using a windlass or electrically.
Apparently one of the canal-side pubs has been converted from a warehouse, whils the former mill is now occupied by a boatyard. We walked into the village this morning and, I must say, it really is a delightful place. The walk from the canal took us through the churchyard and onto the main thoroughfare, where we turned left to find the Village Shop cum Post Office. I was surprised to see, along the wall outside, an enclosure with differing sizes of gas bottles, along with coal, kindling and logs. The shop also had a pretty good assortment of foodstuffs, including pies and bread and, most welcoming, an ice cream cabinet.
As with the Shroppie there are plenty of good moorings along this canal, all with proper mooring rings set in concrete. They also seem to be much closer together than on other canals, catering, I suppose, for all the various boat lengths. On most canals, even where they have rings, the distances between them often mean having to tie one rope to a ring and the other to one of our hooks.
We had thought to move along from here to the canal-side pubs but, when Wifey returned from walking the dog, she told me that there’s a campsite by one of them, which doesn’t bode good for noise levels, especially after the pubs turn out. So, here we will stay until tomorrow when we’ll head off to Willeymoor Lock where there’s another pub called the Willeymoor Lock Tavern. Perhaps we’ll give one of the Wrenbury pubs a look in on our way back, but only if it’s midweek when many of the campers will have gone home.
Monday 15th June 2009
We spent yesterday at Willeymoor Lock as you all know, and we strolled down to the eponymous public house at lunchtime. The pub is right by the lock, with tables and chairs and parasols, so we could sit and watch other boaters strutting their stuff for a change. At the end of the day we were the only people moored there for the night. I can’t think why, because it’s a really peaceful spot. I can’t say I was particularly pleased with the taste of my first two pints of Guinness though. It very rarely happens with Guinness, which is why I rarely drink anything else, but it had a bit of a twang to it. The third pint however was completely clear of the taste. I did mention it to the barmaid of course, but she couldn’t understand what the problem might be. The possibility of un-rinsed glasses could be a cause, what with the dishwashing liquids they use nowadays, or it could be whatever they clean their beer lines with. They really should learn to pull off a couple of pints before they open, especially if they have just cleaned the pipes through.
Anyway, this morning we set off for Whitchurch, which took us out of Cheshire and in to Shropshire once more. There’s a short arm that runs off the Llangollen and used to go right into town, but it’s now down to about 200 yards or so. It has a turning point; or winding hole, as they are correctly known; and this is about half way down the arm, so it’s simply a matter of turning around and mooring up ready for departure in the morning.
Incidentally, if you’re not familiar with canal boat terminology, there is a good reason for a winding hole to be so-called. That’s winding, as in wind with the ing on the end, not winding as in “ are you winding me up?” The name goes back to the days of horse drawn boats when certain parts of the canal were widened sufficient for a working boat to turn around if required. On a windy day the boater would use the wind to help him turn the boat. Depending on which direction the wind was blowing, he would pull his bow line and let the wind to push the much broader stern.
So, after seven locks, three of which were staircased with an attendant lock keeper, we finally arrived at the Whichurch Arm and prepared to catch the bus into town. Today I had my first experience of using my national bus pass and, I have to say, I thoroughly enjoyed the experience. There’s nothing quite like getting something for nothing. It’s a bit like politicians expenses I suppose, only on a much smaller scale and all paid for by you, the tax payer. Good on yer I say!
Talking about politicians expenses, have you seen what the Kinnocks have been picking up during the 15 years as MEP’s! My God, the mind boggles and the blood boils. Their pension pots alone are astonishing. What a beautiful gravy train they’ve been on
Apart from the amount of pubs we walked past, Whitchurch is not unusual as towns go. It has all the usual mult-nationals, like Tesco, Smiths and Boots and so it doesn’t differ much from Harlow or Stortford. The locals are pretty friendly though. After shopping at Tesco we sat outside waiting for the bus and I struck up a conversation with an elderly woman who was waiting for the same bus as we were, although I didn’t know it at the time. Anyway, I offered her one of my fruit pastilles, which she happily popped into her mouth and we carried on chatting. Imagine our surprise when, just as we were about to get off, she said, “You’re on the canal then?” We said we were and she promptly handed me a packet of chocolate raisins. Now, that’s what I call friendly.
Being near a good sized town you would expect us to be able to access the Internet, and you’d be right. So, without further ado, I’ll post this blog. Have a good week all you working stiffs, and those who’ve quit the rat-race.
Love from Dave, Sheila and Rusty.
Monday 8th June 2009
You may remember from my last blog, how I said that we’d been running the heater, at least twice a day since Thursday and that it seemed to be working just fine. This morning, in accordance with Sod’s Law, I switched it on and nothing happened.
It just so happened that we’d decided to go to Nantwich for diesel and pump-out prior to tackling the Llangollen, so off we trotted. Nick, the guy who serviced the heating last September, was there to check out the batteries, of which we have six for domestic use and one for the engine starter. Ever single domestic battery was at very low power, several as low as 50 %, so we were now faced with a problem.
According to Nick, simply relying on the alternator to keep them topped up, especially as we live on board, is not enough. Apparently the do need a good charge from a 240 volt domestic line otherwise they simply deteriorate over time. Also, living on board, as we do, it’s not unusual, especially if relying on the alternator, for the batteries to be in need of replacement after two or three years.
Anyway, after having a chat with the manager of the yard, we moored up by a power point and will be here for two nights. On Wednesday morning Nick will stop by and check the batteries again. Hopefully they’ll be as near to fully charged as makes no difference.
The moral of this story is that, when cruising find a boatyard or marina that allows overnight moorings and give the batteries a good boost. We’ll probably have to do so about once a month or so, otherwise, at £70 to £80 a go, we’re looking at between £420 and £480 to replace them all.
Sheila, as was her intention once we’d decided to stop here to have the batteries checked, has popped off to Nantwich for a little shopping. Actually, the one good thing to come out of this is that I can have an ice cream. As you know, I don’t get to walk very far these days and, asking Wifey to bring one back from shopping would be pretty dumb. But this place has a chandlery that does a pretty good selection and it’s only a short walk away. Yummee!!
Wednesday 10th June 2009
Guess what, we’re back at Hurleston Junction having spent two nights at the marina in Nantwich. We went there on Monday in order to have our heating system checked which, as you know, has been giving us a bit of trouble of late. Nick Bancroft, the engineer who serviced it last September, was pretty sure the heating was OK and suspected that the batteries were not sufficiently charged. Unfortunately he was proved correct, and so we stayed there for two nights, with our inverter/charger hitched up to the mains. This improved things quite a bit, but the batteries still need a bit more of a charge. This we will do on our way down the Llangollen and again on our way to our moorings. With luck our six months stay there will fully charge them.
It is really tipping it down with rain at present, but we’re hoping the weather improves by tomorrow morning so we can start making our way up that Welsh stretch of water.
Thursday 11th June 2009
Hi there good people, and a very good day to you all. We are, at last, on the Llangollen Canal and moored up just past bridge 12. We spent yesterday afternoon and evening at Hurleston Junction, which joins this canal with the Shroppie, having finally received a clean bill of health where our batteries are concerned. We may have to stop at another marina on our way home, just to make sure they are still OK, but that’s really no hardship.
I received something of a shock today, from my surgery in Harlow no less. I placed a repeat prescription request online yesterday and was told today, by telephone from the person who sorts out such things that, unless I have a Diabetic Check Up immediately, my doctor will not issue further medication. The stupid man must have got out of bed on the wrong side, because his behaviour could cause serious problems. Without insulin I could quite possibly lapse into a diabetic coma. This is especially true since he’s also refused me the test strips that tell me how my blood glucose levels are and how much insulin I need to inject.
I now have precisely 20 days worth of test strips and about 35 days of insulin. However, after the 20 days it really doesn’t matter how much insulin I have left, I won’t be able to inject it for fear of overdoing it. In short, despite my GP being happy to write prescriptions for three months at a time in 2007 and 2008, since he refuses to do so in 2009, I’m pretty much stuffed.
So, what to do? Well, I’ve emailed back to the person in charge of medication, asking her to explain to my dear doctor, that I had a check up shortly before we left in April and that, if he still refuses, I will have to go to a local GP, explain the situation and hope he or she will write a prescription. In fact many live aboard boaters who continuously cruise the waterways, don’t even have a regular GP and simply register with the nearest one, on a temporary basis, then move on to the next one. Not an ideal situation, I agree, but the only alternative left open to some folks. Once we get to Pillings Lock Marina we will register with a new GP and, hopefully, he’ll be a sensible fellow who understands the quirks and foibles of us crazy boaters.
It would be a crying shame, don’t you think, if we were to allow a jumped up, high and mighty, gold dripping GP to spoil our oh so relaxing lifestyle?
Saturday 13th June 2009
Well, the problem with my sill GP is sorted. Knowing how low I am on certain medication, he has agreed to write a prescription, but it comes at an enormous price. I now have to email my blood glucose readings once a month, which covers his rear end at a legal level. The fact that he was totally unconcerned about the legal aspect last year and the year before, doesn’t seem to matter. Naturally it’s all my fault for swanning off into the wild blue yonder without so much as a by your leave. He emphasised the fact that, just as soon as we return to Harlow, we must make appointments to see him for all the usual tests. Sadly we will be unable to comply since we’ll be in Leicestershire by then. All’s well that ends well then!
Today, having spent two very peaceful days and nights at our previous moorings, we’re now at Wrenbury, just before the first lift bridge, of which there are several along the Llangollen. Fifteen years ago, when we hired a boat for a week, these bridges were hand operated. But, since the Shropshire Union Canal Society took it in hand, most are now operated by using a windlass or electrically.
Apparently one of the canal-side pubs has been converted from a warehouse, whils the former mill is now occupied by a boatyard. We walked into the village this morning and, I must say, it really is a delightful place. The walk from the canal took us through the churchyard and onto the main thoroughfare, where we turned left to find the Village Shop cum Post Office. I was surprised to see, along the wall outside, an enclosure with differing sizes of gas bottles, along with coal, kindling and logs. The shop also had a pretty good assortment of foodstuffs, including pies and bread and, most welcoming, an ice cream cabinet.
As with the Shroppie there are plenty of good moorings along this canal, all with proper mooring rings set in concrete. They also seem to be much closer together than on other canals, catering, I suppose, for all the various boat lengths. On most canals, even where they have rings, the distances between them often mean having to tie one rope to a ring and the other to one of our hooks.
We had thought to move along from here to the canal-side pubs but, when Wifey returned from walking the dog, she told me that there’s a campsite by one of them, which doesn’t bode good for noise levels, especially after the pubs turn out. So, here we will stay until tomorrow when we’ll head off to Willeymoor Lock where there’s another pub called the Willeymoor Lock Tavern. Perhaps we’ll give one of the Wrenbury pubs a look in on our way back, but only if it’s midweek when many of the campers will have gone home.
Monday 15th June 2009
We spent yesterday at Willeymoor Lock as you all know, and we strolled down to the eponymous public house at lunchtime. The pub is right by the lock, with tables and chairs and parasols, so we could sit and watch other boaters strutting their stuff for a change. At the end of the day we were the only people moored there for the night. I can’t think why, because it’s a really peaceful spot. I can’t say I was particularly pleased with the taste of my first two pints of Guinness though. It very rarely happens with Guinness, which is why I rarely drink anything else, but it had a bit of a twang to it. The third pint however was completely clear of the taste. I did mention it to the barmaid of course, but she couldn’t understand what the problem might be. The possibility of un-rinsed glasses could be a cause, what with the dishwashing liquids they use nowadays, or it could be whatever they clean their beer lines with. They really should learn to pull off a couple of pints before they open, especially if they have just cleaned the pipes through.
Anyway, this morning we set off for Whitchurch, which took us out of Cheshire and in to Shropshire once more. There’s a short arm that runs off the Llangollen and used to go right into town, but it’s now down to about 200 yards or so. It has a turning point; or winding hole, as they are correctly known; and this is about half way down the arm, so it’s simply a matter of turning around and mooring up ready for departure in the morning.
Incidentally, if you’re not familiar with canal boat terminology, there is a good reason for a winding hole to be so-called. That’s winding, as in wind with the ing on the end, not winding as in “ are you winding me up?” The name goes back to the days of horse drawn boats when certain parts of the canal were widened sufficient for a working boat to turn around if required. On a windy day the boater would use the wind to help him turn the boat. Depending on which direction the wind was blowing, he would pull his bow line and let the wind to push the much broader stern.
So, after seven locks, three of which were staircased with an attendant lock keeper, we finally arrived at the Whichurch Arm and prepared to catch the bus into town. Today I had my first experience of using my national bus pass and, I have to say, I thoroughly enjoyed the experience. There’s nothing quite like getting something for nothing. It’s a bit like politicians expenses I suppose, only on a much smaller scale and all paid for by you, the tax payer. Good on yer I say!
Talking about politicians expenses, have you seen what the Kinnocks have been picking up during the 15 years as MEP’s! My God, the mind boggles and the blood boils. Their pension pots alone are astonishing. What a beautiful gravy train they’ve been on
Apart from the amount of pubs we walked past, Whitchurch is not unusual as towns go. It has all the usual mult-nationals, like Tesco, Smiths and Boots and so it doesn’t differ much from Harlow or Stortford. The locals are pretty friendly though. After shopping at Tesco we sat outside waiting for the bus and I struck up a conversation with an elderly woman who was waiting for the same bus as we were, although I didn’t know it at the time. Anyway, I offered her one of my fruit pastilles, which she happily popped into her mouth and we carried on chatting. Imagine our surprise when, just as we were about to get off, she said, “You’re on the canal then?” We said we were and she promptly handed me a packet of chocolate raisins. Now, that’s what I call friendly.
Being near a good sized town you would expect us to be able to access the Internet, and you’d be right. So, without further ado, I’ll post this blog. Have a good week all you working stiffs, and those who’ve quit the rat-race.
Love from Dave, Sheila and Rusty.
Sunday, 7 June 2009
Christleton to Hurleston Junction
Sunday 30th May 2009
Hi from Christledon, where the weather is just great and we intend visiting the local Harvester, which is called The Old Trooper. No doubt we’ll discover how it came to be given such a name. Possibly something to do with the army, but we’ll have to wait and see.
We have spent many a happy hour in these particular establishments, one of which treated us very kindly when we became stranded during a snowstorm in the Pennines. This was during our days at The Village Shop in Kent, when we took a few days to visit a company in Stockport. Of course we didn’t make it to our destination and it was only through sheer luck that we spotted the hotels lights through the blinding snow. We booked in for just the one night but, with the snow settles to about three feet deep, and snowploughs unable to clear the way, the management put us up for a second night absolutely free of charge and fed and watered us too. And the moral of the story is, if you must get caught in a snowstorm, ensure there’s a Harvester hotel nearby!
5 pm on Sunday 30th May
Well, as promised, we partook of a small libation and victuals at the aforementioned Old Trooper, and very good it was too. The Guinness was just £2.90 a pint and the most excellent food, which consisted of, what they called “Kickin’ Garlic Chicken”, did have something of a chilli pepper bite to it and only cost £4.99. Now, I call that blooming amazing!
We arrived back at the Shiralee about 1.30 pm, since which time I’ve been on the laptop trying to track down permanent moorings for said boat. Moorings per se are pretty easy to find. Residential moorings on the other hand are well nigh impossible. There are so few of them around, and the number of new boats coming on line is going up in leaps and bounds, to the extent that, just as soon as moorings become available, they are snapped up.
All is not yet lost though, because I’ve found a marina on the Leicester Arm of the GUC that appears to have at least two moorings available. It is a proper marina and offers all the usual facilities and I’ve emailed them to find out how much per year and, more importantly, if they’re still available. So, watch this space, hopefully we’ll have some good news soon.
Monday 1st June 2009
Wow! It’s been a scorcher of a day and we’ve done quite a bit of cruising. Me and hot weather do not go together too well In my youth I absolutely loved it, especially my two years with the Royal Air Force in Malta. There it was shorts and flip-flops during summer. But, now that I’m older, overweight and suffering with dodgy knees and diabetes, it ain’t no fun.
Anyway, having cruised down to Chester from Christleton with Geoff and Val, we decided to go on to Ellesmere Port with them via the golf course, which is about six miles short of it. That was yesterday after a little shopping at Tesco in Chester.
So, this morning bright and early, around about our usual 8 o/clock, we sallied forth to E.P. and arrived about 10.15 or so. We had intended staying a couple of nights, which would have meant stumping up £10 for the privilege of going down two more locks to a secure basin. It was suggested to the girls that they walk down and check it out before parting with their cash. It’s just as well they did too. From what I could make of it, you will have to imagine the days when the canal was busy ferrying goods to the port for onward transportation to all points of the compass in bigger craft. Apparently the moorings were designed for big vessels, which meant that the edge of the wharf came about half way up our windows, which would have made it impossible to actually get off the boat. No steps or ladders available, so we would have been confined to barracks, s to speak.
Which is why you now find us back at the golf course six miles out of Ellesmere Port. What a disappointment, and that’s aside from the fact that we’ve spent almost five hours cruising for no good reason. Tomorrow then, it’s back through the staircase locks to Chester, where we’ll stay overnight.
Tuesday 2nd June 2009
Hello from Chester. Instead of returning to the moorings near Tesco, which are completely open and therefore pretty hot in this blazing June sunshine, we opted to moor about 250 yards down from the staircase locks. This stretch of water has a high rock-face towering over the towpath side, and a high bank with trees on the other, so we’re well shaded for most of the time. However, at this time, which is almost 3 pm, the sun is beating down on the boat from astern, so it’s now getting pretty warm in here. This is especially the case whilst sitting at the dinette typing this blog. With hot air rising it really is surprising the difference in temperature between here and my armchair.
And now on to the good news. We have managed to secure permanent moorings at Pillings Lock, which is on the Leicester Navigation of the Grand Union Canal. It’s about a mile north of Barrow-upon-Soar and 1 ½ miles south of Loughborough. You may remember our 10 day enforced stay in Kegworth Shallow Flood Lock in 2007, well this lock is on the same stretch of water but another 2 miles further on. The difference is that the marina does not flood and that’s because it too is next to a flood lock.
The marina has all facilities, including water and electricity next to the moorings and they also have a barge that comes to your boat should you need a pump-out or diesel. On site is a licensed café/restaurant and it has enough berths for about 300 boats, only about 80% of which are full. So, at this point in time we’re pretty chuffed with ourselves, not least because permanent marina moorings are not easily come by. We’re hoping to take up our position at the end of October. Cheers for now.
Thursday 4th June 2009
Well, we’re back at Bates Mill Bridge on the Shroppie, where we enjoyed a couple of drinks and snack today.
Yesterday we made our way back to Christleton from Chester but, to be honest, couldn’t really be bothered with the pub. Today has been a bit cooler, which suits me better than the blazing sunshine we’ve had over the past few days.
Last September, when we came down the Middlewich Branch of the Shroppie, we called in an engineer named Nick to give our heating system a service. These diesel fired systems can get pretty clogged up with soot and tar over a period of time, especially if they’re not run hard on a regular basis. Anyway, I always turn it on early in the morning and allow it to run through a complete cycle, as the manufacturers recommend.
Last year, when Nick serviced the system, I asked him to install an inline filter which, according to the people at a boatyard, should prevent the problem. But, it’s only nine months since Nick serviced it and the thing won’t run now. So, instead of going straight on to the Llangollen as planned, we’ll be going back to Nantwich, where Nick has his boatyard, and getting it sorted. What really galls me is that we were up that way only a week or so ago. It couldn’t have packed up then, could it?
Friday 5th June 2009
It took us 3 ½ hours to travel the six miles and six locks to Barbridge, which is the junction between the Shroppie and the Middlewich Branch of same. We’re hoping to stay at this mooring tonight and, quite possibly, tomorrow night, then move on and moor up opposite the The Olde Barbridge Inn and partake of a snifter or two on Sunday. If no suitable moorings are available then we’ll go on to Hurleston Junction, which joins the Shroppie to the Llangollen and stay there until Monday morning, at which time we’ll mosey along to Nantwich for repairs to the heating system. All this means of course, is that we’ll be a day or so late in entering the Llangollen. But that’s OK because we’ll be a couple of days behind any holiday makers, and that can’t be bad, either for my patience or peace of mind.
Saturday 6th June 2009
Well, here we are at Barbridge, it’s peeing down with rain and Wifey has taken the bus to Nantwich. We had intended for her to do that on Monday while the heating system is being serviced, but she decided to do it today and then, if she enjoys the experience, she’ll probably do it again on Monday.
So, since Wifey has gone off shopping, I thought I might, at last, have a go at some painting in watercolours. I’ve got a CD by an Irish artist called Frank Clarke ad I’ve had it for quite some time now and so, as soon as I found myself all alone, I set everything up and, quite naturally, made a complete and utter hash of it. A simple seascape, using only three colours, and I couldn’t get that right. That’s not to say I’ve given up, I just don’t think today is the day.
Of course, the other art genre I want to try is canal art, which is all about castles and roses painted on canal boats. Whether or not I even get started on that, especially after my feeble efforts today is anyone’s guess. Perhaps, when we get to our permanent moorings, I can settle into some sort of routine and make progress on either or both.
Sunday 7th June 2009
Hurleston Junction joins the Shroppie with the Llangollen canal, and that’s where we’re moored up right now. We stayed at Barbridge last night and are now headed for Nantwich where we were going to have the heating serviced. However, over the past couple of days, having tested the system on various occasions and, having found it works perfectly well every time, we’re not going to bother. The reason we’re still going there is to top up with diesel and get a pump-out, and for Sheila to pop into Nantwich for a bit more shopping.
We’ll moor up again for the night at Nantwich then, on Tuesday, we’ll make a start on the Llangollen.
I have to confess that this blog may not have held much interest for you kind people but, by way of some kind of justification for my lapse, we’ve been here before and I’m finding it difficult working up any great enthusiasm at present. I can promise you one thing however the Llangollen will be a different story. We were last there 15 years ago and, as I recall, it was a particularly warm summer, so much so that there was insufficient water in the canal for us to complete the full length of the canal.
The Llangollen, as canals go, is somewhat unique in that it depends upon rainwater runoff from its top end. If it’s dry then the canal tends to drain down somewhat and, if the draught of the boat is more than 22 inches, you’ll be obliged to turn around before the end, as we did 15 years ago. In fact, as Wifey has reminded me, we didn’t even manage to get past the 1000 foot long Pontcysyllte Aquaduct. If we’re lucky, and if the rain keeps up as it is for the next couple of days, and despite our 26 inch draught, we might even get to Llangollen. So please good people, keep your fingers crossed for us and, if we can get online – which is by no means guaranteed in the wild and woolly Welsh countryside – I’ll even include some photographs.
So, for now, cheerio. The next blog should be from somewhere along the Llangollen Canal.
Luv’n’stuff from Dave, Sheila and Rusty.
Sunday 30th May 2009
Hi from Christledon, where the weather is just great and we intend visiting the local Harvester, which is called The Old Trooper. No doubt we’ll discover how it came to be given such a name. Possibly something to do with the army, but we’ll have to wait and see.
We have spent many a happy hour in these particular establishments, one of which treated us very kindly when we became stranded during a snowstorm in the Pennines. This was during our days at The Village Shop in Kent, when we took a few days to visit a company in Stockport. Of course we didn’t make it to our destination and it was only through sheer luck that we spotted the hotels lights through the blinding snow. We booked in for just the one night but, with the snow settles to about three feet deep, and snowploughs unable to clear the way, the management put us up for a second night absolutely free of charge and fed and watered us too. And the moral of the story is, if you must get caught in a snowstorm, ensure there’s a Harvester hotel nearby!
5 pm on Sunday 30th May
Well, as promised, we partook of a small libation and victuals at the aforementioned Old Trooper, and very good it was too. The Guinness was just £2.90 a pint and the most excellent food, which consisted of, what they called “Kickin’ Garlic Chicken”, did have something of a chilli pepper bite to it and only cost £4.99. Now, I call that blooming amazing!
We arrived back at the Shiralee about 1.30 pm, since which time I’ve been on the laptop trying to track down permanent moorings for said boat. Moorings per se are pretty easy to find. Residential moorings on the other hand are well nigh impossible. There are so few of them around, and the number of new boats coming on line is going up in leaps and bounds, to the extent that, just as soon as moorings become available, they are snapped up.
All is not yet lost though, because I’ve found a marina on the Leicester Arm of the GUC that appears to have at least two moorings available. It is a proper marina and offers all the usual facilities and I’ve emailed them to find out how much per year and, more importantly, if they’re still available. So, watch this space, hopefully we’ll have some good news soon.
Monday 1st June 2009
Wow! It’s been a scorcher of a day and we’ve done quite a bit of cruising. Me and hot weather do not go together too well In my youth I absolutely loved it, especially my two years with the Royal Air Force in Malta. There it was shorts and flip-flops during summer. But, now that I’m older, overweight and suffering with dodgy knees and diabetes, it ain’t no fun.
Anyway, having cruised down to Chester from Christleton with Geoff and Val, we decided to go on to Ellesmere Port with them via the golf course, which is about six miles short of it. That was yesterday after a little shopping at Tesco in Chester.
So, this morning bright and early, around about our usual 8 o/clock, we sallied forth to E.P. and arrived about 10.15 or so. We had intended staying a couple of nights, which would have meant stumping up £10 for the privilege of going down two more locks to a secure basin. It was suggested to the girls that they walk down and check it out before parting with their cash. It’s just as well they did too. From what I could make of it, you will have to imagine the days when the canal was busy ferrying goods to the port for onward transportation to all points of the compass in bigger craft. Apparently the moorings were designed for big vessels, which meant that the edge of the wharf came about half way up our windows, which would have made it impossible to actually get off the boat. No steps or ladders available, so we would have been confined to barracks, s to speak.
Which is why you now find us back at the golf course six miles out of Ellesmere Port. What a disappointment, and that’s aside from the fact that we’ve spent almost five hours cruising for no good reason. Tomorrow then, it’s back through the staircase locks to Chester, where we’ll stay overnight.
Tuesday 2nd June 2009
Hello from Chester. Instead of returning to the moorings near Tesco, which are completely open and therefore pretty hot in this blazing June sunshine, we opted to moor about 250 yards down from the staircase locks. This stretch of water has a high rock-face towering over the towpath side, and a high bank with trees on the other, so we’re well shaded for most of the time. However, at this time, which is almost 3 pm, the sun is beating down on the boat from astern, so it’s now getting pretty warm in here. This is especially the case whilst sitting at the dinette typing this blog. With hot air rising it really is surprising the difference in temperature between here and my armchair.
And now on to the good news. We have managed to secure permanent moorings at Pillings Lock, which is on the Leicester Navigation of the Grand Union Canal. It’s about a mile north of Barrow-upon-Soar and 1 ½ miles south of Loughborough. You may remember our 10 day enforced stay in Kegworth Shallow Flood Lock in 2007, well this lock is on the same stretch of water but another 2 miles further on. The difference is that the marina does not flood and that’s because it too is next to a flood lock.
The marina has all facilities, including water and electricity next to the moorings and they also have a barge that comes to your boat should you need a pump-out or diesel. On site is a licensed café/restaurant and it has enough berths for about 300 boats, only about 80% of which are full. So, at this point in time we’re pretty chuffed with ourselves, not least because permanent marina moorings are not easily come by. We’re hoping to take up our position at the end of October. Cheers for now.
Thursday 4th June 2009
Well, we’re back at Bates Mill Bridge on the Shroppie, where we enjoyed a couple of drinks and snack today.
Yesterday we made our way back to Christleton from Chester but, to be honest, couldn’t really be bothered with the pub. Today has been a bit cooler, which suits me better than the blazing sunshine we’ve had over the past few days.
Last September, when we came down the Middlewich Branch of the Shroppie, we called in an engineer named Nick to give our heating system a service. These diesel fired systems can get pretty clogged up with soot and tar over a period of time, especially if they’re not run hard on a regular basis. Anyway, I always turn it on early in the morning and allow it to run through a complete cycle, as the manufacturers recommend.
Last year, when Nick serviced the system, I asked him to install an inline filter which, according to the people at a boatyard, should prevent the problem. But, it’s only nine months since Nick serviced it and the thing won’t run now. So, instead of going straight on to the Llangollen as planned, we’ll be going back to Nantwich, where Nick has his boatyard, and getting it sorted. What really galls me is that we were up that way only a week or so ago. It couldn’t have packed up then, could it?
Friday 5th June 2009
It took us 3 ½ hours to travel the six miles and six locks to Barbridge, which is the junction between the Shroppie and the Middlewich Branch of same. We’re hoping to stay at this mooring tonight and, quite possibly, tomorrow night, then move on and moor up opposite the The Olde Barbridge Inn and partake of a snifter or two on Sunday. If no suitable moorings are available then we’ll go on to Hurleston Junction, which joins the Shroppie to the Llangollen and stay there until Monday morning, at which time we’ll mosey along to Nantwich for repairs to the heating system. All this means of course, is that we’ll be a day or so late in entering the Llangollen. But that’s OK because we’ll be a couple of days behind any holiday makers, and that can’t be bad, either for my patience or peace of mind.
Saturday 6th June 2009
Well, here we are at Barbridge, it’s peeing down with rain and Wifey has taken the bus to Nantwich. We had intended for her to do that on Monday while the heating system is being serviced, but she decided to do it today and then, if she enjoys the experience, she’ll probably do it again on Monday.
So, since Wifey has gone off shopping, I thought I might, at last, have a go at some painting in watercolours. I’ve got a CD by an Irish artist called Frank Clarke ad I’ve had it for quite some time now and so, as soon as I found myself all alone, I set everything up and, quite naturally, made a complete and utter hash of it. A simple seascape, using only three colours, and I couldn’t get that right. That’s not to say I’ve given up, I just don’t think today is the day.
Of course, the other art genre I want to try is canal art, which is all about castles and roses painted on canal boats. Whether or not I even get started on that, especially after my feeble efforts today is anyone’s guess. Perhaps, when we get to our permanent moorings, I can settle into some sort of routine and make progress on either or both.
Sunday 7th June 2009
Hurleston Junction joins the Shroppie with the Llangollen canal, and that’s where we’re moored up right now. We stayed at Barbridge last night and are now headed for Nantwich where we were going to have the heating serviced. However, over the past couple of days, having tested the system on various occasions and, having found it works perfectly well every time, we’re not going to bother. The reason we’re still going there is to top up with diesel and get a pump-out, and for Sheila to pop into Nantwich for a bit more shopping.
We’ll moor up again for the night at Nantwich then, on Tuesday, we’ll make a start on the Llangollen.
I have to confess that this blog may not have held much interest for you kind people but, by way of some kind of justification for my lapse, we’ve been here before and I’m finding it difficult working up any great enthusiasm at present. I can promise you one thing however the Llangollen will be a different story. We were last there 15 years ago and, as I recall, it was a particularly warm summer, so much so that there was insufficient water in the canal for us to complete the full length of the canal.
The Llangollen, as canals go, is somewhat unique in that it depends upon rainwater runoff from its top end. If it’s dry then the canal tends to drain down somewhat and, if the draught of the boat is more than 22 inches, you’ll be obliged to turn around before the end, as we did 15 years ago. In fact, as Wifey has reminded me, we didn’t even manage to get past the 1000 foot long Pontcysyllte Aquaduct. If we’re lucky, and if the rain keeps up as it is for the next couple of days, and despite our 26 inch draught, we might even get to Llangollen. So please good people, keep your fingers crossed for us and, if we can get online – which is by no means guaranteed in the wild and woolly Welsh countryside – I’ll even include some photographs.
So, for now, cheerio. The next blog should be from somewhere along the Llangollen Canal.
Luv’n’stuff from Dave, Sheila and Rusty.
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