Tuesday 13th July
We have spent the day at Gurnett Aqueduct. After yesterday it was good to stay warm and dry! I have actually lit a fire tonight. I know it is July but it feels more like October and it is raining again! The rain is a good thing of course in view of the fact that some of the Northern canals are running out of water and are on restrictions or closures, but it is a pain as boating in the rain is not very pleasant and is especially unpleasant when it is blowing a gale as it is now.
So what of yesterday? Well, we left the Dane Aqueduct to go up the Bosley flight in a light rain but by the time we had done 2 locks it was hammering down! There is nowhere to moor between locks on the Bosley flight so once you start you have to keep going. We did quite well considering there was only one boat coming down so with the exception of 2 of the 12 locks I had to set them all. We did the flight in just under 2 hours. At the top we stopped for water etc which took another 30 minutes then made our rather soggy way to Gurnett. There was a space on the end near the bridge which we tried, unsuccessfully, to get into (too shallow again!) so we had to carry on. Due to the rain and the fact that Oakgrove Swing Bridge had been out of action all morning (fortunately it had just opened when we got there) there were a lot of boats on the aqueduct and they were all fairly well spaced. Unfortunately the spaces were all too short for us. This is a fault of the positioning of the mooring rings here and the fact that people like to get between the rings instead of using one ring on the front or back and putting a stake in at the other end. As it was still raining stair rods we felt it unfair to ask anyone to come out of their warm cosy boat and move up so we could get in so we continued, worried that we wouldn’t be able to get in at all. In the end we winkled our way on to the very end of the moorings. It’s on a bit of a bend and between two high retaining walls so it’s a bit dark but we were past caring by that time!
As it was still raining George didn’t want to accompany us to the shop/pub so we went alone. There was a lovely fire to welcome us at Sutton Hall and although it was a bit too warm we sat near it anyway. It briefly stopped raining for our walk back to the boat but started again shortly after we got back.
Today it has been mostly dry, with a couple of showers but chilly, then about an hour ago it started bucketing down again. Good job this isn’t a river! As I said we have stayed here and I made another visit to the shop this morning and intended to visit the farm shop, which I passed on the way to the shop, on the way back. Ken wanted some cash but the PO there doesn’t do cash withdrawals from HSBC (why not?) so I was wondering what to do when this taxi driver told me there was a cash machine in Lyme Green and started telling me how to get there. I had to stop him and tell him I was on a boat whereupon he offered to take me there and then take me back to the aqueduct, which he did, bless! (I’ll go off with anyone!) However, by doing this I forgot I was going to go to the farm shop on the way back from the other shop to get some eggs and anything else I fancied (cakes perhaps) bugger! As the farm shop is quite a walk from the canal I decided not to go all the way back there so I may have missed untold delights.
Lunchtime we took George to Sutton Hall and despite his last experience of walking to the pub (not) on Sat, he was very keen to go. We did sit outside although it was a bit blustery and we could have taken him in. Just as we got back to the boat it started raining again (quelle surprise) and turned pretty cold hence I have lit the fire and it is all toasty in here.
Tomorrow it is supposed to rain again in the afternoon so in the morning, in an attempt to avoid another soaking, we will be off to Higher Poynton.
