Spaces

Before we left Sykes Hollow we chatted with Adrian and Chris on NB Bendithion, who'd shared the mooring overnight. They were harvesting sloes while waiting for the boat cat to return! We'd met them briefly at Kings Lock Chandlery, and then they followed us up to their permanent mooring at Barbridge Junction. Nice to meet you, guys. Looking forward to seeing you in November.

I don't think his hands are engaged in some bizarre police semaphore from a previous life. He'd just spotted me taking the photo from the bridge.

We turned left and stopped for water.

And then it was on down the Shroppie, past the Hurleston Reservoir. The embankment is pretty impressive, and apparently the seagull population of this part of Cheshire thinks so too.

You may have to enlarge the photo to see them, but there must be close on 100 more or less evenly spaced along the rail, and others trying to spot if there's a free space anywhere. In fact it's a bit like coming along the visitor moorings at Nantwich, where we've holed up for the night.

In the end there was enough room for all, and we stopped just past where Edward was engaged in a traditional pastime.

At least, I assume this was his name and not that of his scooter.

He'd shown considerable creativity in attaching a buggy for all his gear!

We, on the other hand, being without wheeled transport, walked the 15 minutes into Nantwich for some necessities (and some non-necessities), and discovered there's a market on Saturdays. So we might just repeat the exercise tomorrow morning, before we decide whether to go, or stay, or go…

Sykes Hollow

Hats off again to the Shropshire Union Canal Society – in this case for the leisure area they've provided at Sykes Hollow on the Middlewich branch.

We had just under three hours of cruising this morning before deciding to pull up at this delightful, quiet spot for lunch. And then the rain came!

Unexpected overnight stopping places don't come much better than this, even in the rain. Here's the view from inside the cruiser stern cover.

It's nice to be self-sufficient, so you just stop when you need to. And the new gizmo means we'll probably only need to run the engine for a relatively short time this evening to have enough charge to see us through to tomorrow morning.

Gizmo

Choosing which items to spend your small fortune on is clearly tricky. In Erin Mae's case experience, advice and circumstances led to a decision to buy a device that combines the output from the two alternators. Its cunning technology is supposed to charge the batteries both more quickly and more efficiently. The intended result is that we have to run the engine far less just for charging purposes. Since Kings Lock Chandlery had one of these items in stock, we decided to bite the bullet and make another contribution to Steve and Sheena's pension fund.

No wonder they look so happy! Steve called in Sandra, who does their marine electrical stuff, and she got busy. She got into the cupboard to cut the hole for the cables.

She got down on hands and knees to set up the unit.

She mounted it on the wall of the cupboard,

and connected up the cables she'd fashioned. You wouldn't believe what that stuff costs per metre!

And so, since it had all taken rather longer than anticipated, we decided to stay another night in Middlewich, and came up Wardle lock again, kindly assisted by "Incognito" of King Lock Basin, who decided his exercise for the day would consist of walking round and working the lock for us.

Many thanks, Master Incognito. Look forward to seeing you and your boat again some day.

And many thanks to Steve, Sheena and Keith of Kings Lock Chandlery for the help given over the last few days.

Service with a smile

So we came down and tied up at Kings Lock Chandlery at 9.30.

They're a very friendly bunch, but we don't think the flowers were for us. The boatyard sits just below Kings Lock in Middlewich and the pub similarly named.

And so to work, to service the engine, and the Webasto diesel central heating unit (in the background).

Tilly the springer spaniel was around all day to help, with a constantly wagging tail and an endless fascination with the stones in the concrete of the wharf.

Keith removed the Webasto, and took it away to the workshop.

and then came back to pump out the oil

and remove the rocker cover.

It's years since I talked with anyone about removing rocker covers (and did one or two).

Steve came over to adjust the tappets with feeler gauges. How retro is this!

Keith sucked out all the coolant, ready for some nice new, clean, expensive antifreeze.

And so it went on, and all got put back in place and the engine sounds very sweet. Later in the day they did this with the boat tied up in front.

It's a Lister engine, that's finally had it after many, many decades. I'm glad our own newly serviced engine is now fit for many years to come, and hope it will give as good service as it's had.

Well impressed with the service we've received at KLC. To the point that we've decided to bite the bullet and get them to fit tomorrow a special gizmo that will do magic things with the output of our alternators.

For tonight, we've remained tied up in the boatyard, and have a mains hook-up. Tonight I shan't be worrying about whether I have to choose between the footie, "Old Tricks" and the fridge staying on! We're smiling.

Not all retracing is a backwards step

Got through to Kings Lock Chandlery at 8.45 this morning, and they confirmed they could service both engine and central heating unit tomorrow, and for a good price. So when Aqueduct rang at 9.30 to say they couldn't, we were content. As it happened, we were already facing the way we'd come, so set off back to Middlewich with a happy sense that things were going in the right direction.

Shortly after we were astonished to find an impromptu session taking place on the off-side bank.

The crew of NB Jester were going strong with sax, guitar / castanets and a tuned drummy sort of thing a bit like a squat Caribbean steelpan. It was so much fun we stopped and gave them our ears and hands for a little while.  We'd have liked to have stayed longer, but other pleasures awaited.

It was a fine morning, much better than forecast. My best beloved spotted a chestnut tree, from which she would have liked to have replenished her supplies of spider-repellant objets d'art, but unfortunately it was the wrong side of the barbed wire.

So, back in Middlewich, we wandered down to the KLC (not the KFC) to make detailed arrangements for the morrow. Then I managed to get in touch with Steve at Evesham marina who, when we were there in June, had recommended a particular device for combining output from the two alternators and maximising it. Sounds like it might be the second step in improving our battery arrangements. The first was turning off the inverter last night and seeing a considerable improvement in the morning.

Things are looking up. And we still have the delights of the Shroppie to come, should we continue with our plan of going home that way.

Not sure what to do

We decided to come home from Middlewich via the Shroppie, with the opportunity of picking up some well-priced diesel on the way. I thought that a good run through to Nantwich would be very good for the batteries, and both limit and counteract the effects of too much running the engine just for charging. Unfortunately I hadn't reckoned on the consequences of the mind being able to range freely around the things currently taxing me, on account of having a long stretch of lock-free travel.

On the way back to Erin Mae after meeting with Middlewich Community Church in the morning, we popped up to see whether Kings Lock Chandlers were open. They weren't, but they had a large sign indicating they were a main Webasto centre. Webasto made our diesel central heating unit, and it's about time it had a service (like the engine!). So as we travelled, I was thinking:

1. Perhaps we should have hung around in Middlewich till Monday, to see whether they could do the service.
2. But we needed to cruise to charge the batteries. Perhaps we should cruise back to Middlewich tomorrow, once we've found out what their prices are and whether they can fit us in.
3. Was that an Isuzu sign I saw at their boatyard? Perhaps they could do the engine service as well. Must check out their website to see what vibes it gives about quality.
4. I'll probably need some diesel before we get to Wheaton Aston. Wonder what the Aqueduct Marina charge. Ring them and find out.
5. Perhaps Aqueduct do Webasto and Isuzu servicing. I'd have no worries about the quality of the work. What about their prices?

And so on. In the end we called in at Aqueduct, got a relatively small amount of diesel for more than they had quoted me over the phone, and Richard the main guy said they could do both the Webasto and the engine, but wasn't sure when. They could ring me at 9.30 tomorrow to find out. So we've tied up near the marina, instead of cruising to Nantwich. But now a check of the KLC website gives very good vibes, and suggests better prices – probably a bigger saving than the cost of going back there. I wonder what time they're open in the morning for a phone call. Now I'm not sure what to do.

So we shall enjoy the place we have moored up.

And we shall enjoy the lamb steaks I'm going to cook tonight. And we shall probably watch Downton Abbey. And we shall leave the troubles of tomorrow until tomorrow.

Bilbo and company

This end of the Trent & Mersey canal has a lot like this…

and some like this…

and even some like this…

traversing which you are guaranteed to meet very little coming the other way. But as soon you hit the reed beds, encroaching from both sides so that there's hardly room for you, let alone a passing stranger, four come along at once!

With the first we exchanged some jokey pleasantries. Passing the second I was too busy avoiding on-side hazards to chat, let alone take a photo. The third was a hirer who acquitted himself very well.

And the fourth was called "Bilbo Baggins", to add to my growing collection of Tolkien-related names.

 Also on a journey (though not an unexpected one, I think) down to Sandbach were Mark and Tina, stretching their legs in the Autumn sunshine.

And we passed some other items-of-interest.

Last of all but, appropriately, past so quickly there was no time for a photo, was NB Strider. So the Tolkien list now reads:


Arwen Evenstar
Aragorn
Bilbo Baggins
Brandywine
Gandalf
Goldberry
Hobbit
Lóthlórien
Many Meetings
Shadowfax
Smaug
Strider

Finally, tying up in Middlewich tonight we have traversed the shortest canal on the network. The Wardle canal is just 47 metres long, from bridge to Wardle lock.

Middlewich seems a kinder place now than when we first visited it last summer.