Bridge 53

Canal bridges suffer through the ravages of time, general decay and the not-so-loving attention of boats that got the line wrong. Some of those on the Llangollen have been patched up by, among other measures, a coating of concrete or similar cement-based concoction all over the interior of the arch. It's about as enthralling as a 1960's tower block. So what a pleasant surprise to see what one artisan has done with Bridge 53.

There seems to be no constructional link between the wavy edge and the curved pattern in the coating through the arch – just one person making a statement.

Back through the bridge is something even more impressive – it's Lyneal wharf, the centre for the Lyneal Trust, which offers canal and boating holidays for people with disabilities. NB Shropshire Lass and NB Shropshire Lad, two of their boats, were both moored there today. So, in quick succession, two examples of people making a difference in situations where others might give up or simply not see the need.

Two characters from yesterday…

When asked they said they were looking for St George's mushrooms. I thought perhaps they might be the "magic" variety. Not so. The Wikipedia article says they are a renowned delicacy that appear after St George's Day.

Other sights from today: The wood anenomes were out in force…

The blossom was out in force at the entrance to Ellesmere tunnel…

The ramblers were out in force…

You see people doing various creative things on the towpath, but this was the first time I'd seen anyone working in stone…

We stopped for the night outside the Jack Mytton pub, recommended for all sorts of things. The bad news – it was shut today. The good news – this meant there was no one around at all to mind as I got out my accordion and practised all those new tunes to my heart's content.

Two Johns

Getting up the Grindley Brook staircase locks is potentially scary. The key is to get enough water into the middle / bottom pair. We didn't realise we were a few inches short of the right level, and I couldn't get across the boundary. My best beloved went to look for the lock-keeper John, but he was having his lunch! However, a man on the towpath, whose name we did not discover, knew all about it. John came back as we were sorting it out, and told us a horrendous story of someone who got caught last summer. Very reassuring!

John and unknown friend

After the staircase there were no more locks today, but four lift bridges instead, which are much harder work!

Tonight tied up overlooking a valley, peaceful in the evening sun, we were getting settled in, when down the cut came a second John, in the craziest craft I've seen all week. He's doing a canal tour, raising money for Macmillan cancer, a charity from which he himself has benefited.

So he stopped and chatted for a while. It's a beautiful evening.

Speedy Gonzales

There's a wonderful canal website on which you can plan journeys. We used it to estimate how long it would take to get from Great Haywood to Chirk, and have been using it to check and re-calculate our progress. I'm happy to say that it slightly over-estimates the times, so we've been arriving earlier or going further than the calculator indicated. My Garmin tells me how fast I'm going, and I keep an eye on the wash, so I don't think I've been misbehavin'. Maybe it's just the time of year.

Having worked with both databases and websites in my time, my mind boggles at the complexitiy of the project – it seems to know so much about everything, and there are masses of variables to take account of. Only a couple of times has it suggested a stopping place that might not be desirable. It will do alternatives if you want, and presents the whole thing as a detailed itinerary, a daily journey summary, and a map marked with the stopping places. So cheers, Nick and the other developers and contributors. One grateful user here.

Excitement today – a couple of lift bridges. Can you spot my best beloved's cap just showing above the control console behind the bridge?

Tranquility today – lunch tied up at Marbury.

Expectation today – roast chicken about to go in the oven!

On the Llangollen

The section of the Shroppie from Audlem to Nantwich is a bit like the M6 toll after the M6. It's wide and deep, and 1400 revs on the engine gives us the speed limit. On the canal, 4 mph feels like breaking the sound barrier. So we made good enough time to stop for a leisurely lunch and catch up with the snooker, before heading north to the junction with the Llangollen.

At that point the wind threw a tantrum and caused one or two heart-stopping moments as we joined the queue to go up the first of the four Hurleston Locks.

But we made it and tonight we're in new territory, on the first stretch of the Llangollen. This was the view from the window as we ate our evening meal.

Now we're a day ahead of schedule, with the time to fit in a visit to a supermarket before meeting up with Ivan and Irene on Thursday. Assuming there are any supermarkets in this lonely stretch of God's earth.

On the shelf

More than once today we encountered the Shroppie shelf – that ledge of concrete or some-such which the constructors left lurking just under the water along the towpath edge, awaiting the unwary. We were stuck on it once last year, and today I was blown on to it while moving in slowly to pick up my best beloved after negotiating a lock. It took a lot of rocking and heaving and pole-pushing to extricate ourselves from the situation.

Later we tied up in Audlem, but couldn't quite get Erin Mae far enough in and, sure enough, the shelf was the culprit. We moved 30 yards further on, and tied up, but it was clear we were going to sit at 3 degrees from the perpendicular all night long, so in the end we went down an extra lock and tied up outside the Shroppie Fly – the pub with half a boat for a bar.

Boating is meant to be relaxing and, most of the time, it's just that. But the combination of the shelf and today's wind, coupled with a late start because of sorting out some banking stuff in Market Drayton, means we're pretty tired tonight.

Right – the answer to yesterday's puzzle is the change to the holders on the hand-rails from which the front fenders are hanging. Until yesterday they were white poly-something-or-other. But I made a couple out of the Buffalo board offcuts from my locker covers, and finished off the edges with Ronseal varnish. They look a treat.

Acquaintance

We're getting acquainted with the Shroppie. No better place to be on yet another sunny day as we tie up for another excellent homemade lunch.

Along the way we met up with some acquaintances. Bruce, of NB Sanity Again, came over to say hello while we were on the water point at Norbury Junction. More than an acquaintance, he's a mine of information about useful things, so I took him inside Erin Mae to get his advice about what to use on the floor where it's got a bit worn. Thanks, Bruce. May the mine never get worked out!  Then we popped over into the paint shop to see Richard, who did such a cunning job with our paintwork last summer while he was still at Great Haywood. He was in his element, stirring a pot of point to the consistency, as he puts it, of hot tomato soup (it was red paint).

Then we set off for Market Drayton, and got a little too acquainted with a couple of boats on the way. Having passed hardly anything all day, we suddenly came across two in quick succession, just after entering the narrowest part of the pound at Woodseaves Cutting. Not where you want to cross with a couple of hire-boats.

At the top lock of the Tyrley flight, the boat coming through exited far slower than I expected. Because I was already moving, I couldn't swing out early enough to get into position – result was that I got a little too acquainted with the concrete edges of the lock entrance. Oh dear…

One lock further down the flight, a steerer on his first day at the tiller headed straight for Erin Mae at some speed as I waited for him to pass. Just in time he managed to apply the brakes (full reverse gear) and avoid too intimate an acquaintance. We've all been there. And a couple of locks further on we came across a lady who'd read this blog yesterday, but we didn't even have time to swap names or learn which boat they were on before moving on down. They're stopping in Market Drayton tonight, so perhaps we shall get acquainted after all. We're just past Bridge 63.

So – another beautiful day. Here's a puzzle. 50 brownie points (no cash value whatsoever) to whoever can spot the difference in Erin Mae from yesterday's photos.

May Day – normal service resumes

After yesterday's traumas, what a contrast! Sun on the Shroppie, warmth in the air, people looking cheerful, all springtime's reproductive results on display on the water and in the fields. Lunch of homemade bread that had risen and baked as we travelled, and one of my best beloved's Scotch broth sort of soup made with stock from the bones of Sunday's chicken.

We picked up the stove door, mended overnight for a pittance by yesterday's friendly engineer, and at Wheaton Aston topped up the diesel tank for the best price this side of Kuwait.

We passed under bridges…

over aqueducts…

moving at a very different pace…

with time to look…

Only from the canal do you only see Brewood church like this…

 and stop for lunch like this…

And we're still an hour ahead of schedule for meeting up with my best beloved's brother on the Llangollen next week. A very good day!