We set off at 9.20 with the sun in our eyes and hardly a cloud in the sky. A Bollington naked lady - makes a change from gnomes
It started to cloud over about 10.00, but we managed to outrun them! and stay in the sun.
Bridge 35' just because I liked the view through it
A bucolic scene
And another, around the bend
Don't worry, the one in the middle isn't dead - unless it was very sudden. They are the same cows as in the previous shot, we had cruised around their paddock.
Looking back up the canal
As we were cruising through Macclesfield a bloke on a boat coming the other way shouted to Lawrence "don't let your missus do the swing bridge back there, it's bloody heavy". Lawrence waved acknowledgement and I thought, ' humph, I managed to do it on the way up - just!'
When we got to the swing bridge in question I jumped off Aqua Life with the CRT key in hand. The first part was easy -turning the key and lifting up the bridge locking mechanism. Pushing the bridge open was another matter altogether. I huffed and I puffed, I pushed and I heaved with all my strength (and weight) and I moved it a foot; I pushed and heaved - nothing.
I was saved, or rather Lawrence, who was oblivious and happily contemplating life or his navel, was saved, by a young jogger, who upon seeing my plight, gallantly leapt the 1 foot gap and came to my aid. To took both our combined strength and maximum effort to open the SB, and close it again after AL had gone through. I thanked my knight in shining Lycra as we were crossing the bridge and he said "happy to be of service" and loped off up the towpath.
So the moral of the story is; the next time a narrow boater says don't let your wife, missus or whatever do something, I am going to take them seriously.
Next up was the electric swing bridge of womenfolk of Cheshire fame, after which I decided we should have lunch on the move and tackle the 12 locks today in case it rains tomorrow.
We hit the top of the locks at 1.00pm and our luck was in as a boat was coming out so we sailed straight in. Our luck then changed because the next pound was very low and once I had let the water out AL had to sit half way out of the lock as a trader boat was grounded just beyond the bottom gates.
The trader man took Aqua Life's centre rope and tied it to the lock bridge so she wouldn't surge into his boat when he went and opened the top paddles of the lock to let water through into the pound.
Meanwhile a CRT man appeared and didn't seem to be interested in taking charge of the situation. Then another boat came up for the bottom of the lock below, thus using most of the water the trader man had been sending through. As the CRT man seemed at a bit of a loss, I suggested the trader boatman knew what he was doing and that he, the CRT man might go down to the next lock and stop anybody else coming up until the pound had refilled. "Oh, good idea" he said and toddled off.
After approx 15mins, the trader boat was floating, as was the boat that had come up the lock below.
I untied AL and went and closed the top paddled while Lawrence gave the trader man a lift to his boat which was drifting off down the pound.
So that was today's little drama - haven't had one for awhile. The rest of the flight was uneventful, hard work, but not as hard as when we came up them. There were only two locks that weren't in our favour and besides the top lock, there were two more that we cruised straight into. A couple of lock photos
Looking down on lock 11 (second last one whoopee)
Lawrence in lock 10 trying to hide from the camera
That cloud in the previous pic, precipitated on me between locks 8 and 9.
We moored up around the corner from the bottom lock. It took us 3 moors to find the spot with the best view, and within half an hour of finding it, it clouded over and started to rain!
The locks took us 1hour 50mins. Pretty good going considering the hold up at the top of the flight. It took us 20 mins to decide on a mooring!
The views from our mooring this evening after it stopped raining
And looking down on the River Dane, might have to go for a little walk down there in the morning
And lastly, I would like to announce that Tim is the winner of Saturday's quiz question. Lawrence said it was too easy, that everyone would know the answer, that even he knew the answer. Consequently I was expecting a flood of answers, but it seems that Tim (or is it really Mike?) is the only one who knows, besides Lawrence and myself.
So the next question is who played Mr Darcy, which is too too easy, so additionally, who played Elizabeth Bennett?
11 miles, 12 locks, 2 SB's in 5 hours
Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle.
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