And
We cast off at 9.00am heading upstream for Vale Royal Lock.
No lockie in sight we moored up. We were shortly joined by NB Rivendell who had moored in front of us yesterday afternoon and whose owners had then spent the next 3 hours industriously washing and polishing her; it fatigued me just to watch them each time I went out for a fag. Next to join us on the lock landing was NB Dunwyngen, our old hippie boat neighbour from yesterday. All our various guides said the locks opened at nine. The Lockkeeper arrived at 9.30 and it was another 15 mins before the lock was ready for us.
AL was called in first followed by NB Rivendell who breasted up to us and lastly NB Dunwyngen against the far wall. Wifey of Rivendell was quite chatty but L said hubby didn't bother talking to 'hire trash'.
We were last out of the lock which meant we would be last in at Hunt Lock. This lockie did it differently. He had the other two boats on either wall and we were meant to slide into the centre slot
If we were going to nudge a boat on the way in, NB Rivendell wouldn't be the best choice!
On the approach into the lock it was obvious to me that L. felt the same, and I hoped it wasn't too obvious to NB Dunwyngen! But Lawrence just slid us in, without a touch - ooh, I was impressed.
Going through Northwich
We had planned to stop in Northwich for a food shop - the fridge is getting bare - however because of the delay at Vale Royal Lock we thought we would be cutting it too fine to reach Anderton Lift for our booked passage up the lift.
We therefore got to Anderton Lift early. I went and checked in and had a quick look at the museum and purchased some goodies from the cafe for morning tea.
Time to enter the lift
We sat, locked into the bottom caisson for some time, waiting for the trip boat which was coming down. Eventually we were up and let out. Talk about culture shock- we turned straight into an urbanised canal and a stream of oncoming boats. On a narrow canal.
We pulled up at the Lion Salt Works Museum and while we were mooring the convoy a slowed to a crawl and a boater creeping past said come down across the Shroppie and had stopped all traffic, some for over 24 hours, hence the long queue of boats.
Thankful to be out of the madding crowd we walked through the grounds of the museum looking for the entry. Somehow we ended up outside the front door of the Salt Barge Inn and we went in to ask about the museum. the bar tender was very helpful, the smells coming from the kitchen tantalising and it seemed that to have lunch there would be the right thing to do - and it was. After lunch we followed the bartenders directions to the museum entrance.
Salt has been produced in Cheshire since the Iron Age when it was extracted from natural brine springs found in the low lying river valleys of the Cheshire plain.
By The Roman period production was centred around Northwich, Middlewich & Nantwich. Brine was heated in shallow pans of fired clay and lead. Rock salt mining began in 1670.
The Lion Salt Works pumped brine from below ground into huge (approx 15x25metre) iron pans which lay over coal fired furnaces. The works began in the back yard of the Red Lion pub in 1894. During the 1970s the works were converted from coal to oil and closed in 1986.
Due to all the mining and brine extraction in the area of the 3 'witches' subsidence was a real problem.
Northwich especially suffered badly and has been largely rebuilt over the years. Many business premises and houses were condemned or disappeared into sink holes that in the 1890s the govt was forced to pay subsidence compensation. The govt then decreed that all new premises had to be built with light frames and jack points so that if they started t list they could be jacked up or if needed, moved.
After embarking on our journey once more we cruised through the Brunner Mond Soda Ash works, now owned by the Indian Co., Tata.
It was vast, the pic only shows about a third of the works.
Not long before we moored at Billinge Green Flash we passed this mile post - we've only progressed 11 miles down the Trent And Mersey Canal since we joined it at the Preston Brook Tunnel.
Tonight's mooring opposite the flash
Before I go, it would be remiss of me not to mention the winner to the last two quizzes. Suzie, who not only worked out that the tower housed a Van De Graff accelerator, she also informed me, in some detail, what a VDG accelerator is and what it does. If you would like to know, ask Suzie. Suzie also named the breed of sheep correctly - plaster! So two gold stars to our neighbour.
10 miles, 2 locks, 1 lift in 8.5hours
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