Friday 7 June 2019 Day 42: Market Drayton to Anchor Bridge & Inn, High Offley

We made an early start this morning to get as far as we could before the forecast rain set in.
Pulling out of our mooring at 7.15am

Once over the embankment

we cruised through some open farmland

before hitting (not literally) Bridge 61

and the start of the Tyrley Cutting

Oh for some sun to do it justice

He was here in 2014 - someone keeps him in good shape

Toward the end of the shadowy sandstone cutting

we reached the bottom of the Tyrley Flight of 5 locks

L and A.B. waiting while I set the bottom lock

Halfway up the flight

At the top of the flight is the remains of Tyrley Wharf and  group of cottages. We stopped for water at the top of the flight. We managed to dump the rubbish, but the water tap failed to produce more than a trickle.  The single hander whom we followed up the Audlem Flight yesterday, today was following us. As I had set the last lock for him he was inclined to chat - we covered Brexit, Trump and climate change amongst other things. He also told us the water to this point had been cut off as it was spring fed and had recently been discovered to heavy in nitrates

The Tyrley lock flight is Grade II listed and lock 2 has been refurbished. There are over 1500 locks on the canal system and building new gates is a year round job. Every lock gate is unique and made to measure and  each is handcrafted by a skilled carpenter. They are made from green oak and once installed last about 25 years.

How's this for a little mini me

Who would own such a tiny boat - an OCD(?) minamalist contortionist perhaps? Or an ex submariner?

Next up was Woodseaves Cutting with a warning sign 'Danger Falling Rocks For Your Safety Do Not Exceed Max 2mph'! One would think the quicker the better - unless the engine vibrations loosen the rock - an even scarier thought.

Very tall bridges required to span the cutting

Over 80 feet deep in places (too dark in those spots for a pic), over one mile long and cut through brittle sandstone (hence the falling rocks) one cannot fail to be impressed by the scope of  a work like this, cut as it was entirely by men using picks, shovels and wheelbarrows.

The cutting is narrow and we were pleased we only met one other boat

Somewhere in the middle of the cutting we left Staffordshire and crossed back into Shropshire

The second of the tall bridges

The end of the cutting is in sight and here comes another boat, phew

Shh, don't tell L!

After the cutting we were looking forward to approx 15 miles of lock free cruising. Time to put some Wellie on and cover some ground. However every mile or so we would come across another long, long line of linear moorings which cut our speed back to a crawl

Though some boats choice of titivation caused amusement or bemusement to break the tedium of cruising past linear moorings

More countryside views, hampered now by the rain

There is a hill in the middle background, called the Wreckin - a prominent landmark hereabouts, but only faintly visible today

Even the verdent greens are looking grey today

There is the Wreckin again, only 15 miles away

This farm is value adding putting in, yet more, linear moorings along is canal frontage.

We met this boat as we were exiting from under a bridge; with the stern still in the bridge hole we can't change direction and so it was a suck in your breath moment, but the other boater kindly chose to scrape along the moored boat instead of us and we got through unscathed :) Poor woman, they were hirers also and her teeth were clenched in a rictus grin as we went past.

There is the Wreckin again, this time from a different angle.

Quite the green thumb

Into another short cutting

Out of the cutting and the old Cadburys wharf appears. In 1911 Cadburys built a factory here in which to process milk collected from the dairy farming hinterland of the SUC. Canal transport was used exclusively to bring countless mild churns gathered from numerous wharves and wooden stages along the canal.They owned their own fleet of narrowboats. After the milk was processed  it was transhipped, again by narrowboat to Bournville on the outskirts of Birmingham. The final shipment by boat occured in 1961.

Some very wet sheep. By now it was bucketing down - well, by English standards that is - and we were cold, damp and had soggy feet and were seriously looking for a mooring

But first, another line of permanent linear moorings to be got past. :( :(

We moored up at 12.30 on the first rings we found and hunkered down, with the heater on, for what turned out to be the rest of the day. The rain not letting up until after 7.00pm.

Once again we have slipped way behind schedule.  The linear moorings reduce ones speed by more than half, so the going was slow today.

8 miles, 5 locks, 5 1/4 hours