Boats, Trains and Automobiles

A slightly later start today, we got to sleep in until 7:10 before the dogs woke us. We made a very leisurely breakfast, and it was about half past nine when we got under way. As I mentioned yesterday, our overnight stop was just south of Junction 12 on the M6, and after a full day today we have moored very close to J13. You wouldn’t need to be speeding to cover that ground in ten minutes on the motorway, but the canal is a much more dignified way to travel.

We flirted with the M6 all day, in fact, running alongside it or going underneath, and the West Coast main line railway is also close here. These three modes of transport often find themselves close together – at Preston Brook, where we will base the boat permanently, the three overlap with the railway running under the canal while the motorway goes overhead. This isn’t really surprising as they all are, or were, the most important means of transport of their day, and they all transformed the country. It’s easy to forget as you potter along through open fields that the canals were not built as leisure facilities, they were a key part of the Industrial Revolution.

Brick Kiln Lock

This was more apparent within a mile of our start today, as we sailed through a modern chemical factory, with notices warning against mooring or even stopping. Soon we came to Gailey, with its odd circular canal shop, once a toll office, and our first lock of the day. We had thought that things would be quieter today, it being Monday, but in fact there were quite a lot of boats around, with many hirers starting their week aboard. We had to queue at several of the locks, which were spread out in an irritating fashion. With a solid flight like Audlem you just get on with it and get it done. But the locks today were about 10-20 minutes apart, so no time to do much, like walk the dogs or even brew a cuppa, before the next one comes along. But it was a nice sunny day, and the locks seemed to work easily, in the morning at least. One lock, at Rodbaston, is right next to the motorway, and apparently when the new road was built in the sixties the lockkeeper could not stand the noise and moved out of his cottage, which was subsequently demolished.

Rodbaston Lock with the M6 close by

We moored for lunch in Penkridge, and walked the dogs, then ate our food while still tied up. On previous days we have eaten on the move, but this wouldn’t have worked today, with the incessant locks, though it did mean we lost quite a bit of time.

We had done five locks to that point, and we did five more after lunch, but these seemed to become harder and harder to work, with the paddles very stiff and difficult to crank. Loulie was really struggling until in the end she swallowed her pride and used the ratchet windlass handle which I had bought before we set off. I was mocked mercilessly, but it turned out to be just the thing for really stiff lock machinery.

Slow boat under a fast motorway

We crossed under the M6 and then travelled south parallel to it, past Acton Trussell, which has some lovely houses and gardens running down to the canal. Just afterwards we found a long empty stretch of canal with open fields all around, perfectly safe for the dogs, so we decided to stop, although we are still about five miles short of our notional target for the day. The decision was confirmed when we found the mooring was very good, with deep water right to the edge and metal shuttering (“Armco”) on the vertical bank. We have odd little hooks, like giant paperclips, which slot behind this shuttering and provide a solid anchor for the mooring ropes. This is much simpler than driving mooring pins into the ground, which can be tricky if the earth is too soft or if it is too stony, or has a concrete foundation.

A Mooring Hook

We took the dogs for a walk, and had some shenanigans when we discovered that the boat down the canal from us has two cats. The Labradors were all fascinated, barking madly and wanting to get close, but also (wisely) not wanting to get too close. Oddly Ruby took no interest, watching the goings-on with an air of faint disdain. We dined on bacon and eggs from the Yates Greer stall in Warrington Market, the best I know anywhere. We’ll try to get away a little earlier tomorrow, and see if we can catch up on our schedule – we’d like to be past Stone before Tuesday is out.

Monday Night - Ivy House Farm

Today: 7 hours. 8 miles. 10 locks.

Voyage: 30 hours. 53.0 miles. 39 locks.