Audlem (Locks 11 & 12) to Audlem (Locks 13 & 14)

Thursday 29th June

Coming into Lock 12

We are moving down the locks a bit this morning, just down two locks.  We set off along the canal and into lock 12, they are not very deep locks, so doesn’t take long to go through.

Running the rapids!

The side wash at the bottom of this lock is particularly fierce so Kev had to run the rapids when he came out of the lock, it did hit us into the side and we lost one of our small fenders!

Passing the Shroppie Fly

Coming out of Lock 13

We passed Audlem Mill and the Shroppie Fly pub and into lock 13.  Soon through there and we first stopped at the water point and then moored in the visitor moorings just along from there.  There was an old duffer who moors on the other side of the canal and he waited until we were coming out  the lock then proceeded to come across the canal in front of us.  He said he was coming over as he had a delivery, think he was going to wait in the water point, but we didn’t give him the opportunity and he had to go in the visitor moorings and then he pulled his boat right up to ours even though there was tons of room so Kev told him that was far enough as he didn’t have a front fender and we didn’t want him hitting our boat.  He took ages to tie up and confused two other boats going in and out of the locks as his boat kept going across the canal and then he pulled it back, no-one really knew what he was doing, silly old duffer!

Overwater Marina

Spot the cache!

We went for a walk in the afternoon up to Overwater Marina which is about a mile or so up the towpath.  It is a nice walk and the marina is really nice and there is also a café there so we stopped for coffee and also bought some local honey.  There was also a cache on the way to the marina and it was hanging in a tree, quite ingenious.

After we got back from the marina, we called round to see our friend Jane and had a nice chat with her.  We are staying in these moorings now until Sunday and tomorrow we are off on the bus to Whitchurch.

Moored between Locks 13 and 14

Visits to Hankelow Golf Club and Nantwich

Tuesday 27^th June

Pathway through the woods

I dare you to come in here!

Brookfield Golf Club

Kev on the Driving Range

We are off to Hankelow this morning, a village not far from Audlem.  It was raining when we got up, but eased off so we set off along the village and onto the footpath that goes through a wooded bit and then onto lanes.  We went past a stile and there was cow right by the stile, he seemed to be saying "I dare you to come in here", thankfully we didn't have to go that way! 

Getting ready to wack the ball

After a mile or so, we came to Hankelow and walked along the road to Brookfield Golf Club.  We went up to the club house and collected a couple of tokens then went back to the driving range and got a basket of balls and proceeded to hit them down the driving range.  We now have our own clubs as Kev bought me a left handed one for Christmas and Jane’s dad gave Kev a couple.  It was the maiden voyage for my club and I got on with it okay.  We had a good time wacking the balls and then we went up to the clubhouse for some lunch.

And there it goes!

It is a really nice place and we had a lovely ploughmans and then I had chocolate roulade and yummy it was too.  We then had another basket of balls each after lunch and walked the road back to Audlem.  We stopped off to see Sheila and Tony, Malc’s parent and their lovely little dog Brock, who is not so little now.  He is a Dandy Dinmont Terrier and very sweet, he gave us a lovely greeting.  

Cute Little Brock

Unfortunately Sheila was out, but hopefully we will catch up with her before we move on, so we had a cup of tea and a chat with Tony and Brock.  Our friends John and Sharon with Smuggler the dog who we look after are on their way to Tattenhall marina to take their boat out of the boat to black the bottom and were moored in Audlem.

Smugs flat out!

We stopped by their boat to see them.  In the evening they came up to our boat and we had a lovely evening chatting and sampling gin.  John and Sharon recently went to Adnams in South Wold and made their own gin, so we tried that and very nice they were too.  John called his Musician’s Friend and it was spicy and Sharon called hers Agin agrain which was more fruity.  We also tried a couple of others we had as well.  Smugs just made his  self at home and flaked out on the dinette and so a good time was had by all!

Wednesday 28^th June

Today we are off to Nantwich by bus.  John and Sharon are moving on today and stopping at Nantwich so we will meet up with them for coffee.

We walked up to the Church and got the bus.  It is about a half hour bus ride.  Unfortunately today it was raining but not too hard.  We had a walk around.  There is a good butchers called Welch and they also have a café which is olde worlde, so we went there and then found out that on a Wednesday the café shuts at 12 noon and it was after that and the butchers shut at 1pm and they had already started packing most things away even though it was only 12.30pm, so we walked around and found another butchers and got a few things in there.

John and Sharon in Nantwich

Nantwich

We then found a café in the town which is in a book shop and we met John and Sharon there and we had a coffee and a Toastie. We then had a walk around the shops but unfortunately it was raining quite hard.  John and Sharon then went back to their boat as they were moving on a bit further along the canal and we got the bus back to Audlem.

Our friend Dave dropped by for a cup of tea and a slice of Ginger Cake which I always make especially for him when we are in Audlem.  It was nice to see him and have a chat.  We will catch up with him and Anthea again at the weekend as we are staying until Monday.

Tomorrow morning we are moving down the locks a bit further and then walking up the canal to the marina where there is a really nice café, so hopefully it will be dry.

Audlem (Locks 2 and 3) to Audlem (Locks 11 and 12) (Shropshire Union Canal)

Lovely Night Sky

And in we go

Yesterday (Sunday) we stayed put and had a lazy day chilling out and went for a walk down to the village, then watched the Grand Prix.

One out, One In

We set off fairly early so as to beat the rush going down the locks.  Lock 3 was just along from us and there was a boat in front so we had to wait for them to go through, then it was our turn and we worked our way down the locks. 

Out We Come

There was quite a few boats coming up so passage was fairly quick.  We met our friend Al who moors on the Gloucester & Sharpness canal coming up the locks, it was nice to see him.

A few more to go

We went down a few more and moored between locks 11 and 12.

Passing Al

We then had our breakfast, bacon from Buttercross Farm shop in Market Drayton and eggs from Bridge Farm at Wheaton Aston and jolly good they were too.

In Lock 11

We went for a walk down to the church as there was a cache there, well we had to go to the church first to get some clues from the war memorial to give us the coordinates to find the cache and once we had them, we set off down the road and then down a lane onto a footpath and we soon found the cache.  We followed the footpath back to the village.

We also popped round to see our friend Jane who is recovering from a hip operation and had a chat and a cup of tea with her which was nice.

We are staying in these moorings now for a couple of days, then moving down the locks a bit further.  Tomorrow we are off to Hankelow the next village to the Golf Club to bash some balls down the driving range so looking forward to that.

Moored between locks 11 and 12 at Audlem

Bottom of Adderley Locks to Audlem, between locks 2 and 3 (Shropshire Union Canal)

Saturday 24th June

Yesterday (Friday) we stayed at Adderley.  The weather wasn’t so good, dry but really windy.

Lovely night sky at Adderley

Upside down Geese!

We went for a walk in the morning down to the top of the Audlem flight where there is a stall by the top lock selling home-made cake.  I bought a slice of Bakewell slice and then we walked back to the boat.  We had lunch, then walked up to the farm at the top of the locks. The lady wasn’t around so we waited for a bit and then she came back.  We bought some more lamb, some marmalade, locally made scones, sausages and chicken.  We had a nice chat with the lady and then we went back to the boat.

Leaving our lovely mooring

This morning, we are moving on a bit, only about a mile to the top of the Audlem flight.

We set off from our mooring on a cloudy but dry day and chugged on along the canal and soon came to Audlem top lock. There are fifteen  locks in this flight but today we are only doing two.

Going into Audlem top lock

Stall by the top lock

There was a boat coming out the lock so in we went.  There was a family by the lock so the dad and the little girl shut the gate for us, saves me doing it!  There is a little stall by this lock selling home-made cake, cream teas in a bag and ice-creams.

Out we come

In Lock No. 2

Through there and onto the next one which was also ready for us as there was a boat coming up.  We got through there and moored in the visitor moorings between locks 2 and 3.

Lovely little Harry

We then had brunch, bacon and sausages from Adderley Wharf Farm and delicious they were too.

Harry and his Dad, Malc

Our friends Jane and Malcolm live in Audlem, so we walked down the locks and went to their house.  They have a dog called Harry and when we met him last year, he was just a small puppy.  He is now a year old and he has really grown.  He gave us a lovely greeting and so did Jane and Malc.   Harry is such a cute dog, we love him already.  Jane has just had a hip operation so is not very mobile at the moment, but Malc was a great host!

Our other friends Anthea and Dave live near Audlem and they came over to see us.  It was so lovely to see them all again and we had a lovely afternoon and evening catching up.  We got a Chinese takeaway which was really good.  They get it from a place in Market Drayton which is good to know as next time we are there and we fancy a Chinese, we know where to go. 

We are staying around Audlem for the week but moving slowly down the fifteen locks and so will be spending time with our Audlem family which we always enjoy as we all get on so well and always have lots of laughs and fun.

Moored at Audlem between Locks 2 and 3

Market Drayton to Bottom of Adderley Locks (Shropshire Union Canal)

Thursday 22nd June

This post is a little late as where we were moored at Adderley, we were in an Internet black spot and couldn't get any signal at all.

Yesterday (Wednesday) we stayed at Market Drayton and went up to the market that is held in the town each week.  It is not that big but does bring the town to life so it’s good to visit.  There is also a small indoor market which is open when the market is on.

We had a wander around and then went for a coffee.  We then went to Morrisons and Lidl and got the rest of our shopping and headed back to the boat.  We thought we were going to get a thunder storm as it went black and started to rain, but the rain didn’t last long and the sun came out, so no storm.

We went for a walk back down to Tyrley locks as there was a few caches around there and we found most of them, then back to the boat for tea.

This morning, we are moving on a few miles to Adderley locks where there is a good farm shop.  We needed to get water, so we stopped at the water point which is very busy so it was a while before it was our turn, but it didn’t matter, we are in no rush.

Leaving Market Drayton

We set off along the canal leaving Market Drayton behind us, under several bridges.  The canal is quite busy today and we passed a few boats. 

Grey Skies Today

Coming into Adderley Top Lock

We then came to the top of Adderley locks and guess what it started to rain hard and so we got wet as there was a boat in front of us and one coming up so we had to wait awhile.  Luckily the rain didn’t last long and then it was our turn and we started off down the five locks.

Stall by the lock

At the top of the flight is a farm which has a stall on the lock selling their own reared pork, lamb, sausages, bacon, pork pies, home-made butter, etc.  They also used to have a farm shop but that is closed now and the lady from the farm just does the stall on the locks and sells at Farmers Markets.

Down we go

There was a couple of boats coming up so it didn’t take too long to get to the bottom.  We didn’t get any more rain and in fact it brightened up and the sun came out.

The view from our mooring

In Adderley Bottom Lock

We moored at the bottom of the locks which is a lovely sunny open spot opposite a field which is full of calves and a family of Geese.We had lunch then went for a walk up to the bridge and down a couple of roads and eventually we came back to the farm.  We stopped by there and chatted to the lady, and we bought some nice lamb steaks, bacon, pork pie, home-made strawberry jam and butter.

We then walked through the farm up to the top lock where her stall is and saw that there was a pack of two lovely big pork chops so we bought them as well.  The weather brightened up and the sun came out so we had another BBQ and it only when cloudy when we had finished so that worked out well.

We are staying here tonight and also tomorrow then Audlem here we come!

Moored at the bottom of Adderley Locks

Goldstone to Market Drayton (Shropshire Union Canal)

Going into Woodseaves Cutting

It was another sunny morning as we set off, but not as hot as yesterday thank goodness.  We set off early as we have a very narrow bit to go through and it’s not always easy to pass so thought we would get through there before everyone starts moving around.

Passing the Wharf Tavern where we had lunch

Tyrley Top Lock

We soon came to Bridge 56 which is the start of Woodseaves Cutting, it is really impressive as it was cut out of solid rock by men, no machinery.  We met a boat by this bridge and then one further along but that was it.

The cutting ends at Bridge 58 and we went on a little further and came to Tyrley Wharf where the flight of five locks are.

Woodseaves Cutting

There are services at the top of the locks, so we topped up the water and then I went to the top lock and filled it up and we began our decent down the locks. 

And onto another lock

The first three are in lovely sunshine and the last two locks are under trees but we didn’t mind today, the shade was very welcoming. 

Tyrley Bottom Lock

Running the Rapids!

Unfortunately most of the locks were set against us, but they are close together so it doesn’t take too long to get down them.  The last two locks have a huge amount of water coming out of the side washes as they move water along this stretch to Chester so Kev had to run the white water rapids getting out of these two locks, especially the last one, it was flying out.

Buttercross Farm Sign

I got back on board and we headed along the canal and moored up at Market Drayton.  It was the largest settlement through which the Shropshire Union Canal passed, and as a result, a large wharf was built to accommodate the various cargoes carried to the town.  Market Drayton was destroyed by fire in 1651, but was carefully rebuilt in the same black and white timber framing.

Buttercross Farm Shop

It is a good town for shopping as it has an Asda, Morrisons and a Lidl. Also there is a market on a Wednesday so we shall be staying for that as the town comes alive on market day.  Then on Thursday we will be chugging on.

After we moored up, we walked up to Buttercross Farm which has a shop in the farm selling their meat, eggs, cooked ham etc.  It is a great place and really good quality meat and only about a 20 minute walk from Market Drayton.  They also sell Cheshire Farm Ice Cream and coffee so we had a coffee and ice-cream and sat outside then walked back to the boat.  We went for a walk up into the town in the afternoon for a few supplies.

Moored at Market Drayton