Days 136,7& 8 .... 26,7 &8.09.13 ....Stone, Sandon

Have put the last three days into one post since all that has happened over the last two days in Stone is sanding and painting etc. Maggie got back from a good visit to London last night chez Marc, Julia and Imogen  and we set out this morning in a very Septemberish morning ............. misty and moisty  but clearing to be a lovely day     

Down through the four locks that take us out of Stone ................................

............. and on to a new marina where we stopped and had a drink, admiring the facilities. Having had a drink we started to look for the red diesel pump which was, peculiarly we felt way away from the central area and unmarked.  One had to ring the office to get someone to come and serve it !! All this modern marina and no self service pump.  However 30 minutes later we were back on our way with a full tank ...............................

............................... and on to a windy and quiet stretch past Cannock Chase and on to Sandon Lock for the night.

Tomorrow we are going to have to have a major re-provisionning at Morrisons in Rugely.  Over the next week we are hoping to get to Braunston from where I shall pick up the car again and we shall start moving things into the house in Old Stratford.  

Day 135 .... 25.09.13 .... Stone 3 Staffs

This morning we had planned to do the starboard side strip of the boat.  The forecast was good but unfortunately wrong and so I got soaked going to the turning point and returning...... obviously rubbing down and painting were out of the question so we had another look around Stone, which we are very impressed with.

 .................... an interesting  boat over the way !!

The bikes are again coming in handy and we have made good use of them !!!!! Not much news today. Maggie is going down to Hampton tomorrow until Friday and then we shall move off again towards Braunston, from where I shall pick up the car again. If the weather is good tomorrow shall rub down and paint.

Day 134 .... 24.09.13 .... Stone 2

As the weather had predicted today was a good day for touching up the sides that have been knocked over the last few months.  We got the sander out and I sanded .........................

................. and Maggie put the undercoat on.................

.and while the under coat dried we went in to Stone to look at the market etc. It is a lovely small traffic-free High Street.    

 .... and also includes a very good bakery where we bought some pies for lunch.

........................ then back to the dried under-coat and Maggie put on the black top-coat.  Tomorrow I shall nip round the corner and turn the boat around we shall do the other side.  The forecast is similar to today and so hopefully that will be the sides sorted for the time being

By the way well done Fee for putting a comment on.  My big brother told me how to do it but I cannot remember.  Could you tell me please although it is a bit late in the day now.  You never know I might start a blog of winter travels !! ?? !!

Day 133 .... 23.09.13 .... Stone 1

This  morning was very misty and moisty but warm ....... in fact a typical September morning and this was the first lock at Tixalll. This morning no elderberry to clear off the roof. Maggie looks as if she is dancing ! She says she was opening the lock! 

 ....... enjoyed going through an area behind Shugborough called Tixall Wide which is like a large lake.  How it came to be I am not sure. Very beautiful though.

........................ Saw a couple of kingfishers again and I am hoping that I might have a distant picture of one if I blow up it up.  A work in the future............

these amused us a s we passed under their crossing point between two fields.

......................... arrived at Stone where we are moored in the area we wanted above the locks and  have trimmed the grass by the edge of the canal so we can paint the strips on the side.  I think passers-by thought we were mad !!! More of this and Stone tomorrow.  I believe there is a market tomorrow according to Bert. We are already impressed since we found a large Capuccino and a pint of Abbots for £3.60 which is the record low for the whole journey around the system so far.  Cannot imagine it being beaten !!

Day 132 .... 22.09.13 .... Tixall

Today we set out from Penkridge to get to the Radford Bank Pub to meet the T'rific Trio at the carvery there.  They are now all based around Stafford and have not changed at all .......................
 

 ................ as before we had a great lunch.  The weather has been warm again today and although we ate inside we spent the rest of the time outside.
 

................... after a good roast lunch we carried on along the canal towards Great Haywood.  It was a lovely evening and Maggie had a good cleaning session on the roof.  We had managed to moor under an elderflower tree and the birds had blibbed all over parts of the roof leaving ................ things that needed cleaning off. 

 ........ journey towards Great Haywood via Cannock Chase is lovely. 

........................ we stopped at Tixall Lock which was very quiet.  Mainly Canada geese settling down for the night and a couple of owls. Tomorrow heading off towards Stone where we are going to spend a few days painting the rubbing strakes and Maggie is going to go to London.

Day 130&31 .... 20,21.09.13 .... Brewood & Penkridge

...................... as a result of the not-so-good 02 signal have condensed the last two days into one.  This was an aquaduct, needless to say Victorian, which still straddles the modern A5, which has in itself been superceded by the M6.  What next ?

........................... stopped at this delightful village Brewood.   UInusual and rather showy front to a house.  Lovely that the girl in the bakery told us what to look out for in the village and where her name and the name of her parents and grandparents had been scratched on the brickwork of one of the bridges !!

 

 .............................. this is the view of the village on the way out. 

............................. another one of the strange ornate bridges.  These are usually where the canal, and therefore  common trade, passed through the land of the landed gentry.  These in return for a rent etc. insisted that a bridge reflecting their status should be put in place.   Hence the odd ornate bridge in the middle of what is now, nowhere !!

.................... the junction where the Shropshire meets the Staffs and Worcs Canal. We took a hard left and are now on the S and W canal heading back to Great Haywood.  First surprise was this cuttiing in the rock which is one way only with the odd passing place every 400 yards or so. We were lucky that we met no-one on the way through.

 .......................... again it is quite a feat to have created this with the technology of the day.

............................ this evening we are moored in Penkridge and then tomorrow we are going to meet The Terrific Trio ...... Mick, Fee and Bert for a drink at a place about 6 miles onwards.

Day 129 .... 19.03.13 .... Gnossall, Staffs

Set off from Gnosall, pronounced Nossal, and the canal takes the form of cuts through rock and then embankments over fields

The cuts are pretty impressive if you think that they were built in the late 1700's with explosives and Navvies.

 The embankments gave great views which the phone does not really do juxtice to. This is a view of The Wrekin 15miles away on the border of Shropshire and Wales.

.............................. this rather odd bridge hasa telegraph pole in the middle of it.

Day 128 .... 18.09.13 .... Market Drayton

This morning gave us a good view of where we are moored with some sunshine.   This was erratic throughout the day !!

The wharf of Audlem was very picturesque following which we went on to the section with fifteen locks.  This, the book says, should take about two hours, but today took 4 and a half.  Since it was drizzling part of the time we have not taken any photos.   

This last pic is towards the end of the flight and we are now moored in another quiet area , but not as quiet as last night. The whole day has been extremely rural.   

Day 127 .... 17.009.13 ....Audlem,Cheshire

This first pic is of the pib where we moored last night.  We had had two recommendations about it and so we decided to see what the food was like.  We were not disappointed .. their steak and ale pie was the best we have had for a long time, the beer was good and the price reasonable.
A very good place which put us in good fettle to continue through the Chesire part of the canal.

This cow caught our imagnation, it just stared, peacefully chewing as we passed by.  In poetic rural mode until we came to this sign which we had to stop at and have a nose.

................. it proved to be fascinating and somewhat un-nerving since it was an underground bunker to control the area in case of a nuclear war.  Three stories deep and full of 1960-80s technology about the defences for a nuclear war. 

......................... having been through the nuts and bolts of a nuclear wipe-out, which was very well and somewhat un-nervingly presented we were amused by this sign in the cafeteria. It needed a bitof light relief.

 

The next stop in the journey was in Audlem where we have moored for the night.  This has proved to be a lovely village with the usual 13thC Church and a medieval butter market to the lower right. As you get!!

The walk back to the boat is lovely.  Unusually there are large and pine trees by the side of the canal which changes the feel of the canalside. Many people have started their stoves !

This was a quaint little selling point for a local with produce and an honesty box. Everything had gone so I hope that all had been honest !!

.................... and finally this is the view from where we are moored.  Believe it or not this is the start of the River Weaver which we were on at the Anderton Lift.  Somewhat smaller.

Strange thing about where we are now is that there is no sound from around.  Not the usual bit of traffic, aircraft, trains or even animal life.  Superbly peaceful.

Tomorrow a very large flight of locks upwards and Market Drayton.

Day 126 ..... 16.09.13 .... Barbridge Junction, Chester

As planned we went on the bus to Chester today and had a good look around. Very impressive and quite busy with tourists. Traffic free in the centre like most towns nowadays which is more relaxing. 

This is a view of the High Street from one of the gates.  We had a walk around the wall which surrounds the centre and got good views of all around in spite of the weather not being brilliant.

The cathedral was equally impressive.  We spent a good time wandering around it.

After the cathedral a walk around the perimeter of the old town.  In the dim distance the hills of North Wales ..... in the foreground a new umbrella purchased on the High Street to replace the last one I left somewhere.  Unused until this Evening!!!

Amazed to find out that where the Racecourse is now, used to be the port until the river silted over the last five hundred years.

........................ and finally the River Dee where it comes out to the estuary from Wales.

All in all an interesting day .... a bus back to the boat ready to go southwards tomorrow. Forecast not great but never mind.