Well the day didn’t go to plan, we set off in drizzle for less than a quarter of a mile to the Anderton Boat lift holding area. Or booking was for 11-30am and we needed to be there 30 minutes before hand for a safety briefing, we were there about half ten and 11 o’clock the CRT man tapped on the boat. Bad news, the dry sump of the lift was full of water, but they had pumps on site and were slowly pumping it out, he would keep us posted. A short time later a second boat arrived and we told them the bad news. The CRT man came back and said the level is slowly falling. Then a third boat arrived and we had lunch, about half one the CRT man was back, level was going down nicely and he would update at three pm. Quarter to three and he returned, bad news, the level was down to the wedges and that was where the problem was, it would be 48hrs, what he couldn’t tell us was what would happen about our booking other than we could get a refund, we want to get to the river, so I rang CRT. The young lady I spoke to couldn’t help as the Lift team had shut down the web access to the booking page but she did say she would contact them and tell them we still wanted to go down to the river when the lift opens and that I would like to get to the dry dock for Saturday. Since we have been moored up I have sent an email to CRT for the attention of the lift team stressing this point.
No more to be done in Anderton we set off along the Trent and Mersey canal towards Preston Brook. Its good to see that the towpath barrier has survived allthese years since the land slide, most of the buoys are still in place near the narrows and the foot bridge is still closed. The wild garlic is out in flower and the aroma is very strong, the woods along here are completely carpeted in it.
round and through Barnton Tunnel no sign of any other boats and it was nineteen minutes past three when we got to the mouth of Saltersford tunnel, a minute later and we would have had to wait until 4pm to enter. Exiting the other end of the tunnel is a tree carving, but with the sun its very much a silhouette shot.
Our plan was to moor at the site of the Dutton Breach, when we arrived there were only two boats there so we decided to carry on, wind just before Dutton Dry Dock where the old wooden tar boatSpey has just had a new stern fitted and then retrace of track to moor for the night between the two boats already moored at the site of the breach.
Today’s Journey
7½ miles, no locks in 2½ hours
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