It’s a long time since I have seen the water feature actually running in the business park, intentional leaking gates.
One boat came up the flight before we were up and we then met another three before Salford Junction. On the way down the flight some work is taking place on the old offside wall.
They also had a floating scaffolding on a flat with hydraulic legs, I hope no one tries using it without the legs down, maybe they have a good on site foreman.
We stopped for water at Cuckoo Wharf, without doubt this must be the slowest tap on the system, your arm would ache just filling a kettle under it, so we gave that a miss. CRT have erected a new sign there now and there is no mention of boaters services.
We carried on to the Minworth locks, the top lock only has one paddle working, the other has no rack and the bottom hates leak to such an extent you cant get a level so two people on the beam to open the gate, only other problem is , its a poorly lock beam with splints holding it together.The bottom end the off side paddle is fine but the near side hasn’t worked for at least 5 years, it lifts OK but no water comes out. I have reported once a year for 4 years. We stopped below the lock and filled with water, this is quite a good tap, we took the opportunity to sit and eat lunch.
There is a car wash beside the can a short way before the lock and sometimes a bit or fine spray finds its way onto the canal, but this was a new one for me, I wonder if its a £5 job or a £7 one, its only a 2 seater and not a 4X4. Even the drum was getting the treatment with a long brush.
We got to Minworth Bottom lock and had just turned it when a lady appeared and produced a windlass, no sign of any boats coming, she said there were two and they had just left the pub. Again only one paddle works at the top, the off side the rack doesn't engage with the pinion. The other thing with this lock is someone sliced the handrail on the ladder. It was reported to CRT September last year and they have hung a piece of tape on it which is almost disintegrated. I thought this would be a top priority safety issue on a lock ladder.
When we finally got down the lock there were 4 boats waiting to come up, the first a single hander who arrived as I came into the lock followed by a boating friend of ours, Erick, it was his wife working the lock but we hadn’t seen her for about 10 years so didn’t recognise her and two other boats.
There was some kind of fund raising event going on outside the pub with a small table under the bridge asking for donations and in the water a dozen canoes with very little experience, they held onto the bank for dear life until we passed before milling about again.Clear of the lock it was down to one of our regular spots just before Wiggins Hill Bridge, but after a bit we decided the sewage farm was a bit whiffy so we moved on half a mile, over the boarder between Minworth and Curdworth, just after Broad Bulk Bridge, the parish boundary in the middle of nowhere, since we have been here another boat has come in behind us.
Correction
That is now two behind us.
Today’s journey
6½ miles, 6 locks in 3¾ hours
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