Market Drayton still - A rare’ish lazy day

Our plan was to sit out the rain today and as I type this it a lovely sunny afternoon ( it was now pinging it down) ! Never mind we got on with jobs as planned. In fact after emerging from the engine room I felt a bit like Alan Millyard ( he’s a biking engineering genius so I’m not like him at all but he toils away in his garage while his wife bakes cakes in the kitchen …. Have a watch if you like engineering ) There will be a cake ref in there. The connection was me fettling Percy’s engine while Rachel made a lovely Date and Walnut cake… 

Percy’s ‘donk’ was well overdue a fettle so with the rain forecast I set to giving the under engine a good clean as well as checking the tappets and nipping up a  few weeping water pipes. The water pump is a bit of a frustration but of my making  - when I had the pump off earlier in the year to check the vanes I think I overtightened the pump onto the belt putting pressure on the pump shaft and so the shaft seal - told you I wasn't an engineering genius. It weeps a bit but stops something to keep an eye on.   The engine is lubed ready for an early start as if the weather gods permit we’d like to get to the lower Audlem visor mooring tomorrow. 

We were feeling very good about being out for us on an extended trip and Halfie and Jan have just cruised past on Jubilee arriving home at their lovely canal side place having been out since April they just told me …. Serious cruising .. 

We are off for a walk to town again shortly and I’ve rubbish and a cassette to empty. 

For pictures I mentioned our mooring was a pig to get in and out of.. I set about sorting it in mid June. Only way was to get in with a spade and fork to loosen the sediment that had built up quite badly. In the end the most effecting was 'walking  up' the hard silt using the course soles on the chest waders I'd brought for the job - they were effective and it was quite an experience being in the canal but dry ! 

A man enjoying his work but it was flippin hot that day - might have been summer !!

This was as close as we could get in and that was with some effort 

We were back at it in July as 'gardening' was needed. Luckily it didn't take too long to get it looking tidy and you can see how much closer we can get Percy in and she floats when on the mooring now. 

Tomorrow we'll head off early ish as the forecast has changed again  to give us two dry days to get down the Adderley and Audlem flight and on towards Barbridge Junction. We may stop at Nantwich depending on the moorings.

Shebdon to Market Drayton Autumn 2024

We've planned this or rather not planned it for a while, I'll explain. 

We've always wanted to 'extend' our cruising but stuff has always got in the way, mainly good stuff. We have one less restriction that it's not my place to explain but suffice to say we can now enjoy extended cruising if we wish to so we had planned to finally complete the Macclesfield canal and venture onto the Peak Forest canal - a canal I was told was nicer than the Shroppie  (Floating our boat Youtubers) !! 

We were last on the Macclesfield on Waterlily in August 2008. As I type this as look back at the blog post for our old Waterlily blog site I'm saddened to reflect on the fact Leia was just a pup and left us two years ago. Ross my mums companion died in 2015 and my mum in the pictures if you follow the link is now suffering dementia in a care home in Derby. All give massive signals to get on with life before life and death overtakes you.

Here is the link ...Waterlily on the Macclesfield

We've taken the conscious decision to go with the flow and the weather this trip. We arrived Monday evening late as always and Rachel set to making up the bed and putting away the food we brought and I ran the genny while the fridge was cooling down and filled the water tank. While said tank was filling I removed our worn out front fender  - fitted when we had the boat painted in 2015 and made by Joe Hollisworth a real old boater born on NB Victoria outside the Mucky duck in Fradley I had previously been over to Pillinglock marina to see Geoff and Maggs who were a favourite blogging couple when doing the system on their narrowboat Seyella.They have a wide beam now at the marina... another blog post to put in later but I brought a very lightly used bow fender off Geoff which I fitted last night.

Geoff looking good next to his Dutch Barge in August 

The fitting needs work as I need some shackles and I also need to introduce two cuts in the chain to allow it to break if it gets snagged... work in progress

We set off after engine lubed and checked at 10.30 heading for market Drayton as we knew it would be heavy rain after 3pm so that was todays target. 

Despite my dredging efforts - blog to fit in after this trip, getting Percy out was a pig, but we did and off we went.

Some pics ....

Looks nice but a pig to get out of 

The Wrekin...it can be seen up near our cottage at Cauldon Low as we drive from Ashbourne to where we live 

Rachel approaching Goldstone wharf - plenty of moorings and tempting but there is a half day stoppage at Tyrley locks tomorrow 

We met two boats in Woodseaves cutting the first held for us and the second reversed eventually for us  - both hire boats thank you.  

It's only a matter of time before these come down and close the canal for an extended time

Tyrley flight was good to us mainly because there was no following boat dropping locks full of water thru the bywashes - if you are a boater you'll know !!

Despite the calm'ish bywashes the last /first lock still moved Percy about

The lock entrance has taken some bashing as have the boats. -its a poor design and needs the baffle improving 

We arrived 2.20 pm so just under 4 hours. Went shopping and had coffee and cake ...

To Goldstome 2 hours

To the top lock 2 hours 40 mins

To mooring up on visitors 3 hours 50 mins

Tomorrow is given a lot of rain so we'll have a lazy start - I've engine room jobs to do, empty the cassette and do some shopping. If it brightens up we'll head for the top of the Adderley flight or maybe stop short in the haunted woods !!