Overwater to The Montgomery Canal

Monday 18th January


We have a few days to ourselves before family and friends come and visit during February so we decided to head back up the Llangollen Canal and make another attempt to visit the Montgomery Canal.  We booked our passage through the locks for Friday 22nd January.

Leaving the marina

Dave steered Ella out of the pontoon and out of the Marina.

Excellent position!

It was the best exit we have made yet!!









We cruised to Nantwich and moored up on the embankment and waited for Tim the engineer from Bourne Boatbuilders to arrive.  There were a few snagging issues to sort out before we continued on our way.

After Tim had left we walked into the town of Nantwich to do some shopping and then returned to the boat for the evening.

Tuesday 19th January

Today we cruised from Nantwich to Wrenbury and moored up in front of the boat that makes and sells boat fenders.  We treated ourselves to supper in The Dusty Miller beside the lift bridge.  

At the top of the Hurleston Locks we met Linda who runs the hire boat company called Cheshire Cats out of Overwater Marina.  She was busy replacing carpet on nb Little Star ready for the new season.

Wednesday 20th January

We woke to a cold and frosty morning, the weather was sunny and dry and we had a fantastic day cruising to Whitchurch.  Our passage through Grindley Brook was much better this time - practice makes perfect - and we moored up outside the Whitchurch Arm for the night.

Thursday 21st January

Another cold start to the day, but a pleasant enough cruise through to Ellesmere.  As the water flows on the Llangollen, there is less risk of it freezing over, but as we turned into the Ellesmere Arm the canal was frozen over and we stopped at the first available space to moor up for the night.  Dave had to use the pole to push the slabs of ice away from the mooring so I could get close enough to moor up safely.

Friday 22nd January 

Fortunately the temperatures had increased overnight and the ice on the branch had completely melted and disappeared.  This meant we were able to turn the boat around at the end of the branch and cruise out forwards.  I didn't like the idea of reversing the boat out of the branch!!



Arrived at the Montgomery Canal bang on 12.00 and Roger the cheery lock keeper was there to meet us.  He was going to guide us down the Frankton locks onto the Montgomery Canal.

Roger and Dave

Roger helped us down the staircase lock and then through the next two locks.

Deep chamber

The staircase here has three locks, top middle and bottom.  
Below Frankton Middle Lock is the site of the dry dock where "Cressy", the narrow boat was moored. It featured in "NARROW BOAT" by the late L.T.C. ROLT and this publication fired the enthusiasm for the restoration of the canal network and which was later to produce the birth of the INLAND WATERWAYS ASSOCIATION. 

Perry Aqueduct

The Montgomery Canal has its very own aqueduct over the River Perry!!








We cruised on until we got to Maesbury Marsh where we decided to stop opposite the Navigation Inn, as we were tired and the wind had got up again making cruising much more difficult.
The canal was extremely quiet until we got to Maesbury Marsh where we saw seven boats all moored up.  The limit of current navigation is just up the canal at Gronwen Bridge where you need to turn the boat and head back up towards the Llangollen Canal.

Saturday 23rd January 

Today we had a quiet day exploring the local area.  We walked further along the canal to where it is being restored and was fascinated to see the shape of the canal with very little water in it.  

Canal Centre

We called in at the Canal Centre which acts as a shop/post office/cafe during the season.  I understand it does fantastic chocolate cake but we weren't able to try it as they wouldn't let Toby in and it was too cold to sit in the garden!

Horse drawn boat

We found a horse drawn boat moored up. This is used during the season to ferry people on day trips.









Sunday 24th January


Turned the boat around and began our trip back to the Llangollen Canal and Overwater Marina.  We took five days to return and eventually moored the boat up again on Thursday 28th January.  Cruising was generally incident free apart from getting stuck under some trees and losing the boat hook into the canal.  In my defense, it was very windy and I was distracted by a fisherman and I was more worried about losing the satellite dish into canal!!
Fortunately that didn't happen but we are minus a boat hook!!

Ella is going to spend February in the marina whilst we meet up with friends and family and begin to plan our next adventure in March.

Overwater to Llangollen and back

Wednesday 23rd December

Today we start our longest cruise yet on board Ella.  We intend to be on Ella for Christmas and New Year and return home in January.

Cygnets

We set off from the marina in light winds and turned left onto the Shropshire Union. The weather was glorious and we enjoyed the two hour cruise to Nantwich. We saw two almost fully grown cygnets on the way.






Once we had moored up we walked down into the town, an opportunity to give Toby a good walk and we were able to buy the food we wanted for Christmas.

Thursday 24th December - Christmas Eve

Cruised from Nantwich to Wrenbury on the Llangollen Canal.  The weather couldn't have been more different from yesterday - squally rain showers and strong blasts of winds - it made controlling the boat much more difficult.

Hurleston Locks

Turning right onto the Llangollen was more difficult than I had realised and it took more than one attempt to aim the bow into the first lock.  However once we had made our way up the four locks the view from the top was certainly worth it.








We then continued on our way towards Wrenbury through a mixture of sunshine and showers and finally moored up this side of the electrically operated lift bridge.  By this time the towpath had become a very muddy quagmire and walking Toby became a very squelchy affair!!

Friday 25th December - Christmas Day

We had planned to move the boat a little further up the canal today, but the weather was most unpleasant and we decided to stay put.  A walk through fields for Toby and a visit to the local pub for us, followed by Christmas dinner and a cosy fire added up to a very pleasant Christmas Day!

Saturday 26th December - Boxing Day

Today we are cruising from Wrenbury to Whitchurch.  Once we are through the lift bridge, we are cruising along waterways we have never been on before.  Very exciting!!  It was a grey day with squally winds so cruising was hard work especially getting in and out of the locks and through the lift bridges.

Lift Bridge

The LLangollen has a number of these lift bridges, manually operated with a windlass.  Some are left open, but many carry small roads and public footpaths so need to be kept closed.









We came into Grindley Brook and through the bridge and the first few locks before the staircase lock.  There is a staircase of three locks at Grindley Brook, similar set up to the ones in Chester, but not as large or dark!!

Lock Keeper's Hut

During the cruising season - March to October - these locks are generally worked by a Canal and River Trust member of staff, but during Christmas this was not the case and we had to work our own way carefully up the locks.  

Sleeping!

Whilst we are cruising Toby enjoys sitting on the stern watching the world go by, but occasionally this becomes too tiring and he just has to have a rest!!









The Llangollen is a fascinating canal.  It is fed by the River Dee and the water flows all the way from Llangollen to the flight of locks at Hurleston where the water is diverted into the reservoir.  This water is then used to service the homes and businesses of north Shropshire.  So going up the canal to Llangollen may well take you longer than coming down as you are cruising against the water current.  A very helpful gentleman explained that the flow of the water is equal to 2 miles an hour, and if you are cruising at 3 miles an hour your forward movement is only 1 mile an hour.  On your return journey, it is said that it may well take less time.  

Sunday 27th December

Whitchurch to Ellesmere.  A beautiful morning, sun was shining and the water was like a mill pond!  Beautiful cruising.

Bridge holes

Many of the bridges have holes or windows in them.  Not sure of the origin or what they were used for.  They all seem empty now.







Moored up for the night in the Ellesmere arm, a short section of the canal which is mainly used for overnight or longer moorings.

Monday 28th December

Woke to quite a breezy morning, but decided to set off as we were aiming to get to Pontcysyllte tonight.  Today we pass over the Chirk Aqueduct and go through the Chirk Tunnel.  The Chirk Aqueduct carries the canal in a narrow cast iron trough over the River Ceiriog which flows 70ft below, and also marks the border between England and Wales

Chirk Aqueduct

Running alongside the aqueduct is a fine viaduct carrying the railway.  As you get to the end of the aqueduct you enter Chirk Tunnel.  It is 459yds long and can only take one boat at a time.  There is a towpath running through and we were overtaken by people walking faster than we were cruising!





I was concerned because all the books I had read about the canal into Llangollen had said that it was narrow and very shallow in places.  I wasn't sure we would be able to get along the canal.  Fortunately there are many friendly boaters on the canals and my worries were quickly put to rest, my thanks go especially to nb Beefur who proved to be a wealth of advice and information.

Tuesday 29th December

The next morning we set off bright and early and made our way onto the amazing Pontcysyllte Aqueduct.  This aqueduct runs 126ft above the River Dee and is 1007ft long, again it is only wide enough for one boat so you have to wait if there is already a boat coming towards you.  

Llangollen Aqueduct

The scary part of this crossing is that the offside is completely unprotected apart from a ledge of about 6 inches, not good if you have a poor head for heights!








At the end of the Aqueduct there is a sharp left turn towards Llangollen.  

Cruising into Llangollen

Here the canal winds its way along the side of the hill towards Llangollen passing through some exquisite scenery.  

Llangollen Canal

There are some places where the canal narrows to one boat width and it is necessary to send crew ahead to make sure the canal is clear. 







We moored up at the end of the navigable part of the canal in the Basin and we stayed here until the New Year.

River Dee at Llangollen

We spent our time exploring the town of Llangollen and marvelling at the sight and noise of the River Dee as it crashed under the town bridge.








We walked along the Llangollen towards the head of the canal and the famous Horseshoe Falls.  Once you get beyond Llangollen the canal cannot be navigated by powered craft but during the season you can see horse drawn boats using the canal.

Head of the Llangollen Canal

The water for the canal is diverted from the River Dee and the little building in the picture is where it is all controlled from.

Horseshoe Falls

The Horseshoe Falls are a man made structure which diverts some of the water into the Llangollen Canal.  The design is attributed to Thomas Telford, a civil engineer working during the reign of King George III, 1808. 







This whole area up to the Chirk Aquaduct has been awarded World Heritage status due to the immense complexities associated with building such stunning structures. 

Friday 1st January 2016

We stayed in Llangollen until New Years Day and then slowly made our way back towards the Montgomery Canal.  We had planned to spend a couple of nights cruising this canal before making our return journey to the Marina.  

As we were making our way through the final locks before the junction we took a phone call from Canal and River Trust (CaRT) to let us know that there was a problem and asking what our plans were.  In order to cruise the Montgomery you have to have staff from CaRT to operate the staircase lock and you book your passage between certain hours of the day.

When we arrived at the canal the lock keeper informed us that there had been a significant leakage of pig slurry from a neighbouring farmer, caused by the high water levels and a team was being sent out to deal with it using chemicals etc.  We were advised we could carry on but to avoid coming into contact with the canal water and that it was very smelly!!!

We decided to give the visit a miss and headed back to Ellesmere.  We then spent a few more days slowly cruising back to Overwater Marina finally berthing Ella on 11th January 2016.

We shall return in the next few weeks and cruise the Montgomery when all the pollution has been dealt with.


https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?hl=en&authuser=0&mid=zta1TCNjmsG4.kv3gomO00mh4

Overwater to Ellesmere Port and back.

Monday 9th November 2015

Set off from the marina in more of a breeze than we have had before and found it quite difficult to line the boat up to get out the exit.  Fortunately there was a kind gentleman who helped pull her round with the rope!!

RAF flag to honour our fathers

The wind was blowing merrily as seen by the flag.  Both our fathers were in the RAF and we felt this was appropriate for Remembrance Day.








Today we cruised as far as Barbridge Junction and moored up across the canal from the Barbridge Inn.

No ivy on this house now.

This house is just past the Hurleston Junction with the Llangollen Canal.  The last time we went past there was red ivy all over the walls, looked very pretty, now it has all been blown off.






We left Toby on the boat for the evening and treated ourselves to supper at the pub.

Tuesday 10th November

Today we moved a little way up the canal to the water point and put water on board, we are looking forward to having our water and diesel gauges fitted so that we can keep an eye on both the levels.

Wide locks take two boats side by side

The locks on the Shropshire Union Canal north of Barbridge are all wide locks and we were fortunate enough to meet  another boat going in our direction.  We were able to go through all the locks as far as Beeston with them.  

Beeston Iron Lock

The last lock before Beeston is an iron lock, built by Telford.  He used iron plates to deal with the instability of the ground around here, but it has subsequently become warped and it is not advisable to fit two narrow boats inside it anymore. 








Once through the locks we moored up opposite Beeston Castle Wharf with the intention of stocking up with supplies, but the shop, cafe and chandlery were all closed!!

Beeston Castle

We continued on towards Bate's Mill Bridge and moored up for the evening. We took Toby for a walk looking for the entrance to Beeston Castle, but gave up and ended up sitting in the sunshine outside the Shady Oak pub with a well earned drink!






Wednesday 11th November

Cruised on towards Chester and were lucky again to be able to negotiate the locks with another boat, so thank you Compton for all your help!

Once we had passed through the last lock we moored up just beyond Waitrose where there were some handy mushrooms and spent the rest of the afternoon walking through Chester and finally meeting some friends in 'The Albion'.  

The Albion

The Albion is the last remaining Victorian corner street pub within the walls of Chester and is dedicated to WW1 with an amazing amount of memorabilia.







Thursday 12th November

We spent the day in Chester as Tim from Bourne Boatbuilders was coming to see us to sort out the small snagging issues, so it was a quiet day aboard the boat.

Friday 13th November

Today we cruised from Chester to Ellesmere Port.  

Chester City Wall

The canal leaves Chester alongside the city walls.

Northgate Staircase Locks.

There are three locks in a staircase here, they were the first we had ever done on our own.  Fortunately there was a Canal and River Trust man close by who could help us out.  

In the locks

For me on the boat it was a very scary and daunting time, very dark and gloomy with these enormous gates towering over us.  I was very glad to get out of there!







The cruise to Ellesmere Port was very pleasant, the weather was kind, dry and breezy so I was able to walk Toby along the towpath whilst Dave steered the boat. 

Ellesmere Port

Once we arrived we moored up outside the Canal Museum for the night and had a look around the museum.  Lots of canal history and many derelict boats moored awaiting funds to restore them to their former glory.






The Shropshire Union Canal locks down onto the Manchester Ship Canal, but as leisure craft we need permission to do so.  

Manchester Ship Canal

This canal makes the Shropshire Union look tiny!  This continues down to the River Mersey and ultimately to the sea.

A proper ship!

We were very excited to see an enormous ship gliding down the canal.  I don't think it would be very pleasant passing that in Ella!!






Saturday 14th November

Winded the boat in the basin and began our cruise back to Chester.  The return voyage up the Staircase Locks was much better and moored up back at the same spot as before.  By this time the wind was getting up and as it was a Saturday night it was a lot busier where we were moored.

Unfortunately, party revellers decided it would be a bit of fun to untie our ropes at 10.30pm, but as the wind was so strong we didn't actually go anywhere, just spent a very anxious night hoping it didn't happen again!!

Sunday 15th November

After our traumatic night we decided to move the boat further back down the canal and tie it to some rings.  Then we spent the rest of the day exploring Chester and walking the city walls, very windy and drizzly but a lovely day.

Chester from the walls

River Dee

Chester Castle

Chester Racecourse

Chester cathedral

We rounded off our day with an excellent roast dinner at The Artichoke Cafe Bar Bistro alongside the canal and had a much quieter night on the boat!!

Monday 16th - Wednesday 18th November

Return trip to Overwater Marina.  Very pleasant trip back on Monday, but the weather deteriorated on Tuesday with dire warnings of another storm in the evening.

We moored up outside the Barbridge Inn and as we did so we lost all power and the steering began to make an appalling noise.  As it was very quickly getting dark we decided to leave investigations until the morning!!

The next morning Dave opened the weedhatch above the propeller and began feeling around the prop to see what we had picked up.  He found a huge black plastic sack which had just begun to wrap itself around the propeller.  Fortunately no damage was done and the sack was removed and disposed of safely in a bin! 

The final leg back to the marina was in quite a stiff wind, narrowboats are more difficult to steer in high winds, but we managed to get her back safely and moored up without too much difficulty.