Tuesday 31st July Congleton to Hassall Green

Shopping called for first thing – so we didn’t get going till 11am, but that allowed the sun to warm us up a bit first. We were really appreciating the warmth. Travelling down the Macclesfield we were again loving this part of the countryside with the Friesian cows in the fields, farmers tedding hay, and gathering in the silage. If we can get a mooring here on the Macclesfield, that would be heaven.

Down at the aqueduct on the end of the Macclesfield, Lynne stepped off in order to take photos of the boat as it passed over the Trent and Mersey underneath, whilst we waited for a boat right on the apex to complete a 180 deg turn. Looking back, and seeing Alex at a strange angle mid canal,

Lynne realised the prop was fouled and hotfooted it back to assist in mooring up to clear it.

We took opportunity to have a bite of lunch at the same time, then with Lynne walking the towpath again, and me driving, we rounded onto the Trent and Mersey canal proper.

At the first of the Red Bull locks, a woman and her young son were standing watching us enter the lock and stood explaining what she thought happened. I had waved Alex to the far one, as there was something floating in the water on the approach to the nearside one. Whilst Alex was fishing this out to avoid anyone else snagging it, we had begun chatting. She asked “could I be really cheeky and ask if my son could ride down this lock with you?” I looked at Alex, and he agreed Okay that will be alright. Next thing two other youngsters with parents in tow, arrived. The woman’s sister and husband and children. Before we knew it, we had 3 youngsters on board, told to sit still, behave etc etc… excitement clearly showing.

Whilst Lynne was walking down to set the next lock, she chatted to the woman and it transpired that she was a single parent, and was struggling to find things to do to entertain her son during the holidays and they were having a day out by the canal. Lynne didn’t mind as she has an 8 yr old grandson who she would dearly love to take on our boat, but am not able to do so. It was a pleasure to be able to do this for someone else. Alex reported afterwards, that the young lass had told him – ‘I’ve not been on a boat before, and I’m not scared, look I am standing up. This is mint!” Two locks later (!) we let them hop off and left them to a bankside picnic.

That was the first two of 13 locks that we would complete today. We stopped at Rode Heath to get some milk, and after being watched whilst mooring and wondering why, we showed a couple how to tie off as their ropes kept coming undone. It was her dads boat, and they were scared stiff of damaging it.

7pm - after our late start we’d had enough and moored just before Pierpoint Locks for the night. With the sun still shining, slightly breezy and still warm enough, we hung the washing out to dry. We had a phone call from Lauren that evening telling us that she and her husband had completed packing their caravan and were setting off early next day for Cornwall. We told her we were now putting all efforts in to join them on the Friday with the weather having improved so much.