captain birdseye

I know the man well, and have done quite a bit of restoration work with him. We took his boat up the Huddersfield and got stuck at Uppermill and had to reverse to Greenfield to turn round the other week. We then had an energetic day from Stalybridge to Castlefield.

If you want a hand on the Huddersfield or the Ashton PM me I live locally and have a bit of time free next week

update has now been issued. The canal is open following repair

Apparently it's now fixed and boats are moving

We usually do all twenty seven in a day, last time down we left Ashton at 10:00 and were in the Wharf at Castlefield for Five, it all depends on what you are used to. That was with my wife and our 10 and 8 year old children. when I came up with billh last weekend we did them all despite all the trouble with water near the top and that included a two hour lunch break at Piccadilly and with a deep draughted working boat. I wouldn't bother with Wigan, theres not a lot to see after Astley Green at the furthest. Nice canalside pub there.

The basin is OK just not too near Telfords Warehouse if you want peace and Quiet. There is a very good services block on the side if the flats opposite the dry dock, or was when we were there last year.

The lower peak is a bit slow going at times but it is amazing how rural it feels considering you are in the outskirts of Stockport and Manchester. Stopping at Ashton as Mayalld says is a good idea. Ashton to Castlefield is a days trip, and as said it's well worth spending a couple of days in Manchester. Take the detour over the Barton Tank to Worsley, where it all began and if you are lucky you might get to see the tank swing. Lymm is one of my favourite stops and the Lymm Brewery Tap is my favourite watering hole, the chippy opposite is good too. There are also a fair number of shops and eateries. The Red Lion at Moore is also a decent stop and Stockton Heath is good for shops, not forgetting Thorne Marine for any boaty essentials. I reckon about two and a half hours from there to Preston Brook tunnel and you need to be ready to go in to the tunnel between half past and twenty to the hour. It's then roughly two hours between the tunnels to Saltersford Tunnel so you should make the passage two hours from when you went into Preston Brook. Its then about a Hour to Anderton lift.

I agree with BWM above, when I removed all my fitting to repaint I made neoprene gaskets for everything and fitted them. A much better job

I was there and it was a great weekend. we ended up with two boats with friends on board moored on the outside of us on the Saturday night and much beer was consumed. Sunday finished with what was for me, the best band of the weekend. The Electric Swing Circus. Pity the beer tent ran out of both of their dark beers though

They did the same when there was a breach on the L&L at Hoscar a few years ago. We were trapped at Tarleton following a trip over the Ribble link and got craned out there and put back in at White Bear

we are booked in 10th August, I'll hang around for a while before deciding whether to head that way or not

What with the ongoing trouble at Marple, the Breach on the Middlewich Branch and now the route into Liverpool closed due to another breach the available routes in the north west are getting severely limited From C&RTs stoppages The Leeds & Liverpool Canal is currently closed to navigation at Bridge 10 (Holmes Swing Bridge) due to a collapsed culvert (No. 29) near Burscough. An update will be issued later today. There is some video on the Melling Community Facebook page, but apparently about 29 mile of canal emptied into the fields last night

if you are heading up the Caldon, we noticed whilst visiting the Black Horse at Endon (just down Plank Lane from the services) that the petrol station next to it were installing an outside launderette. The machines were there but I am not sure if they are working. There is also a convenience store for essentials there. This was at the end of May

Glad to hear you are all OK. As everybody has said if you need a helping hand with anything just ask. Hope to see you next month

what seems to limit the Huddersfield's through traffic is the number of boats that can pass through the tunnel each day with only passage available three times a week

Hope all participating this year have a great time and the weather holds for you. I must try and get there again next year

Stalybridge band contest is at the labour club over the road from Tesco's just above lock 6W starts at 16:30, I'll also be there before returning to my boat which is currently on the upper peak

They are a great couple of people, I hope they can get back to normal as soon as possible

If you are short of help ring C&RT they often have a lockie who knows the canal and can help you through the locks

Moor in Kidderminster and get the Severn Valley Railway to Bridgenorth, you can then get a number 9 bus to Ironbridge. Its a bit of a faf but you get a nice couple of train rides included

Couldn't resist adding mine Marsh Warblers RN.3GP

Where would you recommend as a stop off the night before going into the docks

I'd go for the 20mm by 3mm they have a 3.6 kg pull or maybe a bit smaller. a 2kg pull holds the door and comes free easy enough. they come in packs of 5 or 10 for under a tenner, so you can put one on each hinge if you need two on each door

Yes, I have one on each of the bottom hinges of my back doors they aren't a strong hold with the rubber on but they keep the doors open and all you have to do is pull the door and it comes free and closes. I got mine on line from e magnets

I use Neodinium magnets with a thin piece of rubber glued onto one side of them so they stay put on the cabin and release from the doors. Both been there for two years with no problem, they are only the size of a ten pence piece