Leicester space centre

[captain birdseye]

We are heading towards Leicester and would like to visit the above. Do they have moorings or will we have to walk from castle gardens

[Nightwatch]

Someone may know better than I, but I don't think they had moorings.

[baldlimey]

There is a small landing in the offline waterway above the weir. We used it to visit the pumping station. When I say small it is roughly 6ft so you have to tie up in a strange way but it worked.

[Richard T]

It is not practical to moor above Belgrave lock nor is it desirable!! There are two options for getting to the space centre and the next door Transport and pumping station museum

• Moor at Birstall and take a bus - the stop in Birstall is 400m from the good moorings.
• Moor at Castle Gardens or the new pontoons at Friars Mill (250m north of Castle Gardens) and then walk or take a bus.

Recently a boat tried to get across the top of the weir at Bekgrave lock to the Space Centre and the owners took several hours extricating it!!! so do not attempt this. Old guide books suggest it is possible.

The pumping station is very interesting and well worth a visit - 4 large beam engines and much more http://www.abbeypumpingstation.org/

If using Birstall lock the bottom gates have dropped (CRT are aware of this) the right hand one when facing upstream is particularly bad and difficult to operate.

Enjoy the Soar.

If you have more queries feel free to ask me.

Cheers

Richard

[Rickent]

We came through leicester yesterday and was absolutely appalled at the amount of rubbish in the water between Abbey park and the space centre.

 

Richard we were the boat going into the lock at mountsorrel as you were coming out with all the hire boats , was going to introduce myself but it was chaos there.

[Richard T]

We came through leicester yesterday and was absolutely appalled at the amount of rubbish in the water between Abbey park and the space centre.

 

Richard we were the boat going into the lock at mountsorrel as you were coming out with all the hire boats , was going to introduce myself but it was chaos there.

Yes there is a lot of rubbish in the river north of Leicester. This is because surface water from the city is fed very quickly into it especially at times of heavy rain. The LOPC at Loughborough road bridge run clean up sessions -there is one this weekend https://www.lopc.co.uk/about/get-involved/river-clean-team/

 

It would have been good to meet but it was chaotic with the day boats. I had also got them into Barrow lock. I felt like a mother duck shepherding her ducklings home!!

 

Edited August 16, 2016 by Richard T

[captain birdseye]

Had a great time in Leicester my children enjoyed the space Centre. We had a great meal down the golden mile. We moored in castle gardens and it was handy that one gate has a crt lock on it so you can get in when the gardens are closed. We used circle cars to get about

they are based on the square up the hill and have fixed prices for most places and were quick and pleasant to deal with.

 

We are now at Loughborough enjoying the evening sun and a pint

Edited August 20, 2016 by captain birdseye

[Ally]

Great central railway in Loughborough tomorrow? Steam trains! Opposite end of the scale to the space centre.

Edited August 20, 2016 by Ally

[Theo]

Yes there is a lot of rubbish in the river north of Leicester. This is because surface water from the city is fed very quickly into it especially at times of heavy rain. The LOPC at Loughborough road bridge run clean up sessions -there is one this weekend https://www.lopc.co.uk/about/get-involved/river-clean-team/

 

It would have been good to meet but it was chaotic with the day boats. I had also got them into Barrow lock. I felt like a mother duck shepherding her ducklings home!!

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Ducks are dreadful mothers and drakes take no part in parenting. I hope that you were more like a pen or, indeed, a cob.

Edited August 30, 2016 by Theo