Ellesmere Port

[Martin Megson]

Just visited Ellesmere Port to find the museum is closed and a group of travellers in the carpark.

[MoominPapa]

Are the two things related?

 

If the museum is closed, do you get to moor in the bottom basin without paying?

 

MP.

[IanM]

Its closed until April 1st for refurbishment of the Cafe and Gift Shop according to their Twitter page.

According to the website the opening times are:

"Winter: Open weekends 10.00am - 4.00pm from 5th November until 24th December. Please see below for special events.
The museum will be closed for refurbishment from 25 December and will reopen 1 April 2017."

 

https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/enjoy-the-waterways/museums-and-attractions/national-waterways-museum

Travellers are probably just taking advantage of the situation.

Edited January 23, 2017 by IanM

[dmr]

I expect this will get me banned for non PC thinking, but I do hope CaRT are patrolling the museum. There must be a lot of good historic brass in some of those old boats, and I have first hand experiences (that can be supported by police records) that some travellers like to steal metal.

 

................Dave

[junior]

Just visited Ellesmere Port to find the museum is closed and a group of travellers in the carpark.

If you go down the 2 locks in the museum the best moorings are in the bottom basin.

[pearley]

The notice at the car park entrance states the gate is closed at, I think, 6 pm. When we were there in the summer it never was and all the local motorcyclists used it to show off their "skills".

[Chertsey]

I expect this will get me banned for non PC thinking, but I do hope CaRT are patrolling the museum. There must be a lot of good historic brass in some of those old boats, and I have first hand experiences (that can be supported by police records) that some travellers like to steal metal.

 

................Dave

Not in many that I've seen there.

 

They're definitely going to be open at Easter for their do (but I'm foregoing that for the delights of Brownhills and Walsall this year)

[Martin Megson]

I knew the museum was closed but s I'm moored in Chester I drove down to see if the moorings were still available - I don't know if the locks are locked up when the museum is closed. The museum was all locked up and nobody about to ask so I left.

[Mike Todd]

I knew the museum was closed but s I'm moored in Chester I drove down to see if the moorings were still available - I don't know if the locks are locked up when the museum is closed. The museum was all locked up and nobody about to ask so I left.

I thought that it was a charge for mooring, rather than using the locks which are as much part of the canal as other locks on the way there.

[junior]

I knew the museum was closed but s I'm moored in Chester I drove down to see if the moorings were still available - I don't know if the locks are locked up when the museum is closed. The museum was all locked up and nobody about to ask so I left.

Whilst the locks are inside the museum perimiter, they are just part of the canal as normal. You can go up and down them whenever you like to access the bottom basin, which is mostly nothing to do with the museum.

You can also get into the museum site with a BW Key should you need to (for access to the canal).

[dmr]

When we visited there were more staff and volunteers than visitors, which is sad because its an excellent museum, so trouble with doing the locks is that we were inundated with volunteers wanting to help.

 

Interesting pub just outside the musuem/bottom basin.

 

............Dave

[Martin Megson]

Thanks for clarifying the situation regarding access to the basin.