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Pontcysyllte Aqueduct


robtheplod

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What normally happens is that you hang around at the end waiting for a whole procession of boats to come over, then just before it’s free for you to go, another boat will start across from the other end and you’ll have to wait a few minutes more.  This could happen a few times.  Then as soon as there’s a gap, you head over.

 

Or you go early in the morning, before everyone else is up.

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You look and see if it is clear, if it is off you go, if not you wait.  In practice it will work out fine, there are not that many boats, and depending on the day and time of day many will be going in the same direction anyway.

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Moored near there for 10yrs or so, it's dog eat dog tbh, although it normally works out fine, I've had one or two occasions where we both swore we was first, plus one occasion where I was first, in fact almost halfway accross when someone still entered the channel against me.

If your going across to Trevor pull over onto the none towpath side, you have a better view and its actually easier for boats to pass when they leave the bridge

  • Greenie 1
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We are quite deep and a bit wider than we should be so found the narrow bits (bridge oles etc) very very slow going. Crick tunnel took forever. BW suggested we should do the aqueduct very early so as not to hold up other boats. Moored right before the aqueduct and got up early (before 6!) to do the aqueduct only to find a seemingly constant stream of hire boats coming towards us. Maybe late in the day is better ?

 

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

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From Overwater Marina, is Pontcysyllte doable in a weeks cruising (Sat-Sat) ?  Keen to do it but don't want to be rushed if possible..... Canal Planner seems to think about 5 days but not sure how accurate it is?

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12 hours ago, dmr said:

We are quite deep and a bit wider than we should be so found the narrow bits (bridge oles etc) very very slow going. Crick tunnel took forever. BW suggested we should do the aqueduct very early so as not to hold up other boats. Moored right before the aqueduct and got up early (before 6!) to do the aqueduct only to find a seemingly constant stream of hire boats coming towards us. Maybe late in the day is better ?

 

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

I would say bridge holes and Chirk tunnel are slow going upstream for everyone due to the flow, but that should not have too much effect on Pontcysyllte aqueduct given that the water is about 10ft wide.  I would also say that most people go slowly over it out of choice anyway.  Presumably you picked a morning when boats were returning to Trevor, it does pay I think to consider the tidal nature of the hire boats on the Llangollen!

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12 hours ago, dmr said:

BW suggested we should do the aqueduct very early so as not to hold up other boats.

^^^^ John is quite correct (and your BW advice was bolleaux). The venerable Mr Telford designed the trough with the towpath overhanging so the water your hull pushes forwards can run back underneath it. Chirk against the flow on the other hand....!

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38 minutes ago, Sea Dog said:

^^^^ John is quite correct (and your BW advice was bolleaux). The venerable Mr Telford designed the trough with the towpath overhanging so the water your hull pushes forwards can run back underneath it. Chirk against the flow on the other hand....!

 

Chirk was very slow for us, but the tunnel was worse, There are, allegedly,  arches under the tunnel towpath to provide a flow path but I suspect they are full of crap: they certainly don't work.

 

Interesting to contrast the pontywhatsit with Bearley aqueduct on the Stratford, which has the towpath a canal bottom level and therefore no route for getting the water around the boat easily. In a deep boat that's really slow. We crossed it following another boat for the first time recently. That makes it much easier as the boat in front is pulling the water away from you.

 

MP.

 

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8 minutes ago, MoominPapa said:

 

Interesting to contrast the pontywhatsit with Bearley aqueduct on the Stratford, which has the towpath a canal bottom level and therefore no route for getting the water around the boat easily. In a deep boat that's really slow. We crossed it following another boat for the first time recently. That makes it much easier as the boat in front is pulling the water away from you.

 

If it's being hauled from the towpath. But if it is propeller driven then it can only move forward if it pushes water back towards you.

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3 hours ago, robtheplod said:

From Overwater Marina, is Pontcysyllte doable in a weeks cruising (Sat-Sat) ?  Keen to do it but don't want to be rushed if possible..... Canal Planner seems to think about 5 days but not sure how accurate it is?

we're based at Overwater (at the moment) and have done Llangollen and back three times now, leaving Sat afternoon and usually back by Friday midday. Return trip is always a bit quicker as you're with the "flow" from the River Dee. Have done it in peak season and in off season and noticed little difference in time taken, off season you'll pass hardly anyone moving but will have to pass lots moored up on tickover, peak season lots moving but as long as you're sensible about when you hit the lock flights you'll be ok.  If you get to Llangollen basin about 3ish on the Tuesday there'll be plenty of space usually, gets much busier towards teatime in our (limited) experience.

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1 hour ago, David Mack said:

 

If it's being hauled from the towpath. But if it is propeller driven then it can only move forward if it pushes water back towards you.

Propellers work by transferring momentum into a small volume  of water moving fast. The volume of water they move is generally  less than the volume of water displaced by the front of boat as it moves. If it was as you say, the water level behind a moving boat would be _higher_ than in front of it. and water would be flowing forwards along the sides of the boat. In fact it's the other way around, the moving boat leaves a "vacuum" behind it, despite the efforts of the prop to fill it in.

 

MP.

 

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3 hours ago, Hudds Lad said:

we're based at Overwater (at the moment) and have done Llangollen and back three times now, leaving Sat afternoon and usually back by Friday midday. Return trip is always a bit quicker as you're with the "flow" from the River Dee. Have done it in peak season and in off season and noticed little difference in time taken, off season you'll pass hardly anyone moving but will have to pass lots moored up on tickover, peak season lots moving but as long as you're sensible about when you hit the lock flights you'll be ok.  If you get to Llangollen basin about 3ish on the Tuesday there'll be plenty of space usually, gets much busier towards teatime in our (limited) experience.

that's great thanks for the info...

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  • 3 weeks later...

RHS is this a new form of satellite navigation?

 

Yet the mist must be a problem at times for navigating. The rain on Sunday here in the West Midlands was also not good particularly for the BCNS at Titford

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1 hour ago, Heartland said:

RHS is this a new form of satellite navigation?

 

Yet the mist must be a problem at times for navigating. The rain on Sunday here in the West Midlands was also not good particularly for the BCNS at Titford

Actually it wasn't so bad; it was dry for several hours while the boats were arriving, then the storm began and we all crowded into the beer tent. The storm went on, people drank more beer (except me, I don't drink) and a good time was had by all. Got a bit damp returning to the boat afterwards.

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