Whatcroft Flash (Trent & Mersey) - Thursday 13th June

Rain was threatened for today so we got away early - well early for us as there had been several boats pass us before we even got up! 

At the first lock I got a good telling off from a hire boater as I hadn't seen them coming and was filing the lock.  I apologised profusely and she said it wasn't really my fault though as it was the boat in front of us going out of the lock who should have seen them.  She then insisted that she would manage the lock on her own and that I should go and wait for Richard by the bridge. I tried to at least open the gate but she wasn't having any of it!!

Muffin's new harness (Richard says it looks like a waistcoat!)

I walked to the last lock on the Middlewich Branch with Muffin and came across quite a queue - one guy said he had been there 45 minutes.  We were lucky as it only took us 20 minutes to get through.

 

I had decided that I would catch a bus back from Middlewich to Nantwich with my laptop as there is nothing I can do with it.  I worked out the bus timetable and mentioned on Facebook to Middlewich Boats that did they think there would be any mooring in Middlewich itself as there is a big Folk and Boat Festival on this weekend.  They very kindly said that we could breast up alongside one of their boats for a few hours.  Of course I missed the bus and the next one was an hour later so I rang for a taxi and travelled in style!  The PC Centre tried a quick fix but it didn't work so I left the laptop there waiting for a new fan to be fitted.
 

My roof garden

It started to rain as I got back to the boat so we sat and waited it out.

Proud mummy swan

The rain stopped about 4pm as forecast, for once!  We went down the first of the Middlewich locks and just as I was approaching the second a couple approached me and asked if I was Mrs. Gifford-Hull!  After I picked myself out of the lock (!) I discovered that they were from Chyandour - a boat I follow both by blog and on Twitter.  They suggested that if we wanted to stay for the festival we could breast alongside them.  Richard hadn't been too keen on staying in Middlewich but did seem happy to moor up along side a friendly boat but when we got there, sadly, someone had beaten us to it so we carried on through Big Lock up to Whatcroft Flash where we had stopped a couple of years ago.

Cartwright Bridge (23) Middlewich Branch to Whatcroft Flash (Trent & Mersey)
6.49 miles
6 locks
0 lift/swing bridges