Kangaroos At The Castle. 22nd February

Duttons Bridge 112 to Beeston Castle Winding Hole

Our destination for today was always in our sight as we pootled our way along the two miles to The Shady Oak moorings. Beeston Castle can be seen for miles around as it sits on a great big blob of sandstone 350ft high that stands out from the Cheshire Plain. We’d promised ourselves that we would climb up to the top this time.

Mick had remembered a good mooring with great views, he was certain that it was above the next lock. But I remembered us commenting that it was a shame that the hedges were so high there. Sure enough right at the end of the visitor moorings the hedge has been cut very low giving a great view over the railway to the castle.

I got a pork stew together so that it could sit on top of the stove for a good few hours. The amount of pork that had arrived yesterday means that we may have to eat stew for the next week! The pot was very very full.

We decided to walk up to the lock and then across to the castle on footpaths. The top gates of the lock were open so we closed them to save the pound above, but also so that it would empty itself for us tomorrow. It was a bit of a boggy mile under foot passing under the railway and across a few fields. We then joined the road and walked up to the eastern end of the castle where the gate house is.

The chap at the desk tried his best to get us to join English Heritage, but we’re not sure how many sites we’d be able to visit and anyway buying membership right now wouldn’t make sense as Mick will get extra cheap entrance when he turns 60 in a few months time. All the information about the castle is on boards in the Victorian gate house which we had a brief look at before we started to walk up the hill to the top.

We walked up through the woodland that surrounds the lower parts of the site to the Outer Gatehouse. Here the second line of walls is surrounded by iron age earthwork defences. Evidence of earlier Bronze Age metal works have also been found on the site. The first castle was built by Ranulf, 6th Earl of Chester in the 1220’s. Works continued on fortifying it through to the 1360’s. Legend has it that Richard II hid his treasure in the Inner Ward well before the Castle was captured by the future Henry IV.

In 1643 during the Civil War, the castle had a garrison of up to 300 Parliamentarians living there. But six months later Captain Sandford led a midnight raid with nine Royalists to take control of the inner ward. The Parliamentary leader dined with them and sent beer to their men before surrendering. A year long siege followed, the royalists were said to be eating cats before they surrendered. In 1664 the castle was partially demolished to prevent it’s use as a stronghold.

In 1840 the castle was purchased by John Tollemache who was the largest landowner in Cheshire. This was part of a large estate which needed a castle that he could live in, so on the next sandstone outcrop he had one built, Peckforton Castle. He promoted Beeston Castle as a tourist attraction and brought deer and kangaroos into the grounds. A two day festival was set up which brought 3000 people each day raising funds for local widows and orphans.

Surrounding the Inner Curtain wall is a shear rock-cut ditch. A 1970’s concrete bridge steeply arches itself up over this to the Inner Gatehouse. So far the terrain would have been challenging to wheelchair users, but this and the lack of any flat surface inside the inner bailey would make it impossible. As if we hadn’t climbed high enough already there was still more to come. The ruined walls surround you and at times you are not aware of the great drop below, a sheer rock face back down to the Plains.

We could only imagine what the views would be like on a clear day, apparently you can see eight counties. But still even with the hazyness we could see for miles, the chimneys of Ellesmere Port just in view. We took time to work out where Manchester was and wondered if White Nancy near Bollington would be visible in better conditions. The castle was good, but these views upstaged it.

Can you spot Oleanna down there? Lucky we’d had the roof painted cream enabling us to spot her. No sign of Tilly in the window not enough people to admire me!

We also had a wonder around some of the rest of the site. In the southern most side are the caves. Sandstone does good caves, these were used in the film Robin Hood starring Uma Therman and Patrick Bergen. A shame that they are gated off, so you can’t go into them.  There is also a walk around the base of the castle, but we refrained from that mostly because we had to walk back to the boat. This time we followed the road back, far less muddy, well until we reached the towpath!

Tilly was given the freedom of the towpath and the stew had reduced enough for me to add a Bramley apple to it. We are hoping that the temperature doesn’t drop too much tonight as we hope to reach Nantwich tomorrow where we can be near a tap and shops should the canal freeze over for several days. If it happens tonight then we’ll have to make the stew last, oh and there’s always the pub!

0 locks, 2 miles, 1 cheese finished, 350 ft, 3.25 miles walk, 360 degrees of views, 0 kangaroos today, 0 deer too, 1 steep bridge, 1 tiny Oleanna, 1 vat of stew, 1 chilly evening.

The Northgate Shuffle. 21st February

Chester Basin to Duttons Bridge 112

Chester students are far quieter than those in Nottingham, we hardly heard a sound from them all night. The down side however of mooring on that side of the basin is the bright lights along the towpath, Tilly is a right b**ger at opening the curtains for a nose at 3am! But on the up side it was very easy for the man from Sainsburys to find us this morning. The back steps are almost hovering with the extras that get stored under them!

The bins were sorted ready to be disposed of at the top of the staircase and we made use of the nearby elsan to empty our yellow water tank. We were then ready for the off.

Swinging under the bridges at the bottom of the staircase we could see that the bottom chamber wasn’t empty, well there had been a Carefree Cruising Boat head up earlier in the morning. Then we could see a red boiler suit near the top, it had to be Brian from NB Harnser. I walked up and introduced myself. They were sharing the top chamber with another boat, but we were welcome to enter the bottom one and then we’d do a shuffle.

By the time the bottom chamber was empty both descending boats were in the middle one, water cascading over the gates. As soon as I’d looped our centre rope around a bollard and closed the gate Brian did the honours and started to lift the paddle to lower their boats and raise Oleanna. The other day when we’d walk up the middle chamber had been as empty as it could get and we’d been puzzled as to where the water came into it from the chamber above. We’d looked along both sides but could see anything. Mick did a bit of hunting on the internet and discovered that the water actually enters the locks below the cil, so centrally below the next set of gates, not from the sides. This made for an easy transit up the staircase.

Once the two chambers were level Brian moved NB Harnser into the bottom chamber alongside Oleanna, the chap on the other boat moved over to create a space for Mick to move forward into. As soon as Oleanna was out of the way Harnser was pushed over to take her place and the other boat could then move in along side. Gates closed, shuffle completed, we could all carry on up and down the staircase. I still had to fill the top lock as I’d been too busy chatting to Brian to do it earlier, so they reached the bottom before I’d even started to fill the middle. Waves all round as they disappeared under the railway bridge.

Hoole Lane Lock is the first out of the city. The two times we’ve come up these locks before to The Cheshire Cat we haven’t been able to control the boat and poor NB Winding Down got biffed around quite a bit, even dropping paddles didn’t help. Today we are four years more experienced, but this didn’t help!

We passed the centre rope round a bollard, tried the same side ground paddle, no! Other side paddle, no! A bit of one then the other, no! Sitting closer to the top gates, no! Sitting further away, no! Other than just letting a trickle of water thorough and it taking forever, is there any way of working these locks with one boat and not biffing around?

Once up Christleton Lock we pulled in and filled with water. We took the opportunity to have a late lunch too. The first of the cheeses came out, Cenarth Brie and Ribblesdale Blue Goat. Both very nice especially the goats cheese, shame it was the most expensive.

Originally we’d planned to stop at the Cheshire Cat again but instead we decided to push on a bit further today. The next pound is over eight miles long, so steady going. Tilly was making quite a fuss inside, shouting at us I don’t shout! So I offered that she could join us for a bit. This means her wearing a harness and being attached to a lead, I don’t trust her not to jump off or get into trouble. Putting the harness on is quite easy and once out on the roof on a short reign she had a good nosy around. Sitting on the wood above the morse control seemed to be a favourite today. Metal can be so cold on one’s derriere. She stayed with us for a good twenty minutes, she normally only lasts five. That is because I am far more experienced now, it’s just when someone steals the sky that I get worried. She finally made up her mind to return indoors as we approached Golden Nook Moorings, the mile of boats.

As we passed NB Blackbird we wondered when we might see her again, our paths aren’t likely to cross this summer. One more boat in the line today. We carried on to bridge 113 where there are moorings, but decided to go past the entrance to Tattenhall Marina and pull in. Well we would have if we could have, but the bottom was too close to the top on numerous attempts. First spot that we could pull in at was through the next bridge. Tilly had been shouting at the bathroom window so I quickly recited the rules and even though it was half an hour before sun down she was allowed out.

The day she moved in

A year later, well setlled

Two years later, she rules our lives.

Today marks the second anniversary of when Tilly came to live with us. She has grown up and is very accustomed to living on a boat now, I often wonder what she’d make of living in a house.

8 locks, 3 a staircase, 1 shuffle, 8.67 miles, 1 blogging boat, 1 ex-blogging boat, 2nd water point working, 4 croggies, 5 annoying locks, 2 cheeses, 20 minutes they just stand around whilst the outside changes itself! 118 boats, 1 mooring too close to a chilled medication farm, 2 years of not needing a hot water bottle, 2 years of purrs, 2 years of being shouted at, 2 years of life with Tilly.

The Other Chester’s Not Much Better! 20th February

Tilly Trees to Chester Basin

The sun was back out this morning but accompanied by a strong wind. I suspect normally we’d have stayed put until it calmed down, but we had quite a list of things we wanted to get done back in Chester. So after breakfast  we pushed off and made our way back to Chester basin.

This time we pulled up on the other side in front of the student accommodation. I hoped off and went searching for a postcode. The buildings here are shown on Google as a building site so searching for a postcode on the internet last night had been guesswork. Luckily the student block had it’s address written on it and the flats on the other side of Wharf View shouted out their numbers. Why a postcode? Well we wanted to get a grocery delivery. Yes we could  stop in town on our way through and stock up at Tescos, but this way our wine cellar restock will come right to the boats stern on a trolley.

Once the food shopping was sorted we walked down to the retail park. Mick hunted for some cooker extractor hood filter and a 10mm drill bit, whilst I looked for cheap reading glasses, yarn and cushion pads. Unfortunately I didn’t manage to find everything I wanted so I carried on into the city to Abakhan to see if they could help.

With everything ticked off the list there was one place left to visit in Chester. At the end of last year Jennie from NB Tentatrice mentioned the Chester Cheese Shop. We have passed it so many times over the last few weeks and been exceptionally good. I used to eat cheese just about every lunch time until my doctor told me to cut back, so cheese is now rationed. I’d decided that if I went into the shop just before we left Chester that would be the safest bet, only being able to have one visit not several.

It was worth waiting for and maybe Mick should have been with me! Before I got there I’d decided that three cheese would be enough, well three was only going to be a tease, so I settled for four, not bad considering there’s getting on for two hundred in the shop. The lady let me take my time in making my choices. Because there was such a choice I decided that I wasn’t allowed to buy anything that we’ve had before. A couple of little samples meant that I wasn’t going to return to the boat with something I didn’t like. Not a cheap purchase, but treats don’t have to be. We’ll try to eek them out and make them last.

Back at Oleanna the sun was working wonders on our solar panel, just a shame the batteries we currently have don’t have the capacity to last without us running the engine early evening. So looking forward to the days when we won’t have to listen to Oleanna ticking over anymore.

It didn’t take me long to realise they’d moved the outside away from my trees to that Chester place again! This other Chester at least has a small tree and a sideways tree, but they are quite a distance from the boat so hard to reach without someone coming by. They really must try harder, I don’t want to go to another Chester again Thank you!

0 locks, 1.95 miles, 1 blowy morning, 2 more pairs glasses £1 each, 4 balls of wool, 47 buttons, 3 cushion pads, 5 drill bits, 1 big shop on it’s way, 1 blue goats, 1 welsh thick brie, 1 strong cheddar, 1 orange blue.

TREES!!! 19th February

Ellesmere Port Basin to Knolls Bridge Visitor Mooring

Time to make our departure, so after picking up some milk from the petrol station we were ready to head off. With radio in hand I headed off to set the bottom lock, it’s quite a walk round from the lower basin. As the levels were about to equalise I radioed to Mick who pushed off, no hanging around hoping to avoid gusts of wind today.

I set the lock filling and walked up to the chamber above. The museum like to keep the locks full, people are less likely to hurt themselves falling into a full lock chamber than an empty one, so I wound down the top paddle before emptying it. As Oleanna rose in the bottom lock I opened up a bottom gate paddle on the top lock. The level rose and the bottom lock was full to the brim plus a little bit more. One of the paddles on the top lock is actually locked off so that the amount of flooding is limited until all the levels equal out.

Pulling in straight away to top up with water we also disposed of our rubbish. Then we were on our way. Tilly had become resigned to sleeping away the day, which made getting through the back doors with mugs of tea far easier than normal. Under all the bridges, the piles of scrap metal had been cleared from the other day but replaced with new bent metal objects. We passed the Cheshire Oaks moorings, no inclination to stop.

At the end of the line of off side moorings the Alsatian with the wonky ears appeared and barked us past. Do dogs ever get accustomed to things like boats passing? Do they ever realise that barking at us is just pointless? Or are they wanting us to pick them up and cruise away with them? No.

Trees and bushes along the towpath are starting to sprout their buds. Catkins and Pussy Willow bringing them back to life for the spring. We’ll soon be seeing Blackthorn blossom taking over the hedgerows, blocking off the views but giving us a prettier one.

We decided to push on past the Zoo moorings and carry on that bit further to where there is an abundance of trees all ready to be climbed!

Woweeee!!! Apart from there being too many walkers here is great, well worth waiting for. Tilly sprang from tree to tree like a squirrel, much better than at the zoo moorings.

From Yesterdays post I’ve come across a few more articles about Joe and Rose Skinner, also about their nephew Jack who helped to save the Oxford Canal. There is plenty more out there about Joe and Rose including ‘The Last Number Ones’ a compilation of articles about the pair which comes with a recording of them.

Here are a few links for those interested.

Friendship remembered, Canal Junction

My Visit to Rose and Jack Skinner

Jack Skinner Obituary

2 locks, 1 right, 6.59 miles, 1 set of lights off at last! 1 full water tank, 1 empty bin, 2 dead ducks, 32 poohs, 1 wonky eared dog, 1 ecstatic cat, 15 trees conquered, 3 friends, 2 boaters sending thoughts to Frank, when are you and Steve coming to visit?