Day 10 Tuesday 30 September - Milton to Froghall 

Can't Fit a Square Boat in a Roundish Hole! 

This morning we were up & ready to leave at 9am as we didn't want John & Josie thinking we were lazy & didn't get going until mid-day!  The weather was brilliant sunshine again which really is amazing for the last day of September.

Within about 10 minutes we reached our first lock of the day "Engine Lock" which is lock 4 of the Caldon Canal & is 12'1" deep.  Rather unusually for us there was a queue with 2 boats in front of us waiting as it sounded like there had been 2 more boats in front of those.  I used that time to finish off yesterdays blog as I'd not had a chance to do it last night as we had our dinner guests, so Stuart did the lock.

Our next stop was for a manual lift bridge; these require you to wind them up & back down again once the boat has passed under using a windlass (like you would to operate a lock)

A Lift Bridge - Bridge 21 of the Caldon Canal

After a second lift bridge we reached Stockton Brook Locks; a flight of 5 locks which raise the canal just over 41'.  Just after the first of these locks there was a Victorian Pumping Station, This pumping station was built by the Staffordshire Pottery Water Company in 1884 & once contained a pair of horizontal compound tandem "Davey" differential steam engines.

Pumping Station above Lock 5 Caldon Canal

 On the next 2 locks there were some sculptures that have a selection of images for this area

Sculpture at Lock 6 Caldon Canal

Sculpture at Lock 7 Caldon Canal

Click here for more information on these sculptures

Shortly ahead there is a "keep left" sign in the middle of the canal; this is where a swing bridge for a light railway used to cross the canal for transportation of lime

Obstruction - Caldon Canal!

After another mile we reach Hazelhurst Junction where you keep left if you want to go right towards Froghall or you turn right if you want to go left towards Leek - it's a bit like the junction on the M40/M42!  Today we went left, down the 3 locks & under the Leek branch towards Froghall

Hazelhurst Junction, Caldon Canal

Hazelhurst Aqueduct Caldon Canal, built in 1841

The canal continued to wind its way through some beautiful countryside, in fact I think this canal goes through some of the prettiest, unspoilt countryside I have passed on Eos so far.  On the approach to the next 2 locks at Cheddleton we passed this picturesque flint mill which is powered by 2 watermills, it is here that the flint was ground for use by the potteries

From Cheddleton the canal drops through 1 more lock & onto the River Churnet before passing through another lock where the canal runs alongside a railway before reaching our final destination which should have been Froghall Wharf, but Eos is a modern narrowboat which is far more square than the traditional boats of yesteryear.  So this evening we are moored at the entrance of Froghall tunnel but we walked to the other end on foot.  Tomorrow I will include pictures of this final part of the journey as we will be heading back to Hazelhurst Junction & then on towards Leek

Funny Sights of the Day!

Yes today we have a new feature & I know a couple of young ladies who will giggle at these!

Pigeon upside down eating Elderberries!

So I know 2 of these signs are for loos & showers...is the other image somewhere you can wash your pants?

Porta Loo?

Today we travelled for 9 hours through 14 locks & 3 lift bridges

Day 9 Monday 29 September Barlaston to Milton

Today the journey has taken us from the countryside into the city & back into the countryside again!  We intended to set off about 10:30 but as soon as we were ready it started to rain & as I was silly enough to leave my waterproof coat at home we decided to wait until the rain passed.

At just before mid-day we set off & soon reached the lock at Trentham which was almost 12' deep - usually locks would be in the region of about 7-8'.  After that we were on the edge of Stoke-on-Trent & the scenery was again very industrial, mostly modern but there was also some very run-down looking areas.

Welcome to Stoke - it's all happening here!

The canal winds its way round the city under new road bridges before reaching a flight of 5 deep Stoke locks raising the canal about 50', with the Top Lock being 13'2" deep making it one of the deepest in the country.

Stoke Top Lock 40

Whilst travelling between these locks we passed these couple of bottle kilns.  From the 18th century until the 1960s, bottle ovens were the dominating feature of the Staffordshire Potteries. There were over two thousand of them standing at any one time and many of the surviving kilns are now listed buildings.

Bottle Kilns on T&M Canal

At the top of the Stoke locks we reached Etruria junction where we took a very sharp right turn onto the Caldon Canal.  The Caldon Canal is a windy contour canal which was restored & reopened 40 years ago this week, as such we had been told that the canal was busier than usual as many boats came up for the celebrations.

The canal quickly reaches a staircase locks, which in this case is 2 locks joined together where the top gates of the bottom lock are the bottom gates of the top lock.  This raises the canal up by 19'3".  Luckily there was a volunteer lock keeper on duty as the paddles were very stiff indeed!

Lock 1 of the Caldon Canal

 On a staircase lock regardless of if you're going up or down you need to make sure the top lock is full & the bottom lock is empty.  In the picture above the gates for the bottom lock are open for the boat to go in, ahead you can see the massive middle gates which serve both locks.

Lock 2 ahead

Once the bottom gates of the bottom lock are closed we can open the paddles on the top lock to let the water into the bottom lock & the boat rises.  When the levels are equal we can open the gates to allow the boat into the top lock.

Entering Lock 2 of the Caldon Canal

Once the boat is in the top lock we close the middle gates & open the top paddles to fill the top lock

Top lock Almost full

 Once the levels are equal we can open the top gate & we can continue on our way.

The first couple of miles of the Caldon Canal goes through a park & then through an area which used to be industrial but now that the industry has gone new houses are springing up in their hundreds, reminders of the industrial past still remain.

2 more Bottle Kilns on the Caldon Canal

 Our mooring for this evening was in the village of Milton & once again we had caught up with John & Josie who we'd invited over for dinner!  So it was chilli prawns with spaghetti on the menu & Josie brought a chocolate bread & butter pudding which as our friends & family know is one of Stuart's favourites, this was paired with a bottle of John & Josie's Sloe Gin made with Sloes they'd picked whilst on board Eos in 2012.

Today we've travelled for about 5.5 hours through 9 locks

Day 8 Sunday 28 September - The Great Boat Chase!

Pasturefields Saltmarsh to Barlaston

Yesterday I'd mentioned that we were trying to get to Western to meet up with John & Josie in the pub but we'd not quite managed to get there so today our aim was to reach Barlaston to meet them in another pub....is there a bit of the theme here!

We set off just after 10, the sun was shining & it was really warm...not what you would expect for the end of September!  Looking around we've been surprised by the number of berries on the trees & bushes; isn't this meant to mean we're in for a cold winter?

Bushes loaded with berries

This area was home to several wealthy families back in the 18 century & after passing through the single lock at Weston-on-Trent we passed under this bridge. 

Bridge 82 "Salt Bridge" T&M canal

As there were not that many exciting things on this stretch of the canal I thought I'd show you some pictures of locks as the canal passes through 2 flights of 4 locks in the town of Stone.

Lock 26 of the T&M at Aston-by-Stone

As you approach a lock the gates should all be shut.  If you're lucky the lock will be in your favour with the water level the same as the level you are currently on, as it was with this lock so you can just open the gates & drive the boat in.  Once the boat is in the locks we shut the gates behind us.  



Locks often have different set-ups with which paddles need opening & this lock had a ground paddle which I opened first & the there is a gate paddle which allows water in very fast so I opened this slowly to ensure the boat didn't get moved about too much.  Whilst I'm letting the water in Stuart is controlling the movement of the boat with the engine to stop it hitting again the gates at either end.

Lock 27 of the T&M at Stone....outside a pub with plenty of Gongoozlers!

Visit Wikipedia to find out about Gongoozlers

Once the water levels are equal you can wind the paddles back down & open the gate to allow the boat out.  If you're lucky there's another boat waiting to come straight in & you need not shut the gate but if not you just close the gate & continue on your way.

Along the course of the T&M canal there are mileposts to show your progress.  Below is the milepost by Aston Lock 26 which is the halfway point of this canal.

As we were passing through Stone approaching a lock we spotted a green boat ahead with a familiar figure at the tiller & realised it was Josie, we'd finally caught them!  John had gone ahead to prepare the lock so I hopped off Eos & went to help him & we followed them through the last 4 locks of the day & into Barleston where we moored next to them before having a guided tour of their new boat.  After a barbecue tea we walked back along the canal to the pub for a very enjoyable evening.

Wildlife we've seen today

The swan family we're very keen on our bread this morning

Buzzard

Heron

 Today we travelled for about 5.5 hours through 11 locks

Day 7 Saturday, 27 September

Fradley Junction to Pasturefields Saltmarsh

Today we have continued our journey north along the T&M canal.  Having had a reasonably easy start to the day & only set off at 10:30 with our first place we passed through being Fradley Junction.

If you've not ever sat on the side of the canal to watch the boats then I would suggest somewhere like Fradley Junction would be a great place to spend some time on a sunny day!  To start with it's very pretty with a pub right on the junction where you could sit with your favourite tipple & watch the boats; most people on boats have the hang of it but there's always a few who get it wrong & they're the ones to watch!

Fradley Junction & The Swan pub

From Fradley we climbed up through 3 locks which raise the canal by almost 20 feet & the surrounding area is mainly woodland & countryside, but the canal was built for industry & shortly we reached Armitage.

Armitage factory towers over the canal

 Armitage is well known for sanitary ware & there were stacks & stacks of toilets waiting to sent to bathroom shops

A pallet of loos!

After the factories the canal passes through the former site of the Armitage tunnel; subsidence caused by coal mining meant that it was necessary to open out the tunnel so the canal could have a concrete lining as previously it had been cut through the rock & now there is only room along this stretch for a single boat.

Former site of the Armitage tunnel 

After a quick stop at the new Tesco's at Rugeley the canal again passes back into the countryside & past Shugborough Hall; former home of the Bishops of Lichfield which is now open to the public & run by the National Trust

 Shugborough Hall

A short distance from Shugborough Hall, the canal passes through Haywood Locks which is only 4'2" & onto Haywood Junction where the Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal meets the Trent & Mersey Canal.

Haywood Junction

At the tail of many locks, small bridges were provided to avoid the need to cross the lock over the bottom gates. These ranged from brick bridges to 1960s flat decks built in concrete. The picture below shows a split bridge, constructed from metal in two halves to allow the towrope from a horse through the centre of the arch.  

Split Bridge at Hoo Mill Lock on the T&M Canal

Our plan for this evening was to get to Western to meet up with a couple who used to own a share in Eos, but we didn't quite get there!  We are moored at Pasturefields Saltmarsh which is an area of inland saltmarsh where salt tolerant plants thrive....as it was almost dark when we arrived I have no idea what's out there!  Hopefully we'll catch up with our friends tomorrow.

Wildlife we've seen today

Today we've boated for 8 hours through 6 locks

Day 6 Friday 26 September 

Alrewas to Fradley Junction via Huddlesford

Today we had arranged to meet some friends at The Plough at Huddlesford for lunch so we set off before 9am to chug the 3 hours back up the T&M canal & then left along the Coventry Canal to Huddlesford.

Fradley Junction on the T&M Canal - straight ahead is Middle Lock, we turned left onto the Coventry Canal 

We had our lunch as planned at The Plough which was very nice & then took our friends & their dog for a little cruise north along the canal for about 30 minutes before returning them back to the pub where they had parked their car.

After that we headed back towards Fradley junction as tomorrow we'll be heading north up the T&M through Middle Lock towards Rugeley.

Peaceful surroundings on the Coventry Canal

Wildlife we've seen today

My sharp-eyed friend thought he spotted something in the bushes so quickly reversed - clearly he has better eyesight than me as I'd have missed this Sparrow Hawk

Today we've travelled for about 4.5 hours up 5 locks

Day 5 Thursday 25 September - National Memorial Arboretum

Today, we kept the boat moored in the same place at Alrewas & we planned to take the bus to the National Memorial Arboretum.  Having checked the bus timetable a couple of months ago when I was first planning this trip, we knew that we needed to catch a bus at 10am which would get us there in time for 11am when they had a small service including a two minutes silence but when we got to the bus stop we discovered that the bus only went that way on a Sunday....so we walked!

The National Memorial Arboretum is home not only to memorials to the Armed Forces but also memorials to others who have lost their lives which is set within 150 acres of beautiful woodland & gardens.  NMA Website

The Naval Service Memorial - A new memorial unveiled by Prince Michael of Kent this June.

A Memorial for the Twin Towers

The Normandy Campaign Memorial which was unveiled yesterday

Looking up at the Armed Forces Memorial a 43 metres in diameter memorial which commemorates those who lost their lives on duty or as a result of terrorism from the end of the Second World War to the present day

The body of a warrior is being prepared for burial by female and Gurkha soldier. The figure before the double doors points to a world beyond where the warrior will rest as another figure chisels the name on the memorial.  The sunlight shines through the gap on the 11 November at 11am.

 A Serviceman is raised aloft on a stretcher by comrades. On either side family members look on - a mother clasped by a child and an older couple clutching each other in anguish. It bears witness to the cost of armed conflict to those left behind - the families, loved ones and friends who live with the pain and consequence of their loss for the rest of their lives.