Date: Wed, 06 Sep 2000 23:06:50 +0100 From: David Leftley Reply-To: Canals To: Canals Subject: Trip report: Cheshire Ring pt 1 It seems to be the season for trip reports, so this seems as good a time as any to delurk and join in the fun! Monday 28th August At about 3 p.m. we set off from Peak Forest Cruisers in Macclesfield on nb Chirk Castle, with a crew of 4 (myself, parents, and sister Joanna). First impression of boatyard and boat was that facilities seem pretty primitive, but the boat has everything we need, and at the price we can't really complain. We have a week in which to complete the Cheshire Ring (anticlockwise): thankfully Marple locks were not closed for as long as expected earlier this month, so it should be possible to do the Ring (this seems a good time to thank those on the list who kept us informed about the closure). The brochure recommended that the Ring be attempted only by experienced crews: we have several years' experience of boating on the Norfolk Broads, but have only experienced locks and all that once before, several years ago. Hopefully we fit the bill as being sufficiently experienced! The man at the boatyard repeats the warnings seen on this mailing list that the Ashton stretch of the Cheshire Ring is not the most pleasant area, and not somewhere that we want to moor, so we plan our route to stop just before Dukinfield junction on Tuesday night, and clear Manchester on Wednesday. There isn't time to go far on Monday evening, so we stop for the night on the Peak Forest canal just east of Marple. Tuesday 29th August We have the whole day to descend the Marple flight and travel just a couple of miles beyond, so a short deviation from the Ring towards Whaley Bridge seems to be in order. This stretch of the Peak Forest canal is worth seeing - it runs quite high up along the edge of the valley, offering lovely views. To allow plenty of time to do the locks, we don't go all the way to Whaley Bridge, but turn back just after New Mills. Back at Marple we are glad to see the boat that we have been following turns down the Macclesfield, so we won't have to follow them down the locks. A couple of boats are just coming up the flight, so conveniently all but the last two locks are filled ready for us. The lock walls are leaking badly in lock 15 and one or two others, but it's not obvious where the recent problems occurred with lock 12. We complete the flight in 2h 20m and stop for a late lunch by Marple Aqueduct. The aqueduct and railway viaduct here are quite spectacular (although we refrain from following the example of the two boatloads of students following, who climb out on the far side from the towpath and lean over the edge!) As we approach Hyde the surroundings start to become more urban and run-down, and the amount of debris and weed in the water suggest that this is not a very popular stretch of canal. The comment we receive from one of the few boats we meet along this stretch is "You aren't going much further, are you?". However, the spot where we decide to moor for the night is pleasant enough, with fields leading down to the river on the towpath side. Following the advice we have been given, we agree on a 7 a.m. start the following day, in order to clear the Ashton before the local hooligans wake up. ---