Harecastle

It was a cold - sometimes quite cold - day, overcast and occasionally rainy. Difficult to imagine but the weather forecast for tomorrow is a heatwave!

Boseley Top Lock

As soon as we set off we were immediately into the Bosley flight of twelve locks. Apart from one short pound near the top which was so low we had to run some water down, the locks were all full and boats coming up arrived at opportune moments. As a result we cleared the flight in just under an hour and a half.

Andrew was concerned about making sure that we arrived at Harecastle with enough time to pass through: mooring anywhere near the Kidsgrove tunnel entrance is not recommended - and it is almost underneath a main railway line! As a result we did not stop for lunch but pressed on.

Hall Green Stop Lock

The only other lock for the day was the Hall Green stop lock where we had to wait a few moments whilst the previous boat 'fished' out its magnet which had been used in an attempt to locate a dropped windlass. In the process the magnet - a much treasured possession - came off the end of its string but was eventually located by dropping a mooring pin on the end of the same piece of string.

Great Haywood Junction

After joining the Trent and Mersey and turning right at the junction, we arrived at the tunnel entrance where we checked in with the tunnel keeper. There would be a wait of around and hour as two boats were about to be set off in the opposite direction. In fact it was well over the hour before we were given the go ahead to follow the boat waiting ahead of us, with one to follow in the convoy. The older tunnel can still be seen alongside the present entrance.

Harecastle Tunnel North Portal

Chatting whilst waiting, it seems that the owner of Invicta is a keen cruiser of the Huddersfield narrow and has been putting pressure on BW for some time - including the decision to move to owner-steer through Standedge Tunnel.

Harecastle Tunnel

After our previous experiences, Harecastle seemed quite a spacious tunnel! In any case, Andrew steered through without adding to the side scratches.

Harecastle Tunnel South Exit

At the other end we were surprised to see a long queue of boats waiting their turn, some eight all together.

Looking Back to Harecastle Tunnel - Boats Waiting

When we arrived at the Westport Lake moorings (where we stopped on the way up, back at the end of April) we opted to pull in and stay the night. It was a possibility that we might go in search of a small water pump to empty the remainder of the water in the bilge and mooring in the centre of Etruria is not really recommended (or so we recall from four years ago when we last went up the Caldon canal).

14.2 Miles - 13 Locks