Bugsworth Basin

After the exertions of yesterday, we opted for a quieter day today! It was a rather cooler morning and the sun rarely managed to break through the thin layer of cloud and mist.

First, we walked into the centre of Marple, a small town which has recently seen off a planning application for a large edge-of-town supermarket in favour of supporting the small shops. The only large shop we could see was a Co-Op store in the centre. Otherwise we suspect that folk have to go over to Stockport for anything bigger. In any event, we found all that we needed and had a pleasant wander - not that it took very long!

Wandering without intent sometimes offers time to notice unusual parts of buildings that betrays a longer history than the smart modern shop front suggests.

Albert School

Other buildings have not yet found such an exalted future.

Marple Junction

Back at the boat it was time for coffee before we set off just after 11 am, leaving Marple Junction behind us. We headed further along the Peak Forest Canal towards Whaley Bridge. Although not exactly busy, there were far more boats moving than on the Huddersfield or even the section below the Marple flight we cruised yesterday. With a sometimes quite narrow channel, we had to be rather more alert than we had become accustomed!

There are four movable bridges on this canal - two lift requiring multiple windlass turns and two swing bridges. The latter two are quite new - we think that they have been installed since we came here before some six years ago. As it happened, a dog walker with lock key opened the first lift bridge and another boat just ahead of us did the other one! Still, we can hope to experience them on the way back!

Strines Aqueduct from below

Christine allowed Mike to alight at Strines Aqueduct and to walk down the steps to the lower level. Not sure what went underneath but it was not a water course and seemed to have been paved.

Gradually the scenery opened out - three separate railway lines share the same valley, but in the distance we could see more of the peak district hills. Somehow, Christine could not move far enough from her seat to eliminate the unnecessary foreground!

There is a long-established sweet factory beside the canal in Disley with the inevitable strong sweet smell.

The elegant, long, high railway viaducts emphasise the advance made in engineering between the canal and railway eras.

 

After a long lunch break we continued, arriving at the unremarkable junction where the Whaley Bridge arm goes off to the right. Less than a mile in length it ends at a former wharf and transhipment warehouse. Before retracing our steps to the junction we made use of the water point and sani station.

Bob's Seat

The arm to the Bugsworth Basin is only slightly longer - we rather liked this seat, a memorial to Bob (1943-2012) - but the scale of the terminus is very different. In its heyday this was an important and bustling focus for the limestone industry of the Peak District. Product, including lime burnt here on site and also dressed stone, were loaded onto narrowboats for distribution. One of the information boards says that it took just 10 hours to reach the centre of Manchester, which included passage through 34 locks.

It is not easy to convey the scale of the site from a single photo but the lower basin can hold many more boats than were here today. A three dimensional model helped us to understand what each section was created to do.

 We continued around through the Middle Basin to the Upper Basin - as far as we could go - to find our overnight mooring.

7.7 miles - 0 locks