Car Shuffle, Kerridge and Home

Today's Canal : Macclesfield

On Wednesday morning we awoke to a bright sunny morning and made a start on making repair arrangements by contacting RCR. They had not managed a substantial reply before Mike set off to catch the local bus into Macclesfield. There were a few tense moments as it was about seven minutes late in arriving but it did come and it dropped Mike just outside the railway station. There was plenty of time to print the tickets which had already been ordered on line.

As Mike waited on the platform, he had a call from RCR to make arrangements for an engineer to visit in the afternoon. Just time to let Christine know before the train arrived.

All went well with the journey until Stafford where the train came to a halt and eventually a message that there had been a points failure just ahead. Later it was suggested that we would be diverted to Coventry and that all passengers for Wolverhampton and Birmingham would have to change there and make there way back again.

Even later a further plan emerged with the next train being switched to a different platform which was not blocked by the failed points and we were all urged to rush across to platform 4! Eventually we arrived into Wolverhampton almost an hour later than planned.

Walk then to a bus stop, via Sainsbury for a sandwich and some rolls for tomorrow. As luck would have it the 15 minute service arrived within one minute and so some time was made up. After being dropped off at Oxley it was a short walk to collect the car and a straightforward journey back to Lyme View.

The engineer had not been long at the boat by that stage and he had managed to take some of the bend out of the prop blades but it would still be necessary to have it replaced as soon as possible. He recommended that we try Kerridge Dry Dock at Bollington, just over an hour's cruising southwards. (We had earlier ascertained that Braidbar, just to the north, do not have the necessary facilities which was a disappointment as they could have dealt with the Eberspacher at the same time.

We loaded as much as we could into the car to help make better time in the morning - whatever might be the outcome!

After completing the blog we went to the nearby Miners Arms for a meal. Although the menu was not extensive we both managed to find something to our liking. It was not overly busy but the staff were pleasant and friendly and the food was well prepared.

The next morning we had further conversations with the potential prop supplier which were not entirely conclusive although the people there were extremely helpful. Instead we phoned Kerridge to say that we would be coming down. It was a bright beautiful morning when Christine set off to steer down to the dry dock whilst Mike drove the car. Christine only managed this one photo.

John who runs the dry dock, is well into his eighties and has probably been there since Noah had the ark serviced! He spoke with the propeller company and tried to urge them to deliver straightaway. We never did get a really clear idea of what the dry dock's real schedules are (assuming that they know!) but the supplier then rang Mike to express concern as their time to finish off making the prop (it had been cast but not machined) was quite risky. They urged Mike to try Midland Chandlers as they would probably be able to supply something off the shelf. (But probably not quite a robust a product, we suspect)

Another phone call and Mike was able to order one for delivery overnight! No sooner done than Christine called to say that she was at the last bridge! Mooring the boat took a while as it had to be breasted up alongside others already there. At this point, John asked us to reverse the boat into the front of the dock! With everything else no going our way it was a miracle that we did so in a tight space without bouncing off any of the surrounding boats! (For those readers not boaters, boats do not really steer in reverse and controlling direction is always a bit hit and miss - fortunately just 'miss' on this occasion). In the corner of the photo it is just possible to see Christine do a good job of chatting up John and listening to tales of the history of the site.

The final loading of the car was completed and we, somewhat with fingers crossed, left the boat in the charge of the dry dock. The journey home, whilst quite long - just under 5 and a half hours driving time - was mercifully uneventful but we were glad just to collect some fish and chips for our evening meal!

A further update from Friday: Mike made a couple of phone calls to source maintenance for the Eberspacher - no-one immediately close was listed as able to do so. What quickly became is that it is likely to take several days between being removed from the boat and being ready to re-install. So what had done is to arrange for a boatyard in Middlewich to visit as soon as possible and take the unit out, get it repaired or whatever, and we will then call in to them about three or four days into our next trip. The main downside is that we will nave to start the engine in the morning early to get any hot water. It heats quite quickly but it is advisable to moor well away from other boats or houses to avoid unfriendly disturbance.

That task out of the way and then there was a call from the dry dock - why had the prop not arrived? This was still only late morning! They had called Midland Chandlers who could not find any record of the order. Panic was setting in at the other end of the line. However, Mike called the shop and all was OK and the prop was already on its way for delivery by the end of the afternoon. Alas, by the time Mike called to check, the phone was off the hook!

However, we have built a plan for the next trip, including time for the heater to be fitted and still meet up as promised with Alice (and other members of family for the day) in Wales. Alice will then stay on board with us for the rest of her half term - a chance to catch up on reading and resting after the infamous Sats just before.

It has been a somewhat complicated few days and hopefully this account is reasonably accurate but memories are already getting confused over the sequence of events!

3.5 Miles - 0 Locks