Frankton

Here I am Rune

Distance 4.1 miles

Total 640 Locks 21 Tunnels

Running total mileage 941.7miles

We have now made it onto the Montgomery Canal although not without one or two hitches. The first problem was the fact that you have to phone up to book a slot to gown through Frankton Locks, all well and good but on this canal (in fact pretty much since we passed Stoke on Trent) the mobile phone signal has varied between dire and non-existent. So this morning when I tried to phone Canal and River Trust, once again there was no phone signal. I walked about a quarter of a mile along the towpath to a bridge over a marina entrance where I managed to get a signal and then phone up and get booked in.

Upon arrival at Frankton Locks at about 12.50pm there were already 4 boats waiting to go down and the helm of one of them told me he had been there since about 12.05pm and only 2 boats had gone down, they had been late starting since they are supposed to operate between 12pm and 2pm. Eventually got through the locks at about 2.40pm even though they were supposed to have closed again by then. Not too much of an issue however since, if I were in a hurry I would be travelling by another means!