Wigginton

Here I am Rune

Distance 7.5 miles

Total 654 Locks 25 Tunnels

Running total mileage 983.3miles

Back almost as far as New Marton Locks for tonight. Day started with rain which normally we would have waited to pass but since we were rafted up against another boat overnight it only seemed polite that we should move off at the first opportunity. Interesting I had asked the woman that we rafted up against where the town centre of Trevor was and she said the same as the local I had spoken to on Saturday, there isn’t one! Apparently there is a big Tesco so I assume that it has put everything else in Trevor out of business, sad really.

Tonight’s mooring is a very pleasant, isolated spot but with an unusual track running alongside the canal for a couple of miles. Not sure what it is for but quite a few vans and cars seem to use it. When coming up the canal we moored about 500 yards closer to the Lock, also with the track alongside and if I remember right not much comes along the track after dark.

Target for tomorrow will probably be Ellesmere although I’d like to moor alongside Blake Mere for the night if possible. Will go into the Ellesmere basin to moor for lunch and to shop but continue to Blake Mere after lunch.

Trevor Basin

Here I am Rune

Distance 4.5 miles

Total 654 Locks 23 Tunnels

Running total mileage 975.8miles

Started off a bit late today so didn’t get quite as far as anticipated, we only made it as far the Trevor Basin. It was after lunch before we got on the move to allow me time to go and have a look at Horseshoe Falls again and also to get some provisions in, including some wood for the fire! You can tell when the year is moving on when we start to think about lighting the fire in an evening.

As expected the trip back to Trevor from Llangollen was not as laborious as the trip up which was like travelling through treacle. The downside is that with the current behind you, steering can be a little bit slower and given how narrow some of the bridge holes are, it can make it  a bit exciting in places. We got through the two narrow sections immediately after Llangollen without any real dramas although one boat coming up didn’t seem to be interested in Julia telling him that there were three boats coming down and we would not be able to pass in the narrows. He did eventually stop but it wasn’t really the easiest place to pass.

Not really sure how far we will get tomorrow so won’t try for any predictions as I don’t know what the weather forecast is, we will just have to see how far we get.

Horseshoe Falls

The Llangollen Horse-drawn boat

The end of the Llangollen Canal

Llangollen (still)

Here I am Rune

Distance 0 miles

Total 654 Locks 23 Tunnels

Running total mileage 970.3miles

A day spent enjoying the fleshpots of Llangollen, or perhaps not! I think that the principal event in Llangollen is the annual Eisteddfod music festival and the rest of the year is just the lead up to it. The main occupation we had today was the walk up Castell Dinas Bran which was a hilltop castle (now a ruin) overlooking Llangollen. The weather was fine and clear and the view was superb with a clear view back along the valley to Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and across into Snowdonia.

Tomorrow (Tuesday) it will be back down the canal to the Aqueduct and on to Chirk, with the flow in our favour things should be a bit easier.

Distance view of Pontcysllte Aqueduct (only I've now found that it is actually a railway viaduct!!)

Castle remains at Castell Dinas Bran

Llangollen

Here I am Rune

Distance 6.4 miles

Total 654 Locks 23 Tunnels

Running total mileage 970.3miles

And so now to the limit of navigation at Llangollen, and a bit of a slow drag it was! The depth wasn’t too bad but progress was slow because the current is against you and it is also pretty narrow. As we approached Llangollen it became so narrow that we were barely making any progress at all against the current, but we have got here in the end. The trip prior to that included crossing the famous Pontcysyllte Aqueduct (video and picture) and on a fine day like today it is a wonderful experience (even for someone like me who is not crazy about heights). I hope that the return trip will be just as enjoyable.

Still not a lot in the way of shops so had to take the Sunday main meal out at the Bridgend Hotel at Llangollen. Since we now in Wales the only real option was going to be lamb, wasn’t it? I had a lamb shank and Julia had a lamb and leek casserole both of which were very good and reasonably priced. We have booked into the marina at Llangollen for two nights (£12 total including electric) so it will be Tuesday before we are moving again, time to enjoy the pleasures of Llangollen.

Crossing the Aqueduct

Chirk

Here I am Rune

Distance 5.1 miles

Total 654 Locks 22 Tunnels

Running total mileage 963.9miles

Ah the warm glow you get when you’ve done your good deed for the day! Today was just a general ‘potter’ along the Llangollen with the intention of getting to Trevor, unfortunately failed in that particular mission. We got behind a hire boat before Chirk Aqueduct and he seemed to be having some difficulty with the boat. First impression was that he was just having difficulty handling the boat but as we progressed it became apparent that it was more than that. The progress towards Chirk aqueduct was punctuated with the boat in front bumping the sides and bridges making our progress very slow. When we got into Chirk tunnel the slow progress became uncomfortably slow in that I twice had to stop our boat and switch the engine off because we were repeatedly catching the boat in front up. When we eventually emerged from the tunnel, in probably more time that it had taken us to go through the 1 mile plus Braunston tunnel (Chirk tunnel is only 460 yards) it was clear that the hire boat in front had a serious problem. We pulled up alongside them and called to the helm that I thought that he probably had something around his propeller which was causing the boat to be such a pig to steer. He said that he was going to stop shortly and he’d look in the weed hatch. We got bored with pottering behind him and decided to moor for lunch. After we set off again we saw him moored about a mile further on from where we had stopped, and sure enough alongside his boat on the towpath was a small mound of rope that he had clearly removed from his prop-shaft. We were going to go past him to the nearby marina but then found that they didn’t sell diesel on Saturdays so had to moor behind the hire boat where we will remain until tomorrow morning to take on some fuel. Took the chance to speak with the boat hirer and he confirmed that he had remove a whole load of rope from his prop, some of which had got so hot it had melted onto the shaft. At least his boat will now go a bit better for the rest of his holiday!

Visited the town of Trevor to try to get some food for the Saturday evening meal, not really a massive success. After wandering around Trevor on the bike for about 50 minutes tried asking some locals where the town centre was since I still hadn’t found it. They looked at me a bit blankly and asked what I was looking for, I told them I was looking for a Chinese Takeaway to which they immediately replied “..ah this is Chinese Hill, carry on to the top and it is on the left…”. Found the takeaway but still never found the town centre, don’t think it actually exists! The most charitable description I can give for Trevor is that it is a post-industrial Welsh town, it is just that there is nothing there! Even the local newsagent was holding a ‘Closing down sale’, never found a supermarket, bank or other sort of shop. I do hope that Llangollen is better tomorrow or Sunday lunch may comprise of a couple or peanut butter sandwiches!!

Chirk Aqueduct (with the 'slow' boat ahead!)