Previous Year : 2012 The Bona Boater's Trips Following Year : 2014

2013 - The Huddersfield Narrow Canal (West side)

Crew : Pete W, Pete M, Stan, Alan, Ernie, John & Chris.

Boat : Consol Forge - note the unusual spelling which was painted on the boat.

From : Claymoore Boats, Preston Brook.

Route : Preston Brook > Lymm > Patricroft [w] > Manchester > Ashton under Lyne > Stalybridge > Uppermill > Dobcross [w] > Roache's Lock > Stalybridge > Manchester > Patricroft [w] > Lymm > Runcorn [w] > Preston Brook.

Coverage : 97 Locks and 103 Miles.

Notes : The Huddersfield Narrow Canal (HNC) is unusual in that it's lock numbers are suffixed by the letters E on the east side and W on the west side of the summit pound at Standege Tunnel. On this trip, we would only be doing those on the West side.

This trip was to be another Friday to Friday trip. With work commitments, it at first appeared that neither Pete W nor Stan would be available to pick the boat up on Friday lunchtime. In addition, BTS1 would miss his first trip in 22 years due to a family commitment. With neither Pete W, BTS1 or Stan being able to take their cars, this could have a serious effect on actually getting the crew members and all their stuff to the boatyard. After much wangling, and eventually having to pay someone to work for him, Pete W managed to get the Friday off, and all was sorted. The boat was named "Consol Forge" - at least that was what was painted on the bow. All the paperwork however referred to it as "Consall Forge" with the correct spelling. The boatyard never did explain quite how the wrong name came to be painted on the boat.

Our boat Consol Forge moored at Lymm.

Friday 17th May

Afternoon / Evening : Lymm. Although the official pick-time for the boat was 15:00, Alan had contacted the yard earlier in the week and found that the boat was not out, and that it would be ready earlier. We all agreed to meet up at the boatyard by about 13:00. Pete W had to call at Warrington Central Railway Station on the way in order to collect Pete M. On arrival at the boatyard, they found that John, Chris & Alan had already arrived. As the boat was ready, we loaded up and set off for Lymm where Stan was due to meet us later.

Ernie waiting for Pete M's train to arrive at Warrington Central Railway Station.

Passing through Moore village.

Pete M wondered if it bore any relationship to his surname...

On arrival in Lymm, we went to The Bull's Head by Br. 23 as we had found that The Spread Eagle where we had intended to meet Stan was closed for refurbishment. After a several beers in The Bull's Head, we went to The Sahib for a curry. Whilst we were here eating, Stan texted us to say that he would be a bit late, but asked us to get him a curry and a half share in a portion of cauliflower bahji. Stan eventually arrived, and after finishing the curry we went to The Golden Fleece for some more beer before we returned to the boat for Port & Stilton.

The Grade I listed Lymm Cross, Lymm.

Lymm.

We went to The Bulls Head for some beer, The Sahib for a curry, then The Golden Fleece for some more beer.

Saturday 18th May

Lunch : Patricroft. On the original plan, Manchester would have been our next destination, however, we decided to make a detour to Patricroft. Luckily, there is a winding hole just before Bridge 47, and some moorings just beyond it. Mooring here does mean having to wind the boat then having to reverse through the bridge on to the mooring. It all went perfectly (.. it always does when nobody is watching..) so we decided to go to The Stanley Arms to celebrate. Whilst we were in the pub, a local cheese merchant brought in some local cheese for us to buy.. and very nice it was too.

The Manchester Ship Canal seen from The Barton Swing Aqueduct.

The other bridge is the Barton Road Swingbridge,

Patricroft. We somehow knew that Dave (BTS1) was with us in spirit - so we went to The Stanley Arms.

It's what he would have wanted...

Outside The Stanley Arms, Patricroft.

Inside The Stanley Arms, Patricroft...

Some excellent cheese from a local cheesemaker..

... and of course, lots of pints of excellent Holt's Mild !

Evening : Manchester. After numerous pints of Holt's Mild, we set off for Manchester. We climbed the Rochdale nine and moored on The Rochdale Canal just beyond Ducie Street Junction. This involved another wind and reverse manoeuvre. Having moored, we went to The Jolly Angler on Ducie Street for a few more beers, then walked into the city centre for a chinese meal at The Hong Kong Cantonese on Faulkner Street. As it was quite late by the time we left there, we decided to go straight back to the boat.

Climbing The Rochdale Nine in Central Manchester

Lock 86 with its pontoon, as there is now no access to the lock from the towpath.

There used to be access to Lock 86 from Canal Street by using the steps sticking out in the foreground, but the glass screen which was installed to stop drunks falling into the canal now also prevents boaters from accessing Lock 86.

Sunday 19th May

Morning : Ashton-under-Lyne. We set of early on Sunday to climb The Ashton Flight as it used to have a bit of a reputation in the past, however, we saw no-one. Indeed, we have never had any issues in all the times we have climbed it. We took on water at Fairfield Junction. This was a tricky manoeuvre as there were some building works ongoing. The bow had to be put into the bank, through a gap in a clay bund, and the engine used to keep it there as there was nothing to tie up to. After taking on water, we debated whether to investigate the recently reopened bit of The Hollinwood Branch, but in the end we decided to set off for Portland Basin and Ashton-under-Lyne.

As none of us had ever been to Ashton before, and not knowing where the pubs were, we set off in the direction of a visible church hoping there would be a pub nearby. Always a useful tip - to find the pub, head for the church. We found a pub called The Forrester's Call which not only had Holt's - already a cheap beer at £2.10, but it also gave a 10p per pint discount for CAMRA members, which we took advantage of, making it only £2 per pint. Sadly, the two other pubs closest to this one (The Star opposite and The Theatre Tavern nearby) were either closed or had no beer. After trying to save as much money as we could on the cheap beer, we set off on the short hop to Stalybridge.

Ernie trying to decipher The Token so he can pass it on to someone..

The Forresters Call, Ashton under Lyne.

Evening : Stalybridge. On arrival in Stalybridge we moored opposite Tesco, which was very convenient both for shopping and for the use of their toilets. After a few pints of mediocre beer in The Mill Pond, we decided to go to Stalybridge Station Buffet. We put Ernie on a bus to The Station, while we walked through Stalybridge. Ernie arrived at the Station at exactly the same time as we did. We had pie & peas and lots of beer in The Station Buffet. We then had a surprise - Gareth turned up. He was one of the original boaters on our first ever trip way back in 1992. Before we set off, he had said that he might turn up, but no-one actually thought he would. After a few more beers, the Buffet closed, we waved Gareth off on a train back to York and we went back to the boat for the Port & Stilton.

Approaching Armentiers Square in Stalybridge.

Armentiers Square, Stalybridge.

After a few mediocre pints in The Mill Pond...

..before we made our way to Stalybridge Station buffet for pie & peas, more beer and a surprise visit from Gareth.

After The Buffet closed, Gareth headed back home to York.

Monday 20th May

Lunchtime : Uppermill. Pete W & Stan decided to go to Tesco to do some shopping, and to take advantage of the 'facilities' while they were there. Once they were back, we set off for Roache's Lock. The original plan had been to moor somewhere above the lock and walk back down to the two pubs, The Tollmache Arms and The Roache's Lock. Having passed through the pylon and Scout Tunnel (..the canal actually passes between the legs of a high voltage pylon..) we climbed Roache's Lock, and looked for somewhere to moor. We tried several times, but could never get the boat anywhere near the bank without it sitting on the bottom, so eventually we gave up and decided to go to Uppermill instead. Having arrived in Uppermill, we went to The Waggon for a few beers, then decided to move on to Dobcross.

The Waggon, Uppermill.

Ernie with a long defunct Oldham Brewery glass.

Evening : Dobcross. After yet another wind & reverse manoeuvre, we moored at Wool Road in Dobcross, opposite the Transshipment Warehouse which is now the HQ of The Huddersfield Canal Society. This is the limit of Navigation for boats that are not booked through Standedge Tunnel. We went to The Navigation Inn only to find it shut - however, someone must have seen Pete W looking in the window and rattling the door, as they opened up almost straight away. After several beers and an excellent meal, we conspired to write Dave's Postcard. As no-one could decide what to write, we decided it should be a team effort. Taking our lead from I'm sorry I haven't a clue we decided to write it in the form of a round of Cheddar Gorge. In this game, each person takes it in turn to write one single word, but must also try not to finish the sentence. It was also suggested that if anyone did actually finish the sentence, they should be penalised by having to buy an extra round. It was pointed out however, that this could cause a token conflict, and as we couldn't be bothered to contact OFTOC for clarification, the extra round idea was abandoned. The postcard was duly written and Dave is still trying to decipher it. Later, after even more beer, and some small(-ish) Scottish things, we decided to write him another postcard on a flyer from the pub. This one took the form of a game of Mornington Crescent . After yet another round of small(-ish) Scottish things, we returned to the boat for some rather larger Portish and Stiltonish things.

We moored opposite the services at Wool Road.

Wool Road Trans-shipment Warehouse..

Tuesday 21st May

Early morning : The two Petes & Stan decided to take a walk up the Diggle Flight to the Diggle Portal of Standege Tunnel. It's about a mile and 9 locks up from where we had moored. It was a good job we didn't try to take the boat up as several of the pounds were very low and one of the pounds was almost empty. After a brief look round the tunnel portal, they came back to the boat to find the remaining crew had moved the boat over to the service block and were taking on water. We then set off for Roache's Lock.

Lock 25W - Navigation Lock.

View from the top of The Diggle portal.

The Diggle Portal of Standege Tunnel.

Passage of the tunnel will have to wait a few more years...

Lunch : Roache's Lock. Following the difficulties we encountered in trying to moor on the way up, on the way back down we decided to moor below Roache's Lock, as there appeared to be some decent visitor moorings. We moored there and walked back up the road to The Tollemache Arms. After several pints here, we walked back down to The Roache's Lock pub, posting Dave's postcards on the way. We had a few more pints here too, then set off for Stalybridge.

We had a few pints in The Tollmache Arms...

...before passing The fire engine shop...

...on the way to The Roache's Lock for a few more pints.

Evening : Stalybridge. Unusually, we didn't go to The Station buffet, but instead we walked around Stalybridge looking for somewhere different to eat. Stan used his blackcurrant-phone-thing to try to find a curry house, but most of the ones he found were take-away only. He eventually found one called Umeeds. Having located it, we went for some beer in The White House, which is now actually painted green, then on to Umeeds for an excellent curry. The curry house was very quiet, though they did say that they were usually much busier at the weekend. They even filled Nursie's handbag with those small minty chocolate things on the way out. We then returned to the boat, without the obligatory visit to The Station Buffet.

Wednesday 22nd May

Lunchtime : Manchester. We left Stalybridge en route to Manchester. We took water again at Fairfield Junction and descended the Ashton Flight. This flight has a bit of a reputation, and Nicholson's recommends starting down before 10:00. We didn't start down until well after 11:00, but even so, we had no problems whatsoever. There did appear to be a bit of an issue with the tail gates at lock 18 as there was a great deal of water coming under the gate, but it filled up OK and we got through. We eventually moored up just before Ducie Street Junction. Stan went on as a runner to check The Jolly Angler to see if it was open, as he suspected that it was shut at lunchtime - and he was proved right, it was shut so we went to The Waldorf Hotel, just off London Road instead.

We descended the Ashton Flight into Manchester...

...where we went to The Waldorf Hotel opposite Piccadilly Basin...

...but the excitement and the comfy seats all proved too much for Ernie.

Afternoon : Descending The Rochdale Nine. After several pints in The Waldorf Hotel, we set off for Patricroft. We continued down The Rochdale nine, through Castlefield Basins, past Old Trafford, on to The Bridgewater canal, over The Barton swing aqueduct and on to Patricroft and The Stanley Arms again.

There was no shortage of water on the Rochdale Nine !

We passed through The Castlefield Basins.....

...and on past Old Trafford.

Evening : Patricroft. Having descended the Rochdale nine, passed through Castlefield Basins, Old Trafford and Waters Meeting Junction, we arrived at Patricroft. After another wind and reverse, we moored up by bridge 47 and repaired to The Stanley Arms. Once here, we had a few more beers. Pete W gleaned from the bar staff that there was a curry house about 15 minutes walk up the road, so after a few more beers, we set off in search of it. We had another curry at The Indian Brasserie then got back to The Stanley Arms just in time for last orders.

Thursday 23rd May

Morning : We set off from Patricroft for Lymm. It was Nursies turn to make breakfast.

Nursie fries something while Stan investigates the bread in which that something is about to be ensandwiched.

Lunchtime : Lymm. We arrived in Lymm at about 12:30 to find the Bull's Head was shut. While we were there, the landlord arrived in his car and told us it wouldn't be open until 17:00 today, so we went to The Golden Fleece instead. After several pints here, we set off for Runcorn in cold and windy conditions. Shortly after Pete W took over steering somewhere near Daresbury, the sky suddenly clouded over and we were hit by a fierce shower of wet sleety hail, and everyone except Pete W vanished inside the boat. The shower didn't last long - only about 10 minutes, but it was bitterly cold - more like February then late May. Later, Pete W handed over to Pete M so he could go inside to dry off and thaw out.

Afternoon : The Afternoon delight... A sausage surprise. As it was quite cold and blustery, most of the crew decided to stay inside the boat. John decided to knock up his usual sausage surprise. This is usually either soup with sausages in it, or a sausage sandwich with a surprise ingredient, the surprise ingredient usually being jam or marmalade. Today's sausage surprise was a double surprise as it didn't actually have any sausages in it at all. It was just cheese melted over jam on toast. Superb !

Today's sausage surprise.

The surprise was that there was no sausage. It was just jam & cheese on toast.

Evening : Runcorn. On arrival in Runcorn, we found a boat moored in exactly the spot we'd need to turn round. With Consol Forge being 70' long, this was going to be a tight manoeuvre. Pete M managed to turn the boat with only inches to spare between us and the nice shiny white plastic boat... we then moored right in front of it. The pub which had been recommended to Pete W was The Waterloo right next to the basin where we'd moored. Unfortunately it was boarded up, so we walked toward the old town. We passed two more boarded up pubs, and two that had no proper beer before we found The Ferryboat, a Wetherspoon's pub. Thursday is normally Wetherspoons curry night, but everyone - including Pete W decided they'd had enough curries for one week, so we ordered a selection of foods but no curries this time. After several more pints and settling the mess bill, we returned to the boat for the last of the Port & Stilton.

Friday 24th May

Morning : Preston Brook. As the boat had to be back by 09:30, it was necessary to set off by about 07:30. We arrived at the boatyard by about 09:15 and all cars were loaded by about 09:45. For some peculiar reason, Pete M had arranged to get his train back to Nottingham from Bradford Interchange at 13:30 so we had to go to The Karachi Restaurant for a curry before dropping him off at Bradford Interchange for his train.

Previous Year : 2012 The Bona Boater's Trips Following Year : 2014

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