Erewash and a boisterous River Trent

 This is our first posting for 2021. We have only been travelling for a couple of days but I have some time this morning and we are moored next to a phone mast so we have an excellent signal.  We came down to Leo by car on Sunday but only set off on Tuesday morning. It is always a bit of a stressful time moving onto the boat - well it is for Ian anyway! Checking that we have everything and that it will all go in the car, packing, unpacking and then taking the car back home for its summer rest and coming back to the boat by train.

Here is Leo waiting in the marina for the off. We debated the best way to get her out of this spot. Because of Covid we had not berthed her - she was moved first by a marina manager and later by a friendly chap by the name of George who kindly volunteered to take her to be mended in January. Still the departure went fine with no wind to blow us off course and no boats pranged in the process. We set off, having said goodbye to the chaps in the marina and our near neighbours, turning left out of the marina to leave Nottingham going west towards Beeston.

Along the Beeston cut we passed these swans making a nest. We've already seen ducklings, goslings and moorhen chicks which is a mark of us starting cruising later in the year than usual.

About three miles down the cut we reached Beeston Lock which gives access to the River Trent. Sometimes we've been through and the water on the Nottingham side has been almost the same level as the river. This time we rose about 2 feet so the river was swollen a bit from the recent rains.

The debris against this navigation sign gives some impression as to what the winter floods on the river are like - not a time for boating then!

Having left Nottingham in sunshine we soon picked up the rain and it really poured for most of our time on the river. We had come through Beeston lock following a pair of boats and here you can see that we are catching up the last one of the two. It took us a long time to cover the 5 miles up river against what was a surprisingly fast current. As we rounded the bend before Cranfleet Lock we slowed to almost a standstill and upped the engine speed to around 1800 rpm, an unheard of speed on the canals. The gravel bank that we grounded on last time we came this way seems to have been dredged and the tailings are visible dumped on the bank.

The rain was pelting down as we reached Cranfleet Lock. It was a tricky job coming into the pontoon below the lock with the sideways flow in the river here coming round a bend. Helen went up to the lock and I followed to help the two boats ahead of us through and then another two coming down onto the river before it was our turn.

Above the lock is a cut where all is calm which lasts for half a mile or so before coming under the railway bridge and through  flood gates back onto the river. We had already decided that, because the river was a bit boisterous, we would turn right through Trent Lock and stop for the night on the Erewash Canal. Trent Junction (look at the sign to the left|) is one of two really big junctions on the canals with navigations north (Erewash Canal) and south (River Soar leading to the Leicester branch of the Grand Union) meeting the Trent. So it is truly a crossroads. The fifth apparent route on the sign to the bottom left is the Thrumpton Weir and there spells disaster, so no-one goes that way.

We barely got onto the Trent this time turning right under the bridge shown which gives access to the Erewash Canal via Trent Lock. The short section leading to the lock was full of bits of tree but we got through with no problem.

And here we are in Trent Lock. Behind to the left is the Lock Tearooms which were closed and to the right you can see Ratcliffe Power Station. Tuesday evening the sun came out and we were able to dry ourselves and the boat. We set off yesterday on a shorter trip up the Erewash Canal to Sandiacre. Less frenetic than the Trent but still with big heavy locks to negotiate.

Through Long Eaton we came to a prominent S bend under a road bridge. Two pedestrians wielding lock handles told us there were a couple of 70 foot boats coming through so we backed off to allow them through before we set off ourselves.

A little further on comes the first lock at Long Eaton. At 6, then 7, then 8 feet the locks get deeper on the way up to Sandiacre. Ian had to get up from the boat at this one to help Helen move the bottom gate. We met quite a two more boats coming the other way at the next lock. Last time we came this way (7 years ago) we saw hardly any boats moving. Perhaps the silver propellor point at the end has increased its popularity - more about silver propellor points when we get further on.

We liked the trompe l'oeil painting on the door of this shed at a small boatyard.

The last of our three locks yesterday was Sandiacre Lock. Beside the lock is the oldest lock cottage in the country, having been built in 1779. This is a very early canal. The lock cottage is now owned by the Erewash Canal Preservation and Development Society and we've read that it is occasionally opened to the public.

The Erewash is now a dead end at Langley Mill, but at one time it linked with the Derby Canal at Sandiacre and with the Nottingham Canal and the Cromford Canal at Langley Mill. Here above Sandiacre Lock you can see where the Derby Canal turned off, going via Derby to Swarkestone where it met the Trent and Mersey Canal. You can just spot the first canal bridge beyond the moored boats.

We are now moored at Sandiacre. The huge chimney beyond us belongs to what was once a lace mill and has now been converted into apartments. I haven't included a proper picture of the mill because it is presently covered in scaffolding while they repair the roof.

Now this is a very surreal photo. Soon after we arrived at Sandiacre we had a monumental hailstorm and this is the view Helen took out of the window of the hail bouncing in the canal. The larger blobs are raindrops on the window. The storm was of such ferocity that hail stones were bouncing on the roof and then through the mushroom vents onto the carpet and our bed! In the afternoon the rain died away and we were honoured by a visit from our great niece on her first birthday complete with cake and candle. Ada was accompanied by her parents Martin and Caroline and we enjoyed talking with them while Ada enjoyed crawling from one end of the boat to the other (inside - not along the roof!)

And finally for this posting here is a bluebell that Helen spotted close to our mooring.

We are waiting this morning for a friend (Steve, known as Hodge) to visit us and with him we intend to carry on today to Ilkeston. We will probably arrive at Langley Mill tomorrow which will be journey's end on the Erewash. After that it will be back to the Trent and then the Trent and Mersey Canal heading west.

Thinking about boating in 2021

 Last Sunday we were at last able to drive down to see Leo.  We last saw the boat at the end of October last year but finally our house arrest for Covid has been relaxed enough to allow us to visit the boat albeit not yet to stay overnight or go out on the cut.

This wasn't where we left Leo (the marina staff moved her in November) but we spoke to our new neighbours Colin and Bex who are fairly new to boating and even offered us a cup of tea. So I think we will get on well. Though we haven't been able to get to Leo for months, she went out for a spin in early January (thanks George) to a boatyard where the damage from last year's collision with a hire boat on the Oxford Canal has been repaired. The grey paint on the port side of the bow shows the repaired section and the boatyard (Trevethick's in Nottingham) has done an excellent job.

 We spent Sunday mainly cleaning - Helen the inside and Ian the outside. The engine started first turn of the key! Helen also put on the bedding and we put up the curtains. She looks habitable now.

From next Monday (12th April) we can stay on the boat and even go places. Though we plan to spend a couple of days on her in a week or so, we don't plan to start boating for the summer until Helen has had her second Covid jab at the beginning of May.

So, where to go? If you read this blog you will know that we have been most places and our original thoughts were to go onto the Lancaster Canal crossing the Ribble Link which we have only done once before, in 2016. However we've rethought that plan. Getting north is tricky at the moment with a breach on the Aire and Calder and another on the Trent and Mersey. Also we are suffering withdrawal symptoms from not being able to see our grandson living in Cambridge. So the revised plan is to stay in the Midlands at first and then to go down onto the River Nene and spend much of the summer on the East Anglia waterways within fairly easy reach of Cambridge.

It feels good just to sit down and do a blog posting - just like boating really.  We look forward to telling you more fairly soon now.

The end of boating for 2020!

 We are now back home in Yorkshire, having left Leo near Nottingham for the winter. It seems a shame as the sun is shining today, but Ian has a hospital visit later this week and so we are both Covid self isolating at the moment.  So here is what will probably be the last posting for this boating season taking us from Barton Turn to Nottingham.

Soon after we set off on Sunday (20th September) we came under this turnover bridge. There is no towpath under the bridge because it changes sides of the canal here. There is a saying about passing elephants or camels through the eye of a needle and here we are having a go with a narrow boat through a narrrow bridge - just inches to spare on either side. No broadbeam boats here, though beyond Burton upon Trent (specifically beyond Dallow Lock which is the last narrow one) the canal becomes wide enough to take 14 foot wide boats.

This is us approaching Tatenhill Lock, one of our favourites. The lock is fairly remote with just the attractive lock house (now a B&B) beside it. Only 3 feet 7 inches fall, so an easy and quick lock to navigate with another of the very narrow bridges below it.

Apart from the noisy and tedious straights right alongside the busy A38 the passage through Burton is residential but pleasant. Having done the engine service a few days before, Ian took the cans of waste oil to the tip here. Over the years we've marked on our Nicholson's Guides the location of recycling tips that take oil and are within easy walking distance of the canals. As for the picture taken in the residential part of Burton, we liked the displays here done by a boat signwriter who presumably lives in the house and uses the end of his garden to advertise his work.

Here is Leo in Dallow Lock, the last narrow lock for this year. We had been on narrow locks for more than a week since we left Braunston and they are a delight. Dallow is even smaller than Tatenhill with a fall of only 3 feet 6 inches.
Just below Dallow at Horninglow Basin we stopped briefly to empty the toilet and then carried on. 

 After another spell beside the A38 the canal veers away to cross an aqueduct over the River Dove (yes this is the one that flows through pretty Dovedale). This view taken from the aqueduct shows the old road bridge alongside. The A38 is now a dual carriageway and its bridge is a little way to the north west at this point. We moored overnight near Willington and walked through the village and on to Mercia Marina where we moored one winter. Mercia has over 600 boats and used to be the largest marina on the system, but I'm not sure if it still is. Like Barton Turn Marina, Mercia has been developed into a shopping 'destination' with lots of shops and eating places and, on that Sunday, rather too many people not practising social distancing. We were hoping to have a cup of tea at the old Willow Cafe (not part of the new development) but sadly we were too late: they were just closing.

On Monday we tackled Stenson Lock shown here. This was our first broad lock on the Trent and Mersey and it is a big one with a fall of more than 12 feet. The bottom gates of Stenson were leaking so badly that we had trouble in filling the lock. It took ages and by then another narrow boat, "Bag of Nails" appeared so we shared this lock and Swarkstone which comes soon after. The white building in the photo includes a cafe but it was a bit early for customers when we came through.

As we approached Swarkstone Lock we passed the start of the old Derby Canal where the first hundred yards or so are still in water and are used for moorings. The Trent and Mersey continues to the right

We moored just below Swarkstone Lock and in the afternoon we got the Brompton bicycles out and cycled mostly along the disused Derby Canal into Derby. This view was taken from the first bridge looking towards the junction with the Trent and Mersey and shows the moored boats.

And this was taken from the cycleway just beyond the bridge and shows the disused canal and, beyond the bridge, is the portion in water.

Here, we are looking the other way from the bridge. Our impression was that it would not take a great deal of work to connect Derby once again with the national network of canals. There are indeed such plans, but no proposed dates for when Leo can get to Derby.

As we cycled into the city there were a few reminders of the old canal. This is at Shelton Lock and you can see the bolts in the stone to secure the heel post of the lock gate.

And here is a canal bridge which used to span the Derby Canal which is now a cycleway. We were really impressed with the provision for cycles in Derby and of the 13 miles we cycled, nearly all of it was on cycleways and bridleways.

After navigating an explosion of children coming out of school, we reached the River Derwent shown here. The Derby Canal used to cross the river on an aqueduct and then went on to Sandiacre where it joined the Erewash Canal. Along the Derwent was another splendid surfaced cycle path which we followed downstream for a few miles before heading back along a bridleway.

This is Elvaston Castle which came as quite a revelation to us. Coming to a junction of bridleways we saw a sign to the castle and country park so decided to go and take a look. It is owned and maintained by Derbyshire County Council and is entirely free to enter, though the house is not open to the public.

The estate is large and we only visited a small part but we were impressed by the gardens. This is the parterre in front of the house. We wheeled our bikes through here and then followed a long straight drive to meet a road. We came back mainly by road through Chellaston. We wanted to get back onto our outward cycleway in order to get under the busy A50 and had some difficulty because new houses had been built over the bridleway but we managed in the end. We both agreed that it had been an unexpectedly delightful ride in the sunshine.

On Tuesday we went just a short way and moored above Shardlow Lock shown in the picture. Ian set to draining the gearbox oil while it was still hot. Once the job was done and gearbox refilled with new oil we had lunch and spent a pleasant afternoon walking around Shardlow and across fields to Great Wilne. At one time Shardlow was a big inland port and many warehouses and wharfs remain together with some fine houses presumably occupied then by the owners of the trading companies based here.

This the famous Clock Warehouse which is now a pub and restaurant. Boats used to go inside through the arch to load and unload.

The River Trent does a big bend here and close by Shardlow Lock you can see the river. Tomorrow we would be out on the Trent in Leo.

While we were moored an old working boat, Darley, came past and went down the lock to turn, later returning to moor behind us.

On Wednesday we had a visit from our friends Rowan and Martin together with their 3 year old grand daughter, Freya. The day started out OK with only a little light rain as we came through Shardlow and out through Derwent Mouth Lock onto the River Trent. Through Sawley Locks the rain began and once we left Sawley it came down in torrents for the last half mile to Trent Junction where fortunately there was a space on the mooring pontoon outside the Trent Lock pub. The picture shows Leo moored on the pontoon with Ratcliffe on Soar Power Station in the background. We had planned to eat out in the pub garden for lunch but, with the rain, we had a salad lunch onboard instead.

While the grown ups were chatting over lunch, Freya drew this picture of Leo (with a little help from Grandma). The orange object in the middle of the boat is our china lion teapot which lives on the roof and at the stern you can see our plastic ducks. On the stern you can see Martin and Ian wearing his boating hat. Thank you Freya; we've put the picture up on the wall inside Leo. In the afternoon Martin and Ian cycled back to Shardlow to pick up their car and we moved our car (which had been staying at their house near Derby) back to Trent Lock.

So to our final day of boating on Thursday 24th September. We set off past the junction with the Erewash Canal onto Cranfleet Cut shown ahead of us in the picture. This short section of canal bypasses the Thrumpton Weir on the river.

Trent Junction, like Braunston, remains an important cross roads on the canal system. North lies the Erewash Canal which runs through Long Eaton to Sandiacre and Langley Mill on the edge of the Derbyshire hills. West (the way we had come from) leads to the Trent and Mersey Canal towards Stoke on Trent, Runcorn and Manchester. East (the way we were going) takes you to Nottingham and ultimately out to the North Sea via the Humber. And south leads onto the River Soar towards Leicester and back to where we had started this year's boating. The sign in the photo faces boaters coming out of the Erewash Canal. The 'no entry' is Thrumpton Weir.

At the end of the short Cranfleet Cut is the Nottingham Yacht Club. We liked the elevated boat and the lines of painted fish at the bottom of the railings. The building is next to Cranfleet Lock.

Cranfleet Lock (seen here looking backwards) lets boats down onto the river below Thrumpton Weir.

Below Cranfleet we had nearly 4 miles of open river cruising. There are some strange objects in the water known as the Chevrons shown to the right here. We had been told by a riverman who had helped us through Cranfleet Lock that there was a dredger at work on the river below and that we should keep between the dredger and the Chevrons.

Now we had read about some shallow gravel banks in the river which had accumulated during the winter. I'm hoping you can see this one just behind us. To the right of the tiller looking back you can see an orange patch in the water. This was a gravel bank which we missed! The water is very clear and we reckon you could stand on this in water about ankle deep - certainly not enough to float a Leo. We had just seen this one and congratulated ourselves on missing it (not that we had spotted it in advance), when the boat tipped sideways and we hit another gravel bank. Ian kept the power on and fortunately we slithered off.

And just round the corner we met the dredger coming very slowly towards us. Hopefully by the time you read this the gravel banks will have been dredged to a reasonable depth.

The River Trent is a big river and quite a shock after spending the last few weeks on tiny canals. It was a fine day on Thursday so we throttled back and enjoyed the trip.

Here we are approaching Barton Island. As the sign says you go to the left of it going downstream. The island is used as a scout camp, though there was no-one there when we passed. Some of the dredgings had been dumped on the upstream end of the island.

Round another couple of bends and then Beeston Marina comes into view.

The pirate at Beeston Marina is looking both a bit laid back and a bit in need of some TLC at the moment!

Here we are approaching Beeston Lock which takes boats down off the river onto the Beeston Canal towards Nottingham. The floating buoys mark the continuation of the river which would lead over another weir.

The pilings ahead are at the junction with the now disused section of the Nottingham Canal at Lenton Chain. The Nottingham Canal used to lead to Langley Mill where it met the terminus of the Erewash Canal. From this point into Nottingham we were on the Nottingham Canal, the 'Beeston' name only referring to the short section between here and the Trent. Why 'Lenton Chain'? The answer is apparently that the Trent Navigation Company used to close their Beeston Canal from Saturday evening to Monday morning with a chain across it. Boaters were expected to observe the sabbath and many did their washing on a Sunday because, without boats moving, the water was clear and clean.

Having cycled back to Trent Lock to recover the car we were safely back on the boat when the rain started and we were treated to this fine rainbow. The odd spots on the photo are of rain. A rainbow seems a fitting end to our boating for this year. We can't see Nottingham Castle from our mooring but we can see it from the end of the marina

And finally to the statistics: this year we have cruised from 8 July to 24 September (the late start due to Covid) and we have covered 452 miles and come through 309 locks.

Our plan next year is probably to go north. We may decide to keep this blog for any momentous boating events (crossing the Channel? No, only joking) but maybe it's time to stop doing a regular account. If you have any thoughts on this then let us know by leaving a comment. Many thanks for your attention and for the kind comments.