Over and under in one day

Saturday 24^th August; Leek terminus to Denford

It rained overnight and drizzled on and off for the first half of the morning.  But at least the cratch cover hasn’t leaked.  This would be the last opportunity to get to a decent-sized supermarket for several days and we are running out of a few things, so even though it’s a mile to the Morrison’s off I went in the drizzle.  I had to go further to find a pet shop – we are running out of gravy bones, Jess’s favourite treat.

Chimneys in Leek

The shopping was heavy – I hadn’t thought I’d need my trolley, but it would have helped! – and I managed to get the paper too.  I arrived back at the boat rather overheated, as the drizzle had gone and the sun was coming out. By now it was 11 o’clock so once the shopping was unpacked we set off for Hazelhurst junction.

Badger setts?  Near the north portal of Leek tunnel

Into the tunnel we went.  But what was this?  A headlight appearing at the other end?  It was Joshua, the day boat from the Hollybush pub near the junction.  We have seen so few boats on the move on the Caldon that it was quite a surprise, as it was to the boater moored on the lagoon as we emerged.  It seemed a much quicker journey back to the junction than it had going the other way towards Leek.  There are some very nice houses along the way too.

Astonishing cones in one of the lovely gardens

Once we’d crossed the Hazelhurst aqueduct, and negotiated the tight bend (with built-in winding hole) beyond the bridge, it was time to find a mooring for lunch.

Looking back at the aqueduct

Dark clouds had been massing and were getting closer.  Would we be able to moor without getting soaked?  The first spot we tried was so shallow we ran aground and by the time we had freed ourselves it was pouring.  We pulled in on a nice stretch with mown grass shortly before the junction.  The field opposite was covered in grazing geese which we watched through the rain-spattered windows.  By the time we had finished lunch the sun was out again and the weather was lovely.  I had another go at scrubbing the starboard side of the cratch cover (it’s still not leaking), then after a boat had passed on its way to Leek, I noticed a boat’s bow drifting across the canal closer to the junction.  With the little day boat just returning from Leek, I went to see if they could nudge it back so I could secure it, but they couldn’t.  Dave could though.  I had got the boathook on the bank so it was fairly straightforward for me – the hardest bit was for Dave to get past it then catch hold of the loose rope without getting it caught in the propeller.

The boat is a wreck, clearly now abandoned, and has two ‘CRT aware’ notices on it.  They had already secured the stern with a short length of new rope and a piling hook.  The bow rope had snapped but luckily there was enough left for me to re-tie it.  Sooner or later it will wear through again, as it is directly round the Armco piling. I took the short cut across the grass to set the top lock of the Hazelhurst flight while Dave went the long way round the junction, negotiating the very sharp turn to leave the Leek arm and start the descent to Froghall.  Hurray for a bow thruster on a windy day!

Hazelhurst top lock

It took a while to descend as all the locks were against us, so I had to fill them all before we could use them.  It was by now very warm.  There is no mooring until after the aqueduct, so now we went under where we had crossed this morning.

Hazelhurst aqueduct from below

We could have stopped outside the pub, but the towpath was very narrow and the pub very busy, so we went on a couple of hundred yards to find a spot in a patch of sun that wasn’t on a bend or directly opposite another boat.  We walked back to the pub later on for a beer, sitting outside in the sun but the wind soon got a bit chilly for my liking.  As we returned to the boat the sun had dipped below the trees on the hillside, so the mooring quickly became very gloomy as dusk approached.

3 miles, 3 locks, Leek tunnel