The Bridgewater Canal 25.5.14

The Bridgewater Canal 

From Preston Brook to Leigh, Manchester 25.5.14

As we left the tunnel the Bridgewater canal had officially started. We left the T & M canal behind and were on a totally new canal now!

This canal has no locks and runs virtually parallel to the humungous Manchester Ship canal. It's 31 miles long and runs from Preston Brook to Leigh in Manchester.

Going under the M56, the Runcorn Branch is to the left of the picture

Setting off up the Bridgewater Canal and after going under the M56 motorway bridge we immediatly come to the Rufford Branch which leads to the Manchester Ship Canal, but we head on past the junction.

Heading off into the unknown...

The canal is really wide, really deep and isn't particularly pretty. A huge steam power station billows steam into the already grey and overcast skies.

The great big power station dominates the skyline...

...but the canal is pretty enough!

We travel on under some beautiful trees overhanging the canal and through some nice little towns and villages with their well kept gardens reaching down to the canal.

The yellow and purple together looked like the side of our boat!

Gardens came right up to the towpath here

After a few miles of built up housing estates were back in the countryside once again and go under the M6 motorway bridge, cars racing along at 70-80 mph while we chug along at 4 mph!

Cars race on overhead of us as we chug on at 4 mph!

Lymm, doesn't look to bad here except we'd been warned not to stop overnight

We soon get to the outskirts of Lymm where houses once again are our view all around.

Leaving Lymm and it's pretty busy here!

After leaving Lymm and all the boats moored up for the shops here we get out to a long straight stretch of the canal, and there's boatyards and moored boats for about two miles now.

Boatyards, boats and caravans line the canal on the off side

The skies have opened up today, rain and wind, not much sun! So by now we've had enough. Fed up with the rain we get to Little Bollington and pull over on an aqueduct behind a couple of boats.

Moored up at Little Bollington 

We've cruised for 16 miles today, done one lock and gone through one tunnel.

The aqueduct goes over a small road and there's fields with good marked walks all around us. Once inside we shelter from the next heavy shower and then get out with Jack for our walk. It's lovely walking, we find grassy meadows, corn fields, tracked paths and marshy fields all around and have a lovely tramp around in the countryside.

This is the small road that goes underneath the canal, our boat is moored above the bridge hole!

When we get home we light the fire and have a cosy night in the warm boat.

On Bank holiday Monday we leave really early.

At last the sun's shining, so we get up really early and leave for Manchester

I walk Jack first and by 6.50am we leave our little spot heading towards Manchester. We need to leave early as the area we are going through is less than desirable! The sun shines beautifully early in the morning, the canal is still and peaceful, it's a lovely time of the day to cruise!

We see this boat moored up, great name hey!

There has been some modernization here on our approach to Sale, but they forgot the building in the foreground!

After a couple of miles we arrive at Sale, a suburb of Manchester. The canal goes for 3 1/2 miles through Sale but it's all pretty nice here. The tram runs alongside the canal one side and major industry the other side. Red faced joggers run the towpath in the early morning sun, there's also no graffiti, rubbish or signs of any trouble here.

The canal is straight and pretty as we approach Sale...

... and we cruise on through a boat gathering at Sale Boat Club

There's a boat rally going on at Sale Cruising Club and boats are moored 2 and 3 abreast on a straight stretch most with bunting waving in the breeze, most people are just getting up!

Leaving Sale and cruising on to Stretford...

We go under the motorway road bridge....

They don't half breed large families around these parts!

There's a bit of graffiti about but mainly Stretford is an okay place... but you wouldn't want to stop here the night

Out of Sale we go under the M60 motorway road bridge and get to Stretford. Another okay place, surprisingly clean and tidy!

Its a mish mash of pipe bridges as we approach the junction with the Rochdale Canal...

... and this is the Rochdale Canal, doesnt look that inviting to me!

Leaving Stretford the junction with the Rochdale canal is on our right but we hang a left and continue along the Bridgewater canal.

We've left the junction and are going the couple of miles to the Trafford Centre moorings

We're nearly there, the skies still blue....but it's still early yet!

A couple of miles further and were at the Trafford Centre, there's only one mooring space left and we get the boat in and tie up on the rings.

We got into our mooring space and went off to the Trafford Centre to have a look!

It's still only 9.15am, so after a cuppa and a chat with our neighbours we set of for a look around the Trafford Centre .... pretty impressive!

The entrance from the carpark by the canal, it was only 3 minutes walk!

And it was pretty impressive once we got inside too!

We don't buy much, just a couple of nick nacks for the boat but it was good to have a wander about. After lunch we leave our spot and head off away from the hussle and bussle once more.

Leaving the Trafford Centre moorings...

Setting off in the sunshine once again the area gets rougher, rubbish fills the canal and the people here all seem to have an attitude!

Looking back over Barton Swing Bridge Aqueduct...

We go over the Barton Swing Bridge Aqueduct which goes over the Manchester Ship Canal, another trough in the sky. It's moved round only when there's a tall ship coming up the canal below, it's rough, rusty and doesn't look like it's been moved for decades!

... and this is what it goes over! The Manchester Ship Canal, with Barton Road Bridge in the distance

We head towards Worsley, there's a main road runs alongside the canal here and groups of youths hang out around the towpaths.

Moored up boats all have shutters over their windows and doors for protection...

... it's not a nice area here at all, the road and estates like this one right by the canal

This lighthouse isn't there to warn ships, its there as someone's house!

The water is a rusty brown colour here as we approach the last of the right angle bends

The canal has a couple of very sharp right angle bends and the water is a rusty brown colour caused by iron seeping through the ground from years of mining.

And round we go, blind bend or what!

Past a private moorings we spot this poor unloved boat, once someone's 'Obsession'

Once round the last sharp bend the area is vaguely countryside again, although it looks more like wasteland. There's loads of people about every where, it's a sunny bank holiday Monday so that's to be expected! It's probably the only greenery around here for miles!

Concrete sides and vague countryside is what we've got now...

The canal gets wider and high concrete sides makes it look uninviting to stop. So we carry on past Boothstown, no boats moored up anywhere here, looking for somewhere to stop but it's another two miles before we pull over and get the boat tied up.

Our spot for the night, not the best we've found, but it'll have to do for tonight, we're tired out!

We've done 17 miles today, it's not the best mooring spot we've had but another couple of miles and we'd be in Leigh and that's not a good place to be overnight!

... and so is Jack after his walk, and a couple of frights too! He doesn't look too happy hey!

We're not totally comfortable with the mooring here, our walk with Jack confirmed this when he got attacked by a pikeys dog and another dog, a three legged Alsatian this time that would have eaten him alive if it wasn't chained up! So we quickly went back to the boat and locked our door and stayed in!

We had a quiet night, no disturbances but neither of us felt happy here!

On Tuesday 27th May we got woken up at 6am by the grass cutter opposite cutting the grass at the golf driving range. But we wanted to get up early and leave this place so all was fine.

Entering Leigh, modern houses line the canal with an old original factory chimney in the distance

Paul and Jack walk off down the towpath and I take the boat the two miles or so into Leigh, passing some pretty rough places along the way.

But soon the modern houses went and huge disused old buildings were around

Approaching the bridge where the Bridgewater Canal finishes and the Leeds & Liverpool Canal starts

And here we are, graffiti over the sign but were now off the Bridgewater!

Under Bridge 11 was the place to stop nearest Tescos, and as you go under the bridge the Bridgewater Canal comes to an end and the Leeds & Liverpool Canal begins.