• Claire Booker
  • Chris Booker
  • Jonah Booker
  • Claire Booker
  • Chris Booker
  • Jonah Booker
  • Holly Booker

Leeds - Liverpool Canal

284-дневное приключение от Claire, Chris, Jonah & Holly Читать далее
  • Riley Green

    13 февраля 2024 г., Англия ⋅ ☁️ 7 °C

    Like many places we have seen on this journey, this stop looked to have so much potential. A Marina with Canal Boat Cruises and a romance restaurant sounds perfect. Alas no, it was now a dilapidated series of buildings surrounded by fences slowly being taken over by nature.

    Chris has now joined Holly & Jonah which was reassuring as they left here, heading towards Blackburn, Hmm, glamorous! With Chris now cycling there was no point in me trying to get waypoints in central Blackburn. I had spotted a retail park on the other side of town that was right next to the canal - perfect!
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  • Blackburn - an absolute dump

    13 февраля 2024 г., Англия ⋅ ☁️ 7 °C

    Whereas we were pleasantly surprised by yesterday's sojourn through Wigan, which although Northern-urban was quite pleasant in a 'living history' kinda way, Blackburn proved itself to be a grim hole. While there was a very short burst of cobbles, statues and locks, other than that it was derelict warehouses, moody characters and dog poop. Not even a view across to Blackburn Rovers' Ewood Park could lift spirits. The final insult was a stretch of towpath closed off for repairs, necessitating a tortuous diversion through the backstreets before we could pick up the canal again. Despite this, the kids cracked on and we finished the day with Blackburn firmly in the rear-view mirror and approaching the halfway point of the ride...Читать далее

  • Retail Park off Jtn 6 of the M65

    13 февраля 2024 г., Англия ⋅ ☁️ 7 °C

    When I arrived to find a huge fence topped with barbed wire I was worried that it would be like being at the zoo as the riders pedalled past free on the other side and I waved. With a bit of walking around I did finally find a gap in the fence. If you could block out the roar of traffic on the M65 and the spinning class blasting out of the nearby gym, it was quite idyllic.

    I checked the live location feed and started the stopwatch to see how long it takes to go from one side of Blackburn to the other on a bike along the canal. Including a detour due to the towpath being closed and stops for photos, the answer is roughly 53 mins, I reckon it wouldn't be much different in a car and way more stressful.

    When everyone arrived it was unanimously agreed to call it a day. Another 27.22km in the bag and some very muddy bikes and children.
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  • The beginning of the end

    8 августа 2024 г., Англия ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C

    We're back and ready for the final push to finish the challenge. We've booked an Air B'n'B in Barnoldswick, which is a mid-terrace 2 up, 2 down, on a traditional Lancashire town street. It feels very much like visiting Great Aunty Margo!

    Once we'd dropped the bags we headed back to Blackburn and our finishing point from last time. While I shopped for provisions Holly & Jonah hopped onto the canal and put in a cheeky 10km to bring the route out of the bustle of Blackburn and back to a more rural phase. It was enough to dust off the cobwebs.
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  • Beautiful Burnley

    9 августа 2024 г., Англия ⋅ 🌬 16 °C

    So the plan this morning was for me to drive up from home to yesterday's finish point, meet up with Claire and the kids and crack on with the ride. However, on meeting up, we discovered that somebody who shall remain nameless (Holly) had neglected to put her helmet, gloves or the backpack in the car when they left our lodgings this morning. Therefore, she borrowed my helmet, the kids set off solo and we returned to Barnoldswick to pick up the missing kit and drop one of the cars off. We then headed back towards the route to find they'd covered about twice the distance we'd expected. Our subsequent RV point was about as Northern as you can get - by the canal, behind a bingo hall overlooking Turf Moor, home to Burnley FCЧитать далее

  • Barnoldswick

    9 августа 2024 г., Англия ⋅ 🌬 18 °C

    Barnoldswick is where we're staying and the bridge we came off at was a short ride from the canal to the 'cottage' via an Aldi. We picked up provisions for a picky lunch and headed back. We're yet to decide if we go out again for another stint to try to get to the most Northerly part of the trip tonight.

    On the way from the canal we also passed some yarn art with a crocheted and knitted remembrance display outside Rolls Royce and a crocheted speed camera post box topper.
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  • An evening with Mum

    9 августа 2024 г., Англия ⋅ 🌬 19 °C

    So, we decided to go for it and push on to Gargrave, the most Northerly point of the route. This time it was Mum's turn to ride and Dad's turn to be in the support wagon.

    Roll on a leg of constant stopping so Mum could take photos of cows in water, pretty water mills, voles and bucolic English countryside 😂

    Dad intercepted us at a Grade 2 listed quirky double bridge. According to good old Google, a local guide gives the following explanation:

    "Double arched bridge near East Marton. This charming feature is actually an original pack horse bridge. However the A59 was built so instead of rebuilding the bridge, another one was built on top creating the quirky double arch. The A59 runs over it."
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  • Skipton

    10 августа 2024 г., Англия ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

    Another leg with Mum! Just the small amount I have done in the last few days gives me even more pride in what Holly and Jonah have achieved. This morning I got on the bike and the saddle was just sooooo uncomfortable. How they have done all the miles they have done, and not complained is testament to their grit and resilience.

    Skipton was full of people enjoying a Saturday stroll along the towpath, walking dogs, children and just strolling. So, we needed to be mindful of all of the other tow path users.

    The central part was beautiful. A junction of canals, twisty cobbled streets and canalside cafés. The statue in the centre of Skipton is of Fiery Fred Trueman, one of Yorkshire and England's finest fast bowlers.
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  • Locks and Artwork

    10 августа 2024 г., Англия ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    Before we started today, I assured the kids it would essentially all be downhill today, as we would finish our 34 mile marathon 110 metres below where we started. As it turns out, we achieved the majority of that descent in a very short distance, courtesy of two monster sets of locks near Bingley. Not only were they very impressive from an engineering perspective, but the bottom set were accompanied by some lovely artwork.Читать далее

  • Apperley Bridge Marina

    10 августа 2024 г., Англия ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    A very well deserved extra long break before the final push into Leeds. Milkshakes and cake all round.

    I did offer to swap with Chris and do a stint but I was very politely told that they really just wanted to crack on and get it done. Despite my Wonder Woman t-shirt yesterday and my Team GB one today, I'm definitely the weakest link. So I'll stick to refreshments, media & comms.Читать далее

  • Leeds!

    10 августа 2024 г., Англия ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    After several hard days in the saddle, passing through a wide variety of landscapes and weather conditions, but with the water our constant companion, we finally arrived in Leeds. Today was just a mere 56.06km!!!

    I can't put into words how proud we are of the kids for having covered every single metre of this 128 mile journey under their own steam, with surprisingly little moaning!

    To be honest, I'd envisaged a triumphant cruise down the towpath to the River Aire Lock, which marks the Eastern end of the canal, with the cheers of the people of Leeds ringing in our ears. The reality was somewhat more prosaic - we only discovered the lock after riding round the back of a pub and across a gravel car park, and we were met by a hyperventilating Claire, who'd had to sprint round from the Leeds station car park, as we'd completed the last leg slightly faster by bike than she'd managed in the car. See, two wheels really are better than four...

    Link below to Wikipedia's page on the Leed-Liverpool Canal, packed with facts:

    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leeds_and_Liver…

    And a reminder of why:

    https://gofund.me/91a0dff5

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    10 августа 2024 г.