Tunnels on the Trent and Mersey

We began the day's cruise on the Bridgewater Canal and almost immediately plunged into Preston Brook Tunnel and the Trent and Mersey Canal which was once again managed by the CRT. At 1138m this was the longest of three tunnels we needed to tackle today. All were only wide enough for one boat. Due to its length, time restrictions were in place here so north and southbound vessels didn't meet in the middle. It was pitch dark inside so Will needed to keep his eyes trained on the point at which our headlight hit the arched ceiling in order to keep us central. He did a good job and after around 15 minutes we emerged into daylight once again.

Soon we came accross a stop lock (one that simply blocks the flow of water and craft instead of moving you up or down). The Trent and Mersey is the first narrow canal Rainboat has been on. With a single entrance gate Vicky found the lock so much easier to operate and Tiger was grateful for the time on shore after the scary tunnel.

Saltersford Tunnel was the shortest of the day at 388m but once again restrictions were placed on the times you could enter. Why? Because it had such a kink in it that it was impossible to tell whether any boats were heading towards you from the opposite end! It was the first tunnel we'd used where you couldn't see a light at the end and felt rather disconcerting.

Barnton was our final tunnel and followed shortly after Saltersford. At 523m long with no kinks we were able to enter at leisure after checking there weren't any oncoming craft.

We stopped for a rest and lunch near the one of the Seven Wonders of the Waterways; Anderton Boat Lift. The structure uses two sealed tanks of water to counterweight each other, transporting boats over a height of 50ft between the Trent and Mersey Canal and the River Weaver Navigation. We'd hoped to be able to see this engineering marvel up close but unfortunately it was operating on winter hours and only open couple of days a week.

It was warmer today than it had been but the warmth brought rain in the afternoon. Vicky and the furries retreated inside as Will soldiered on at the stern. We'd made good progress on our goal of reaching Middlewich in 5 days so we stopped earlier than we had previous days and put all the heating up high to warm Will and dry the soaking wet clothes and blankets.Baca lagi