The towpaths are beginning to look fancy as we approach Stoke and Hanford waste incinerator

Rainboat passing Hanford waste incinerator

Babieeees! Can't help but say aww at these early cuties 😍 Shame about the rubbish

An odd combination advertised on this sign

Bright contrasting colours in Stoke's industrial outskirts

An old Bottle Kiln. Around 50 are preserved around Stoke on Trent

We assume the sign marks the junction with the 3 mile Newcastle under Lyme Canal closed 1935

A great job done restoring this historic canalside building

Stoke on Trent seemed walled off from the canal

One of the two deep Stoke locks we ascended

We use radios to communicate when doing locks. They come in very useful

The railway runs very close to the Trent and Mersey Canal

Hanley Cemetery, Stoke on Trent

April 22 in England ⋅ ☁️ 14 °C

On the approach to Stoke-on-Trent we ascended two deep locks and were hemmed in on both sides by industrial buildings and brick walls covered in tags and grafitti doodles. A few old factory buildings had been tastefully refurbished into office/apartment blocks and towpath signs pointed to the Bet365 arena and other attractions.

Our mooring spot was between railway sidings, from which we heard the clickety clack of train wheels and on the offside, the green expanse of Hanley Cemetery. We got the feeling the area was a bit rough and Will had it confirmed by a passing cyclist who warned him to take all his fishing gear inside if he was leaving the boat and overnight as he'd be likely to get it nicked. We took his advice and there were no problems.Read more