Wednesday. A leisurely start at 8.50 this morning, we had decided to visit the facilities at Stanley Ferry for a shower (each). I took some photos of the original aqueduct, which apparently had Syndey Harbour bridge modelled on it. The whole structure had been beautifully constructed, with pavilions at both ends and ornate pillars all along the sides of the trough. There is a new concrete aqueduct parallel to it which provides a good place from which to take photos. The facilities block had been refurbished and reopened at Easter. I was amazed at the sluice for porta-potti emptying. The inverted funnel with a large surrounding lip was 3’3” off the ground! I had a struggle with the 25kgs of cassette and contents and as usual there was the prestex press and release tap, no hose, how are you meant to clean the surrounding lip? Answers on a postcard please…………….
On to Fall Ings lock which Nigel had warned us about. Myra took over the boat and I did the lock. I could only move the lower gate with difficulty, it was heavy. I opened the ground paddle slowly and as we had been told, it was a fierce one. Moving out of the lock we passed through Wakefield and stopped for lunch just below Broad cut Top lock. There was a narrowboat parked on the towpath outside the car park of the Navigation pub. Some people a too lazy to walk any distance at all. We had finished lunch when we saw a crowd of people at the lock. They were the crews of two community boats, and insisted on us rising in the lock after their first one had dropped. They were a nice bunch and doing a rewarding job; what a shame that BW feel unable to support them financially this year as they have done in the past. It is obviously more important in the eyes of senior BW management to spend £500,000 on a fish tagging project at the Tees barrage. I think that it is intolerable for the fish to be tagged, presumably they will not be given the advantage of a trial and look at the re-offending rates - appalling!
We stopped above Figure of Three top lock, so called because there are two locks close to each other, in a straight line. (There was an abandoned lock leading down to the River Calder, at 270 degrees to the top lock). Myra bought some fresh eggs from the occupants of the Lock Cottage, which they had bought from BW 10 years ago.
Boats moving – three community boats, one hire boat, two private boats – it is getting busy!
Weather – warm, mostly sunny but strong east wind
The 2008 journey thus far: 100 Locks & 241 Miles & 18 Swing Bridges
Journeys using bus pass: 4
