Worsley, Bridgewater Canal

We moved up into Worsley proper and moored up in the rain. In fact in rained most of the day.

Caroline drove up for the afternoon to help us with our tax returns. We had trouble doing it on line, so she had to take our main laptop back with her. In the rush we forgot to back up stuff onto this one, including the photographs and the boat log.

Still, David would not have had to go out and take this photo for me of the footbridge by the moorings.

A boat was on the moorings when we got back from the pub with Caroline and they happened to say that they were on their way to Birmingham. They did not know that the Barton Swing Bridge was closing at 4.30 and it was now 4!! They sped off and didn't come back, so I hope they made it.


Just before we left Birmingham Cubie asked for a Mothers' Day Card for her mum.

She wanted someone sitting drinking wine and her mum loved boats. So this is what I came up with. I used a photograph which I matted onto gold card, cutting the top and bottom edges with wavy scissors. I coloured in the stamped image and added it with sticky fixers.

To finish I added some sparkly flowers and a printed sentiment.

Broadoak Park, Worsley, Bridgewater Canal

Not your usual sight on a canal. This is a Mancchester University rowing team practicing along the long mile straight at Altringham.

While we were getting our pumpout the other day we were discussing our route and the man doing the pumpout said that Barton swing bridge was going to close soon for maintenance.
We got caught last time we came up here so I checked with the Bridgewater Company to discover that we had until tomorrow to get through.

So it has been a bit of a rush. But we made it with a day to spare.

We did a "first" today and moored up by the Trafford Centre for a look around. Mind boggling architecture!

Caroline is driving up to meet us tomorrow so we will hang around Worsley tomorrow and have a bit of a rest.



I have just printed out some Pink Petticoat toppers with a view to making some Mothers' Day cards. I made this one starting with a black card blank, some zebra stripy paper matted onto pink pearlescent card with a black ribbon wrapped around the top and a bow tied around it with a piece of jewellery stuck by the bow.

I cut out the topper with an oval Nestability and then cut out a pink scalloped oval for the backing, sticking it down with some sticky fixers.

Bollington Under Bridge, Bridgewater Canal

David wanted to get on and through Preston Brook tunnel early, so he set off at 0530 to get the 0600 slot!!! Once in the tunnel he soon discovered it was not such a good idea. It was too dark to see the entrance in the distance and he had nowhere to aim for.

A quick stop at Moore for a newspaper and some pate from the little shop there and then on to Lymm for ah hour's rest.

By then the sun had come out and it was rather pleasant. There was lots of activity at the moorings by the Old No 3 pub, looks like they are re-doing the water points and maybe even some mooring rings. This canal is a "spike" one - not many rings or bollards, which when you consider how fast the boats go past moored ones can make it fun to keep put. We did find 5 rings here though, which is why we stopped.

Here is the card for my Brother's grandaughter

A white card blank with the edges coloured with pink ink. A pink feather and a little hair ornament with the elastic taken off the back.

The sentiment is a silver rub-on on white card with the edges coloured with the pink ink.

Dutton Stop Lock, Trent & Mersey Canal

Always a sad sight this. The boat must have had either a wooden or fibreglass superstructure as there is only the metal hull left.

A quiet run into Middlewich. I left David at the bottom of the third lock and walked into town to Tesco for a paper and bits and bobs. I had caught up with him just as he was filling the Big Lock.

Then it was on to Anderton. I dropped in to the customer services to buy some pumpout cards. Not an easy transaction, but I'll say no more and I am sorry to the next person who needs a pumpout card, I bought all 7 of them!

My brother's eldest son and his wife were expecting a baby (a little girl). So I came up with this card.

The photo is not too good because I used a white square card blank. The pink safety pin was stuck to the middle and the rub-on sentiment was added below. The wording is "Parenting results may vary". This is their second child, so we'll see.

Normans Bridge, SU Middlewich Branch

We needed a pumpout, so we waited at Venetian Marina to open. Finally, someone turned up at 0915 and said that she really only did pumpouts as a favour for the moorers! So we went on to the new Aqueduct Marina where they were very obliging and we ended up spending £62. So sucks to you Venetian Marina. Mind you, the entrance to the marina was very narrow and tight and the services mooring was difficult to get into and out of.

Just a bit further on we saw Waterwich, so of course we had to stop and say hello. So, most of the day seemed to have disappeared when we moored up here.




Another floral card. This one is made from dried and silk flowers, handmade paper and paper ribbon. It has been matted onto torn card and then stuck onto a square, white card blank to which I Cuttlebugged the sides. To finish off, two glass gems were stuck to the bottom left hand corner.

Barbridge Junction, Shropshire Union Canal

A late start for us and then a stop at the bottom of Hack Green Locks. The SUCS were at work here, resurfacing the towpath, clearing up the picnic site, repointing the bridge and painting the locks in the distinctive grey and white of the old Shropshire Union colours. Who was it said that volunteering won't help BW? Good on them. David stopped for 1/2 hour to talk to them and take some photos and then we went on to Barbridge Junction where I caught the bus into Chester for an afternoon of retail therapy.

We had the pork and apple sausages from the farm shop at the top of Adderley Locks tonight. They were delicious.





I noticed lots of blossom on the cherry trees in Chester which reminded me of some cards I made of blossom some years ago.

I mounted the photograph onto silver card and then stuck it onto a white card blank.

Coole Pilate, Shropshire Union Canal

What a fantastic name - Coole Pilate - not got a clue what it means. Also, the Shropshire Union Canal Society (SUCS - love that too!) have made a great mooring area with tables, seats and barbecues.

You could tell that David was feeling better today - we set off at 0630 this morning in a heavy frost. This is the boat in Audlum top lock.

We passed one boat on the upper flight and then there were three Middlewich boats waiting to set off just as we came to lock 12. They let us go through, so we were not suddenly No 4 in the queue.

We managed to get water from outside the Shroppie Fly (the boat we past going up said it was frozen when they had tried earlier), and I popped into the Co-op for a newspaper and some bread, then it was down the rest of the locks in brilliant sunshine and on to the mooring here.


A cute little card using some papers from a card magazine. I used a square, white card blank and covered most of the front with blue card and then some blue flowery paper. Before I stuck it down I wrapped some blue ribbon around the middle and tied it with a knot.

The circular topper was also matted onto blue card and added onto the front of the card. Several white daisy type flowers were added with glue dots to the circle and a sentiment was added to the bottom right hand corner.