May 2013 - Alton's Schedule

April was another busy month we had a great time at the Easter Gathering at Ellesmere Port and it was great to see so many other fuel boats at the Port & catch up with their crews. Since then we've managed to do another Cheshire Run & finally over the past few days it seems like spring has finally arrived. There's lambs in the fields, ducklings on the cut & daffs & primroses on the banks & swallows in the air :-).

Well it's the 1st of May so time to update our schedule as follows:-

Wed 1st: Red Bull to Oakgrove (Br 49 Macc)
Thurs 2nd: Road Deliveries to Caldon Canal, Macclesfield, Manchester Piccadilly
Sat 4th - Sun 5th: Oakgrove (Br49 Macc) to Bugsworth Basin & Whaley Bridge
Mon 6th - Tues 7th: Bugsworth Basin & Whaley Bridge to Droylesden, via Marple, Hyde, & Ashton Under Lyne
Tues 7th - Wed 8th: Ashton under Lyne to Oakgrove (Br49 Macc) via Marple
Sat 11th - Sun 12th: Oakgrove (Br49 Macc) to Bugsworth Basin & Whaley Bridge
Mon 13th: Bugsworth Basin & Whaley Bridge to Oakgrove (Br49 Macc)
Tues 14th - Fri 17th: Oakgrove (Br49 Macc) to River Weaver via Congleton, Kidsgrove & Middlewich
Sat 18th - Sun 19th: River Weaver to Ellesmere Port Boat Museum via Middlewich & Chester
Mon 20th - Thurs 23rd: Ellesmere Port Boat Museum to Oakgrove (Br 49 Macc) via Chester, Middlewich, Kidsgrove & Congleton
Sat 25th - Sun 26th: Oakgrove (Br49 Macc) to Bugsworth Basin & Whaley Bridge
Mon 27th: Bugsworth Basin & Whaley Bridge to Oakgrove (Br49 Macc)
Thurs 30th - Fri 31st: Oakgrove (Br49 Macc) to Etruria Canal Festival via Congleton & Kidsgrove
Sat 1st - Sun 2nd June : At Etruria Canal Festival, demonstrating fendermaking, drinking beer & catching up with friends :-)

Don't forget, the above schedule is our plan, but is subject to change due to stoppages, traffic, customers, pub stops etc. So if you do need supplies, to ensure delivery please give us a call or text on 07791345004.

Also you can track us on waterexplorer.co.uk or follow "Coalboat" on Twitter.


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Alton's Easter 2013 Run to the Port Part 2

Sunday morning we were up at first light handballing many tonnes of supplies onto Alton, conditions were pretty treacherous with ice, snow & blustery winds. By 2pm we'd finally finished our reloading & set off. The ice & snow on Bosley Locks was phenomenal & we had a steady run down, taking things carefully. We had quiet a few customers, some of them quite surprised to see us still working in such conditions, others knowing we'd keep on battling through. We finally tied up at Congleton Wharf in darkness. We were on a tight schedule so we needed to make an early start each day. Next morning we reached Scholar Green as folks sensible folks were rising & got busy with customers who were very pleased to see us including Kay on Que Sara, who even gave us coffee to go ;-). Round at Hall Green stop, our good friend Graham off Daphne had the lock set & he was a great help for the rest of the day down the Cheshire Locks. It was great to catch up with Graham & we all worked well as a team together. We tied up for the night in Middlewich, Graham headed off to get a train home, whilst I made a last few coal deliveries to some local houses & the Kings Lock pub. On my return to the boat a police car pulled up & a WPC got out. Apparently the police had received a call that someone had been seen acting suspiciously with a wheelbarrow! It took a while for the young officer to be convinced I was legitimate in my nocturnal deliveries as she couldn't quiet believe someone still carried coal "on a barge" :-). Anyway, we managed to grab some fish & chips for tea & put our feet up.

Up at 6am Tuesday morning, we had the Middlewich locks to ourselves. Our first customers of the day where up & waiting below Big Lock, then it was the lovely winding pound. We were kept busy with customers at the flashes, Orchard Marina & Anderton. Our aim was to get to Acton Bridge to deliver to Davenports Farm shop, we had a good run & I set about deliveries with the Barrow whilst Ann Marie winded Alton & returned. We decided to crack on back through the tunnels & as darkness fell we were still serving customers around Anderton. We finally tied up outside the Old Broken Cross pub & grabbed a well earned pint.

We needed to be at Nantwich to reload on Thursday morning so I made for an early start, leaving before dawn & rousing Ann Marie from her slumber just before we reached Middlewich. We made our way up the locks, calling in to Middlewich Narrowboats with supplies on the way. Out on the Middlewich Branch the blustery winds had got up again, making it very difficult to get in to serve customers. We took a left at Barbridge Junction & got busy for a couple of hours making deliveries. We finally reached Nantwich about 7pm, we were just serving a customer when we saw Mike Askin on fuelboat Victoria & James Bills & friends Karoline & Ali on fuel boat Archemedies heading towards us. We had a quick natter with them & as they were planning to tie up for the night we all arranged to meet up at the Black Lion for tea and a coalboaters banter. We had a cracking night in the pub, catching up on each others news & talking coal & diesel (yawn!) & finally got thrown out after midnight.

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Snow Drifts at Bridge 30 Macc, nr Kerridge

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Heading back down the Macc at kerridge

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Water Levels were down about 5 & 1/2" on the Upper Peak Forest & Macc summit

Over the past month we're really struggled with low water levels on the Peak Forest & Macc. We've made numerous calls to CRT & been so frustrated by there slow response & general lack of understanding of our problem. I'm really trying hard to bite my tongue & work with them.
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Alton's Easter 2013 Run to the Port Part One

We set off from Oakgrove on Thursday 21st March heading up to Whaley & Buggy. We had a good run with a fair load on & tied up that night by Higgins Clough Swingbridge, Disley. The weather was pretty cold & we set off early Friday morning to a good covering of snow. We enjoyed boating through the lovely snow covered valley, but it was fairly bitter. Despite being out only a week earlier, due to the weather we were kept busy with coal sales. We winded & Buggy & whaley, but were struggling with low water (down 5 & 1/2", eventually CRT found that a feeder was blocked) & were stuck for an hour at bridge 22 lift bridge. After an exhausting day we finally tied up back at High Lane in Darkness, grabbed some tea & crawled into bed. Another prompt start saw us serving our first customers at Middlekayle at 8am, we continued to be busy selling coal & struggling with low water levels, finally returning to Oakgrove at 9pm with an empty boat & exhausted again :-)
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Winter Returns & Alton's Schedule April 2013

Well winter has certainly returned with a vengeance & we've been working our socks off. We had a great run to Ellesmere Port for the Easter Gathering which we attend every year. I'll try & find time to write a blog post & some photos over the next few days. In the meantime here is Alton's schedule for April 2013:-

Mon 1st - Wed 3rd: Ellesmere Port to Oakgrove (Br49 Macc) via Chester, Middlewich, Kidsgrove & Congleton.
Thurs 4th: Road deliveries around Macclesfield, Whaley Bridge & Caldon Canal. Fri 5th: Road deliveries to Hyde, Ashton-under-Lyne & Manchester Picaddilly.
Sat 6th - Sun 7th: Oakgrove (Br49 Macc) to Bugsworth & Whaley Bridge via Macc, Bollington, Poynton & Marple.
Mon 8th - Tues 9th: Return Bugsworth & Whaley Bridge to Oakgrove (Br49 Macc)
Wed 10th - Fri 12th: General road deliveries to Congleton, Kidsgrove, Middlewich, Anderton & River Weaver
Sat 20th - Sun 21st: Oakgrove (Br49 Macc) to Bugsworth & Whaley Bridge via Macc, Bollington, Poynton & Marple.
Mon 22nd - Tues 23rd: Return Bugsworth & Whaley Bridge to Oakgrove (Br49 Macc)
Wed 24th - Fri 26th: Oakgrove to River Weaver (via Congleton, Kidsgrove, Middlewich, Anderton & Acton Bridge)
Sat 27th - Mon 29th: River Weaver to Ellesmere Port (via Middlewich, Nantwich & Chester)
Mon 29th - Thurs 2nd May: Ellesmere Port to Oakgrove (Br49 Macc) (via Barbridge, Middlewich, Kidsgrove & Congleton).

Please note the above schedule is our plan, but this is subject to change due to stoppages, weather conditions, traffic or customer demand. If you do need supplies, to ensure delivery please call or text you order to us on 07791345004.
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Audlem Mill Fendermaking Course March 2013

Last weekend we ran one of our twice yearly fendermaking course at the wonderful Audlem Mill. As always Peter & Christine made us very welcome. We had a full complement of 5 trainees, Jim (Chertsey & Bakewell) Frank & Lesley (Black Swan) and our good friends Dan & Emy. After a brief introduction, we soon got the rope out and started work. The first project was making a side fender, we started off by binding the ropes together with a nice simple packing knot, this took a while for some of us to perfect, but we all got there in the end. Then we started to crown our side fenders & gradually they took shape. We stopped for a delicious lunch of cottage pie (meat & veggie versions available) & by early afternoon we all had at least one side fender complete.

Next we started preparing the core for our button fenders, we used 36mm rope to form 4 cheeses, which we bound with the packing knot again. Gradually we bound the cheeses of rope & the chains together. By 4pm we were all well on our way to completing our cores.

I had a pleasant (pre-birthday) evening, celebrating with Ann Marie, Dan & Emy, having a few pints of fine ale at the Wharf in Macc followed by an excellent italian meal at Briscola in Bollington.

Sunday morning came round all too quickly, but everyone was keen to crack on with their button cores & very soon we all had a good strong basis of a fender. Starting hitching & setting the spine of the covering is one the trickiest parts, so we took some time & care to get this right. By lunchtime our button fenders were starting to take shape. Christine cooked us a wonderful all day breakfast which we all enjoyed tucking in to.

During the afternoon we got into the rhythm of hitching & learnt how to add in more rope using the fendermakers splice. Dan was the first to finish producing a very creditable button fender. With a final encouragement of coffee & cream cakes, one by one we finished our fenders. The look of satisfaction on everyone's faces was a picture as you can see in the photo. We'll be looking out for some very well made fenders proudly adorning their owners boats over the coming weeks.

So a big thank you to Jim, Lesley, Frank, Dan & Emy for being such a good friendly, down to earth bunch. Also a huge thank you to Peter & Christine for their organising hosting & catering, they always make us so welcome at Audlem Mill. If you are interested in canal crafts & books see there website http://www.audlemmill.co.uk/ or call in for a warm welcome.
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Flippin' Freezin' February & Alton's Schedule March 2013

Well it's been a rather nippy month but it's been lovely to catch some dry, sunny days too :-).

Over 16th - 19th Feb we did our usual run from Oakgrove to Bugsworth & Whaley Bridge. The weather was amazing, with clear sunshine during the day & a frost at night. Everyone was in such a good mood to finally see some proper sun, fishermen greeted us with a cheery "Ow Do?", ramblers smiled and called "Good morning", farmers out in the fields were whistling away & our customers where in such a good mood, it seemed liked we'd brought the sun with us & they were delighted to see us :-).

We had a good, busy run, arriving at Bugsworth Basin after dark on Sunday eve. We retired to the Navvy to grab some tea & sample some of their fine ales in the company of the lovely Sue & Dave on nb Beefur, Frank & Tracey on nb Cuthbert & our good friend George Boyle. A good evening was had by all swapping boaty stories & catching up on the towpath telegraph.

On Monday morning we were busy straight away serving customers at Buggy Basin, after supplying Sue & Dave on Beefur, we met up with Martin Fuller & his partner on the hansom tug Cutter. After we bunkered them up with solid fuel, Martin very kindly gave us a quick tour of his boat. Cutter had a lovely feel to it, Martin crafted the boat himself, it was full of clever & quirky innovations, even the solid fuel stove with back boiler for heating & hot water had been designed & built by Martin.

The sun continued to shine as we made our way up to Whaley Bridge & back along the Peak Forest Canal to Marple. I hopped off the boat nr Strines to get a few photo's of Alton from Marple Ridge, they didn't turn out too bad but the view of the valley I was hoping to get in the background was a bit misty.

At Marple we stopped for a couple of deliveries to canalside houses before tieing up at Adlington & sampling a pint of Deuchars IPA at the Miners Arm's (under new owners), first pint was poor, but replaced with pint from fresh barrel.

We awoke to a frozen canal on the Tuesday morning, but the sun showed it's face again, so we thoroughly enjoyed our icebreaking back to Oakgrove. It was just so lovely to have a run with no rain & despite the frosty weather it was great to see everyone having such a sunny disposition :-).

Well it's the 1st of March so time to update our schedule as follows:-

Sat 2nd - Sun 3rd: Oakgrove (Br49 Macc) to Bugsworth Basin & Whaley Bridge
Mon 4th - Tues 5th: Bugsworth Basin & Whaley Bridge to Oakgrove (Br49 Macc)
Wed 6th: Road deliveries to Hyde, Ashton-under-Lyne, Droylesden & Manchester Piccadilly
Thurs 7th - Fri 8th: Road deliveries to Congleton, Kidsgrove, Middlewich, Nantwich, Chester & Ellesmere Port
Sat 9th - Sun 10th: Fendermaking Course at Audlem Mill
Wed 13th: Road deliveries locally around Macclesfield & Poynton etc
Thurs 14th - Fri 15th: Road deliveries to Middlewich, Anderton, Northwich & River Weaver
Sat 16th - Mon 18th: Oakgrove (Br49 Macc) to Bugsworth Basin & Whaley Bridge
Fri 22nd - Sat 23rd: Bugsworth Basin & Whaley Bridge to Oakgrove (Br49 Macc)
Sun 24th - Wed 27th: Oakgrove (Br49 Macc) to River Weaver via Congleton, Kidsgrove & Middlewich
Thurs 28th - Fri 29th: River Weaver to Ellesmere Port Boat Museum Easter Boaters Gathering via Middlewich & Chester
Sat 30th - Sun 31st: At Ellesmere Port Boat Museum Boaters Gathering

We love the atmosphere at the Easter Gathering at the Port, if your there feel free to knock on Alton's cabinside & have a cuppa & a natter.
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Alton's February 2013 Schedule

Our planned schedule for this February is as follows:-

Sat 2nd - Sun 3rd: Oakgove (Macc Br 49) to Bugsworth & Whaley Bridge
Mon 4th - Tues 5th: Whaley Bridge to Oakgrove (Br 49 Macc)
Wed 6th - Thurs 7th: Road Deliveries to Hyde, Ashton-under-Lyne, Droylesden & Manchester Picadilly
Fri 8th - Sun 10th: Road deliveries to Congleton, Kidsgrove, Wheelock, Middlewich, Nantwich, Chester & Ellesmere Port.
Wed 13th - road deliveries locally to Macclesfield, Poynton etc
Thurs 14th - Fri 15th: Road deliveries to Middlewich, Anderton, Northwich & River Weaver
Sat 16th - Sun 17th: Oakgrove (Macc Br 49) to Bugsworth & Whaley Bridge
Mon 18th - Tues 19th: Whaley Bridge to Oakgrove (Br 49 Macc)
Wed 20th - Fri 22nd : Road deliveries to Congleton, Kidsgrove, Wheelock, Middlewich, Nantwich, Chester & Ellesmere Port.
Wed 27th - road deliveries locally to Macclesfield, Poynton etc
Thurs 28th - Fri 1st March: Road deliveries to Middlewich, Anderton, Northwich & River Weaver

Please note the above schedule is our plan but it may vary dependent on traffic, customer volumes, stoppages and weather. So if you need supplies or have any questions just give us a call or text on 07791 345004 to ensure delivery.

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