New Islington – a broken dream?

We were really grateful to discover what seemed a fairly secure, overnight mooring eleven locks out of Manchester. We knew the journey to Hebden Bridge entailed over 80 locks, and was likely to be quite an interesting one. The New Islington Canal Basin wasn't even marked on our 2009 Nicholson's Waterways Guide, so we're grateful to Michelle … Continue reading New Islington – a broken dream?

The Rochdale Nine – a tiny taste of the trials and tribulations to come!

The last time we encountered these nine double locks taking boats north east out of Manchester, was in August 2009. Fortuitously we came upon another narrowboat to share them with then, which certainly made the journey easier. This time we had the lovely Jim, who I see picked me up on a couple of errors … Continue reading The Rochdale Nine – a tiny taste of the trials and tribulations to come!

Re-visiting the Anderton Boat Lift – and venturing into new territory

There's reportedly seven wonders of the Inland Waterways in Britain. To date, we've been fortunate enough to experience six of them - and we're planning on completing the seventh next month.  The Barton Swing Aqueduct we've even had the opportunity to visit AND see open twice, in 2009 and 2013. Last week we returned to the … Continue reading Re-visiting the Anderton Boat Lift – and venturing into new territory