On Sunday (27/06/2021) we set off, again bleary eyed at 07:40 hrs. with the aim of completing the South Pennine Ring. There were plenty more locks to go through and a few shallow pounds between some of them.
Finally only 3 locks remained before we could chug across the finishing line at the wharf. The staff at Tuel Lane lock, which is the deepest in the country, usually finished at 15:00 but agreed to stay on until 16:30 to get us through. There were three locks at the end of our journey, just above Sowerby Bridge Wharf which was our finish line.
Tuel Lane Lock was built in 1996 as part of the canal's restoration, and replaces two previous locks, locks 3 and 4, from the original canal system. It is manned by lock keepers. With a fall of 19 feet 8.5 inches (6 metres), it is the deepest lock in the United Kingdom.
We arrived at 16:00 hrs. and Mandy was delighted to be presented with a certificate for descending in the deepest lock in the country.
They think it’s all over. It is now, as we reversed into the berths that we set out from 7 days ago on Monday. Accounting for delays we had done the South Pennine Ring in 6 days.
Helen was kind enough to drive Steve back to The Duke at Diglis Marina in Worcester.
To be reunited with Hilary. Ian and Annie brought Vera back on Monday morning (29/06/2021) and the crew were reunited. Shopping and recuperating were next on the agenda.
It was nice to get back to Worcester with it’s wobbly old buildings. On Tuesday our friend Barrie came down from Watchet and we walked along the Severn tow path to Browns at the Quay for lunch. Lovely Wagyu burgers went down well.
We walked back passed the river cruiser Edward Elgar from Gloucester which offered English Holiday Cruises, Diglis Hotel, the cathedral, an impressive new boathouse and Worcester cathedral. The river was littered with swans.
On a wall there were markings for the flood levels reached on various years in history.
On Tuesday afternoon the town rocked with shouting and cheers as England beat Germany 2-0 in the deferred Euro 2020 football tournament.
On Tuesday evening we went to the Anchor pub and were pounced upon by local “characters” keen to tell us their life stories. An ex-army woman with 3 tours in Iraq 1 in Afghanistan and an Estate Agent lady and her husband who had just moved onto a narrowboat in the marina.
In the Anchor toilets there were historic posters warning about habitual drunkards.
Thus warned we drank up and returned to the boat to catch up on Coronation Street.
Comments