A lovely surprise meeting

We set off early today in fleeces from Hassall Green, mine came off fairly quickly but David's stayed on, but as my mother always says, "He just stands there moving his arm"...

I think it's the M6 that passes over the Trent and Mersey canal here.  I wave to the traffic from here in the sure and certain knowledge that drivers would prefer to be where I am and not driving.  You can see how busy it was here today.

Poor things.  

 

After all that fuss he's still not wearing his new hat.

M6 packed, photographer should raise two paddles before taking snaps.

Down into Malkins Bank where several of the houses would do me nicely, this one proved tricky or should I say sticky, the houses own the canal front, there giving no access down for crew to go and push off from that annoying curve that WaL refused to be parted from.  Without those pesky bow thrusters working David just had to do it inch by inch.  

A heck of a flow on today.  A boater going in the other direction had told us that down along here somewhere, a boat had the previous day broken down, queues resulted and water had run low so today the powers that be were pumping down plenty.

Quite a flow over the second and disused lock here today.

Annoying mini curve

This boat below coming along behind us, had earlier been untying their ropes as we left one lock there was only a short distance to the next lock but they held back as we passed by.

The following lock was a pair, as David went down I opened the gate for them, they were grateful and this small act of kindness had repercussions the following day.... 

It looks a bit like he is being sick but he was cleaning the back of the boat off.

He got away eventually.

Round the last bend and into Wheelock.

Its that pretty pretty cottage again.  spoilt by a noisy road but what a position.

At Malkins Bank as David descended and was hidden from view a cyclist whizzed up from below, well you could have knocked me down with a feather, it was David, another David, his wife Sarah was bringing their boat into the second empty lock.  I was so shocked to see them, it was a grand surprise, not having seen them both I think for a couple of years. 

David very very kindly drove us from Audlem all the way back to our marina at Great Haywood when my son-in-law was away from home and the baby had to have a special inhaler at night which took two to administer.  That was a rare occasion when we didn't have the car with us.  

Now we do.
As we were going in opposite directions but I told David we would bring the car up later wherever they landed and chew the fat.

Which we did.  

They reached Rode Heath and we had supper altogether which was rather lovely bacon brie and cranberry baguettes.  They were on their way to the Macclesfield.  They have lived aboard well over a decade now.  

David and I made a mental note when they are doing the Bosley Flight to pop over in the car to lendahand.  

Sarah and David on their boat Hodma'dod, (google it)