Caldon Canal 6th to 9th June

With Stoke dropping behind, we were soon out in the greenery. Been a really good year for buttercups. 

Passed a couple of homages to the industrial past of the area.

And a ghost of when water management was a highly valued matter. Yes, that's a former water works.

The Caldon Canal is so named because it uses the eponymous river for part of its course, and has two destinations,  Leek and Uttoxeter, neither of which reached by the canal these days. At the fork in the way, the Uttoxeter route immediately drops three locks, while the Leek arm travels alongside and then crosses over on an aqueduct a little further on.

Here's the junction.

Both ends are IWA Silver Propellor locations.

The canal gets quite close to Leek, through a tunnel

and a winding hole beyond. Having spun, we then reversed up the Arm for a lovely mooring spot.

Leek itself is an elegant town with a surprisingly large shopping area and plenty of independent shops, plus very well stocked charity shops.. lots of good labels in evidence. A magnificent library too.

And art deco interest around too.. this house was revamped from dereliction by Wm Morris (current owners updating further). Lovely gate. 

Plus an honorable mention for this 1883 house in the Chimney Pot Preservation Society. (Who knew such a thing existed?)

We paused at Leek for a full day so I went off on an explore. The canal here is fed water from the Rudyard reservoir.

It's said that John Kipling and Alice Mcdonald first met at the lake, fell in love with it and eachother, and named their firstborn after it. I didn't get that far, though, but rambled around Ladderedge nature reserve on the way, entranced by the Merlin app, which identifies birds in the immediate vicinity by their calls. Fascinating!

The bumps in the distance are The Roaches, southern Peak District.

8th June, and time to move again, to cover the Uttoxeter section. The canal stopped miles short, at a place called Froghall. The tunnel there is affected by subsidence, so that only boats with very low airdraft will pass .

The height gauge at the last lock tells us we won't fit, so this is the furthest we can go.

Never mind, it's a beautiful valley

With a well preserved example of an 18th century industrial complex (somewhat sanitised)

Canal maintenance was somewhat lacking though,

Making navigation tricky in places.

On our return to Stoke, the Trent and Mersey was quite the contrast!

This time, just touch and go as we headed north to the Harecastle and its rusty water.

This tunnel is one of the longest on the network, taking 40 minutes to get through at normal cruising speed. It's pitch black and low in the middle.. if you can't pass the tunnel gauge you will be sent back. Below the white house is the original tunnel, which became unusable due to subsidence. There's also a railway tunnel somewhere to the left of shot.

And out again, in the even rustier waters of Kidsgrove.