Canal Boating start of the trip!!
George joined us last night and stayed over so we started bright and early at 8, getting up to start the 4hour drive up to Chirk Marina in Wrexham.
First stop … a McDonald’s breakfast.
Four hours later, after driving past the beautiful variety of wheat fields in an assortment of pre cut stalks waving in the wind, and tightly cut stalks, bound now into straw bales, plus fields full of tall sweetcorn plants full of corn, we arrived in Chirk. Chirk marina is where we picked up our canal boat, had a tour of the boat and how to work it and then were let loose on the canal around 2.30pm.
Fortunately the first few miles there were no other boats which is a relief since despite having sailed small boats and even some quite big boats, this was quite different and surprisingly hard. Our first ‘big obstacle’ was an exceedingly long tunnel which was dark and the wet walls were close, touching distance. Eventually we emerged and found a couple of canoeists waiting on the other side.
The slow pottering was quite therapeutic as I got used to steering the boat however it got a little more busy and chaotic once we approached the first lift bridge just around the corner from the Llangollen viaduct.
There were many many more boats go in both directions and also parked on either side of the canal so we had to try very hard not to bump into anyone. Although they do say boating is a contact sport!
Coming up the viaduct there were many boats going across in the same direction we were going, and we didn’t have to rush it, which was fortunate to be able to enjoy the views. The viaduct has a pedestrian side and a canal side. The pedestrian side has a nice railing. The canal boat side has no railing at all and a high drop so if you’re the boat driver you get a very serious view!!
As we came through to Trevor on the other side we saw the turning we will take tomorrow but continued straight ahead through a very small bridge and discovered a pretty little mooring area where I actually managed to turn completely around by going forward and backwards several times. Bearing in mind that there is no steering unless you’re moving forward! I then watched Hanny and George attempt to tie the boat up. A few websites and videos later they had managed to tie it up not using any of the knots that’s they’d just watched!
It was 6pm by now so we shut up the boat and came the short distance to the pub for drinks and dinner. All of us felt pretty tired!
After witnessing a drunken fight over a tasty hot meal, we ambled back before dark and flopped for a while on the sofa and at 8.45 decided we were all so knackered we got into bed to keep warm and do some gentle phone browsing. I think this has been the earliest I’ve been in bed in a long time!
Temperatures 21 - 7 C
Best - crossing the viaduct
Worst - a minor strop and shout was had earlier when we all communicated poorly
Beautiful - the views around Wales
2025-02-11