Meaford

Today's Canals : Caldon, Trent and Mesey

The forecast for today promised a mixture of sunny spells and light rain showers. Well, in practice the sunny spells were bright enough but little warmth whilst the showers er mainly ferocious, if short. They came one after another, often with little warning of a sudden change although at other times black clouds dogged us for some time, in the end giving in and giving rain.

We set off just before nine and, at that time, we had bright sunshine as this shot of our overnight mooring opposite Emma Bridgewater's Pottery.

Just around the corner, these blocks of flats have been built in the past decade on a plot that was once an Electric Light Works, generating the power to illuminate people's homes, perhaps for the first time. In the background we could tell that our sunny spell was not going to last for long.

Hanley Park, bathed in sunshine, was strangely deserted - perhaps the runners and dog walkers knew what was soon to happen!

Our first lock of the day was Planet, quite easy were it not for the yellow bag around one of the top paddles! However, the lock was all but full anyway.

And then, just before the end of the Caldon, the two lock staircase. A boat was just emerging from the top so we would have had an easy entry, were it not for a sudden blast of wind that took Christine totally off course.

We stopped at the service block for the full works. Just before the water tank was full, another boat passed us.They immediately discovered that there was a queue , two or three, filling the lock landing on the main line, so they had to hover on the corner of the junction with nothing to tie to. Not wanting to be deprived of our position we too hovered and also could not tie up. It seems that as well as some of the boats being rather inexperienced, one crew decided to stop in the lock to have a lengthy conversation with another boat! In the distance we could see dark clouds but the rainbow did not bring with it any respite. Eventually there was room for us to move across to the proper waiting area. Just as began the 180 degree turn the heavens opened and Mike was thoroughly soaked! After over an hour delay we were able to start our descent - in the rain.

The result is that we could not take a number of pictures that we had planned, especially to fill out the story around Twyford Lock, the middle of the flight, in Cliffe Vale. Thomas Twyford inherited an already successful earthenware business from his father but went on to develop the first flushing toilet marketed anywhere in the world, introduced in the 1880s. He built a new 'model' factory to produce his sanitaryware alongside both canal and railway. Production continued here for a century before being re-located to a modern factory in Alsager. That too has now closed and the brand is produced overseas. All that remains of the Cliffe Vale works is the main admin block, converted to apartments, and two of the ten bottle kilns.

By the time we arrived at the bottom lock, the heavy rain had passed over and we were back into sunshine. We completed the five locks in just a little over an hour.

Flowing under a very short aqueduct is the fledgling River Trent - if you can believe us!

Unfortunately there is nowhere to moor below the flight and so we had to press on. The rain returned very heavily and at one stage we were reduced to sheltering under a wide road bridge until the worst was over. It was not until well after Bridge 110 that we could spot somewhere that we might be able to insert mooring pins - earlier the cycle-friendly towpath extended to the canal edge. As the photo shows, we waited until sunshine arrived after lunch to set off once more.

Apart from one lock at Trentham we now had a long level run until Meaford. A parcel of land between the railway and canal had lain disused for some time. When we passed here in 2015 we commented on a number of campaign placards, opposing the development of this site - especially ones on houses not that old which had also been built on new land!

It is taken some years for the development to get going but everything right up to the narrow northernmost strip had been prepared. We first notice the work with the large sound barriers alongside the railway line. Let's hope that any new residents think that it works!) 

At the southern end building work is apace. The ones in the middle seem to be adopting the modern trend to reduce costs by making the houses three storey but thin.

The very first part is now  being occupied with the roads and landscaping looking very new.

Trentham Lock is different from the Stoke Locks in that it has ground paddles at both top and bottom gates, rather than the more normal top. (Yes, we know, our picture does not show that very clearly!)

 

The Wedgwood factory at Barlaston is now a popular visitor experience - World of Wedgwood  - as well as still making the famous designs with which the brand is associated. However, it is now part of a much larger group Fiskars. The Waterford Wedgwood combined company did not fare well and financial difficulties in the early years of the new millennium almost led to its extinction until acquired by the Finnish company.

Our target today was to moor just before the Meafod locks at a place marked as suitable by Waterway Routes. We passed by some long stretches of good Armco moorings around the Plume of Feathers (the popular pub/restaurant owned by Neil Morrisey) as we still had time and the sun was shining. Alas, the next stretch was totally un-moorable with extensive vegetation between canal and towpath. Has we made a misjudgement?

 

However, just before our target - Turnover Bridge 100 - light rain returned but we were relieved to see that there did indeed seem to be a suitable place. As we gingerly edged to the side we could see that there was Armco hidden under the unmown grass at the edge. But before we could tie up yet another deluge fell on us (well, Mike, as he was doing the mooring!) We were sufficiently shielded from the sound of the trains as the track was only a few metres from the canal, Thankfully we were able to retreat inside for the rest of the afternoon and evening (well the heavy showers continued).

8.8 Miles - 9 Locks