Saturday 28^th July 2018

The day had changed and it was quite windy and cloudy, threatening rain. We stopped off at the service point at Anderton, took on water, dumped rubbish and emptied the toilet cassette, before mooring up just short of the boat lift, where we had a full fried breakfast.

We were booked on the lift at 12:10 so at 11:30 we moved up to the appointed mooring. Only to be told they had had an electrical blackout that had shut down the computer system and there would be a delay of up to 2 hours. Canal time and 21^st century technology.

At 2 o’clock we had a safety talk before manoeuvring onto the lift itself. The Anderton Boat Lift is an amazing structure but it is only when you are actually on it that its scale and magnificence can be fully appreciated.

The lift was built in 1875 and connects the Trent and Mersey Canal with the River Weaver 50 feet below. It consists of two water filled caissons 75 feet long by 15 foot 6ins wide that each hold 250 tons of water. Before the lift was built chutes were used to connect the two waterways and Anderton became a major trans-shipment point. Once the lift was built it allowed direct access to the sea along a much shorter route than previously.

Originally the lift was operated be a single cylinder for each caisson powered by steam using water power drawn from the river. However, the water was extremely polluted with the chemical industries that line the banks of the river and the pistons became corroded. In 1908 the lift underwent major repairs and was modernised at the same time with electricity replacing the steam plant. It was at this time that the overhead pulleys and counterweights we see today were fitted. This allowed each caisson to operate independently of the other.

The lift was closed in 1983 after extensive corrosion was found and it was declared structurally unsound.

Restoration commenced in 2000 and the lift was opened to boat traffic just two years later. It is now operated by hydraulic power using hydraulic oil but the overhead gear was retained to demonstrate the changes made during the life of the lift.

The structure stands as a testament to all those involved.

It took about 10 minutes to descend to the level of the river and, once the gates were opened it was with some trepidation that we moved out onto the river, it was by now very windy.

    

 

We cruised down to Saltersford Lock before winding and heading to Northwich. The river passed through all the chemical industries around Winnington that towered above us before becoming very peaceful and rural.

Rounding the bend approaching Northwich and the multi-storey car park of Barons Quay appears through the trees. It gives a completely different perspective of a very familiar feature.

We were hoping to moor between the two swing bridges but all the moorings appeared to be taken. Slowing down to decide what to do, a boat, Kinver, a shared ownership boat, that had been attempting to moor on the left bank shot out in front of us and claimed the very last space between the bridges. Kinver was met a few times over the next few days and the couple on board turned out to be very unfriendly and completely selfish.

A cabin cruiser that had been moored just beyond the service point moved away and so we reversed the 200 yard down the river to settle here for the night.

We walked into Northwich and had a few pints. The nightlife in Northwich was bustling with all its new bars. You hardly notice them in the daytime when shopping.

We decided on a takeaway Indian which we took back to the boat with us because we had the dog. And so rounded off a really good day even though it had been windy and rained nearly all day.  

Day Total: 0 locks; 8 miles; 0 Tunnels; 1 Boat Lift; engine running hours 3.9

Overall Total: 99 locks; 220 miles; 8 tunnels; 1 Boat Lift; engine running hours 124.7