Wednesday 1st
August 2018
Today was quite an exciting day.
I took the dog out and came across the lagoons where all the spoil
from the dredging off Winnington is being spread.
We had a real tasty breakfast of crumpets with cheese and bacon and
then set off to catch the 11am downward passage through Dutton Locks.
Chris, the lock-keeper there was a mine of information, as they all
tend to be. He was telling all about Dutton and the other locks on the Weaver.
The locks at Dutton and Saltersford used to be operated using water turbines
powered by water from the river. A lever opened sluices that allowed water to
flow to, and turn, the turbines. The motion from the turbine was then used,
through operating handles and gearing, to open and close the gates and paddles.
Ingenious. This was fitted in 1872 and was used right up until 1984 when ICI
had the hydraulically powered system installed to speed the process up.
However, the turbine system is still operable. Instead of the paddles being of
the typical gate type, they are actually cylinders that act as valves that,
when lifted open a valve seat allowing water to flow.
A wrecked ship above the Dutton Lock waiting
pontoon A huge expanseof water
foronesmall boat in Dutton Lock
Name
plate of Dutton Lock
Turbine Makers
Again, the locks are paired with a wide lock and a narrower one. The narrow
lock measures 165 feet by 30, but the wide one is much bigger, both in length
and width. We were the only boat to pass through the lock and were put in the bigger
one as the narrow one is no longer operable. We were completely dwarfed by the
scale of the thing and felt quite vulnerable.
Once passed Dutton Locks we saw the old horse bridge on the towpath
passing over the River Weaver itself. We were on the Weaver Navigation, the
waterway that was constructed in 1732 and made the Weaver navigable all the way
to Winsford. At different points, the actual River Weaver leaves and rejoins
the Navigation.
The horsebridge below Dutton
Locks The massive Dutton Railway Viaduct
We passed under the huge Main Coast Railway line again, being carried
across the Weaver Valley on a massive viaduct, we counted 20 arches in the
structure and then entered another beautifully rural section. This section
lasted for the next 5 miles before we reached Sutton Swing Bridge.
A mile from Sutton Bridge, the Frodsham Cut leaves the navigation.
This cut used to take the navigation through a shallow lock onto the meandering
River Weaver before it joined the River Mersey prior to the building of the
Manchester Ship Canal. The cut is no longer navigable and has a barrier across
and warning signs not to enter. The cut was in use until 1827 when the Weston
Canal was constructed to take the main line of the Weaver Navigation to Weston
Point.
Frodsham Cut
So beyond the Frodsham Cut we had technically passed from the Weaver
Navigation onto the Weston Canal although it is all considered to be part of
the same waterway.
We passed under the Sutton Swing Bridge, carrying the A56 over the waterway.
This is a similar construction to Acton Swing Bridge although on a smaller scale
and operated by cables on a central turntable. In quick succession beyond
Sutton Bridge came the Chester to Runcorn and Liverpool railway viaduct, again
a massive structure and the M56 viaduct towering above the river.
A river of contrasts, a
peaceful,tranquil setting before Sutton Swing Bridge and the chemical
industries after
The next 3 miles were dominated by the chemical industries surrounding
Runcorn on the left and embankments between us and the River Weaver, Manchester
Ship Canal and marshland on the right.
The end of the Weaver Navigation at
the low bridge
The entrance lock to the disused
Runcorn and Weston Canal
We now started to retrace our steps and got a glimpse of the
Manchester Ship Canal and River Mersey and its mud flats through an old sluice
before coming again to Weston Marsh Lock. We stopped here on the waiting pontoon
for a look at the lock and over the Ship Canal and Rivers Weaver and Mersey.
One of the top lock gates was hit by the Daniel Adamson some 8 weeks
ago and the lock has been out of commission since. We had wanted to take Bridge
Street to Ellesmere Port and christen her under the actual bridge she is named
after but, with all the delays after her launching, and wanting to be in
Middlewich for Folk and Boat, there wasn’t time because of the breech in
Middlewich, to do both. Instead we had planned to come to the end of the Weaver
and goon to Ellesmere Port via the Ship Canal but now of course, that is
impossible. Daniel Adamson had actually snapped the 15in by 12in hardwood top
beam of the lock gate and split the vertical hinge beam. While we were
visiting, there was actually a diver carrying out temporary repairs to see if
they can at least reinstate one of the two top gates so the lock can be used for
narrow vessels at least. If this is not successful, suitable wood will have to
be imported from Africa as there is no wood hard enough in this country, and
the gate made in a workshop in Hull, the only workshop in the country with the
expertise and equipment to construct one. It will take many months and cost a
lot of money.
Weston Marsh Lock and the views over the River Weaver and Manchester Ship
Canal
The diver carrying out
repairs on Weston Marsh Lock Gates
In the meantime, for us, it was a case of so near and yet so far.
Ellesmere Port is only 6 miles away along the Ship Canal, and it would have
been one hell of a journey.
Manny had been doing all the steering today except for the locks and
coming alongside. Eva now took over for the run back to Sutton Swing Bridge and
did very well catching another boat in front of us.
We stopped at the service point at Sutton Bridge before mooring for the
night.
Fishing score today: Manny 0; Eva 1; Grandad 1 (but mine was biggest)
Both kids are having early nights, the fresh air is getting to them
and they are both tired.
Day Total: 1 locks; 12 miles; 0 Tunnels; 0 Boat Lift; engine running
hours 4.2
Overall Total: 105 locks; 249 miles; 8 tunnels; 1 Boat Lift; engine
running hours 136.0
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