Local canal for local people (with thanks to my brother Gordon)

After my last post my brother sent me an email recalling the "Local shop for local people" sketch in (he thinks) The Fast Show. He suggested that the Huddersfield Narrow is a canal run on the same principle, detering visitors and keeping its delights for the locals. His theory is that normally the canal is a pleasant and easy cruise but when a 'foreign' boat is reported the locals tip wheelbarrows of rocks and mud into the canal and render the paddle gear unworkable with some Isopon. Yesterday's journey did much to support his theory.

When we were readying ourselves to leave John from Moonspinners knocked to tell us that the pound above the next lock was virtually dry. He was going to phone BW but I suggested we just rewater the pound ourselves by letting some water down rather than waiting for them. He and Jean had never done that before so I went to help and offer guidance. In order to refill one pound you have to let water down through a few locks otherwise you just drain one pound to fill another. The empty pound had the normal complement of bikes, rocks and the obligitory traffic cone in it, but no shopping trolley! By the time we had the water supply sorted Ray had come to join us and he walked up to the next lock where I had been struggling to get one gates fully open. There he met two BW guys who had just arrived and ticked him off for setting too many locks and wasting water! Poor Ray he was the only one who hadn't been letting the water down.

We got Moonspinners up through the first lock, managed to squeeze her into the second with a bit of help from Meesrs BW and they were on their way. I pointed out to the BW guys that their arrival had saved me a phone call to report the state of the empty pound, that it had been necessary to rewater the pound and the only way to do that was to let water down from the larger pound, very politely of course! They didn't have a lot of answer to that. No photos of all this as I foolishly let my camera battery run flat.

For a while the day actually got better, we made our way up through eight locks with only very minor problems. We were hoping to stop after the ninth. In the eighth lock of the day our water filter got blocked and rather than risk overheating Ray spent the time to clear it before we moved on. While he was doing that the sky ahead of us darkened, I saw a lightning strike, heard a rumble of thunder. I said "we might just get moored before the heavens open". I was wrong. As I got to the next lock the rain came down, not in drops but in torrents, I didn't even have a coat on. I was soon sporting the "Drowned Rat 2012" look again. Even sheltering under the trees only provided limited protection. At last we got up through the lock, here there were moorings marked, Moonspinners was already moored. There were only mooring rings for one boat, the canal is edged with stone blocks, no grass verge. I could see grass further along, we tried to hammer mooring pins in, they penetrated about three inches, no choice but to carry on.

Ray and I did a role reversal, I took the tiller while he worked the locks, at least the rain stopped, there were moorings marked above lock twentytwo, only another five. We reached there, the moorings were fully occupied, next moorings above lock twentyfour.Two more locks, the last of which has a guillotine gate which lifts straight up, over a hundred and thirty turns of the windlass to raise it and of course it rained again. At last a place to moor, this is where I had intended to reach today so we have a day off. I love Slaithwaite (pronounced Slawit), it is my sanctuary, my salvation. Tomorrow up to lock thirtyone, leaving us eleven to do on Tuesday.

Except that I have just had an 'alert' from BW, a service I use to inform me of closures etc, the Huddersfield Narrow Canal is closed at lock thirtyseven until further notice due to damage to the lock cill. In my experience this could be a day or a week. At least here we have access to shops and services, so we won't move until the canal is clear and may have to rebook our passage through the tunnel.

Yesterday's journey 2.8 miles and 16 locks

So far this year we have travelled 452.1 miles, 316 locks, 43 swing bridges, 2 lift bridges and 13 tunnels

In 2011 we travelled 461.4 miles, 444 locks, 3 swing bridges, 34 lift bridges and 15 tunnels


During 2010 we travelled 740.3 miles, 642 locks, 53 swing bridges, 4 lift bridges and 25 tunnels


Since Ray retired we have travelled 1653.8 miles 1402 locks, 99 swing bridges, 40 lift bridges and 53 tunnels