We are spreading Christmas cheer early with our Instagram card competition!
Anglo Welsh spread Christmas cheer with Instagram card competition … and Santa’s pitching in with £300 worth of gift vouchers.
Winter on the UK’s waterways can be one of the most magical and picturesque times to capture the beauty of the canals. In fact, it’s one big festive postcard in the making … and we’d like you to supply the images.
As Christmas approaches, our canal-side landscapes are transformed into a winter wonderland: frost clinging to the edges of red leaves; trees coated with glistening frost; snow-covered towpaths; spectacular winter sunsets. Not to mention narrowboats decked out in their Christmas finest, robins foraging for berries and children throwing snowballs!
Anglo Welsh’s 2017 Christmas greeting will be delivered to our friends and customers in December and we would like to offer all festive enthusiasts the chance to have their waterway-inspired photo featured on our #anglowelshxmas Christmas card 2017.
And it’s not just about the feel-good factor of having your festive image dispatched around the country – Santa will be giving the winning contestant £300 worth of vouchers of their choice!
To take part in the #anglowelshxmas competition all you have to do are the following:
Like the #anglowelshxmas post
Follow/ like us on Instagram and Facebook
Upload up to 3 of your festive waterway inspired photos to your chosen platform, using the hashtag #anglowelshxmas, with a caption telling us why you love the festive season!
Be sure to tag us in your photos
Anglo Welsh’s Christmas competition will run until 30th November 2017 at 12pm and the winner will be announced on 1st December 2017 (terms and conditions apply). That means the lucky Instagram snapper will have plenty of time to spend their £300 vouchers before Christmas.
So fill up your flasks, wrap up warm, and head for your nearest canal to capture the magic of the UK’s Winter Wonderland.
Terms and conditions – Competition begins 3rd November 2017 and closes on 30th November 2017 at 12pm midday.
– To enter the competition, you must be following Anglo Welsh on Instagram and Facebook and must upload photos to these platforms using the hashtag #anglowelshxmas.
– Entrants can be all ages. Under 16s must seek permission from a parent or guardian.
– Entrants can submit up to 3 photos per person during the competition period.
– Photographs must show typical scenery of UK canals e.g. waterways, canals, narrowboats, landscapes, wildlife, canal-side countryside, etc.
– The winner will be selected by the judging panel. The judges’ decision is final.
– Prize winners will be announced via Instagram and Facebook on 1st December, 2017.
– One prize winner will be selected and awarded with £300 worth of vouchers from a UK retailer of their choice; the winning photograph will also be featured as the Anglo Welsh Christmas Card 2017. The prize cannot be exchanged or returned. There is no cash equivalent.
– Entrant(s) may be contacted by Anglo Welsh if they want to use the images for any advertisement or publication.
– The organiser reserves the right to change or cancel the competition at any time.
– By entering you agree by the rules and are happy for your imagery to be used for marketing purposes by Anglo Welsh Waterway Holidays and their associated companies.
– Members of Anglo Welsh staff plus staff of associated companies are not permitted to enter this competition.
This winter Anglo Welsh is offering winter cruising* from four bases, giving narrowboat holiday-makers the chance to celebrate Christmas or New Year afloat, joining-in the festive celebrations at exciting waterside towns and cities, and stopping off at historic rural pubs with roaring log fires.
From a cosy boat for two to a family boat for 12, all our boats have central heating, hot water, WiFi**, TV and DVD players, so it’s always warm and cosy on board. Christmas prices start at £470 for a short break, £670 for a week.
Here are our top 4 festive destinations for 2017:
Visit Birmingham’s famous German Christmas Market. From our narrowboat hire base at Tardebigge on the Worcester & Birmingham Canal near Bromsgrove, it’s a five-hour, lock-free cruise to city centre moorings in Gas Street, perfect for exploring Britain’s exciting second city. This Christmas, an exciting range of festive events are planned in Birmingham, including the famous Frankfurt Christmas Market, with great food, warming drinks, traditional gifts and live music – at Victoria Square from 16 November to 24 December. And on the way to Birmingham City Centre, boaters can moor up at Edgbaston to visit the City’s beautiful Botanical Gardens and enjoy their special Illuminated Trail event, on from 29 November to 1 January.
Travel through Shakespeare country to Stratford upon Avon. It’s a picturesque six-hour cruise to Shakespeare’s Stratford from our narrowboat hire base at Wootton Wawen, near Henley-in-Arden in Warwickshire. Once there, boaters can moor up in Bancroft Basin, just a stone’s throw from the Swan Theatre to enjoy the town’s festive celebrations – Christmas lights, markets, grottos, carol singers, and ghost walks, as well as historic pubs, shops, the Swan Theatre, museums and waterside restaurants offering fabulous Christmas Dining opportunities, including The Arden Hotel Waterside Brasserie.
Soar across ‘The Stream in the Sky’ to Ellesmere. From our canal boat hire base at Trevor on the Llangollen Canal in North Wales, on a short break narrowboat holiday-makers can travel to Ellesmere and back, passing over the awesome World Heritage Status Pontcysyllte Aqueduct. This magnificent feat of Victorian engineering carries the canal 300 metres above the Dee Valley, with incredible panoramic views. Once at Ellesmere, boaters can moor up to explore the Mere, teaming with wildlife, and tuck into festive food at one of the town’s many eateries, like the popular Mereside Boat House restaurant and café.
Cruise along the peaceful Caldon Canal to Froghall Basin. From our boat yard at Great Haywood in Staffordshire, on a week’s break boaters can travel north up the Trent & Mersey Canal to connect with the Caldon Canal at Stoke on Trent. From there, it’s a gentle 12-hour cruise along this peaceful 17-mile long waterway to Froghall Basin and back, travelling through a variety of landscapes. From the urban Potteries to the dense woodlands of the Churnet Valley and windy moorlands near Denford, the scenery is ever-changing. And there are plenty of pubs to enjoy along the way, including the Hollybush Inn at Denford and The Sportsman at Stockton Brook, as well as The Etruria Industrial Museum and Deep Hayes Country Park.
*Winter cruising routes can be affected by stoppages and closures as a result of winter maintenance work.**Wifi subject to signal strength.
To book a holiday or break on any of Anglo Welsh’s fleet, call our friendly Booking Team on 0117 304 1122.
Narrowboating in style – John Craven holidays on the Llangollen Canal
Canal Boat Hire on the Llangollen Canal in North Wales
Earlier this year, we were delighted to welcome Countryfile presenter John Craven, and his two eldest grandsons for a short break narrowboat holiday, setting off from our canal boat hire base at Trevor on the Llangollen Canal in North Wales.
Although John has been fascinated by canals all his life and been a vice-president of a canals trust, he’d never before taken a canal boat holiday.
This summer he set off with Charlie, aged 18, who apparently proved to be a “natural-born skipper” and 15-year-old Will – “the ideal lookout and rope handler”.
John’s article about his journey is published by Countryfile Magazine, 15 October 2017 www.countryfile.com
Choosing their holiday
John explains: “From the 2,000-mile network of navigable canals in England and Wales, we chose a 20-mile stretch of the Llangollen and it turned out to be a perfect microcosm of Britain’s waterways heritage. It encompassed both countries and put us to the test with two aqueducts, 57 bridges, two locks and three tunnels – quite an initiation for first-time narrowboaters piloting a 67ft craft.”
They collected their narrowboat, Askrigg, from Trevor Wharf close to the UNESCO World Heritage Pontcysyllte Aqueduct, which John explains has: “18 stone pillars and 19 cast-iron arches” that “carry the canal at a height of 38m (126ft) over the River Dee.”
Taking a quick course
Oliver from Anglo Welsh gave John and the boys their tuition, showing them how to handle the Askrigg, pushing the tiller right to go left and vice versa, putting the engine in reverse to stop as there are no brakes, driving on the right and pointing out “the horn (essential for warning boats coming towards us round sharp bends), the headlights (which must be switched on before entering tunnels)”.
John explains, “no licence is needed to pilot a narrowboat and after Oliver had travelled with us for a short distance to make sure we had understood his instructions, he left us to continue along on our own.”
Navigating through the Vale of Llangollen
John and his crew began their journey by heading four miles west to the Eisteddfod town of Llangollen, explaining that here the canal “runs along the steep slopes of the Vale of Llangollen and becomes so narrow in places that only one-way traffic is possible. Just to be on the safe side, Will had to run a few hundred yards ahead to make sure nothing was heading towards us and then phone me with an all-clear.”
Checking out the boat’s interior
After mooring in the marina at Llangollen, John describes the interior of their boat as “narrowboating in style” with “everything we could possibly need – two showers, a double bed and two singles, a smart kitchen with a fridge and freezer, small gas cooker, a dining table with bench seats that could convert into an extra bed, two easy chairs and a TV.”
Travelling over the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct
John then describes their journey the next day across the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct: “Entering the aqueduct is one of those never-to-be-forgotten moments. It is, essentially, a 307metre-long metal trough that is just about wide enough for one boat. On one side is the towpath and on the other a sheer drop down to the valley floor – not a view for anyone with vertigo.”
John then talks about the history of the aqueduct, explaining: “It took 10 years to build and was completed in 1805, at the cost of £38m in today’s money and one navvy’s life. One of the geniuses behind it is one of my heroes: the great road and canal builder Thomas Telford and I felt honoured to be crossing a structure that he had helped to build.”
Tunnel rules
John and his crew then navigated two tunnels and he explains: “there’s a very simple, sensible rule for tunnels: if you see headlights in the dark, don’t enter.”
After the second tunnel at Chirk, they crossed the Chirk Aqueduct and soon after moored up for the night at the Poacher’s Pocket pub at Gledrid. At the pub that night they reflected that all of the 11 miles they’d covered from Llangollen “are part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and rightly so. We had pottered down tree-lined watery avenues, past wide-open countryside and across spectacular constructions.”
Operating the twin locks at New Marton
On describing day three of their journey, John says that “patience is a necessary ingredient of canal travel” said they filled their water tank from the water point whilst waiting to negotiate the twin locks at New Marton, “Charlie then guided Askrigg confidently into the locks” while John and Will operated the gates and paddles.”
To Ellesmere and back
John says: “The canal was busy in both directions all the way to Ellesmere, which kept us on our toes. But on the way back, after a night tied up next to the beautiful Blake Mere on the far side of Ellesmere tunnel, there was very little traffic and we had the waterway almost to ourselves. Apparently canals can be like that: unpredictable.”
Songs at the Aqueduct Inn
On their fourth and final night, John and his crew moored a few hundred yards from their journey’s end at the Aqueduct Inn as they had to return their boat by 9am the following morning.
He says the Aqueduct Inn is “an old pub with great food and fine views from its wooden balcony. It also provided a wonderful and unexpected finale to our adventure.
“The staff were clearing our plates away when into the bar came a large group of men in ties and blazers. Not long after entering they started to sing. It wasn’t the usual pub singalong stuff but beautiful songs with glorious harmonies and, after a short while, I began to recognise some of their faces from a Countryfile programme I had made with them years ago.
“They were members of the internationally renowned Fron Male Voice Choir and they were wetting their whistles after their regular Thursday-night practice and had decided to perform an impromptu encore in their local for a few of the regulars and Charlie, Will and me.”
Back across the Aqueduct
The next morning they took Askrigg back across the aqueduct to our narrowboat hire base at Trevor and John reflects: “It had been an exhilarating, slow-motion few days. We had glided though breath-taking countryside while being overtaken by walkers and their dogs, joggers, cyclists and kayakers canals aren’t just for narrowboats.
“Many peaceful hours of travelling had been dotted with moments of tension, certainly on my part, as I tried to master the skills needed for a method of transportation that hasn’t changed in centuries.
“We agreed it had been far more than just a short holiday. The Llangollen Canal had given us an experience we’d never forget. Why on earth had I waited so long?”
To book a holiday or break on any of Anglo Welsh’s fleet, call our friendly Booking Team on 0117 304 1122.
Here is are top 9 Narrowboat Holiday Breaks for October Half Term:
Visit the Rock Houses at Kinver Edge. From our Tardebigge base on the Worcester & Birmingham Canal near Bromsgrove, it’s a 20-hour, 37-mile, 32-lock journey to Kinver on the Staffordshire & Worcester Canal, close to the National Trust’s Holy Austin Rock Houses. Said to be the last occupied cave-dwellings in England, these houses dug into the base of the sandstone escarpment were inhabited until the 1960s. Kinver is on the route of the Stourport Ring, which can be tackled on a week’s holiday from Tardebigge, travelling a total of 76 miles via Birmingham, Kidderminster, Stourport and Worcester.
Explore creatures of the night at the Pitt Rivers Museum. From our Oxford base, it’s a tranquil three-hour cruise along the River Thames to moorings at Hythe Bridge, perfect for a short break exploring Oxford, including the extraordinary Pitt Rivers Museum. This Museum is home to one of the world’s finest collection of anthropology and archaeology, including shrunken heads from the Amazon and the famous ‘witch in a bottle’. From Monday 23 to Wednesday 25 October, 1-4pm the Pitt Rivers will be hosting special October Half Term activities ‘Bats, Cats, Witches and Charms’, exploring creatures of the night, magic charms and solving mysteries.
Travel across ‘The Stream in the Sky’ to the Shropshire Lake District. Just five minutes from our canal boat hire base on the Llangollen Canal at Trevor in North Wales, the incredible Pontcysyllte Aqueduct is truly one of the ‘Seven Wonders of the Waterways’. Its cast iron trough is carried 38 metres high above the Dee Valley on 19 hollow pillars and in 2009 it was granted World Heritage status, putting it on an equal footing with the Taj Mahal. On a short break from Trevor, boaters can cross the aqueduct and head east to the Ellesmere Lakes, also known as the Shropshire Lake District.
Enjoy 1,000 years of history at Warwick Castle. From our Stockton base on the Grand Union Canal in Warwickshire, Warwick and its magnificent medieval castle is a day’s cruise away. Developed from the original castle built by William the Conqueror in 1068, Warwick Castle offers visitors ‘flight of the eagle’ shows, trebuchet firing displays, Horrible Histories Maze, Kingmaker exhibition, Castle Dungeon tour, Princess Tour and ramparts to climb. Over the October Half Term holiday (21-31 October), special Haunted Castle activities include the spectacular Fire Joust, spooktacular shows at the Dead Centre Stage, the search for magic potions at The Witches Tower and a Halloween Trail.
Cruise to the spectacular flight of locks at Devizes. From our base on the Kennet & Avon Canal at in Bath, it’s a 10-hour, eight-lock cruise to Fox Hanger Wharf at the base of the mighty Caen Hill flight of 29 locks at Devizes, one of the ‘Seven Wonders of the Waterways’. Once here, the historic market town of Devizes is a short walk away, with its Wadworth Brewery Visitor Centre and famous shire horses making daily deliveries, plus a range of shops, pubs and restaurants, including the ‘Peppermill Restaurant’ and the historic Bear Hotel. Along the way, narrowboat holiday-makers can stop off to explore the beautiful river and canalside town of Bradford on Avon, home to the magnificent 14th monastic stone Tithe Barn, with its amazing timber cruck roof.
Visit Shakespeare’s Birthplace. From our base at Wootton Wawen on the Stratford Canal in Henley in Arden, it’s a delightful six-hour, 17-lock cruise journey through the Warwickshire countryside to Bancroft Basin, in the centre of Stratford-upon-Avon. From here, it’s a short walk to a range of shops, restaurants, pubs, cafes and museum’s, including Shakespeare’s Birthplace on Henley Street. Visitors to the Museum can walk in Shakespeare’s footsteps and explore the house where he was born, grew up and spent the first five years of his marriage, hearing tales of Shakespeare’s family life and enjoying live theatre on demand.
Discover the World of Wedgwood. From our hire boat yard at Great Haywood on the Trent & Mersey Canal in Staffordshire, it’s a 14-mile, 12-lock journey to the wonderful ‘World of Wedgwood’ at Trentham Lock. Here an interactive visitor centre celebrates British craftsmanship with the Wedgewood Museum, Factory Tour, shopping, food and special family activities, including ‘Spooky Pottery Painting’ over the October Half Term holiday (23-29 October).
See David Hockney’s paintings at Salts Mill. From our base at Silsden on the Leeds & Liverpool Canal in West Yorkshire, it takes seven hours to reach Sir Titus Salt’s model town at Saltaire, now a World Heritage Site. Here, the Yorkshire industrialist Sir Titus Salt built a textile mill and village to house his workers by the River Aire. Today, the ‘1853 Gallery’ at Salts Mill is houses a permanent exhibition of over 300 works by the Bradford born artist David Hockney, including his ‘Arrival of Spring’ series.
Experience the ‘Enchantment of Chester Zoo’. From our base at Bunbury, Chester Zoo is an eight-hour journey, travelling 15 miles through the rolling Cheshire landscape and the centre of the historic city of Chester, and passing through 10 locks. Over the October Half Term holiday (21-31 October) ‘The Enchantment at Chester Zoo’ event encourages families to help break the sorcerer’s spell to send the zoo to sleep, seeking out moths, sloths, giraffes and orangutans to gather clues and save the Zoo!
To book a holiday or break on any of Anglo Welsh’s fleet, call our friendly Booking Team on 0117 304 1122.
Bigger, brighter and better – the new Anglo Welsh 2018 brochure is available now!
Canal Boat Holiday Experience by Anglo Welsh
As one of the UK’s biggest and best canal boat holiday companies Anglo Welsh prides itself on responding to feedback from its customers, and if 60 years’ careful listening has revealed one thing it’s that anticipation is an integral part of the holiday experience.
And when it comes to the buzz of anticipation, nothing wets the holiday taste buds more than a beautifully designed brochure from Anglo Welsh that is jam-packed with practical information, recommended circuits, glowing testimonials and stunning images of the UK’s historic waterways.
As an added bonus, our brand-new 2018 brochure has more pages than ever and a fresh look and feel – it’s more welcoming, more colourful, and above all, it’s designed to inspire anybody who loves narrowboats and canal holidays.
As autumn nights draw in, who doesn’t enjoy relaxing on the sofa in front of a warm fire and starting to plan next year’s holidays? In fact, with so many Anglo Welsh boats to choose from and so many enticing canal routes on offer, make that quite a few autumn nights on the sofa visualizing your next narrowboat adventure.
The new 50 page brochure reveals a choice of more than 160 modern and spacious narrowboats with all the mod cons, including details of the all-new Heritage class boats which will be added to the Anglo Welsh fleet in 2018. And with 10 bases spread across England and Wales, you will be spoilt for choice when it comes to choosing your starting point.
From the adrenalin rush of the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct in Wales or the Foxton Locks in Leicestershire to the more leisurely experience of cruising through Stratford-upon-Avon, Oxford or Bath, your Anglo Welsh canal boat holiday can take you to some of Britain’s most emblematic cities and popular World Heritage sites.
Still can’t make up your mind where to go? Then the brochure’s selection of stunning photos from our #canaladventures2017 Instagram Photography Competition should also provide plenty of food for thought as you plan your 2018 adventure.
Needless to say, the brochure also includes all the practical information you could possibly need, from pricing for long holidays, short breaks and day hires, to how to book, how to prepare for your trip, and how to find out about regular offers and special promotions.
The Anglo Welsh 2018 brochure contains a wealth of information on canal boat holidays and fascinating portraits of the UK’s most popular waterway destinations – all you have to do now is snuggle up on the sofa, let your imagination run free, and then book the canal holiday of your dreams.
To order your free copy of the 2018 Anglo Welsh Brochure call our friendly booking team on 0117 304 1122 or if you prefer, download a copy here.
And the winner is … ‘Tea for the Tillerman’ wins Anglo Welsh’s Canal Adventures 2017 Photo Challenge
Most people would agree that the picturesque waterways of England and Wales are just one big Instagram shoot waiting to happen, so when Anglo Welsh asked the Great British Public to post their finest canal-themed images online we were confident of a decent response – especially as the #CanalAdventures2017 winner would bag a fabulous Canon EOS 1300D digital camera worth £300.
But for decent response read spectacular response!
Images of old boats, new boats, dawn vistas, dusk vistas, rural towpaths, urban moorings, veteran skippers, narrowboat novices, kids with ducks, dogs with kids, stunning landscapes … we were bowled over by the variety and vibrancy of your photos.
Sifting through close to a thousand Instagram and Facebook posts was a pleasure, but choosing one winner was a real challenge. Here at Anglo Welsh we know a pretty canal pic when we see one, but to help us make an informed decision we invited photographers from design agency, Jazzbones Creative, to join us on the judges’ panel.
In the end, whimsical prettiness edged out funny, dynamic or hip in the shape of Brian Phillimore’s lovingly crafted image of a narrowboat stern on the Kennet and Avon Canal, inspired, he admits, by the Cat Stevens song ‘Tea For The Tillerman’.
An honourable mention goes to three runners-up, all winners of an HP Sprocket Photo Printer worth £100 – Gary Sargent for his shimmering view of Ainscough Mill on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal, Andy Stevens’ evocative portrait of a night mooring at The Lock Inn on the River Avon, and Maggie and Ryan Duncan’s chiaroscuro take on the Anglo Welsh narrowboat Silver Ghost.
A huge thank you for all your images and watch this space for news of more exciting canal-themed competitions with fabulous prizes, courtesy of Anglo Welsh, the narrowboat experts.
Click here to view the #CanalAdventures2017 online gallery. To book a canal holiday on any of Anglo Welsh’s picturesque canal circuits, please contact our friendly customer team on 0117 304 1122.
Spectacular Pennine views, ‘snake’ bridges, impressive stone aqueducts, striking rock formations, Victorian mills and country pubs.
One of the last narrow canals to be built, and the first to be awarded Green Flag status, the beautiful tree-lined Macclesfield Canal runs for 28 miles from its junction with the Peak Forest Canal at Marple in Cheshire, to the Trent & Mersey Canal at Kidsgrove in Staffordshire.
Passing mostly through green and rural surroundings, the canal follows the natural contours of the land, passing along the side of the most westerly Pennine hills through High Lane, Higher Poynton, Bollington, Macclesfield and Congleton.
Approved by an Act of Parliament in 1826, the Macclesfield Canal was designed to provide a direct link between Manchester, the Potteries and the Midlands, reducing journey times. It also served cotton mills, quarries and coal mines around Macclesfield, Congleton and the Peak District.
The coming of the railways soon outcompeted the canal, but it was still used for some freight carriage until the 1960s, and as a local cruising club had already been using the waterway for many years, its leisure potential was already established, so it remained navigable.
With its spectacular views over the Cheshire Plain, the Macclesfield Canal provides the most elevated (the top level is 518 feet above sea level, one of the highest navigable levels in the country), and perhaps the most beautiful section of the Cheshire Ring. With just one flight of locks at Bosley, the Macclesfield Canal enjoys miles of lock-free cruising either side.
Narrowboat holiday-makers cruising gently along, soaking up the scenery and admiring the historic structures that line its route, including Victorian mills and warehouses, its original stone milestones and six ‘change’ or ‘snake’ bridges, where the towpath changes sides of the canal, allowing horses to move over without having to be untied from the boat.
Best for beginners
From our base at Bunbury on the Shropshire Union Canal near Tarporley in Cheshire, on a week’s break boaters can travel to Macclesfield and back, cruising for a total of 40 hours and travelling through 94 locks.
After travelling south two miles to Barbridge Junction, with its marina and Olde Barbridge Inn, canal boat holiday-makers should then head up the Middlewich Branch of the Shropshire Union Canal to join the Trent & Mersey at the historic market town of Middlewich.
This quiet waterway, with just four locks along its 10-mile length, travels peacefully through the Cheshire countryside. Along the route, the Badger Inn at Church Minshull, just a short walk from the canal, is a popular place to stop and there are also plenty of pubs and restaurants to enjoy at Middlewich.
From Middlewich, boaters should head south along the Trent & Mersey Canal to the Macclesfield Canal, a 12-mile journey which passes through 28 locks of the 31 which form ‘Heartbreak Hill’, raising the canal 280ft up from the Cheshire Plains.
Along the way, the route passes the Sandbach Flashes SSSI at Ettiley Heath, Wheelock with a choice of pubs, and Hassall Green with its Potters Barn working pottery.
The next village is Rode Heath with its Royal Oak pub and Rode Hall, one of Cheshire’s most exquisite country houses.
Hardings Wood Junction, where the Trent & Mersey meets the Macclesfield Canal, is unusual – an early canal’spaghetti junction’. The Macclesfield leaves the Trent & Mersey on the south side, then crosses it on Poole Aqueduct after the Trent & Mersey has fallen through two locks. The Macclesfield then crosses Red Bull Aqueduct to begin its journey to Marple.
It’s a busy area with Canal & River Trust moorings and plenty of pubs, including The Blue Bell and Red Bull Hotel.
Turning north up the Hall Green Branch of the Macclesfield Canal, after just over a mile, boaters reach Hall Green Stop Lock, not far from The Bleeding Wolf pub at Scholar Green, with a good reputation for home cooked food.
Travelling through glorious open countryside, a mile further along at Bridge No.87 the canal passes the family-run Rising Sun, where walkers can pick up the Gritstone Walking Trail, offering stunning views of the Cheshire Plain from its gritstone ridges.
Just under a mile later, from the towpath at Bridge 86, boaters can moor-up and pick up a footpath to the National Trust’s iconic moated Tudor Manor house, Little Moreton Hall. Or walk cross the canal at Bridge 86 and head to Mow Cop (Mow is pronounced as in cow) to see the striking ‘Old Man of Mow’ rock formation crowning the ridge of hills that run parallel to the canal.
Over the next two miles, as it approaches Congleton, the canal crosses two impressive stone aqueducts – the first at Watery Lane, close to the Horseshoe Inn, and second at Dog Lane, close to Congleton Wharf and the award-winning Beartown Tap pub.
There are shops close to Bridge 75, including a fish & chips shop, and two beautiful ‘snake bridges’ follow. A mile later at bridge 71, a footpath runs to the top of the Cloud, an impressive local fell.
Three miles later, the route reaches the foot of Bosley Locks, a flight of 12 deep locks which raise the canal level by 118ft to over 500ft above sea level. Once through the locks, the canal soon approaches the village of Gawsworth, home of the striking Gawsworth Hall Tudor Manor House, then Oakgrove in the foothills of the Pennines.
Just over two miles later, having passed the villages of Lyme Green and Sutton Lane Ends with is Church House Inn and Lamb Inn, the canal reaches Macclesfield.
The best place to moor to explore the town, once one of the leading silk producing centres, is south of Bridge 37, close to the Hovis Mill, birthplace of the famous flour. Here visitors will find cobbled streets, a medieval Market Place, the Silk Museum Heritage Centre, Silk Museum & Paradise Mill, and plenty of shops and pubs, including the canalside Puss in Boots and the beer-specialist Macc Bar.
As the canal continues north, reaching Bollington in just over two miles, the Middlewood Way is never far from the canal, following the course of the ‘Macclesfield, Bollington and Marple Railway’.
At Bollington, The Dog & Partridge and The Vale Inn are close to the impressive stone Bollington Aqueduct, and high on a hilltop to the south east of the town is the White Nancy monument, erected by the Gaskell family to commemorate the Battle of Waterloo.
The next stretch runs through beautifully quiet and unspoilt countryside, winding northwards along the summit level, crossing several valleys on embankments with impressive aqueducts.
At Four Lane Ends, the canalside Miners Arms offers excellent food and at Higher Poynton, The Boar’s Head offers traditional home-made food, real ale and fireside dining.
From the Boar’s Head, it’s a two-mile walk to the National Trust’s magnificent Italianate Palace, Lyme Park, famously featured in the BBC’s ‘Pride & Prejudice’ as ‘Pemberley’, home of Mr Darcy. The Anson Engine Museum with a tearoom and shop, is also a short walk from the Boar’s Head.
After travelling over another massive embankment and aqueduct, the last three miles of the Macclesfield Canal passes through High Lane with a choice of pubs, as well as Hawk Green and Goyt Mill, before reaching its junction with the Peak Forest Canal at picturesque Marple.
Best for experienced boaters
On a longer holiday, the 97-mile, 92-lock Cheshire Ring is a popular circuit, taking in a complete range of canal scenery, including the spectacular views of the Pennines from the Macclesfield Canal, gentle rolling Cheshire countryside and the lively city centre of Manchester.
From the top of the Macclesfield Canal at Marple, boaters tackling the Cheshire Ring should continue north up the Peak Forest Canal, travelling eight miles, through 16 locks and two tunnels before reaching the Ashton Canal at Ashton-under-Lyne.
Along the way, boaters will go down the Marple lock flight, which drops the canal down by 214ft, and over the stunning three-arched Marple Aqueduct over the River Goyt, now a Scheduled Ancient Monument. As Ashton is approached, the route becomes less rural, passing through industrial Hyde before reaching Dunkinfield Junction and Portland Basin, nicknamed the ‘weavers rest’, as so many weavers reputedly drowned themselves here during hard times.
The Cheshire Ring route then continues west along the Ashton Canal, passing through the densely built-up areas of Droylsden and then Manchester, before meeting the Rochdale Canal at Fairfield Junction and then on to the Bridgewater Canal at Castlefield, a total distance of eight miles, passing through 27 locks.
Along the way, the Beswick flight of four locks stands next to the Sportcity Stadium (home to Manchester City Football Club) and boaters can see Thomas Heathwick’s ‘B of the Bang’ sculpture, which marks the success of the 2002 Commonwealth Games.
From Castlefield, the Bridgewater Canal travels south west to Lymm, covering 13 miles with no locks. Here, the town’s 17th century Cross is just yards from the canal in the centre of this attractive and hilly little town.
From Lymm to Preston Brook it’s another 10 miles with no locks, passing through Stockton Heath, where the 21-mile Delamere Way parallels the canal for a time as it journeys from Frodsham to Warrington, via Delamere Forest.
From Preston Brook Junction, where the Bridgewater meets the Trent & Mersey Canal, it’s a further seven miles to Anderton, with one lock and three tunnels, including the 1,239 yard Preston Brook Tunnel.
The Anderton Boat Lift, nicknamed ‘The Cathedral of the Canals’, perches up on the hill like some giant metal spider. This magnificent Victorian edifice, which reopened in 2002 after a massive £7million restoration project, lifts or lowers narrowboats 50ft between the River Weaver and the Trent & Mersey Canal in two huge water tanks.
There are 10 miles and four locks between Anderton and Middlewich Junction, where the route passes close to Marbury Country Park, then the Lion Salt Works at Marston before travelling through the historic town of Northwich, where the Rivers Weaver and Dane meet.
Once back at Middlewich the Cheshire Ring is complete and it’s another 12 miles and four locks, travelling down the Middlewich Branch and a short section of the Shropshire Union Canal, back to our narrowboat hire base at Bunbury. In total, travelling the Cheshire Ring from our Bunbury base takes 60 hours, passing through 102 locks, and from our Trevor base it takes 102 hours, passing through 140 locks.
To book a holiday or break on any of Anglo Welsh’s fleet, call our friendly booking team on 0117 304 1122.
It has been a glorious Summer on the canals and Autumn 2017 promises even more narrowboat highlights
Summer Narrowboat Holidays Highlights at Anglo Welsh
It is hard to beat languid summer days drifting along canals on a narrowboat, but as autumn leaves start to flutter to the ground along the nation’s towpaths, the Anglo Welsh team are busy preparing for an equally enjoyable Indian summer on the water.
An early highlight of 2017 were the annual Open Days held at six Anglo Welsh bases as part of Drifters’ National Open Day in April. The Canal & River Trust supported event gave narrowboat newcomers at Tardebigge, Wootton Wawen, Bunbury, Trevor and Great Haywood a unique opportunity to try canal boating for free.
Among the summer’s busiest events on the water were the Bristol Harbour Festival, the Crick Boat Show, and the River Festival at Stratford-upon-Avon. In Shakespeare’s hometown, delighted visitors were invited on board Anglo Welsh’s high spec ‘Summer’, rated among the finest narrowboat hires available anywhere on the UK’s waterways.
Anglo Welsh also launched several exciting additions to our top-of-the-range Constellation class this summer, beginning with the 67 ft 6-berth ‘Pegasus’ based at our Great Haywood base and the 65 ft 4-berth ‘Hydra’ in Tardebigge. Next up came the spectacular 69 ft 12-berth ‘Lynx’ and the 67 ft 6-berth ‘Perseus’, both now available to hire from Anglo Welsh’s base at Stockton on the Grand Union Canal in Warwickshire.
The latter county was in the news when Phil Seedhouse, an IT manager from Solihull, decided to raise much-needed funds for Cardiomyopathy UK. The Warwickshire Towpath Challenge normally involves walking a 100 mile stretch of the West Midlands Canal Ring in 5-7 days, but Phil decided to test his endurance by tackling the route in just 4 days. Anglo Welsh’s support for his charitable walk helped him raise over £2,000.
Somewhat less strenuous was Stan Cullimore’s family cruise along the River Thames from our base in Oxfordshire. As befits a man who enjoyed chart success with ‘80s pop band The Housemartins on songs like ‘Sheep’ and ‘Meet the Farmer’, Stan was captivated by the sights and sounds of rural England as seen from the water. “It’s a wonderful way to slow down, unwind and watch the world go by,” he wrote in his Bristol Post review.
Anglo Welsh has yet to ask people to capture their narrowboat adventures in a song, but 2017 did see hundreds of canal devotees record the visual charms of the waterways as part of our ‘Canal Adventures 2017’ Instagram Photo Challenge. Kick-started by an ‘Instameet’ organized by Igers Wiltshire in Lechlade-on-Thames, the nation’s snappers captured handsome narrowboats and panoramic landscapes in all their glory, not to mention smiling children and happy pets!
The nights may be drawing in, but there are still plenty of exciting events on the canals in 2017. On September 20th, Bend on the Bends is a free Yoga session taking place on the banks of the Llangollen Canal next to Anglo Welsh’s base at Trevor, in the shadows of the awesome World Heritage Pontcysyllte Aqueduct, 126 ft (38 metres) above the River Dee. The session is being run by Be Balanced Yoga and is funded by the Canal & River Trust. Not recommended for wobbly-legged punters who suffer from vertigo!
Talking of funny walks, Standedge Tunnel on the Huddersfield Narrow Canal is the venue for the Monty Python & The Holy Grail film and medieval style feast on September 22nd. Visitors feeling sluggish after the medieval feast, could do worse than moor close by and then visit nearby Sheffield, where the following day marks the start of the Sheffield Waterfront Festival, two fun-packed days of family activities and heritage boat trips. The busy weekend of September 23rd/24th also stages the Hayes Canal Festival on the Grand Union Canal, Walsall Canal Open Day, and the Birmingham Floating Market for canal traders.
Looking ahead to October, the Stourbridge Navigation Trust Open Weekend takes place on the 21st and 22nd of that month, a family friendly event now in its thirty-second year. Activities include canal boat trips, rides on classic vehicles and traction engines and fairground amusements – and it’s all free.
Last but not least, the Anderton Firework Spectacular on October 28th in Northwich, Cheshire promises to be one of the autumn’s unmissable events. A fully choreographed firework display will illuminate the sky over the Anderton Boat Lift, the so-called ‘Cathedral of the Canals’. And yes, the world-famous lift does what it says on the tin – lifting narrowboats straight up the 50 ft from the River Weaver to the Trent & Mersey Canal.
To book one of Anglo Welsh’s superbly equipped canal boats, please contact our Booking Team on 0117 304 1122. You can also register your details online or call the above number to receive our full colour 2018 Holiday Brochure with some exciting news for the year ahead.
