Day 9 Lymm to Dunham Massey

I woke at 7am this morning with the sun pouring in the porthole.  Smudge and Chris were well away in the land of nod so I lay there for a further hour dosing until I could stand it no more and got up.

After feeding his lordship and walking him in the warm morning sun we got under way.  We had hoped to fill with water at the Lymm Cruising Club but were told in no uncertain terms it was for members only and that the next tap was at the Old Number 3 pub 2 miles on.

Lymm cruising club

 The canal, though still quite nice is very samey until Agden wharf.  Here there is a hive of activity and many boats are moored along with these rather odd statues in very manicured wharf gardens

Odd states at Agden Wharf

Beautifully kept old wooden cruiser. not a mark on her and all wood gleaming with varnish

Just after Agden Wharf is my dream home.  Forget the others I've shown you I want to buy this when I'm older.   Can't think of a better way to be close to the canal than this.  Oh and yes they are UPVC windows.  Wouldn't fancy painting these unless you had a flat boat to stand on.  It Looks like and old warehouse and cottage but from what we can see its been beautifully restored into a great home.

Can we live here Chris please?

Nearby is this old caravan.  Again someone has looked after it well as its in pretty good condition
George Clarke would have been interested in this one.

New build sailaways waiting for their new owners along side a sorry looking cruiser.

We desperately needed water as Chris needed to do a wash.  We took a chance and put the washing machine on and it almost emptied the tank completely just as we passed the tap at Little Bollington.  Unlike the C&RT taps the only clue there is a water tap at all is the blue spray painted "W" on the hut.  We very nearly missed it altogether.

Two other boats were queuing so I quickly stopped and gently reversed back up.   The tap is just before a long line of permanent moorings and the last boat offered to let us breast up while we waited.  There was no need in the end as the boat filling moved off and the other one shuffled up making room for us, we thanked the owners for their offer all the same.

Whilst waiting we got chatting to the crew of the boat filling and they had two dogs.  A Jack Russel and a 10 month old Parsons Russel bitch.  Smudge and the Parson's Russel got on really well and played happily whilst we waited our turn.  The elderly Jack Russel joined in and all three scampered about tails wagging.

Smudge and the Parson's Russel get a drink from the water tap, both up to no good :-)

After filling up we said our goodbyes and thanked them for their mooring advise. We had been told of a good spot to moor at Bollington Aqueduct and it did not disappoint.  Its a delightful little sun trap with wide grassy towpath.  We got out the chairs and sat in the sunshine having lunch.  Chris could not resist this little selfie. 

Who needs a selfie stick

The afternoon sun was really warm and it got to a point we had to retire to the shelter of the cratch.  Time to empty the beer box a little so a glass of Strongbow dark cider was welcoming refreshment.

Poor Smudge was beginning to feel the heat so found a shady spot under the chairs for a snooze

 Is quite a lovely spot here and Smudge has been allowed to stretch his legs all afternoon which has done him good.  He is now snoring his head of on the day room chair.

Our mooring for the night with only one other boat for company

 Our easy going schedule has today been thrown to the wind as we got news our boater friends Del and Al will still be in Liverpool but leaving when we are due to arrive.  A quick phone call to C&RT and we are now booked in a day earlier so we can at least have one evening get together with them before they leave.  

So for the next few days our cruises will now need to be a little longer to get there in time.  We'll still have plenty of time so not too long a cruise each day.

Total distance:3.47 miles Elapsed time:2h33m1s Locks:0 Bridges:8 

Average speed:1.36 mph (1.36 lock/mph)