Great Haywood and the Trent & Mersey

Bricks missing from the Sow Aqueduct

Boats moored at Great Haywood Junction

The dark, damp, drizzly and generally unpleasant morning delayed our departure until 11am when the clouds began to lighten a little.  Fortunately the weather improved as we travelled the remaining 4 miles and 1 lock to Great Haywood where the Staffs & Worcs Canal joins the Trent & Mersey.  Passing over the aqueduct over the River Sow we were disappointed to see that there were even more bricks missing than we had seen earlier this year.  I am not sure whether people steal them or they are knocked off by passing boats.  I will report this to CRT.

At the lock, Tixall Lock, there were unusually 2 hireboats ahead of us waiting to descend.  One was crewed by a group of Swedes out on the second day of their first ever canal boat holiday and the other by a Dutch couple. 

When we eventually reach Great Haywood it was lunch time and we were due to descend a further two locks in the next mile or so we moored up to eat with the intention of moving on afterwards.  However as usually happens we never summoned the enthusiasm to move on.  So here we stayed.  After all it doenst matter if we take an extra day getting home.