Over the top

The last SIBA meeting I missed because the train I took broke down.  This time I would take no chances, I would go by boat.  I headed off to Burnley in reasonable sunshine and moored up just before Gannow Tunnel and walked across the road to Moorhouses.

 After the meeting, I set off through Burnley toward Barrowford in sunshine.  I was enjoying the journey so much, I completely lost track of the time.  Before I knew it, I was at the bottom lock of the Barrowford flight.  This is not a safe place to stop, and it was six O'clock.  Sunset was at 8:05, so I had 2 hours to do seven locks, what could go wrong!

When I reached lock 48 none of the ground paddles were working, and only one gate paddle, do the Unicorn got a good wash!




 When I arrived at lock 47, the wash coming from the side pinned me to the side of the lock entrance.  Eventually I managed to scrape into the lock.  I left the boat in the lock and walked up the remaining locks to find that whoever had gone before had left the paddles open.  No wonder there was a lot of water coming down.  I finally got into lock 45, the top lock at 8:00, just as the sun set.  by the time I got out of the lock, it was dark.  September seems to catch me out for how quickly it gets dark.  I moored up just out of the lock, at the water point - I assumed that nobody would be sailing here in the dark for water.
I was exhausted by this final lock flight, and walked over the field to have a couple of quite necessary pints in the Bridge.

The following morning, it was a short sail up to Foulridge tunnel and I timed it right so I was waiting at the red lights just long enough to put the kettle on.

Through the tunnel and I moored up at Foulridge wharf to get the bus back to Blackburn for the car

Then it was over to the Brewery for a pint of Marshmallow Unicorn, and to cask some.









The Navvygator, our 1816 porter commemorating the 200th year of the Leeds Liverpool Canal has arrived