NB AREandARE

Sunday, 16 August 2009

Definitely going downhill ...

Firstly thanks to Steph who emailed to say that the pink flowers we keep seeing at the canalside are probably called rosebay willowherb (also known as fireweed).

What an unbelievable change there’s been in the surroundings since we left the Foulridge Tunnel, just outside of Burnley. We took things at a slower pace today and attempted to find a launderette as we have so much washing accumulated now if I did it by hand it’d take me a fortnight to get through it! The weather has completely changed and was so flipping cold I had my Merino polo neck, my pashmina, my Rohan fleece AND my Berghaus wind/waterproof on! Oh yes, and of course my gloves. What a difference a day makes!

Barry still managed to find some superb scenery ...

A view into the valley from the canal

It's still striking, photos don't do the landscape any justice

The canal got very green for a while, an alleged algae bloom problem that British Waterscape notified us of in an email:

"Wednesday 12 August 2009 until further notice
A suspected bloom of potentially toxic blue-green algae has been reported in the Leeds & Liverpool Canal throughout Burnley.
Although blue-green algae occurs naturally in freshwater, there is a risk of serious hazard to health when they occur in high concentrations. The highest concentrations of blue green algae toxins are found in scums which can form on the water surface, and which can look like turquoise paint, grass clippings or floating mats.
The toxins can affect humans, pets and livestock. You should avoid all contact with water which has a blue-green paint-like scum on its surface and also avoid contact with very green water. Immersion sports (such as paddling, swimming, and canoeing) carry a higher risk to human health and should not be practiced where there is a scum or green water present. Such conditions can come and go quickly, which means that British Waterways cannot guarantee the suitability of the water for these activities. Therefore, it is your responsibility to check for scums or green water prior to any immersion activity.
Do not allow pets or livestock to swim in or drink the water. We recommend that you keep dogs on leads.If you do come into contact with the algal scum, remove contaminated clothing and wash all exposed skin in clean water as soon as possible, particularly before eating or drinking.
If you are in any doubt about your welfare after contact with the algae, please seek medical advice. This advice remains in force for the forseeable future until the bloom has subsided."

It sounded very serious, so we decided not to swim in it!

When combined with all the other rubbish in the canal we were terrified

But maybe it wasn't too bad really!

A view across the valley

Exactly half way between Leeds & Liverpool 63 3/8 miles each way

Another picturesque crumbling wall

We cruised past a place called Accrington, and having put this onto my facebook status I was contacted by Steph with a You-Tube link about their football team, Accrington Stanley. Watch it, it’s hilarious! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CgYP1d5nN2o I remember the advert well ...

Accrington on a good day

We would've stopped, but grounded the boat on something while trying to moor

Not game to find out what, so we moved on!!!

Obviously a cannonball hole through the wall from the 17th century
Very slow to do repairs around here!

This poor horse in someone's back garden either had a muzzle on or had just eaten one of m'lady's pot plants

The navigation passes through some very sad and grey looking towns now. We stopped at a place called Rishton - Barry did a google earth search on the town and found hardly any green areas at all. It seems as though the whole place is made up of terraced houses with back yards, with the local kids playing together on the streets. Still at least we saw children playing outside, which appears to be a novelty. In the midlands and the south it wasn’t something we saw much of. Maybe their parents up in this part can’t afford a computer so they’re not stuck indoors playing games inside which the majority of youths do nowadays.

The Nicolson's Guide said that there was a launderette in Rishton, but it was nowhere to be seen and on asking I found out that it had closed down … Damn!!

Coming back to the boat after my stint in town, I challenged Barry to go for a walk or bike ride and find something worth taking a photo of, and of course he amazed me as per usual!

Rishton Park on the edge of town

Yachting on the reservoir

There was a cricket game going on at the time, but this was more exciting!

One of the adjoining alleys between the terraced houses

Can't say they aren't trying to brighten the place up

Not necessarily a one horse town; though I didn't happen to see any others!

It isn't just the prices that need trimming around here

Good to see kids out playing, even if it is in the middle of the street

When you don't have a playground or back garden what are your choices?

The kids were very friendly and showed me some of their basketball skills whilst asking lots of questions

The buzzing High Street of Rishton

In fairness it was a Sunday afternoon

Looking out towards Great Harwood to the north

I love these terraced houses!

The kids were still out playing till dad came out and called them for tea

It was great to hear them laughing and squealling

The search for a decent mooring near a launderette continues (now with several days/weeks of smelly clothes around). We think there may be a couple in Blackburn, so we’ll try there tomorrow, but we didn't want to venture there today as the Nicholson Waterways guide book says to ask the lock-keeper where the secure moorings, are which is a tad concerning!

I got a bit excited this afternoon when I read on msn that there’s a mini heatwave predicted for this week; but sadly it’ll be in London and the south east before a chill heads their way from the west – guess where we are? Of course, in the blooming west where it’s very cool.

Go to :
http://news.uk.msn.com/uk/article.aspx?cp-documentid=149198176&ocid=today
"Fleeting return to summer predicted
Britain's elusive "barbecue summer" will make a brief appearance this week, with parts of the country expected to bask in sultry temperatures.
By midweek, southern and eastern parts of the country will be enjoying sunshine and blue skies, with the mercury predicted to hit 29C on Wednesday.
But the fine weather will be fleeting as a cool front moves in from the West."

Saturday, 15 August 2009

Getting to the train on time

Another early start as Kim and Joe leave us today and have a train booked from Burnley. We had three locks to negotiate until we were at ‘Top Lock’ - it’s all downhill from now on!

Rolling rural countryside. Very similar to parts of New Zealand

No shortage of green grass for sheep & cows

The top of the canal - the outlet tunnels feed the canal water from reservoirs close by

Just after 11am we arrived at Foulridge Tunnel, 1640 yards long, and controlled by traffic lights. A boat was coming through as we approached, but once it had emerged the lights still didn’t turn green. We had to wait another ten minutes or so as apparently the lights just change automatically on the hour from the north and half hour from south, which is frustrating when you know the tunnel is empty!

Kim & Sandra peeking out in the tunnel

A strange photo creation by shooting up one of the ceiling vents as we passed under

Barry's map of his journey home from the pub .... or ... maybe a 20 second exposure of the end of the tunnel and the following boat's headlight while Barry twists and turns the camera

The angry tunnel monster spewed green slime after us as we left his home!!

Dr Who must have thought he was in a time warp when he landed here

We had the most dreadful weather conditions with pouring rain and driving wind, Joe and I did the locks together and got completely drenched. But we made really good time as we didn’t get held up waiting for other boats to go through and between the two of us we had a streamlined set-up.

Three boat pile-up
Probably happened speeding in fog!

It was a toss up whether Kim and Joe should get off at Colne and catch a train there to Burnley, but we took a gamble on getting to the train on time!

As we approached Burnley the canal became littered with debris of all shapes and sizes, it was even worse than that encountered on the approach to Coventry. Quite disgusting really, obviously the people here aren’t so proud of their canal which is very sad.

Must be getting closer to Burnley

We reached bridge 31, which is a short distance from the railway station, in the nick of time! In fact they had a half hour wait, but it could have been very different had we met a delay on our way. I had a visitor on the boat who came just as Kim and Joe were leaving with Barry, a six year old boy who was out walking and playing alone by the canal. He came on board and had a look around, as he said he’d never been on a boat before. Boy he could chatter bless him! Such a cute accent, a jolly little fella who was still there when Barry returned from the station 40 minutes later!

Little Jordan, quite a character

We had a fabulous six days with Kim and Joe, and it was very sad to say goodbye to them. We've learnt another valuable lesson though – assume that you’ll travel a much shorter distance than you think so that you allow for things like restricted lock opening times! Then we’d have been able to chill more and look at more places along the way with them. It’s a challenge to predict into the future on a narrowboat; so when people come to visit and have to plan their journeys we need to give them a starting and finishing point. I wonder if anyone has any ideas about doing it better??

Time to go

Two derelict pubs opposite the Burnley Central Railway Station

Sandra took Jordan back to where we found him after his little boat ride

Obviously nothing much on TV

We continued through Burnley, along the three quarter mile embankment that was basically built between two hills and literally cuts the town in half. The sun had decided to come out at this stage so the light was just perfect for Barry to get some wonderful shots of the sky-line.

The view towards Burnley from the aquaduct on the embankment

A series of shots from the top of the boat as we cruised along the embankment

How many chimneys ???

Some of the houses have been painted which has brightened the streets up a bit

Rows of terraces, with newer housing in the background

More typical northern terraced housing - the houses were originally built for the Mill workers

St Stephen's Church with Boulsworth Hill behind with a summit of 1696ft above sea level

Same church with Dales at rear

There's so much land - why cram so many people into such small housing areas?

The 'modern' development looks a bit greener

Lambert Howarth Mill - there's no shortage of disused factories and mills around here

Must say it's refreshing that we've seen more kids out and about recently

Burnley Town Hall

Last little puff of green

Although there was a place to moor in Burnley, there weren’t any other boats there and to be honest, nothing against anyone who may live there, we just didn’t feel terribly safe. So we continued on for a few miles and stayed at Hapton, with an impressive view of the hills in the distance, and watched a colourful sunset before retiring early – well I did; Barry stayed up doing the photos for Thursday’s blog!!