Friday 27 January 2012

Canal Boat Holidays on the Four Counties Ring

Canal Boat Holidays on the Four Counties Ring
By Abbie Bacchus

A circular route which is perhaps slightly more challenging in terms of it's level of difficulty, but well worth the effort!

The Four Counties Ring satisfies boating holiday goers looking for rural views, with the Cheshire plains visible from your narrowboat, and pastoral scenes amid the Cheshire locks climbing to the panoramic views at 'Heartbreak Hill'. The ring route offers a diverse mix of wildlife, countryside views, quaint villages and city life.

Which canals are part of the Four Counties Ring?

Shropshire Union Canal (1827)
Middlewich Branch (1833)
Wardle Canal (1829)
Trent & Mersey Canal (1777)
Staffs & Worcs Canal (1771)
Cruising up the Shropshire Union Canal with it's rolling countryside, the southern stretch of this navigation offers lock free cruising until Market Drayton, a traditional market town. The town is full of 17th Century architecture and has been home to gingerbread for the last 200 years. Cruising north takes you through Adderley and to Nantwich, a historic town just south of Hursleton Junction containing over a hundred listed buildings. Passing through the town by boat you cross the Nantwich aqueduct and north to the Middlewich Branch.

Middlewich is set in the middle of the Cheshire salt industry, from the canal you can see mountains of salt next to the remains of Roman salt sites. Middlewich is home to an impressive set of historic halls and gardens, such as Little Moreton Hall, one of the most famous Tudor Halls in England, Rode Hall and Dorfold Hall. Cruising from Middlewich to Stoke-On-Trent via the Trent & Mersey is the most lock heavy section of the ring. The Cheshire Locks are a flight of 26 locks dating back to the 1770's which raise the canal from the Cheshire Plain to the Summit Level at Kidsgrove.

The Trent & Mersey Canal is home to the spooky Harecastle Tunnel just north of Stoke on Trent, which spans approximately 1.75 miles. Mooring just south of Stoke-on-Trent you can explore the city on foot, spending time discovering the famous Staffordshire Potteries Museum & Art Gallery and Wedgewood Museum. Staffordshire is perfect for foodies, Stoke-On-Trent has plenty of fine food restaurants & every October the market town on Stone hosts a 3 day Food and Drink Festival to celebrate the best of Staffordshire's local food produce.

As you pass the Haywood Junction onto the Staffordshire & Worcester (Staffs & Worcs) Canal the waterways widen, rumour has it that when this section of the canal was built the landowner had insisted that the canal be widened as he thought narrow canals were unsightly! This is now referred to as Tixall Wide just southeast of Great Haywood. The Staffs & Worcs Canal stretches approximately 20.5 miles from the Haywood Junction to Autherley Junction, where to continue on the Four Counties ring, you cruise north back onto the Shropshire Union Canal. There are 12 locks on this stretch including a flight of four locks just as you cruise past Gailey.

We would recommend a 1 week holiday minimum for those wishing to complete this ring route, depending on daylight hours and level of experience. Although 10 days would be make for a more comfortable cruising schedule as to achieve this route in a week you would need to cruise approximately 9.5 hours a day. For those with no previous experience who really want to do a ring route rather than an out and back journey, there are shorter circular routes that we would recommend you try first, such as the Droitwich Ring or Birmingham Ring.

If you would like to talk to one of our friendly team with regards to Canal boat holidays or any of the boating holidays we offer, such as Norfolk Broads boat hire, please do get in touch. The staff at Waterways Holidays are experienced boaters, and are more than happy to discuss boating holidays with you. Our number is 01252 796400 and we are open 7 days a week.

Friday 13 January 2012

Wales Holiday - Visiting a Land of History

Wales Holiday - Visiting a Land of History
By Jim T Thomas

If you are staying in a guest house in Wales there are many attractions and historical places you should make a point of visiting. Harlech Castle is one such place. The castle sits on a hill and gazes out across land and sea to give you a stunning view. This breathtakingly classic castle will take you right back to the time of King Edward 1st and his rule in the 13th century.

Beumaris Castle is another great place to visit. This castle is an unfinished masterpiece as money and supplies ran out during construction. Regardless, it is an amazing spectacle and some consider it the best of all the great Edwardian castles in Wales. The Aberdulais Falls is a beautiful, picturesque gorge at the bottom of the Dulais River near Neath. It played an important role in the early industrialisation of the Welsh valleys and is one of the oldest industrial sites in Britain. Rug Chapel is another excellent place worth visiting if you are staying at a guest house in Wales. It is a lovely little religious site that is a rare example of a hardly altered private chapel from the 17th century. It is filled with amazing carvings and elaborate roof decorations.

Llangar Church is worth visiting as it is a perfect example of a rustic parish church, with 15th century wall paintings, 17th century figure of death, old beams, box pews and a pulpit and minstrels gallery. Valle Crucis Abbey is an array of fascinating ruins located in the green fields beneath Llangollen's steep-sided mountains. The Abbey has fared well over the centuries and many of the original features remain. Criccieth Castle is another castle worth visiting with an intriguing history. Built by the Welsh it was then captured by the English and then gained back by the Welsh again. It suffered fire from the Welsh leader Owain Gly Dwr in 1404 but still remains standing today.

If you want to experience some Welsh history visit Anglesey as it has a wealth of historic monuments and sites. It includes standing stones, an array of burial chambers, hillforts and fortlets. The Roman Fortress Baths in Caerleon were built around AD 85 and this is one of the most complete remains of any baths in Britain. This site includes fortress baths, an amphitheatre, barracks and a fortress. Castell Coch is a late nineteenth century castle that is lavishly decorated and furnished in the Victorian Gothic style and is reminiscent of the Middle Ages.

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