Thursday was cooler and slightly later starting, but we ascended Trentham and then Stoke flight of locks. The lowest lock is the new one and fills slowly, but I had also forgotten how deep some of these are. At the top we swung right and into the Caldon. I had been looking forward to this as it is 25 years since I went this way
We waited for 2 boats to descend the staircase and joined another short boat to share the locks. They were delightful folks, very anxious to help each other and we shared with them right up to Stockton brook. But there were real problems of depth for Laplander here: we were ploughing a furrow from the start, and this got worse, if anything, as we got higher. So it was a relief as we descended Hazlehurst locks, thinking depth might be better as we went off the summit. Was it heck? We struggled on to Denton and stopped for another pleasant meal at the Hollybush there Friday was to be our last day, returning for the weekend and then picking up again on Monday. But at Oakmeadow forge lock we began the problems. Here as we met the Churnet the recent rains had brought down a bar of silt, and after many attempts we had to give up trying any further. Eventually we reversed back into the Lock to ascend and turn round. But the flush pushed the boat against the cill and bent the rudder. We had to abandon the boat there and walk back to Cheddleton to be picked up and consider our options. There she remains as I write. Ian Cardinal "History will be kind to me for I intend to write it. " Sir Winston Churchill
