Reaching the summit and starting the descent

Resuming our journey
Apologies for quite a lengthy absence, we had a significant family health issue to deal with, which is now fully resolved and not expected to cause any further problem.
However the account of our journey to Liverpool is now very behind schedule as we actually reached the big city a month ago now. (You’ll have to wait for photos) When I last wrote, we were in East Marton with its double bridge,

double bridge at East Marton
East Marton, double bridge

and it had started to rain. To be honest, it’s felt like it’s rained most of the past six weeks and as we were leaving the intense beauty of the Dales a grey drabness enveloped us.

Rain. Rain. Rain.

Being true codiwomplers we do have the luxury of time and are able to stay put inside if it rains. But undeterred we dodged the showers and continued up the last few locks at Greenberfield.

Arriving at the summit of Leeds and Liverpool canal

And shortly after crossed the border from Yorkshire into Lancashire at bridge 149.

Passports please, crossing the border.

Then came the one way Fouldridge tunnel with its traffic lights. Because of number of widebeams using this canal it’s inappropriate for CRT to ask them to restrict passage to 8am as they do for other one way tunnels.  So each direction has an allocated 10 minute time slot per hour in which to enter the tunnel and make it’s minute journey into the darkness. Can you imagine car drivers waiting 50 minutes for the lights to change.

Waiting for the lights at Fouldridge tunnel

We were now descending the Pennines and our first series of locks at Barrowford didn’t disappoint.

Looking down over Barrowford locks at Barnoldswick

In one sense going down is easier because I can open the paddles fully to empty the lock but on the shorter locks it’s harder to open the gates without the helm getting soaked under the deluge from leaky gates.

Cold shower anyone?