After a couple of days loitering around Nantwich (and making the LONNNNG walk into town to re-stock), we’ll be ready to depart when our new travelling companions come aboard around 13.30hrs.  We’ll TRY and be around bridge 91 but will liaise on the day as to our exact (ish) whereabouts.

Following an introductory blah blah (and probably a glass of something bubbly) we’ll pull ropes and chug off on our Northerly route.    It’s not a long first afternoon’s cruising…we’ll pass Hurleston Junction (the Start of the Llangollen canal proper) and before long will  be in Barbridge where (if there’s space we may moor for our first night at the Barbridge Inn Pub.  IF not, we’ll abandon that plan and keep going until we find a quieter spot.

The next morning after breakfast, we’ll head off and before long will arrive in Calveley services – where we’ll probably top up the water tank and make use of their rubbish bins. Once underway again, we’ll come across Bunbury Staircase Locks… often a source of amusement as there is a Hire base at the bottom and we’ll more than likely get to witness a first time hirers ‘baptism of fire’.  We’ll help out if things look like they are going awry.  Ahead of us is Beeston Iron lock – it’s an oddity on the canal network… a WIDE lock, lined with (unsurprisingly given it’s name) an iron trough… the danger to it being, “sticky out bits” that can quite easily tip a boat.  DON’T worry though… we’ll have all eyes and ears engaged as we navigate our way through it and shortly after, stop for lunch.

Depending on whether our guests wish to have a wander up to the remains of Beeston Castle, we may moor for the day – or alternatively, chug on to Chester and then moor for the night.

Our next morning will be flexible – if our guests would like to explore Chester for a while, we can linger until after lunch and then chug off to continue our route towards Ellesmere Basin.  It’s all new territory here for us   - we’ve tried a couple of times to explore up this way but ‘something’ has always gotten in the way… hopefully it’ll be 3rd time lucky.

This area of the Wirral hasn’t got the best  reputation but we prefer to make our own minds up.  Perhaps mooring  at Stoak or Stanney Mill for the evening.  The M53 Motorway is never far away along here so it may not be the quietest of moorings.

Our final day will take us along to Ellesmere Port. We'll TRY and moor near the museum to give our guests a chance to explore before they leave following breakfast the next morning.

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People's opinion on Elllesmere Port is a little subjective – it varies between “oh what interesting place- steeped in History” to “it's a toilet”... AS YET we have NO idea as this is another 'new bit' to us so we'll form our own opinions when we experience it for ourselves... we'll take advice of course but generally, you get a feel for a place on arrival and make mooring decisions based on that... it's never going to be the wild west is it?

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Total distance is 27 miles and 14 locks . There are 4 small aqueducts or underbridges along the way.