Victoria Quays to Whitley Bridge
(South Yorkshire Navigation, New Junction Canal Aire & Calder Navigation)
£1250pp (£2500 per charter)
Trip 6 – 21st to 28th May (7 nights)
Victoria Quays (Sheffield) to Eggborough (Aire & Calder Navigation)
This is a trip of 39 miles and 26 locks
Having spent a couple of days moored in Sheffield, we’ll expect our guests to arrive about 1.30pm on day 1 and after an introductory blah blah (and most probably a glass of something fizzy) there’ll be a couple few hours free to explore Sheffield before dinner and our 1st night moored in the basin.
Next morning (after a simple DIY breakfast), we’ll cast off and head for Tinsley Top lock. Today we are heading ‘downhill’ and will descend through 12 broad (and hard work) locks… probably tying up for the evening at the bottom of the flight or if we’ve made good progress, perhaps in Rotherham Cut.
This is a river navigation and we’re constantly nipping on and off the river – and if needs be (i.e. flood conditions present) we can take refuge in the various artificial cuts along the way.
On day 3, depending on progress, we can aim to tie up around Mexborough (another cut) or press on to Spotborough.
It’s difficult to pin down mooring sites until we begin the trip – water levels in the Don may mean we have to put in longer (or shorter) days … we may be able to spend a night in Doncaster but more than likely we’ll press on to Wheatley cut.
Shortly after we pass Barnby Dun (where we’ll probably have watered up) we need to take the left fork in the canal and head on to the New Junction Canal. It’s a long straight and apparently boring section… still, sometimes nature throws a kingfisher in our direction by way of an apology.
Once we’ve got to the top of the NJC, we make a left turn on to the Aire & Calder Navigation (Ellis’s home canal) and probably moor up for the day BEFORE Pollington Grange (so as to be able to use the tap just after the swing bridge the following morning).
On our final morning, once topped up with water again, we’ll chug on to the last mooring – expected to be before Whitley lock. Our trip will end after breakfast the following morning when our guests will depart.