Completed the Llangollen

Saturday 13 June. 5 miles, 1 lift bridge.

Morning started cold and drab so no hurry to move but move we must as we are out of internet coverage and in this modern age a day on the boat without contact with the outside world is hard to take. Just before lunch with a brightening sky we moved less than a mile around the corner and went for a walk around Whixall Moss. It is where peat has been cut until recently and now is protected so it can revert to it's pre-harvesting days. The area has a lot of military history. During the Boer War it was a training ground. In WW1 four rifle ranges were constructed. The army also harvested peat for horse bedding and moss for sterile wound dressings. During WW2, with 3 flying training schools and 2 fighter and bomber operational training airfields nearby the area was used for fighter pilot gunnery training and a bombing range. An unusual wartime feature was that a flare path was lit as a decoy and it was one of the Starfish locations. How it worked. When the Germans dropped incendiaries to mark a target it was put out asap and fires were lit here to make it look like the target for the bombing force. While we were there we had a battle of our own. You have heard about the West Coast sandflies, well we have experienced the biggest and hungriest mosquitos I have seen. As usual I was in shorts. A bad decision that I am still regretting. There was another walk I wanted to do a mile or so further on but having walk 4 miles on boggy tracks decided to do it on the way back. Late in the day the drizzle started but we continued until the clouds got dark and heavy rain was threatening, so pulled over for the night.

Sunday 14 June. 3 miles. 1 tunnel.

Cruised into Ellesmere basin having been told there should be plenty of room. At the end of the arm we turned and moored up in the only available slot, next to Tesco's. It will be easy to stock up with some extra heavy items before we leave. We have now done all of the Llangollen canal. Our first narrow boating experience was with Richard and Mel back in 2003 when we hired a boat from Trevor and got as far as Ellesmere before returning to Trevor. Had an easy afternoon with a wonder around later. Meet another couple of Kiwi boaters who are overseas for the first time and have been on the Union canal in Scotland, are now on the Llangollen and then off to spend a week on the Regent canal around London.

Monday 15 June.

Main purpose of the day was maintenance. With the town a couple of hundred yards away I can get the bits and pieces I need. Di managed to find a couple of op shops. We took a walk to the Mere, had coffee, walked back via the White Hart for an ale.