Froghall Tunnel: would we get through?

Read on to find out how we got on with Froghall Tunnel. This morning we walked up the hill to get a paper. On the way we passed Cheddleton Flint Mill. It and the surrounding buildinngs make a picturesque scene.

Before saying goodbye to our mooring neighbours Jane and John I got them to pose with their recently won trophy from the AWCC.

John and Jane edit the BCF magazine to a very high standard - the award is well deserved.

I guess the covered area before the bridge must have been for loading from the mill. Other boats would have had to wait, I suppose.

I didn't spot Cheddleton Station but there was plenty of rolling stock on the Churnet Valley Railway, which accompanied us all the way to Froghall.

At Oakmeadowford Lock we joined the River Churnet for a fast glide through the trees. There were many pheasants around here (and, disconcertingly, a brace of dead ones under a balance beam at the lock).

We took on water from the high pressure water point by the lime kilns at Consall Forge; below Flint Mill Lock we met up with Nev and Rachel, with Leia the dog, who delivered some post to us. They accepted the invitation of a cup of tea; it didn't take much persuasion for them to climb into the bow to see if we could get through the tunnel, about a mile further on.

And so we arrived.  As before, when my brother and I took Lee Swallow through in 2005, I switched off the engine so we could inch through by hand.
 

Jan took this photo of Nev guiding us through...

... and this of me looking after the back end.

We made it to the other side with very little damage, despite the extreme lack of clearance most of the way along.  A brass centreline fairlead got slightly scraped, and I shall have to touch up a handrail at one point. Oh, and my leather hat looks a bit rougher now. But it was worth it, and we couldn't have done it without Nev and Rachel's help, so thank you. (And we'll see you tomorrow when you return to help us through the other way.)

So tonight's mooring is down the lock onto the "Uttoxeter Canal" and tied up to a pontoon.

The bonus is that we have mobile phone signal here and I was able to watch F1 qualifying on the laptop!