On Friday morning we decided to drive to the nearby town of Stone and walk along the canal.
There was a little bit of drizzle in the air but it soon cleared up.
We had a cup of coffee in Marks and Spencer which stands overlooking the canal. I expect it is well used by the boats that moor nearby.
The Trent and Mersey Canal runs between these two places and Stone is about halfway between the two.
We decided to walk towards the outskirts of the town before returning the way we had come.
There are lots of interesting features along the banks of the canal. New apartments overlooking the water on one side.
Bridges
and locks.
Boatyards and Chandleries
The Georgian Parish church of St Michael can be seen in the distance.
There were lots of boats moored near the workshop and the tip tapping of hammers and the buzzing of drills competed with the birdsong and the whiff of paint was in the air. It reminded me of how noisy and busy the canal would have been in its heyday.
Boats were also moored in front of the old Joule's Brewery which closed in the 1970s. Beer is now brewed at a modern factory in Market Drayton.
We saw lots of wildlife along the way
Including a swan family
An unusual pair of ducks. Mallard and Cayuga mix perhaps?
The grey heron didn't seem too bothered by people walking by as he strolled his stately way through the water quite close to the town. At least you can see that the water isn't too deep.
Thanks for showing Stone, Rosie. It is through your blog that I get to see places that I will probably never get to visit in my lifetime. I enjoy walking along a canal side. I haven't done that in ages. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you Simone, there are so many places that I know I'll never see too, but it is wonderful to see them on other people's blogs:)
DeleteWhat a lovely walk.
ReplyDeleteThank you Barbara,it was a lovely walk:)
DeleteA lovely walk - I do enjoy walking along canals because there is always so much to see with bridges, locks, interesting buildings and wildlife even in cities and towns as wonderfully illustrated by your post and photos.
ReplyDeleteThank you RR. I find canals fascinating in towns and cities as well as when they travel through the countryside as they are rich havens for wildlife as well as lovely places to walk for pleasure and exercise:)
DeleteAmazing how so many of these canalside areas are now being spruced up. I hope it doesn't eventually ruin the beauty of our canals, which is such a wonderful asset.
ReplyDeleteThank you John. I hope so too. The Trent and Mersey is a long canal which goes through some wonderful countryside as well as some industrial, built up areas. I'm glad canals are being preserved for leisure and pleasure and as wonderful havens of wildlife:)
DeleteMore gorgeous areas, of your lovely country......
ReplyDeleteGentle hugs...
Thank you Wow, glad you popped by:)
DeleteWe love walking along the nearby waterways. I enjoyed your walk.
ReplyDeleteThank you Jean, glad you enjoyed the walk, I love walking near water:)
DeleteThe canal locks are quite similar to ours.
ReplyDeleteThank you William, I think some canals now have electronic locks but around here they are all as they were:)
DeleteOh so lovely, I would dearly love to travel around your country.
ReplyDeleteThank you for visiting Mary, glad you enjoyed my post about the canal:)
DeleteWe're fortunate to have networks of canals still being used. You get a sense of past industry as well as seeing today's leisure boating activities as you walk along a stretch of it. It's good to see the wildlife too.
ReplyDeleteThank you Linda,I think we both live in areas which were once more industrial and have those networks of canals as a legacy of that. I'm glad many have been refurbished and reused for leisure pursuits such wonderful areas to walk:)
DeleteA canal walk is always lovely, it's interesting to see how things have changed over the years too. I love the photo of the Heron, one of my favourite birds :)
ReplyDeleteThank you Pam, it was lovely to see the heron, so close to the town, they are unusual birds aren't they?:)
Deletejust to let you know that I am going to resume blogging but making this for other authors only, this should stop spam and any other unwanted readers. sorry for messing about. This means other bloggers like yourself will be able to read but general public will not.
ReplyDeleteBriony
x
Hello Briony, thank you for letting me know - there does seem to be quite a bit of spam about at the moment which is annoying. Welcome back to blogging:)
DeleteWhat a great walk with so much to see, you can't beat a stroll by a canal. 😊
ReplyDeleteThank you Karen, there's always something to do along a canal:)
DeleteSuch a lovely walk, thanks for taking me along virtually.
ReplyDeleteThank you Julie, glad you enjoyed your canalside walk:)
DeleteYou took us on a beautiful stroll. So nice to see the boats and the wildlife.
ReplyDeleteThank you, I'm glad you enjoyed the stroll:)
DeleteWhat an interesting walk. I really like those old canalside buildings - and I love that milepost. x
ReplyDeleteThank you Mrs T, I love the old brewery building and I'm always drawn to the mileposts too:)
DeleteThat looks like a lovely walk.
ReplyDeleteIt's an interesting walk as there is so much wildlife even in the industrial bits:)
Delete