The Wigan Flight and Leigh

At last, the flight re-opens after nearly eight weeks unscheduled maintenance and we descend the 23 locks after speculation that Lock 73 won’t hold out much longer!
Can we make it?

This is the queue of boats waiting at the top can flight there a blue one in the distance there behind us called Bard then there’s us then there’s that one there this one Delphinium Prince Caspian there’s one there with someone El smoke coming out so now it’s not open until Tuesday so it

Was going to be open Friday today Sunday and um hopefully it’s going to be Tuesday now so summer definitely going down Tuesday we’re now not going until Wednesday hopefully if you open okay um so we better change the plan now we’re not going to be going down the

Clan Gotham quite as early as we had hoped we’re going to hang around and wait for the middle wi to open about 22nd of December and then we’ll make our way slowly up to the aqueduct and um when that opens in March we go to the very end then come

Back so yeah that’s one of those things we can’t do much about it so we’re going to have to just do a another but um there’s loads of SE around here it’s not like we’re at a dead end so we can go down this flight we’ve got a

Choice of going either right into Liverpool or left down to Lee and onto the um Bridgewater Canal then from there you got the Ken and Mery so there’s quite a lot we can do so uh we’re just going to be doing that so this is the last of the boats this one

On the very end here was actually in the flight just about to go into the lock that so had the seal B on when it went so he was so unlucky cuz if it had have been uh got into the lock when it sort of

Started to go down here been on his way but uh he’s actually been here over eight8 weeks waiting so we are it’s a rainy Wednesday the 1st of November so we survived Halloween last night now we’re going to try and survive the wend flight we’re going with that boat that’s

In front of us there it’s uh about4 7 now Point rain but we’re going to go for It so just coming out the first look we doubled up with another boat to make it easier so there’s three of us doing the lock and one’s doing doing the boats seems really old watching our boat coming along w’t actually on it at all but uh it’s certainly an easy way doing It we’ve gone through lock 70 69 which is the Troublesome one it’s the one just up behind us no lock 70 and it’s going quite smoothly Cas down there she just set 71 so uh well the way here I think she might have some help there now as well and SK turned blue

Really strong bu wash in this one this is lock 70 see it pour it out there that’s lock 72 just being opened and uh I’m just filling up 73 so we on our way now going well 36 PL gases 76 rebuilt by British waterways Ford 1988 I This is lock 78 and it’s got this different winding gear which uh makes it a bit easier it’s got like a ratchet thing h So this was our team golden M so me through in 4 hours top to bottom 4 Hours that’s it we done it we made it down the we’re going fly and uh just behind us is the Bo we shared it with they’re going the other way we’re going around to the left onto The on to the Lee garage So this is the first lock just about to go into on the Lee Branch um yeah loot one and uh it’s only two to do today um on the way down to to Lee and I think it’s about an hour and a half journey to

Get down there so um we no rash it’s only just done 12:00 so we’ve done really well to get down here in this time um so yeah there goes the sign there saying flat Bridge 23 minutes this is my push bike obviously Lee 51 minutes W to

Center8 in Lee 27 ail which is part run 32 minutes and at PR bridge2 which is in the other direction so uh just waiting for this one to fill Way So we just left the do do lock bridge this morning more there for the night I’ve been coming out from the flight and um just heading now down the Le R towards toward plank Lane so we are at plank Lane lift bridge now and we’re just

Going to go through here and more up the other side so this is one of those electric ones where we put the key in just over there there paint and water side and Marina green s the green button keep open to until the bridge is fully swung

Open so where it goes start the sequence barriers coming Down and the Bridger start to lift it’s like quite a new development this new houses all around the Waterfront don’t forget to stop for me will you course you you going to squash me then stop for you okaye now going to expertly more but just in front of that white

Boat there a bit of oil on It there’s go up done going to be more in for a few days I think it’s a little bit low but could steep down on the boat but it’s idea to Lo we met the people on the boat there in front of us so uh being among other

Boats quite lit here and there’s some Marina so we’re going to stay here for a few days my plank lane bridge so 7:30 on uh Friday morning and um this is a view for a side hatch looking down in the direction of maester and just painting around this is the war

Here I think it’s called pingon War Le so quite close to painton flash there’s lots of groups of s coming along here because it is a one of the S trains rout5 there a good this morning and this pton Hinton wolf as this s says it’s pre previously known as Biga Dar Jubilee

Arena so um yeah Pickton col is once the largest and deepest coal mine in the wig Co field and was the last working pit in Wigan until its closure in 1992 the first pit was sunk in 1877 at its peak um network of caverns stretched for Miles underground linking neighboring

Colies in goldor and Parsonage