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The Tuesday Night Club on Tour

Index

Tour 2003

Reccy to inspect Mersey Estuary and the River Dee in Chester. Plus a visit to "Royston Vasey"

Sankey / St Helen's Canal. looking downstream from Sankey Bridges at the now fixed rail bridge (still in use)

Sankey / St Helen's Canal.  Martin is admiring the view of the rather over the top safety fencing! The weir to the right is the original course of the canal down to the River Mersey, following Sankey Brook.

Sankey / St Helen's Canal. Half way walking from Sankey Bridges to Fiddler's Ferry. Fiddler's Ferry power station beyond.

Sankey / St Helen's Canal. Fiddler's Ferry - the Ferry Pub on the River Mersey, the Sankey Canal is just behind, close to the river at this point.

Sankey / St Helen's Canal at Fiddler's Ferry. End of navigable stub up from Fiddler's Ferry Lock down to the Mersey.

Sankey / St Helen's Canal. Looking up the Mersey from Fiddler's Ferry Lock. The first building on the left is Ferry Boatyard. Their wharf does not dry out at LW.

The rather silted entrance to Fiddler's Ferry Lock. For this reason they would think a narrow boat would get in about 45 mins BHW and and an hour after HW.

Fiddler's Ferry Lock. It would be possible to beach a narrowboat / stay afloat in the centre of the short lock cut.

Fiddler's Ferry Lock from Sankey Canal to tidal River Mersey. Fiddler's Ferry Sailing Club to right.

Fiddler's Ferry Lock.

Spike Island, the Widnes end of the Sankey Canal. End of yacht mooring up from lock.

Spike Island, Widnes. Looking down at moorings and lock out into tidal River Mersey.

Spike Island Locks. One has been restored, the other is a slipway. The swing bridge on the far Runcorn shore is Old Quay over the Manchester Ship Canal. 

The not too silted up entrance to Spike Island Lock.

The Mersey downstream of Spike Island.

The Mersey upstream of Spike Island.

The entrance to Spike Island from upstream. The Runcorn Bridges are just round the headland.

Spike Island Lock.

Spike Island. The visitor centre is just to the left.

River Mersey Estuary. Looking down stream from the Runcorn Bridges. North Bank - Main Channel. 

Runcorn Bridges over the Mersey and Manchester Ship Canal - this is just beyond the far bank of the river.

Looking down the Mersey from Runcorn Bridges. Runcorn, south bank beyond.

John Chapman very much at home in Liverpool Docks, Langton Lock Control Room.

Langton Lock Control Room. Liverpool Docks.

Langton Lock up from Mersey to Liverpool Docks. This is the small lock, but bigger that the larger Manchester Ship Canal Locks.

Looking across the Mersey (upstream) from Langton Lock entrance. Birkenhead beyond.

Langton Lock Control Block. Liverpool Docks.

Langton Lock bottom gate. This 40ftish wide tank of water slides in from the side, forming the gate. This lock was modernized to this style of lock gate in 1962.

Langton Lock top slidey gate.

Looking down Langton Lock.

Looking down the docks from Langton Lock - Alexandra Dock beyond, this then connects to Gladstone Dock and the large Gladstone Lock out to the Mersey. Gladstone Lock is the main one in use for Seaforth container terminal, which is in the new dock beyond Gladstone Dock. 

The bow of the Mersey Harbour and Docks Board suction dredger and assorted light floats in for refurbishment.

This pristine craft was built Yarwoods of Northwich.

One of the Pilot Cutters.......no doubt Ian Clarke will tell us what kind of plastic boat this is!

From Liverpool Docks wall, looking down at Langton Lock entrance. Gladstone Lock is centre picture.

Looking across at New Holland, mouth of the Mersey Estuary from Liverpool Docks.

Looking up the Mersey from Liverpool Docks.

On the swing bridge over the entrance between Canada (behind) and Huskisson Docks. Beyond the next restriction is Sandon Half Tide Dock. Liverpool Docks. This is the route you have to take as you pass up through the docks to get to Stanley Dock and the Leeds and Liverpool Stanley Docks Branch up to the Leeds and Liverpool Canal.

Victoria Clock Tower. This is facing Salisbury Dock, which leads across to Collingwood and then Stanley Dock. There used to be a connection with the Mersey here. Beyond here are another series of disused docks, Trafalgar, West Waterloo and Prince's. It is from Prince's Dock that BW propose their new link canal across to the Albert Dock complex, in front of the Liverbirds.

Nelson Dock, where some of the dock tugs are kept. Bramley Moore is equipped as a fire tug. It is in this dock that you are allowed to wait overnight if you arrive too late at the docks for a BW assisted passage up the Stanley Docks Locks.

The listed Tobacco Warehouse beside Stanley Dock. The Bascule Bridge at the entrance is disused, but has headroom more than enough for narrowboats. Liverpool Docks.

The Bascule bridge over the entrance to Stanley Docks. There seems to be a Short Boat width fixed bridge in the foreground.

Looking out from the Stanley Dock Bascule Bridge through Collingwood and Salisbury Docks to Victoria Tower. Mersey and Birkenhead beyond.

Stanley Dock. The teeny weeny hole in the far wall in the entrance to the Stanley Dock Locks Branch up to the Leeds and Liverpool Canal.

Stanley Docks Bascule Bridge and the Tobacco Warehouse.

Liverpool. Looking down the Mersey from Albert Docks. Two of the Mersey Ferry Termini can be seen. The Liverbirds are just to the right out of picture.

The single "on the level" gate into Albert Dock from the Mersey.

Right up the end of the Mersey Tideway at Warrington. This is Howley Weir.

Just down stream from Howley Weir. Warrington, Tidal River Mersey.

The remains of Howley Lock. Warrington, end of Mersey Tideway.

Here is a view looking up at the first bridges across the tidal Mersey in Warrington. Arpley Railway, Old and new just beyond.

Warrington Old Bridge.

New bridge downstream from Arpley Rail Bridge.

The inspiring Warrington New Bridge over the tidal River Mersey.

A difficult to get shot looking upstream of the listed Warrington Transporter Bridge.

Latchford Large Lock. Manchester Ship Canal.

The Gina D we met last year. Here it is leaving Latchford Lock. MSC.

The very disused Walton Lock, which used to connect the Manchester Ship Canal to the Upper Reaches of the Tidal River Mersey.

Walton Lock, from MSC side.

You cannot see Walton Lock from the MSC, as it is at the end of this side dock.

Walton Lock. The remains are so silted, that it still holds back the MSC!

Walton Arches. The railway bridges just down stream from where the cut up to Walton Lock used to exit - this was in fact the course of the River Mersey Until the Manchester Ship Canal was built.

Erm?...............this is part of the entrance cut up to Walton Lock!

The Dee Locks Branch of the Shropshire Union in Chester.

The Dee Locks Branch of the Shropshire Union in Chester.

The Dee Locks Branch of the Shropshire Union in Chester.

The Dee Locks Branch of the Shropshire Union in Chester.

The Dee Locks Branch of the Shropshire Union in Chester.

The Dee Locks Branch of the Shropshire Union in Chester. The final lock down to the River Dee can be used as a staircase.

The Dee Locks Branch of the Shropshire Union in Chester. Entrance into Tidal River Dee.

The Dee Locks Branch of the Shropshire Union in Chester. Entrance into Tidal River Dee.

The "watergate" in Chester Weir.

The "Watergate" in Chester Weir. It would be technically feasible to turn a 70ft narrowboat just beyond.......BUT seeing as it is so silted beyond at the moment, you would need a tide of about 3ft over the weir..........in which case you might as well forgo the 300 quidish charges to United Utilities (Was NW Water) and pass straight over the weir! Tides high enough to get over weir, have a day up the river , then get back again occur twice a year on the April and September Spring tides. So not much loss of BW's income in them dropping the charges for Dee Locks Branch of SU.

Chester Weir............nice tidal lock on far bank anyone?

Eastham, Mersey Estuary. Looking up at the entrance to the Manchester Ship Canal.

Eastham, Mersey Estuary. Looking up at Stanlow Oil Refinery.

Eastham, Mersey Estuary. Looking Straight upstream.

Eastham, Mersey Estuary. Looking across at Speke, Liverpool Airport and Garston Docks.

Eastham, Mersey Estuary. Looking over to Dingle and Aigburth.

Eastham, Mersey Estuary. Looking down to Liverpool.

Eastham, Mersey Estuary. Looking down to Liverpool.

Eastham Locks, left to right - MSC Small Lock, MSC Large Lock and QE 2 Dock Lock.

Runcorn, Old Quay, looking up the Mersey Estuary. The channel of the Tidal River Mersey has fairly recently switched to the south and is really scouring away at the bank. This old bank protection is now in mid channel!!!

Runcorn, Old Quay, looking up the Mersey Estuary. 

Runcorn, Old Quay, looking down at the Runcorn Bridges. 

Next piccies are of our brief visit to "Royston Vasey" (Hadfield). Was this pub renamed?

"The Town Hall"

The monument used in opening sequence of League Of Gentlemen.

A local cafe for local people? I think this has grown up since the series was filmed here! The signs in the window advertise "Tubbs Special" and other such delicacies.

"Bliss The Butchers".........where you got your "Special Stuff"!..........has John got a slight nose bleed? 

I can't remember if this pub was renamed in the series, I expect some smart person will know.

Hotel.

Pauline's "Job Centre"

I'm sure someone will remind me of their names, but this is the house there the frog keeping couple with "The Shinning" twin girls lived.

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