Ellesmere and Wales

In was cold and blustery when we set out again at 8 a.m. this morning (Tuesday, July 5) through the Shropshire countryside.  The canal passes briefly, for a mile or two, through Wales, but then it returns to England.  We had no locks on our route today, so only the person at the tiller had anything to do other than relax.  We spent our time reading, and Paula and I played another game of anagrams, which ended in another tie. 

Around 11 a.m., we stopped in Ellesmere, mainly to gather provisions at the Tesco located conveniently at the end of a short spur off the main canal.  We walked to the High Street, having heard about the Tuesday market.  Although held in a historic and spacious market building, it was a sad little affair with only one vendor selling produce and the rest selling sweets, hardware supplies, homemade kitsch, and essential items such as manufactured socks and underwear. 

A cultural insight:  In parts of the West Midlands as well as other parts of northern England, as we enter shops and encounter people in passing, we are asked, “Are you all right?” with the same inflection that would be used in America if we had just tripped and fallen to the floor or were choking on food.  This always startles me.  My instinct is to look behind me to see if someone has suddenly and silently fallen to the floor with a heart attack.  It always takes me a moment to realize that the speaker is saying the American equivalent of “Hello, how are you?” 

After we unloaded the groceries and ate lunch, Andrew, Peter and I decided to take a walk to see the Mere of Ellesmere.  There are several lakes, of meres, in this region of England that have no inlet or outlet.  Geologically, they were formed after the end of the last Ice Age, about 10,000 years ago, the same as the mosses (the local term for what we call bogs) that we visited yesterday.  As the glaciers receded, “kettleholes” formed in the land and filled with melted water and precipitation.  We saw the usual swans, geese and ducks swimming near the shore.  Peter and Andrew bought ice cream—the sun was shining and we didn’t need jackets, so, of course, it was ice cream weather! 

The Mere at Ellesmere

We veered away from the lake and found a footpath that took us across a hill, along a fenced field and then back up the hillside to almost the same place.  We decided to stick to the roads and streets, which, unlike the footpaths, show up on Google maps.  As we made our way down what was designated as a two-way street called Love Lane, with six or seven-foot stone walls leaning inward on either side, we heard a vehicle approaching behind us.  Looking back, we realized we could not squeeze up tight enough against the wall to let this commercial van through, so we scurried to the end of the street.  The driver had to stop as he left the lane to put his side mirrors back out.  Did I mention that this was a two-way street?

Since the sun was shining in a nearly cloudless sky, we decided to continue on our journey.  After we turned back into the main canal, I took the tiller.  I did pretty well maneuvering in general, hardly hitting anything.  The width of the semi-circular bridge arches we pass under is only a foot or two more than the width of the boat.  Although I occasionally bumped when exiting, I did not find these too challenging.  Passing boats going the opposite direction was more nerve-wracking since they were moving objects to avoid, and I am happy to report that I only maneuvered our stern into one of them. 

Here is a wonderful, bucolic scene I captured with my iPhone just before angling the boat in the canal and getting the rudder stuck in the muck. 

Shropshire countryside

I remained at the tiller as we passed from England into Wales at Frankton Junction, which leads into the Montgomery Canal.  After two bridges in Wales, we have moored for the night less than a mile inside the border.