SATURDAY : The breeze had kept the frost at bay, but
I stuck my head out to find a shroud of mist - cold January
mist and I was keen to get moving; but first: breakfast in
bed!
After
using the tea bag to 'wash up' I quickly dressed with clothes
nice and warm from the sleeping bag before packing up.
The mile-long section here
was straightened in 1890 with the arrival of the railway and the more
efficient power of steam. I set off with the realisation that the two
forms of transport had entered the realms of nostalgia within a
short two hundred years. The original line of the canal
follows the contour of the hill nearer to Chapelwheel Dam -
the remains of which can still be seen if time permits.
Although no official right of way exists along the abandoned
stretch, it is clearly marked on the 1:25 000 map. There is an
elevated tramway trackbed across the nearby golf course that
is worthy of note also as there are very few tramway remains
around - this one probably linked to a colliery or brickworks
to the west of Eckington.
Near Killamarsh the canal route bears right as the Trans
Pennine Trail heads off northwards to the east of Sheffield. I
lost the line of the canal in a housing estate built on the
filled-in section at Killamarsh, but eventually emerged at the
top of Bridge Street to find an information board with
proposals for the future reinstatement of the canal. This
outlines ideas for the actual route and includes a spectacular
proposal for raising the narrow boats as already used in
Scotland.
| The Forth and
Clyde Canal has been ingeniously linked to the Union
Canal with the amazing Falkirk
Wheel
| |
The route then continues on
to pass an industrial business park with some interesting
remains of coal loading chutes. At the main road I came upon
an assembling group of ramblers in the pub car park. With one
of their members putting boots on next to his motor caravan I
seized the opportunity to get some water. But, he explained,
he didn't carry any in the winter as it ‘...freezes up, see’ -
then I spotted the cleaner emerging from the pub who kindly
obliged and filled my bottle.
After the road the canal is
briefly water-bound once again and the route passes into South
Yorkshire just before a very sorry looking redundant bridge
dated 1833. Here the walker is lead through private property
that was once the inn of the Norwood flight of locks and all
too soon I was at the bricked-up entrance to the tunnel.
Beyond, at the top of the field roars the M1 motorway and the
walker emerges from the underpass onto the former tip of the
Kiveton Park colliery. The tunnel beneath was problematic and
suffered collapses from the outset.
| "In a
third of a mile a rise of over 72 feet made the Norwood
Flight one of the steepest in the country. The tunnel
was completed in 1775 - at 2890 yards (over one and a
half miles) then the longest in the country."
| |
In a fast flowing drainage channel, watercress appeared to
be flourishing - (mind you, I coudn't tell whether it was the
genuine article or the fool’s variety but there was no way I
was jumping in to find out!)
The line is indistinct
here, but with the help of a lady walking her dog, I found
myself at a small footbridge and decided it was an ideal spot
for a brew. Until, that is two rather large muddy setters made
me their focal point of interest. “Go on, shoo….”, “no don’t
sniff in there…”, “da, don’t wee on that… go on, ged off!”
These two were happier than Larry’s, that’s for sure. When the
owners caught up they turned out to be very knowledgeable
about the canal and its history. They spoke of how
shareholders' money had been creamed off with shoddy
workmanship being the final outcome.
NB: At the
time of writing (Feb 2005) Rights of Way over the tip
are closed due to reclamation. There are no diversions
in place. The relevant authority is Rotherham
Borough Council
UPDATE: JAN 2007 - Work on the Tip site is now complete with a new Cuckoo Way waymarked route
| |
Beyond the road, the cutting
is soon picked up at the other end of the tunnel site and
there are no more dry or filled in stretches from here to the
Trent. Here a part frozen feeder from nearby ponds made a
spectacular winter waterfall. Ahead was Kiveton Park Station -
workers from the adjacent works had thrown large rocks onto
the canal from above leaving the dinted surface looking more
like bullet proof glass. The industry here soon gives way to
one of the more pleasant sections by Hawks Wood and Old Spring
Wood towards Turnerwood, though it is from a quarry hereabouts
that 500,000 tons of limestone was supplied for building (and
later repairing) the Houses of Parliament.
I’d read that the Turnerwood
flight of locks (22 in 1 mile) was under reconstruction and
soon came upon a barrier and diversion notice, but it appeared
the contractors were having difficulty in preventing access to
the towpath. Like many before me I detoured round the hedge
and was soon back on the canal side. Come Monday morning no
doubt their first job would be to make good the fencing!
Interestingly, canal towpaths are not necessarily rights of
way. Certainly the work in progress was interesting to view
though and I was surprised just how shallow the empty water
course was. At the attractive hamlet of Turnerwood the barrier
was less accommodating though - where and how had all those
other trespassers got out?
On the ramp up to the Shireoaks road I passed one of the very
few other canal users I’d seen: a cyclist. He “...were just
tekkin’ it steady like”, when he, “...just come off like.” He
said this light heartedly like. “Comes keen that ice…” I’ll
bet! Here the ice had been broken up and the re-frozen surface
of the canal resembled a giant ill fitting jigsaw. This may
have been due to boats venturing out from the neaby Shireoaks
Marina (no pedestrian access). I realised too that some of the
boats had occupants, and reminded myself that some choose to
live long term and make home of their vessel - very different
today to the original, and very basic, Chesterfield Canal
barges that were referred to as Cuckoo’s - hence the ‘Cuckoo’
Way.
I passed fishermen
near Rhodesia and realised that it must have been much milder
on the approach into Worksop, where I took my lunch, having
first purchased it in the nearby Co-op. After availing myself
of the nearby public toilets with their lashings of hot water,
I continued eastward once again. The gate to the former
British Waterways yard was open so I was able to pass under
the main road and warehouse that straddles the canal in the
centre of Worksop and not detour round as I have had to in the
past. Ahead was a trail of litter flotsam and half submerged
super market trolleys that made swift exit from Worksop seem
most desirable. I passed a grand brick building with
impressive tower that once housed a steam powered pump, but
whether it was originally used to provide water for the canal
or as a sewage pumping station I couldn't say. Here the canal
does a sharp right then left over the river Ryton on an
aquaduct.
At the brick
built rail bridge on the outskirts of town one of my toes felt
a little sore - time for a foot-stop and a little Vaseline,
then onward through the Osburton estate as darkness began to
descend. I’d hoped to be in Retford by now, but I’d still got
around 8m yet to go! The lights on Christmas tree at a pub in
Ranby gave me something to aim for beyond the busy A1
underpass, but when I got there it was quite unreachable on
the opposite bank.
From
Ranby to The Barracks the canal runs straight alongside the A1
before swinging right in an arc eastward towards Retford. By
now it was well and truly dark with a capital ‘D’ and my
fingers were beginning to ache from keeping the small torch
on. The beam was still powerful though and I could see over to
the other bank at times. A good opportunity for a sing song…
now let’s see…25th, 26th...3rd, 4th, 5th: 12th night! "And two
three four: On the first day of Christmas, my true love sent
to me...” - very much inaccurately mine of course: cuckoo
indeed! Thus occupied the miles are condensed, but what’s this
ahead… low flying aircraft..? UFO? No, this is the main
electrified East Coast Railway… from a distance the long rows
of lights looked kind of surreal floating silently along.
It was something of a
relief to arrive in Retford, and I read the information board
to learn that from here to the Trent the canal is much wider
and was constructed to accommodate river barges that had a
larger payload. An embankment and viaduct carries the canal
over the River Idle and I was soon heading into darkness once
more at the back of a housing estate. In about a mile and a
half I passed under the last road bridge in Retford and the
canal swung to the right and I tramped the next three miles
wearily. The lights ahead turned out to be a pub and I was
beginning to think of finding a nice level pitch hereabouts. I
dodged in for a half, but felt very much out of place… a bit
too posh for camping on the lawn perhaps? I studied the map.
This was Clarborough and I decided to walk into the village to
check out t’other pub. This added a good mile and t'other pub
turned out a bit ‘posh’, and busy too… still there was some
flat grass to the rear… so in I went…
…and out I came, flea in
ear! Nothing offends like a refusal to a tired walker! It was
the way the guy leaned over the bar and looked me straight in
the eye as he said a very definite “NO” that shook me. I used
his outside tap anyway… mind you I was half expecting to be
set upon and stoned!
With
one more PH shown on the map I returned to the canal. Passing
a phonebox I tried to phone home but the phone was dead…
Another mile and a half of
advancement into a small illuminated pool of black void
delivered me to the haven of the Boat Inn at Hayton. 'Hmm,
this looks more like it… small beer garden? Just fit on there
nicely. 'Tha’ll do fo’me!' A bonus too: Kimberley Ales... 'and
the pint is good. In fact the pint is better than good ‘cos
the landlord is sat over there, and the barmaid has just
forwarded my request and he’s nodding. I have a bag of crisps
to celebrate!'
As food
had finished at the pub (after 9pm) a snack rice supper of
Tikka Masala was soon prepared. Aided down with a couple of
Ryvita followed with a cereal bar and nice cup of rosy, I was
soon settled nice n’cosy...