Kidsgrove

We turned round today and started heading back towards Macclesfield for my hospital appointment on Thursday. It was a cold start to the day and we were back into boots and socks and jeans and sweatshirts but after lunch the sun came out again and it was as hot as ever.
We'd originally planned to turn round in the winding hole at Rode Heath but a hire boat had moored right across it so we had to go down 2 locks, turn round and then come back up the 2 locks again before starting back. That made a total of 17 locks today and most of them have been hard work, I must be getting old!
The last lock is one of a pair in between 2 pubs, the Canal Tavern and the Blue Bell and there were lots of local 'scallies' milling round pints in hand. One 'nice young man' fancied jumping off the lock side onto our roof or maybe climbing down the lock ladder onto the roof until he realised he'd get his trainers dirty on the lock sides! He eventually gave up and staggered off along the road with his mates, taking his pint with him. Just as we'd been going into this lock we picked something up on the prop again, so when the water level was almost at the top Roger went down the weed hatch, in his kinky green long-arm rubber gloves, and removed a mountain bike tyre.
We turned right at Hardings Wood junction and moored up for the night on Red Bull Aqueduct. Luckily we got a space right on the end of the aqueduct away from the sewage works as sometimes it can get a bit smelly here.
While we're back on the Macc. I must take Charlie for a hair cut, poor thing is too hot and can't see out of his one good eye.