63_ Narrowboat up the Wigan Flight

4th September 2019


We leave our mooring by Bridge 51 in Wigan on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal and negotiate the 2 locks prior to the Wigan Flight. We pass the wigan dry Dock which can be booked via the Canal and River trust website.  Watch out for the Leigh Branch of the Leeds and Liverpool canal which branches off to the right. 
We arrive at the bottom of the wigan flight at 0835 and start the 2 mile climb with  21 locks with a single hander boater named Les. We were hoping to have some help from a volunteer but none were present at the bottom of the flight, so with windlass and handcuff key we set off up the flight. 
We pass the steel works on the right hand side of us as we are ascending the locks.
We had managed nine locks on the flight  before we encountered some volunteer lock keepers on their way down with another boat, so from our tenth lock we had volunteer help.  Hooray!
The weather was inclement to say the least with periods of hot sunshine to heavy rain.  Watch out for the old branch of the canal at the top lock which was the planned line of the Lancaster Canal, only a short partly dried up section exists beyond the bridge.
We moor sooner than planned at the top of the locks as by this time we were wet, tired and hungry  and it was still raining.