Canal walk Sunday 16 September Wigan to Barton
We had our usual gang of four for our canal
walk. We proceeded from Stockport
to Wigan by train. At Manchester the train
was joined by a group of lads on their
way home after all night partying; they
looked like the weather : grey and pasty;
one lad had a cut above his eye and blood
splattered over his shirt.
It was a gloomy Sunday morning, we hardly
saw Wigan at its best ! We found our way to the main Liverpool to Leeds canal
and then the junction leading off for
the branch to Leigh and Manchester. The
towpath was in excellent condition
which made progress easy.
Sue had declared that the forecast was for
rain at 11.00am which would then set in
for the rest of the day. Sure enough the
drizzle started on cue at 11.00; but fortunately
quickly petered out to leave a mostly dry
day.
We stopped at the pub in Leigh at about
half distance for lunch time refreshments and
then proceeded in afternoon by way of
Worsley to Patricroft and Barton. After Worsley the drizzle became more
persistent. We abandoned any plans of walking on
to Manchester and instead sought out the
bus back to Manchester.
We were treated to a bus tour around the
environs of Pendleton and Salford, involving criss crossing the Irwell about
four times. By this time it was teeming down, so we
were grateful to have finished walking. The
bus eventually took us to Shudehill where we were able to catch the tram to
Manchester and then on by train back to
Stockport.
We had enjoyed a good walk and thankfully
had managed to avoid the worst of the weather, For our next walk we will
venture on to the Leeds to Liverpool canal main line; details to follow.
John H
