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Bridgewater Canal, Worsley to Altrincham
We walked from Worsley to Altrincham on Sunday, 12th April 2009. A walk of around 9 or 10 miles which was quite scary in places.
Public Transport
We caught the 33 bus from Wigan to Worsley at a cost of £4.80. The bus left Wigan at 10am and arrived in Worsley at 10:50am. A word of caution if you're planning the same trip... for some reason, the 33 bus between Wigan and Worsley only runs ons Sundays!
Worsley
It was good to be back at Worsley. Our walk started before 11am and we were soon making tracks, meeting and greeting many pleasant people on the way. The weather was great too, not a cloud in sight.
Lighthouse
We even came across a lighthouse on our travels! Not what we expected.
Barton Aqueduct
Further along, we had to leave the canal for a few hundred yards because of the Barton Aqueduct which carried canal traffic over the Manchester Ship Canal. What a marvellous feat of engineering! This was a swing bridge built in the early 1890s which swings over the Ship Canal over a central island. The 235ft long bridge, weighing 1450 tons carries the canal some 39ft above the Irwell- amazing.
Trafford and Geese
The next part of the walk took us through Trafford. This is a heavily industrialised area and the canal is little used by walkers. We were attaked by a goose here. There was no way we were going to pass, the goose owned the area, lol. A short detour and we re-joined the canal at the Kellogg's factory.
Stretford
What can I say? It was an experience we won't forget in a hurry. I think the word I'm looking for is 'rough'. A rotting smelly dead dog on the towpath, a man and a woman arguing loudly, choice language etc. A lady was sunbathing amid the graffiti and litter, perhaps it was the nearest she would ever get to Blackpool!
Food
We were getting hungry by now... It was 2:30pm and we hadn't eaten. We came across a pub by White's bridge (Bridge 36) called the Bridge Inn. We called in for a drink and some food. They had a special offer on too! Buy one get one free on food, so it was a bargain. A decent pub with decent food.
Sale
It was good to leave Stretford and head into Sale. It was still built up in places but the whole area had a different feel about it. We were safe.
Trams and Trains
We left the canal at around 4:15pm and caught a tram from Navigation Road into Manchester. It cost us £5 and we could only go as far as St Peter's Square as the tracks in the centre were closed for maintenance work. Typical. We walked to Picadilly Station and paid £3.05 for the train to Wigan. Not bad, BUT, and its a big BUT, the train was run by Northern Rail. I can't put into words on a family friendly website how bad this company is. Strangely, the train left on time. First stop Manchester Oxford Road. After sitting at this station for a while, the conductor started making apologies about another driver not turning up. Great. 30 minute delay at that station. Northern Fail it is, I have never once had a decent trip with them.
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