The first landmark on many good trips from Scholar Green is Hall Green Stop Lock.

 

The lock isn’t deep or particularly special but it is a location charged with some emotion. Either, it’s anticipation at the beginning of an adventure, or it’s sadness at the end. As a result, Hall Green is always memorable for me. The happy crew and me passed through late this afternoon.

Having said that there is nothing special about the lock, it does look like it’s the wrong way round. The double gates are at the top and the single is at the bottom. In the past, the water level on the Macc was lower than in the summit level of the T&M that it joins here. But then the Harecastle Tunnel suffered subsidence. To enable boats to continue to pass through, the water level was lowered. So the situation was reversed.

Whilst most people assume the Macc continues after the stop lock and terminates at Hardings Wood Junction, in reality, this is the beginning of the Hall Green Branch of the Trent and Mersey. You can tell almost immediately. The characteristically narrow bridge holes of the Macc are replaced by the wider T&M ones.

The branch soon passes over the main line on the Poole Acqueduct, but I have posted several pics of that on here already, so no more today. In fact, as the first 2 days of this trip are just the reverse of the end of my trip in June, I will try to avoid repeating myself.

We’re moored for the night on the Church Lawton visitor moorings, and I am still trying to get used to boating with company. And there might be a good sunset tonight!