The Four Counties Ring

Fran and I have undertaken week long canal boat holidays previously, these have generally involved traveling from point A to point B and then retracing the journey back to the starting point. Such week-long trips provide a good introduction to canal boating, but as we have experienced the Llangollen Canal and Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal, we wanted something a little different. We contemplated trying one of the canal rings, so started looking at the various canal rings that interested us and decided on the Four Counties Ring. In relation to the Four Counties Ring, there are numerous hire boat companies we could have picked, but in terms of choice for our requirements, the main reason we booked with Aqua Narrowboats was that we liked the quality of the boats and layouts, they were also dog friendly and the marina location was also a plus.

We booked the 50-foot narrowboat “Aqua Life” This narrowboat was very easy to handle and provided adequate space for a two-week trip with our border collie Rio, myself and Fran. The kitchen is very well equipped with a grill oven and another separate oven, together with a three burner hob, so cooking wise its ideal. The fridge is a good size with ample space together with a freezer compartment. There is ample storge for tins, packets and bottles of whatever supplies you bring along or pick up on your travels and the kitchen utensils provided were plentiful for us. Fran loved the pillows on the bed, I found the bed practical and comfortable for our needs. I personally found the shower excellent after a day’s cruising prior to relaxing in the evening.  There are two TV/DVD players on board, although we watched very little TV, the TVs were one of the only things that were not so good, as the image quality varied tremendously in relation to viewing angle. For a hire boat overall the quality of Aqua Narrowboats is very, very good and worth paying a little extra for.

We decided to do the Four Counties ring in reverse in order to save what we thought would be the highlights of the trip until last. As there is so much info online about the four counties ring, my intention is to highlight my favourite places and spaces, together with a few images. We left Barton Marina and travelled up the Trent and Mersey Canal and moored up at Rugeley on our first night with a quick shop at Tesco. The Next Morning we headed for Great Haywood Junction mooring up for a few hours to take Rio for a good walk and visit Lichfield Drive Railway Bridge in Shugborough Park. This railway bridge has to be one of the most beautifully decorated I have seen in the UK and worth a visit. We also walked up to the Triumphal Arch, the Dark Lantern and Temples of the Winds all located within the Shugborough Estate. As I am passionate about photography, we took it in turns to visit the Litchfield apartments, home to the photographer Patrick Litchfield. Unfortunately, some of his work that was on view previously has been auctioned off which I think detracts from the experience, so was lucky to have seen this work last year when I visited Shugborough.  The scenery along the Trent and Mersey up to Harecastle tunnel is a mixture of open rural fields dotted in between urban spaces and the history of the potteries via museums and of course the Home of Wedgwood. For me Personally it was the Shroppie  and the Staffs and Worcs canals I enjoyed the most. Nantwich is very distinct town and well worth an explore and located on the Shroppie canal. Continuing further along the Shroppie canal, is The Secret Nuclear Bunker, I went inside as it was on route and easily accessible from the canal. If you are a cold war enthusiast the bunker has a wealth of displays and memorabilia from that era. Within the bunker there is a mini cinema where you can watch the film “War Games” it was once banned and is now dated, but I thought watching this was worth the entrance fee, as I had not heard of it prior to visiting.  Audlum is another great stop off location with the pub “The Shroppie Fly” and the Audlum flight of 15 locks from an engineering and visual perspective they are very impressive.       

From a photographic perspective Tyrley Locks is where the Shroppie canal becomes really interesting, you can see numerous videos talking about the backwash from one of the locks or see peoples second attempts to navigate into the lock, but visually this area is beautiful. Unfortunalty the tow path at Woodseaves Cutting was closed, I would have liked to walk back along this stretch as it is stunning when the light penetrates the cutting, pockets of light illuminate the foliage and anything else in the lightrays path. This location was by far the best photographically and just like a sunrise or sunset the duration in relation to time was very short, but very memorable.  One of the best overnight moorings was without a doubt at Tixall Wide, with views of Tixall Gate House. I have wanted to explore the Four Counties ring for years, so finally have experienced it over a two week period, I learned more about the canal engineer James Brindley, the types of goods that were transported along, the deep rope marks and cuts left on the metal brackets on the bridges from when the narrowboats were towed by horses.   

We covered a distance of 145 miles traveling along four distinct canals operating 118 locks and Rio took his first ever swim. Personally I think completing a ring provides a sense of achievement rather than our previous canal trips where you go there and back, but this does require more time and involve additional cost.  

A few links for more information

Aqua Narrowboat Hire

Shugborough Estate – The National Trust

Hackgreen Secret Nuclear Bunker

Canal & River Trust