THOUGH it was expected that the stoppage on the Macclesfield Canal at Bollington would have been dealt with by now, it is to continue, with Canal & River Trust stating that it will take longer to determine what repairs are needed.
The closer inspection has revealed that the problems are more complex than was first anticipated or were at first evident, Keith Gudgin tells us.
Closed for weeks
A spokesman for the Trust, related:
"Unfortunately it's going to take longer to determine the repair needed and the repairs will be more extensive than first thought. It's certain that the canal will not be open in time for the weekend and may be closed now for a couple of weeks.
"In the meantime we are constructing the various accesses we need to into the canal with the expectation of being able to start the repair works in the next day or so."
Boats still arriving
Boaters, unaware of the closure are still arriving at Bollington, both from the recently repaired Marple Flight on the Peak Forest Canal and from the Trent & Mersey Canal.
The recent closures on the Yorkshire canals have persuaded many boaters from that area, stuck on the eastern side of the waterways, to take to the Trent and to the Trent & Mersey Canal, as we noticed on our cruise along this waterway was very evident, with no few telling us they were hoping to get back via the Macclesfield and the Huddersfield Narrow, something they will now be unable to accomplish.
Abandoning boats
Hire boaters, we are informed, are having to abandon their boats and arrange transport to either return home or to flights back to their destinations. One such boater, Sian Price told us:
"We have come from the U.S. to have two weeks on your wonderful canals, but found they are not so wonderful, as we have been stuck without provisions for days, and all we are told we will have to turn back, that completely ruins our itinerary, and don't know how or where it will end."
[if you are held up by this stoppage and would like to share your views, we would be pleased to hear from you. Simply click the email icon on the right hand top of this page.]