Portland Basin Day out, 27 Sept 2017.

Today had a good day, starting with the last of the old wood fencing taken to the tip.

Rears seats down it's cavernous.

Got everything covered so it didn't damage the car. 

Had bought a boot mat at B & M

Seemed a good bargain, a decorators sheet was £10 at B&Q and wouldn't have lasted.

The last, thank goodness, can now tidy up the garden.

A quick visit to the Garden Centre cafe and then off to meet Jean and Button 50% of the PJMP Dog Walkers club at the Portland Basin Museum in Ashton, I'd been before years ago, but was told the cafe there was very good and I wasn't disappointed 

Pepe with his Leonburger pal.

The Portland Basin.

Outside seating area for us dog owners, still it was a nice day if a bit breezy.

This is me for a change, Jean trying out her new phone camera!, as you can see we didn't finish all the chips, we'd had a portion between us with our BLT's, they were buootiful with plenty of filling, 3 rashers of nice lean bacon!.

The Menu.

Indoors, beautifully clean.

These old pictures on the walls??, can you name the people ?.

At the side of us was this strange arrangement of a narra boat and after a chat with the guy on it, it was as I thought a Buttie boat with a separate engine section at the back, seems it is easier to operate on the canals smaller turning circles, it can be detached and used at the front or the back!.  

The connection.

Commercial boat and on the right a work boat

Canal and River trust.

I think these are restoration projects

Steams up.

This is a newish boat and came in as we were there and unloaded a load of disabled people and the chap at the front was giving hand signals to the driver.

Is this Canada goose taking the mickey?.

Cost for this £95,000, all by donations and run by volunteers, lovely boat. 

This is the place where Gail's husband in Coronation Street drove the family into the canal, years ago that was, perhaps had a few more husbands since!.

If you live on a canal boat this is the way you go to the shops!.

Built stuff to last in the old days .

One of the exhibits inside, didn't go round inside much with having the dogs, but saw this on the way to the loo's!, an example of dry stone walling.

Something you might be interested, in this chap we were told is a local guy from Dukinfield, seems like a good night out, get your old war time gear out of the wardrobe!.

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The older you get, the better you realise you were.

The older you get the longer it takes you to get over a good time.

I've got to watch myself these days, its too exciting watching anyone else.

Once over the hill, you pick up speed!.

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P.J.M.P, dog walkers day out, 22nd 9.2017

Today the P.J.M.P dog walkers had a trip to Grandpa Greene's Ice Cream Cafe in Diggle, one of our lady members had been before and recommended it, so we all met there in time for the breakfast menu which finishes at 12-00 noon.

Doesn't look much from the other side of the canal, but once you get nearer then you see the effort that's been put into the place to give you the best of the location.

That's the other members of our club on the seating at the side of the canal.

Jean,David,Mary & Peter.

Inside the covered seating section there is no need to worry about being cold as there is a fabulous heater in there.

Another inside seating area through that door.

Inside the gazebo we were in, they had covered the walls with this leafy covering which gives you the  outside, inside feeling.

There is also an outside area that is covered in on all sides, keeping the breeze off, the the side facing the canal is clear so you can still see the Narra boats cruising past. 

Though this poor chap isn't cruising anywhere as the bottom gate of the lock near the Cafe was broke so no one could use it though the Canal people were soon there is weight up the situation.

This is the top gate of the broken lock.

I was chatting to the guy and telling him about my hobby of building model Narra Boats and he said he wasn't bothered about the break down of the lock, I suppose its the pace of life this mode of transport is, no worrying about traffic here!.

Another boat just taking it easy.

After lunch the males of the group took the dogs for a walk on the canal path and we soon came to the Standedge Tunnel, Three and a half miles long!.

Peter quite interested here, what's he looking at here?.

It's this, so you know that it's all about now, I will be asking questions later!.

And the Blue Plaque in the wall!, Telford was a busy chap wasn't he, building bridges and tunnels and goodness what else.

The Prince of Wales opened the tunnel, (not the present one though) and this flag stone was along the path, look at the cost, £123,304!.

This one seems a strange one!.

Couldn't make out what this was on the other side of the canal, but it looks like feeling birds to me, there again I've got a weird sense of humor.  

So when it looked that it was going to get a bit cooler, we set off in convoy and called at the Hartshead Inn on the way home for a quick drink and found to our surprise that the dogs were allowed into the bar area at the pub!.

Don't get my photo taken very often, it's usually me taking them.

The nibbles on the table aren't for us, for the dogs!.

We were just in time to see Joddrell bank telescope in Cheshire with the binoculars, but the rain and mist soon put paid to that, at least we saw it.

Peter and Sashia.

The Pub sign and the Pike in the distance

As you can see the Inn is on the site of a farm, there is a better picture of the name on the grit stone wheel at the base of the sign on an earlier post, not going to tell you what date of that post though, hint! look at the labels for Hartshead Inn.

So another nice day out with good company, food and of course the dogs, who were all very good, though when I got back from the toilet Pepe was sat at the other end of the bench getting petted off one of the guys sat there!, he'll go to anyone if there's a chance of a treat.

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Three things happen when you get to my age,

First your memory starts to go and I've forgotten the other two!.

Middle age is when broadness of the mind and narrowness of the waist change places 

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