Cruise from Sutton Weaver Swing Bridge to Anderton Boat Lift

Schedule

Fri Aug 05 2022 at 12:00 pm to 04:00 pm

Location

Sutton Weaver Swing Bridge | Runcorn, EN

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Enjoy a cruise on a vintage steamship called The Daniel Adamson along The River Weaver from Sutton Weaver Swing Bridge to the iconic Anderton Boat Lift
The first 45 mins is spent gently meandering through the Cheshire countryside and passing locally
given place names on the river such as Goulding Point and Devil’s Gardens.
A small caravan park exists at Pickerings along with a dozen houses, one of which is the former pub
simply named The Boat Inn. We pass between some sandstone works and this was the site of the later
Pickerings Lock at the time when the River Weaver had 13 locks along its length. While we sail between
Pickerings and Dutton Viaduct look out for the winding course of the old river which can still be seen
today.
You will not fail to notice the impressive Dutton Viaduct which takes the West Coast Mainline over the
river. The viaduct dates from 1836 and costs £54,000 to build and the engineers were Joseph Locke
and George Stephenson. Built in red sandstone with 20 arches and around 700,000 cubic feet of
sandstone was used in its construction
A quarter of a mile upstream from Dutton Viaduct we pass the hamlet of Pickering’s O’ the Boat. This
small village is approximately one mile from Kingsley near Frodsham, and was the site of the first lock
on the River Weaver, which dated back to 1759, and was the first attempt to tame the river from the
vagaries of the tides, which made the river tidal over its full length and navigation to Northwich nearly
impossible.
On our approach to the idyllic setting of Dutton Locks with its pretty cottages, you will notice Dutton
Horse Bridge with its unique twin span timber foot bridge, dating from 1919 and is a Grade 2 listed
structure and is described as ‘an elegant structure in the functional waterways tradition’ and is
believed to be the sole remaining laminated greenheart timber bridge in the country.
Dutton Locks were extensively modernised and enlarged around 1874 and the original locks were over
a quarter of a mile away from the current position. Worthy of note is the large flood control sluices at
Dutton where up to eight sluice gates can be lifted over two metres to deal with any flood water
coming down from Northwich.
We then pass through the magnificent Acton Swing Bridge which dates from 1933 and swings on a
pontoon on the island. Built at a cost of £52,000, when the bridge swings most of the weight is borne
on a floating pontoon on the island and a motor of only four horsepower is required to swing the
bridge.
At this point on the river, The Trent & Mersey Canal is only 300 metres away passing through the
hamlet of Bartington, while Acton Bridge village is around one mile up on Acton Hill.
The river forks off around the back of Acton Bridge island which is the home of the Acton Bridge
Cruising Club, and the original stone bridge which carried the A49 over the Weaver.
Shortly we will pass the Woodbine Caravan Park and the Riverside Inn, for many years known as the
Rheingold Restaurant and then riverside cottages and holiday homes will come into view and then we
eventually arrive at Saltersford Locks. The current locks date from around 1874 and the original lock
chamber can still be seen and is now used as a sluice way for flood control.
We head into the idyllic tree lined Weaver Valley countryside heading towards Barnton. Shortly after
that we leave the industrial landscape behind and pass Barnton Sluice and Weir.
We then pass the berths at the site of the former soda ash plant which has recently been demolished
to make way for housing. If you look carefully on the berth you will see the names of some of the old
ships that used the berth years ago, painted on by their crews.
With approximately 10 minutes to go to the lift we will pass through Winnington Swing Bridge which
is the smallest of the river’s five swing bridges, and just before we pass through the bridge look out in
the undergrowth for what looks like an old dry dock, but is actually an ice weir built to remove large
floating chunks of ice from the river to keep it clear for traffic in the days when the river used to
regularly freeze over.
Anderton Basin is a reminder of the Weaver’s industrial past when barges and ocean-going ships lined
the berths loading and unloading cargo, predominantly for the chemical industry. Although the Tatter
Chemical Plant is still operational, the last commercial cargo ship to use the river was The Saint Keiran
back in 1998.
Our cruise finishes at our berth below the Anderton Boat Lift, also known as ‘The Cathedral of the
Canals’. This magnificent structure was built in 1875 to elevate narrow boats, laden with cargo, 50ft
between the River Weaver and The Trent & Mersey Canal.
The lift was designed by the River Weaver trustees chief engineer Edward Leader Williams with Edwin
Clark as the principal designer.
The structure is designated as a scheduled monument and is included in the National Heritage list for
England. Today it is an award-winning visitor destination offering leisure boaters a link between the
two waterways and an informative visitor centre, café and children’s play area
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Where is it happening?

Sutton Weaver Swing Bridge, ,Runcorn, United Kingdom

Event Location & Nearby Stays:

The Danny - Daniel Adamson a 1903 steamship with a unique story

Host or Publisher The Danny - Daniel Adamson a 1903 steamship with a unique story

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