Witton Street, Northwich, Cheshire : 2006 to 2016

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Northwich isn't a place we visit very often on our boating trips as it requires passage down on the Anderton Boat Lift from the Trent & Mersey Canal onto the River Weaver.

Anderton Boat Lift

 

We've done this trip twice and on each occasion spent an evening in Northwich.

#236 The Roebuck

I'm not entirely sure if we ever ventured into either of the pubs, but I did take pictures for posterity. The first visit was on the evening of Friday 1st September 2006 and this is what The Roebuck looked like. (You can just see the Green Dragon three doors away)

Our next visit was on the evening of Saturday 13th August 2016 and this is how much change had taken place in 10 years.

It had been completely redecorated, but was now up for sale...and according to WhatPub it is now permanently closed.

#237 Green Dragon

You've already had a glimpse of this pub in the photos above, but here are the close-ups. 

As far as I can tell, the Green Dragon is entirely unchanged in the 10 years between these pictures...and it is seemingly still thriving!

Whilst it is sad to see a pub close permanently it is worth noting that Witton Street also is home to the Witton Chimes, The Quayside and Penny Blacks which is a Wetherspoons, so it is hardly surprising that something had to give and it looks like The Roebuck was the unlucky loser.

#219 Leigh Arms, Little Leigh, Cheshire : 2000 to 2016

The Leigh Arms is probably the only pub that we've visited from different waterways on each occasion.

Our first visit there was on the evening of Sunday 3rd September 2000 on our return from a long trip to Manchester.

By the time we'd moored up it was almost 8pm and, with it being a Sunday, we were expecting it to be a close run thing as to whether we'd be able to get any food. As it turned out, the food had just closed for the night when we arrived, but the chef was willing to prepare us a Chilli Con Carne as there was still some left - so, what could have been a disaster turned into a very pleasant evening!

On that occasion we'd been travelling along the Trent & Mersey Canal heading south, back towards the Midlands.

Our most recent visit was on the evening of Sunday 14th August 2016 and this time we were travelling along the River Weaver having moored at Acton Bridge.

Although we were earlier in the evening this time (about 7pm) the food service had stopped at 6pm, which seems to be quite common these days on a Sunday. So, we had a pint, discovered that the Riverside Inn was a short walk away and, with it being a Marston's pub, was serving food until 9pm. We decamped and spent the rest of the evening in the Riverside Inn.

#216 Stanley Arms, Anderton, Cheshire : 1991 to 2016

The stretch of the Trent & Mersey Canal to the north of Middlewich is a section of the waterways that we only rarely traverse. My first ever encounter with the Stanley Arms was in 1981 when we had a brief stop to have a look at the, then defunct, Anderton Boat Lift. We were only stopped for half an hour and I don't recall whether we went in the pub or not.

The next time I was passing was on the journey to move Emma Jane from Wigan to the Southern Grand Union Canal.

This was a lunchtime stop on Tuesday 23rd July 1991. Back in those days it was a Greenall's pub that did good food.

Although we were up that way again in 2000, we didn't stop at the pub until the lunchtime of Friday 1st September 2006, prior to taking Emma Jane on her first trip (and ours) down on the Anderton Boat Lift.

Unfortunately, this view doesn't really show off any changes to the pub. It was no longer a Greenall's pub, but it still did good food!

Our most recent visit was at lunchtime on Monday 15th August 2016 and the changes from 1991 are much more apparent  from this view.

The basic layout of the pub is unchanged, apart from the porch added to the front entrance. Windows have been replaced, one chimney has been reduced in height and a 'smokers hut' has been built in the garden. Inside it was still welcoming and serving good food.

This visit also coincided with trips up and down on the Anderton Boat Lift (first time for the new boat Peggy Ellen) and we popped into the pub whilst waiting for our slot to return from the River Weaver.

Anderton Boat Lift

 

#213 The Old Broken Cross, Northwich, Cheshire : 2000 to 2016

On my second ever canal trip The Old Broken Cross was our first port of call after leaving Preston Brook on Saturday 8th August 1981 - sadly I don't have any photographic evidence!

It stands on the bank of the Trent & Mersey Canal on the outskirts of Northwich along a stretch of the cut we don't visit very often and, although we'd passed by a couple of times, we didn't actually visit the pub again until lunchtime on Monday 4th September 2000 on our return from Manchester.

This photo gives the perfect illustration as to just how close to the pub a boat can moor. As ever, I recall little about the interior of the pub, but that it was pleasant enough and served food!

Our next visit was at lunchtime on Saturday 2nd September 2006.

It was on this trip that we realised just how close to the centre of Northwich the pub is, having visited the town from the River Weaver the evening before. It's difficult to tell what changes, if any, there were in the intervening years as I chose to take the picture from the road bridge. This time we moored even closer to the pub!

Our next visit to The Old Broken Cross was an evening stop on our way back from Manchester on Sunday 5th September 2010.

The outside had undergone a refurbishment, but little else had changed. However, our recently discovered knowledge of local geography stood us in good stead when it became apparent that there was no food on offer on this Sunday evening, so we ventured into Northwich for sustenance.

This was the view of the pub (and our mooring) the next morning.

Our most recent visit to The Old Broken Cross was at lunchtime on Saturday 13th August 2016.

The pub had undergone another refurb and inside it was pleasant and served food, so we were happy!

This is the view from the other side, again to show just how close we'd moored!

#117 The Oddfellows, Nantwich, Cheshire : 1996 to 2012

When I came to review the logs of our canal trips through the years, I was very surprised to find that the first time we ever stopped at Nantwich was in 1996, sixteen years since my first canal trip! Our usual itinerary was to stop at Audlem on the way up on the Shropshire Union Canal followed by a visit to Ye Olde Barbridge Inn (or reverse on the way down). Nantwich is between these two.

My first visit was on Saturday 24th August 1996 when we picked up Emma Jane there from Andrew who'd had a two week trip from Lapworth.

As it was a lunchtime, we retired to the nearest pub, the Oddfellows Arms (as it was named then), for a few pints before we set off for our first journey to Llangollen.

We didn't return to Nantwich again until Sunday 28th August 2005 on our way back from a trip to Chester.

This was an evening stop and it allowed us to explore Nantwich further after our first port of call, The Oddfellows. From the outside, the pub was very different, but inside it was still the same welcoming, proper pub that it was before.

We were back again the next year on a trip that should have taken us to Manchester. We never made it that far as we'd fallen half a day behind schedule within the first two days! Still, this tardiness on our part meant that we could visit the Anderton Boat Lift and take the trip down to the River Weaver.

This was on the evening of Wednesday 30th August 2006 and again we took the opportunity to sample the delights of Nantwich. For those of us who like pubs, Nantwich provides a fine selection, many of which we've now sampled! The Oddfellows was largely unchanged.

We were back in Nantwich again in 2007 (twice), but didn't pay a visit to The Oddfellows on either visit!

Our most recent visit was on Thursday 12th April 2012 on our first trip on a hire boat.

At first glance, the pub is almost unchanged, but the small Burtonwood sign has gone, the windows have been replaced and a new sign has appeared on the right hand end wall. Inside was largely the same as before...small, cosy and welcoming.

It is now a Marston's pub and despite the subtle name change, most websites still refer to it as the Oddfellows Arms!