Trent and Mersey

The Trent and Mersey Canal was engineered by James Brindley, although it was not completed until 1772, five years after his death. It was originally part of Brindley's concept of a 'Grand Cross' of inland waterways to link the Trent, Mersey, Thames and Humber.

As it's name suggests, this canal links two of those waterways; running for 93 miles between Preston Brook (where it joins the Bridgewater Canal and so links to the Mersey), and Shardlow (where it runs into the Trent Navigation).

Once opened, it served the pottery industry, carrying fragile porcelain out of the Potteries around Stoke-on-Trent and bringing in West Country china clay. It also transported coal, salt and beer. Trade contined into the 1960s, but was eventually moved onto roads and railways. 

Today, the canal is busy with cruise boats, as this canal forms part of both the Cheshire Ring (which also involves the Bridgewater, Macclesfield and Rochdale canals) and also the Four Counties Ring (Staffordshire, Cheshire, Shropshire and West Midlands). Down this end though, being only eight miles from Shardlow, most of the traffic is local.

Mercia Marina

I think it's true to say that Derbyshire is an under-rated county, often-most viewed through the windows of a car as travellers race on to 'more exciting' destinations. South of county, Derbyshire borders with Leicestershire and Staffordshire. The countryside is rolling, with a mixture of arable and livestock farming. The river Trent winds its way from west to east, being joined in turn by the Dove and the Derwent and loosely followed by the line of the Trent and Mersey canal.

The idea of a link between these two great rivers came from engineer James Brindley and the canal opened in 1772. Once used to transport fragile porcelain from the Potteries, it is now almost solely recreational. There are, however, those who choose to live on the water, including one of the cashiers from my usual supermarket. The Mercia Marina was opened in 2008 to meet the growing demand for narrowboat berths.

In the background are the five cooling towers of the now decommissioned Willington power station. Lined up like a V of skittles in a giant bowling alley, they dominate the surrounding countryside and, although there is a move towards their demolition, I would be sad to see them go. They were always there, in the background of my childhood.