Wheaton Aston

And a Sunday evening stroll along the canal

And a Sunday evening stroll along the canal

Welcome to Wheaton Aston, 26th June 2022 (Author’s Collection).

This edition in my continuing series of gambolling and galivanting along the Shropshire Union Canal takes us to the sleepy village of Wheaton Aston in Stafford, and on the border with my home county of Shropshire.

Here are your particulars:

Introduction

A straight forward stretch of the Shropshire Union Canal, roughly a mile stretch or two mile round trip encompassing a Lock, three bridges, a public house and some rather hungry ducks and swans. Twenty or so images follow, in a pictorial journey along the canal from Bridge 20 (Dirty Lane) through the Tavern Bridge, the Lock and rounding for the short two mile round trip stroll at Bridge 18 (Wheaton Aston). All images were captured during a blustery and colder than normal late summer’s evening of Sunday 26th June 2022.

Disclaimer

As per my previous articles on the canals in the picturesque UK county in which I live, I don’t claim to have any experience of either a canal boat lifestyle or the inner workings and trials and tribulations of life on a houseboat/canal boat or narrow boat (whichever you prefer). I just find the peace, tranquillity and the quirky nature of an almost bygone way of existence and determination to live your life in this way, and in a floating house too, endlessly fascinating. I also bask and prosper in the sunshine, love the sights and sounds of canal life juxtaposed with the earthy nature and countryside that surrounds it, and simply discovering a new piece of the canal waterways puzzle never fails to raise a smile on my face. Guaranteed (Guaranteed) to receive oodles of smiles and “Hello’s” and “Good Afternoon’s” from the human beings you meet and watching dogs leap into a canal in search of a well thrown stick or ball can’t fail to amuse the child in all of us.

So much for all that.

From hereon in, I’ll just provide a brief colour commentary to a set of images and a virtual pictorial journey I sincerely hope you’ll enjoy.

From beneath Bridge 20 (Dirty Lane) and onward toward Little Onn, High Onn and Gnosall (Author’s Collection).

View from Bridge 20 and onward to Gnosall, Norbury Junction and Market Drayton (Author’s Collection).

And now toward our destination of central Wheaton Aston and the Tavern Bridge (Author’s Collection).

(Author’s Collection).

Back toward Bridge 20 and included for the rays of sunlight and our duck and swan friends too! (Author’s Collection).

(Author’s Collection).

Approaching Bridge 19 (Tavern Bridge) with a diesel filling pump and public house to your right in the distance (Author’s Collection).

Bridge 19 and “The Hartley Arms” public house (Author’s Collection).

From beneath Bridge 19 and onward to Wheaton Aston Lock and Bridge 18 (Author’s Collection).

And back from whence we came toward Bridge 20 (Author’s Collection).

(Author’s Collection).

(Author’s Collection).

Anyone need diesel? View from Bridge 19 with Bridge 20 just visible in the distance (Author’s Collection).

View from Bridge 19 and onward to Wheaton Aston Lock and Bridge 18 (Author’s Collection).

Bridge 19 or Tavern Bridge at Wheaton Aston (Author’s Collection).

Wheaton Aston Lock (Author’s Collection).

View from between the Locks and onward to Bridge 18 (Author’s Collection).

Bridge 18 (Wheaton Aston) and the start of the return stroll (Author’s Collection).

A favourite image from this brief meander on a Sunday night and the view onward from Wheaton Aston to Brewood, a stroll I will be covering in a later edition (Author’s Collection).

A little dark perhaps (atmospheric?) but the view from Bridge 18 back toward the Lock and Bridges 19 and 20 (Author’s Collection).

Wheaton Aston Lock and Bridge 19 in the far distance (Author’s Collection).

A final Lock view toward Wheaton Aston (Author’s Collection).

The idyll of a canal side stroll (Author’s Collection).

Thanks for reading.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this brief sojourn along the Shropshire Union Canal and if so, can I perhaps direct you to these recently published complimentary articles too?

Norbury Junction to Gnosall
A pictorial stroll along the Shropshire Union Canalmedium.com

Audlem to Adderley via Audlem Locks
A pictorial stroll along the Shropshire Union Canalmedium.com

Ladyline to Woodseaves Cutting
A pictorial stroll along the Shropshire Union Canalmedium.com