Macclesfield

Before I left for a walk around Macclesfield a BW workboat came past.  Pushing an empty barge that looks as though it will be used for the dredging of the canal further along.  Nothing unusual there but the helmsman this time was unusually a female.  

The Puss in Boots sits next to the bridge over the 24 hours moorings. Undergoing renovation inside it is a nice friendly pub with real ales on tap.

This is Buxton Road.  The town centre is at the church tower you can see in the back ground.  The railway station is between here and there.

The town is most famous for its once thriving silk industry, commemorated in the local Silk Museum. Although "Silk Town" seems to be the preferred nickname these days, Macclesfield's traditional local nickname is "Treacle Town" — supposedly from an incident where a merchant spilt a load of treacle on Hibel Road, and the poor rushed out to scoop it off the cobbles. Another, less picturesque, reason has it that the mill-owners used to provide barrels of treacle to the unemployed weavers

On the way down the road is the rather nice looking Fence Court. Nothing came up on Wiki.  On the gable end over the main entrance to the court are the words T.U.B. FENCE ALMS-HOUSES F.D.B and 1895

At the top of the hill is the church and the Town Hall.  Very impressive.  The town itself feels quite small with few of the larger shops but many small ones.

The town is not very high but the feeling is a little like that of Lincoln near Steep Hill

The main street is pedestrianised and seems to go on for ever with a number of side streets full of shops.  There is also a covered area and I guess that this is where the bigger shops may be hidden.

Lovely cobbled lanes run down the hill.  I was way-laid here by a young lady on the way down.  Not as bad - or should that be good - as it sounds. Just wondered why I was taking photos of the back lane.

Off the lane is one of the little streets running back up the hill.

Back at the boat.  Outside the boat is one of the old milestones.  One way we are 11 miles from Marple and the other says that there is 16 miles to Hall Green.  Hall Green by the way is just before the junction at Kidsgrove.