Whaley Water Weekend – This Weekend!

NO sooner are  the Jubilee jollites over, than Whaley Bridge gets back into fun mode:  It’s  Water Weekend time again!   W3, as the festival round the canal basin is called, gives hundreds of children, mums and dads a chance to have their own little water pageant.  And it doesn’t cost a penny.

Family favourite: boat trips are free at W3

Free trips on five different boats are the highlight of the weekend, taking  families through the green tunnel of the canal, under full June glory of  the trees. Four of the boats take the short trip to the Bugsworth canal junction, and the longer heritage trip, with commentary, goes all the way to Bugsworth Basin. The record number of passengers in a Water Weekend was 1,400, three years ago.

W3 starts on Friday evening (8 June) with acoustic music on the canal-side big stage. From 6.45pm-10pm, music  from the best local acoustic clubs will drift across the canal basin, in an evening hosted by Tony Boden and Club Acoustic of Buxton.  After 10pm, audience and musicians will move onto the pubs.  The acoustic evening was launched successfully at W3 last year. There’s more music on Saturday night:  Buxton acoustic/folk singer Lucy Spraggan stars  in an evening that rounds off the first full day of W3.

SATURDAY  (9 June) programme starts at 11am,  with most events free.  These include a return by the meerkats,  Punch and Judy celebrating the 350th anniversary of Britain’s favourite child entertainment, Powderkegs morris dancers, craft stalls  by the dozen and a fairground (priced rides).

SUNDAY (10 June)  programme includes canoe trips with Peak Paddlers, music by Whaley Bridge Band and more craft stalls, plus  two  new attractions:  a display of falconry and a climbing wall (nominal charge.)  The fairground will be open all day on Sunday.

On both days the free boat trips will be operating at full capacity.  Water Weekend chairman Barry Rudd says:  “Come early and enjoy one of the best days out in the High Peak.”

 

More details of the three day Water Weekend

FRIDAY NIGHT IS ACOUSTIC NIGHT …

Friday 8 June – W3 opens  with an Acoustic Night on the stage-by-the-canal.  From 6pm-10pm, acoustic music  from the best of local clubs will drift across the canal basin, in an evening hosted by Tony Boden and Club Acoustic of Buxton.  After 10pm, audience and musicians will move onto the pubs.  The acoustic was launched very successfully at W3 last year.

 

 SATURDAY 9 JUNE  11am-10pm

 WELCOME to the day! W3 is really here, in our 13th year, the biggest community event in Whaley Bridge.  Enjoy our famous, free boat trips, a unique attraction  in thesesdays of economic pressure.  And enjoy the music, morris dancing, meerkats, Punch and Judy, stalls, funfair, food … and fun.  Our regular DJ, Lorenzo – suitably gargled with Buxton fizzy water –  gets the proceedings going in what we hope is sizzling summer.   Throughout today and tomorrow, he keeps the show buzzing, with his banter and information.

BOAT TRIPS:  Catch one of our famous free boat trips  from a choice of  Rachael, Phoenix, Comet or Sam on the short ‘jolly’ trip  to the canal junction,  It’s just far enough for the small children.  New Horizon carries passengers on the longer Heritage trip with commentary from the canal basin in Whaley Bridge to the basin at Bugsworth.  It travels through the ‘green tunnel’ of  the canal, at its early summer best.  Just grab a ticket and wait (queues at busy times)  for your boat to come in.

 POWDERKEGS:  Whaley Bridge’s own border morris dance group is back, a vivid addition with their wild colours reflecting the name and associations of the group – a memory of the days when gunpowder was manufactured here.  They give two performances this afternoon.

MUSIC, MUSIC, MUSIC: Our old friends Acoustic Collective have been coming to W3 for years, and are now firm favourites.  They get the day off to a jolly start with two early performaces.  Lorenzo fills in the gaps with music for a summer afternoon … while some will be anticipating the Saturday evening music on stage.

AROUND THE SHOW:  Those meerkats are back today  – it’s a Meerkat-urday for the kids.  As one meerkat stands sentry guard for the others, it’s a   rare chance to get close up to these cute animal.  No W3 would be complete without Punch and Judy, traditional entertainment that’s now as built-in to W3 as free boats and ice cream.  Watch for the steam engine from Buxworth, a showstopper in its own right. There are stalls all around the canal basin, offering  bargains and unique gifts.

ALL THE FUN OF THE FAIR:  The fantastic fair is back again, on the car park, with priced rides and attractions.  W3 brought the fair back to Whaley Bridge some years back, after a very long gap.  This traditional fun event is most welcome, giving local families the chance to enjoy attractions that are normally an expensive journey away.

 ALL THE FOOD OF THE FAIR:  If you fancy a quick snack, there’s good choice around the site.  Watch out for W3 volunteers, again providing Whaleyburgers, which were introduced last year.

SIGN THE BOOK :  We’re interested in what you think and where you come from.  There’s a visitors’ book  in the HQ tent.

 SATURDAY AT THE MOVIES

Its film time in the Uniting Church at 4pm on Saturday 9 June at the Uniting Church, with a showing of the hour long British film Painted Boats.  With a canal background, it fits into the W3 image.

 AND SATURDAY NIGHT HAS MORE FUN

Saturday 9 June – after a day of excitement for families and visitors,  there’s more music from the stage-by-the-canal.  Buxton acoustic/folk singer Lucy Spraggan stars  in an evening that rounds off the first full day of W3. Lucy, a self-accompanied singer, has performed in the O2 Arena.  She is a supporting star on Joan Armatrading’s national tour.  The evening runs from 6-10pm.

 

SUNDAY 10 JUNE 11am-5pm

WELCOME to the second full day!  We have another packed day of fun round the canal basin – and even on it!  More of our famous free boat trips, and for the youngsters a chance to take a canoe trip with the Peak Paddlers.  Our new headliner today is the climbing wall.  All this along with a full day at the fair (priced rides) , music from the band and our constant companion, Lorenzo the DJ.

BOAT TRIPS:  Catch one of our famous free boat trips  from a choice of  Rachael, Phoenix, Comet or Sam on the short ‘jolly’ trip  to the canal junction,  It’s just far enough for the small children.  New Horizon carries passengers on the longer Heritage trip with commentary from the canal basin in Whaley Bridge to the basin at Bugsworth.  It travels through the ‘green tunnel’ of  the canal, at its early summer best.  Just grab a ticket and wait (queues at busy times)  for your boat to come in.

BIG NEW ATTRACTION 1:  You can’t miss it, and it’s here for one day only:  the climbing wall.  A chance for the kids to indulge in a bit of adventure, but with safety paramount.  Join the queue near the Transhipment Warehouse.

BIG NEW ATTRACTION 2: Simply Falconry.  See hunting birds close up. In all their feathered glory.  A first for the Water Weekend.

 

MUSIC, MUSIC, MUSIC: Our old friends Acoustic Collective are back on stage today. Whaley Bridge’s pride,  our own brass band, is also on stage with the sort of music that makes a summer day.  The band has made enormous strides in recent years.  Music of a different sort: guitarist George Borowski, who has played with Sad Café and was immortalised in a Dire Straits’ Sultans of Swing  song as ‘guitargeorge’ is our star individual performer this afternoon.

AROUND THE SHOW: No W3 would be complete without Punch and Judy, traditional entertainment that’s now as built-in to W3 as free boats and ice cream.  Watch for the steam engine from Buxworth, a showstopper in its own right. There are stalls all around the canal basin, offering  bargains and unique gifts.

 

ALL THE FUN OF THE FAIR:  The fantastic fair is back again, on the car park, with priced rides and attractions.  W3 brought the fair back to Whaley Bridge some years back, after a very long gap.  This traditional fun event is most welcome, giving local families the chance to enjoy attractions that are normally an expensive journey away.

 

ALL THE FOOD OF THE FAIR:  If you fancy a quick snack, there’s good choice.  W3 volunteers are providing Whaleyburgers, which were introduced last year.  A choice of food and drink is available from Café Airstream, making its debut at W3.

SIGN THE BOOK :  We’re interested in what you think and where you come from.  There’s a visitors’ book  in the HQ tent.

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