Watch House Cruising Club

The Watch House Cruising club, on the towpath of the Bridgewater Canal in Stretford, Greater Manchester, was founded in 1964 and has grown in size over the past years so that at present it has 34 full members with boats and 15 associate members (March 07)__TOC__

Watch House was the fifth club to join the Federation of Bridgewater Cruising Clubs.

It operates a full cruising programme throughout the year with many weekend cruises and attendance at various rallies during the season. When not out cruising, the clubrooms and bar are open Wednesday, Friday and Saturday evenings as well as Sunday afternoons.

History

[http://www.angelfire.com/nb/whcc/ Watch House] is the oldest building in Stretford, also the oldest on the canal and was, in fact, here before the canal was built. In those days it was a farm building but since then it has had a chequered history as stables for the canal horses, as a coffin store, saddle manufacturing, cottages and now our club premises. Gradually the members have improved the building and upgraded the facilities. The major improvements undertaken over the past few years have been the extension into the old stables block, which has been turned into a concert room with a stage and a refit to the kitchen area.

The club is situated on the towpath at the end of the Hawthorn Road aqueduct between Sale and Stretford close to Sale Water Park, the River Mersey and the Mersey Valley Country Park. Apart from the bar, the services available are toilets, water, toilet disposal, phone, battery charging and a fund of help and advice from our many long serving members.

External links

[http://www.angelfire.com/nb/whcc/ Watch House] - The Official Web Site