We were giving the boat a day of rest today, and staying moored at our spot near Chester. John had searched around and found someone who would pick us up, drive us to our selected destination and fetch us for our return later in the day. Rental cars are pretty cheap here, but neither one of us felt brave enough to tackle that challenge. It’s scary enough riding in a car here, and thinking that we’d remember to turn into the right correct lane was too much pressure.

So Peter picked us up in his very nice Mercedes and gave us great tour of the area on our way to Tottan Park. We spent 5 hours wandering the gardens, farm, and house, and having a bit of afternoon tea in the outdoor cafe area.

The main house was originally built in the early 1700’s, and over the next 100 years was replaced by the present neoclassical mansion. In 1795 the estate consisted of 251,000 acres. The last Lord Egerton died in 1958 without any heirs, and left the house to the National Trust. Most of the estate was sold, but 2,000 acres remain in the Trust ownership.

1,000 acres of the deerpark are open to the public, and we saw people walking their dogs through the fields, surrounded by hundreds of sheep and deer. There is a walking path from the center of the nearby town, and it looks like a popular place for folks to walk and ride their bikes.

We easily got our walking quota for the day. Another pleasant ride back to the boat and a bit of nap time before dinner at the Cheshire Cat – which was very good. As they say here “we’re knackered!”. It’s early to bed, and another day on the canal tomorrow as we start to retrace our route.