The Odyssey 2009: Day 28

Sunday 28th June

Wilmcote to Bridge 63

Right, it’s me back on the blog – you’ll realise this as soon as you see the word count – I’ve never knowingly done a day’s account in less than 1000 words (Denise managed a wonderfully concise 4 days in 600 words!) 🙂

Our intention this weekend was to get as far as Stratford, or maybe just outside, and mooch around. We didn’t quite manage it – we had a quiet day at home on Saturday and just did a day trip to the boat on Sunday.

We had a great trip up to Wilmcote – the roads were deserted and we got to the boat by mid-morning – that’s a record for us. Indigo Dream was looking safe and secure – Denise and Wyn had done a good job of completing the 20-point guide to leaving the boat long-term! The boat still looked immaculate – we must do a deep clean more often. Blue was very distressed to be back on board – no wonder, his bed had vanished! Richard went back to move the car and to get the dog beds while I cast off ready for cruising down to meet him at the bridge.

I was having a chat with the denizens of nb Rustle moored in front of us when I had an unfortunate incident with the dogs. Lou took a dislike to a timid spaniel running alongside her owner’s bike and decided a chase was in order – all the dogs raced down the towpath for a boat-length before the spaniel jumped into the canal. All dogs unhurt and this wasn’t the spaniel’s first swim of the day. I am very sorry it happened – a momentary lack of concentration on my part as I normally keep a close eye on Lou. The whole chase was over in about 10 seconds – the hysterical shouting from the spaniel’s owner about how horrible my dogs are lasted a LOT longer. I bundled the dogs away and retreated – not being prone to shouting myself I’m at a loss as to how to deal with it.

I cast off gratefully – being able to cruise away from the scene of the crime is surely one of the best aspects of life on the move 🙂

I met Richard at the bridge and reinstated all the dogs beds – clean and smelling of lavender. Wouldn’t it be nice if that lasted!

As always, any sort of conflict bothers me so I kept on turning it over in my mind until I finally managed to clang the boat against one of the narrow bridges and I heard the tart comment of “will you forget about that dog” drifting back from the bow – he knows me so well!

Ah free at last

There was only a short cruise to the first of the day’s many locks. Having first looked around for other dogs, we let the vandals out for a run but they soon got back on board. It was already broiling and it wasn’t even midday. Blue hopped off every now and then as we worked down the flight but Lou just basked in the relatively cool 22 degrees inside the boat. I roasted in the 29 degrees on the helm and I’ll never know how Richard managed the heat, the sun, the locks, and cycling between them all.

I’m at a loss to explain how we came down from Kingswood Junction with next to no boating traffic when this lower bit is like Clapham Junction. Where do all the boats come from? “Aha” I hear you cry “they’re from the river” but a fair few said they were too nervous to go on the river. The boats must keep different hours to us – after all, some people actually like getting up early in the morning 🙂

This is a strange lock flight. Richard summed it up beautifully as “leaks fast, empties slow”. As you cruise into the locks you can feel the water level going down through the leaky bottom gates even as the top gates are shutting. I guess that explains why so many of the locks that we expected to be set our way were actually half-empty. But perversely,  once the paddles are open it takes an age to empty. There’s only a single small gate paddle on the bottom gates and it doesn’t feel like enough – especially after the efficiency of the giant locks on the Grand Union.

I must warn you about some lively bywashes below some of the locks – they flow from the right as you leave the locks and exert quite a push – you may need a few revs to get out in a straight line.

Despite the slow locks, we shot down the flight and with lots of boats coming up we often had gates left open for us.  Of course we had to meet a boat head on in the shortest pound but it was a nifty little sea otter that just pulled neatly into the side and let me through – thanks. If we’d been two 60 footers I’d probably still have been stuck up to the gunwales in the reedy side-pound. The sea otter was a single hander who was very appreciative of Richard’ s help – and of the boat toiling down behind us. We cracked open a few paddles behind us and with so many boats coming up the flight I hope it wasn’t too much of a chore for them.

Note: Lock 47 has a warning that it’s slightly narrow – we didn’t notice any difference but our beam is only 6’10”. Some of the other locks have strangely uneven brickwork that narrow the lock a couple of feet down – judging by the marks a few boats have scraped along here though again, we didn’t have any problems. Our excellent teacher, Malcolm from Top Lock training, advised us to rock the boat from side to side when locking down in order to dislodge anything that might catch the boat in a narrow lock. Good advice here where the locks really are narrow.

What was that? Look I'm innocent ....

There’s no doubt that it’s a beautiful flight in that it’s green, richly wooded and rural. If it had been cooler, Blue could have rummaged to his heart’s content without any concerns about roads or other hazards (won’t comment about Lou – she’s in my bad books, but it never lasts for long!). But maybe we didn’t appreciate the flight as much as some of our favourites – I finally put my finger on it when we got to the bottom – there aren’t any views. We caught the odd glimpse of Stratford between the trees, but the flight is so enclosed by the thick vegetation that you don’t see the panorama of the flood plain that you know is beneath you. It made me realise that watching the scenery unfold as we ascend/descend is one of the things I enjoy most about lock flights.

Bridge 63 is just a short cruise from the bottom of the flight – there’s a length of rather overgrown towpath mooring (14-day) then a very neat strip that marks the water and refuse point just before the bridge. We stopped off for water – it gave me something to do while Richard gamely cycled back to get the car from Wilmcote. As we started to fill, another boat came up to the water point. They sensibly (and patiently) had their lunch as we’d warned them that our tank would take at least 30 minutes to fill. They were a share boat from the Canal Boat Club at Alvechurch – brand new and pristine. I got chatting to the crew (male, the women were inside cooking) and gave two of them a guided tour of the Indigo Dream – she was looking so magnificent inside. They especially liked the extra-large drinking decks – many people do!

Richard timed his trip to perfection – he came strolling down the towpath just as the water tank finished filling. We chatted with yet another member of the share boat’s crew – he has a nastily swollen hand from an accident with a rope – just goes to show. He said it looked worse than it was, I thought he should be starring in casualty!

We pulled the boat back up the towpath and moored up in a convenient spot where a previous boater had hacked away the undergrowth. We banged in 4 pins and managed to leave the boat in record time, given our usual reluctance to leave her. Mind you, we did have some incentive, just as we were leaving a torrential shower moved over and took away the temptation to linger.

But alas, we were soon back. We’d just negotiated a mega-tedious traffic queue to the M40 when Richard realised he’d forgotten his wallet so we had to go back. We then decided to take a different route home which fortunately took us via Tesco where we picked up lunch. For future reference there’s a Costa here as well!

4 mph but not on water

We then had an outstandingly slow trip home – partly our fault. We blindly followed the satnav back to the queue we’d negotiated previously, decided to do a U-turn and take the route through Banbury. All very scenic, all rather slow. But it was supersonic compared to the M40 which was jam-packed for its whole length – why? We’ll never know – no accidents (mercifully) and no roadworks – just lots of other cars.

We finally got home and to our horror, the torrential downpours that had drenched Stratford had failed to visit our poor parched plants. We spent the rest of the day watering!

We’ve got a bit of a gap now. My singing group is doing its first public performance next weekend and I’ve said I’d do a solo as well! Luckily we’ll have a friendly audience – it’s at the house of one of the members – it’s their 50th wedding anniversary and I’m sure it’ll be lovely.

So, we’ll be back on board in 2 weeks’ time and will take a week off to do the rivers – the Avon to Tewkesbury followed by the Severn to Stourport. If there’s a rain god then please send the rain to Surrey where we sorely need it and keep it from flooding the midlands……

Weekend Without Us: Denise’s Blog

Sue here, handing over the blogging reins to my cousin Denise who borrowed the boat last weekend. She left me an immaculately handwritten log which I’ll transcribe here, starting from last Friday evening…..

Friday 19th June 2009

Sadly, Sue left us at 4.45pm to catch her train home. We decided to take a leisurely stroll down to Stratford-Upon Avon. Some 6 miles later we arrived, and promptly decided that a train would be necessary to return to the Indigo Dream! We had a traditional ‘chippy’ supper and caught the 20.27 train back to Wilmcote. We attempted to set up the TV and digibox but sadly no signal! We then had a drink – hot chocolate for Christina and Rhodri, Becks for Wyn and a small glass of wine for me. Retired to bed around 10pm.

Saturday 20th June

We woke to an unwanted alarm at 8.15pm (on Rhodri’s phone/watch). Had heavy rain overnight. Christine mastered the shower. Had breakfast and caught the 9.35 train to Stratford (just!). Were there in 5 minutes. Proceeded to visit as many shops as possible! Visited the William Shakespeare exhibition and his birthplace. Continued to do some more shopping. Caught the 16.35 train to Wilmcote. I made pasta, sauce, bacon and bread for tea, followed by some lovely cake purchased in Stratford earlier.

Wyn and Rhodri went for a walk into Wilmcote ‘city’ centre whilst Christina and I relaxed on board. They discovered Wilmcote Social Club and had a couple of games of pool. They returned by 20.00 to turn off the engine. We all proceeded to the Social Club where I firstly beat Rhodri at pool, and then I beat Wyn – girls are better then boys! We called at one of the pubs for a drink and to see if this looks good for Sunday lunch tomorrow – it did look good. Returned to the boat and all retired to bed at 23.10 hours.

Sunday 21st June

We had a lazy Sunday morning and we all struggled to get going today. Never mind, it means that the engine had a good 2-hour run this morning.

We set off to Anne Hathaway’s cottage this morning. Very pretty and the gardens were in full bloom so we probably saw them at their best. As it was Father’s Day, we proceeded back into Stratford to find somewhere for Sunday lunch – this was easier said than done and ended up in the Weatherspoon’s. It was very enjoyable nonetheless.

We then returned to Wilmcote and visited Mary Arden’s farm. Again, lovely gardens and an amazing old farmhouse with badly sloping upstairs rooms – how this building is still standing is beyond me!

We returned to Indigo Dream at 17.00hrs and we all relaxed. We had showers and played cards. At 19.15hrs we then returned to the Social club – and it was quiz night – I mean who seriously knows what the name of the other pub in Emmerdale is called (not the Woolpack)? I can’t remember the answer today. Anyway, we won’t be asked to help the Eggheads anytime soon. We scored 64/160 which is 43%. We did do very well on the music round scoring 16/20, and on the international airport codes round 12/20! We did win maltesers (4 bags) as we were “the clear losers”. We also won some chocolates in the raffle.

We returned to Indigo Dream at 23.00 and promptly retired to bed.

Monday 22nd June

Awoke early in order to pack up and head on to Broadway – a beautiful Cotswold town about 20 miles away – well worth a visit.

Boat engine run this am for about one and a half hours – all necessary checks and locks done.

Thank, Indigo Dream, for a lovely stay xx

Dog Blog: It is a tough life

When Sue goes gallivanting off to London being famous (not really), dogs have to go into the office.

It’s tough. First there is the mandatory sausage sandwich in the morning. Then they have to climb the stairs and get down to serious work.

This is despite things getting in the way:

Blue being menaced by an old radio

Then there is the reading to catch up on

Boat blog: Weekend without us – photoblog

Cousin Denise has kindly sent on some photos from her weekend on the boat. They enjoyed using her as a base but son Rhodri says that they’ll do a ‘proper’ boating holiday next time and do some cruising every day! He’s almost tall enough to steer and almost strong enough to do the locks so it won’t be long…….

Friday: The boat does fit through that bridge - honest!

Friday: Plenty of room, though you might need to duck!

Friday: What's down here then? Exploring the sunken towpath at Wootton Wawen

Friday: Peering over the edge - there's some big trucks down there; apparently they hit the aqueduct from time to time but it's still standing!

Friday: Running back to the boat - no hurry, you'll soon catch up....

Friday: Wyn's perfect lock entry....

Friday: The grass is always greener - sheep peering over to the towpath side....

Friday: Just beautiful.....

Friday: View from the helm - mooring in Wilmcote

Saturday: Anne Hathaway's Cottage

Saturday: Wyn having a read about the place...

Saturday: What a fine looking family....

Saturday: Another fine family photo - with Wyn this time

Saturday: Strolling players - the man 'sonneted' Christina later on.....

Saturday: Shakespeare's birthplace

Sunday: Mary Arden's Farm in Wilmcote

Sunday: Denise and Wyn - what a great photo

Sunday: That's my boy!

Monday - proof that Indigo Dream's still afloat!

Monday: Have you had a nice time? Come back soon.....

Boat Blog: Weekend without us….

Thursday 18th and Friday 19th June

I travelled back to Indigo Dream last Thursday afternoon, enjoying the luxury of a train journey. It’s so convenient to have a station close to the canal. I’d left Richard, Blue and Lou at home – Richard had meetings so couldn’t take Friday off and I had a much better chance of keeping the boat clean without the dogs and their assorted beds!

The boat was fine on the moorings and it looked so sparkling clean that it seemed a shame to go aboard. But despite being so close to midsummer it was a little too chilly to sleep on deck!

I walked into Wilmcote and explored the excellent local shop. It’s beautifully disguised, with trailing vines covering the pergola over the entrance. Beneath this is a table full of luscious home-made cakes from a local supplier as well as a good range of fresh fruit and vegetables. The shop within is well-stocked and they promised that they’d have fresh bread in the morning. I stocked up with the essentials and went back to the Mary Arden pub for supper – it’s friendly place so it didn’t bother me to be there by myself.

As always, I slept very well on the boat and headed off to the shop. Apparently their bread delivery comes in at 7am – by 9.30am it was obvious that a few locals had already taken advantage. But there were still some very good looking loaves in stock. They’re very friendly here and I was told all about the owner’s pet parrot (ok ok, it was alive  before you Monty Python fans start up :-)).

Then it was back to the boat. I had many good intentions but I was a bit afraid of disturbing the unnatural tidiness. There’s no mobile phone signal here and no hope of an internet connection so I just sat and read my book – very relaxing! Eventually, though, it dawned on me that I should really move the boat nearer to the bridge to make it easier for them to load up. I was quite proud of myself for winding the boat, reversing her down the canal towards the bridge and bringing her in to a single-handed mooring, all against an adverse and gusty wind!

While I was tying up I got the chance to say hello to a dainty black greyhound who was walking down the towpath with her owner. The grey was a little timid – she’d been attacked by a Jack Russell terrier and had what looked like a nastily  infected wound on her thigh. Poor thing!

Cousin Denise, husband Wyn and kids Christina and Rhodri, turned up just after midday and I immediately started to lecture them. They took it in good part  – Denise spent just about every school holiday in my house when she was young so she’s used to my funny ways 🙂

We were short of water so the plan was for use to do a shake-down cruise up to Wootton Wawen so that they could get a feel for the boat while there was still an ‘expert’ on board. This would also give them an opportunity to experience the narrow trough at Edstone and revise their locking technique.

As I mentioned, Wyn’s a natural on the helm so he did brilliantly. Denise and the kids were very competent lock crew and I was increasingly confident that they’d be absolutely fine on board by themselves. We had a steady toddle up the canal to Wootton Wawen where the cheery folk at Anglo Welsh sorted us a pump out. I was a bit amazed because their service area is right on the aqueduct. They told us to hold Indigo Dream in the aqueduct and there we stayed for half an hour for the pump out; we then winded and blocked the canal for another half hour while we filled the water tank. I was a bit anxious but NO boats wanted to pass by – incredible! Sods law dictated that there should have been at least one!

With the water tank full and the toilet tank empty I knew that Indigo Dream’s new crew now had the resources to do as they pleased – to cruise around or just moor up and use Wilmcote as a base.

We meandered back down the canal. It was dreamy afternoon; Christina was sleeping off the last of her exam fatigue (she’s literally just finished her A-Levels), Wyn and Rhodri were practising their steering skills on the helm, while Denise and I sat on the front deck catching up with the gossip. Suddenly we both jumped up and started shouting at an oncoming boat. Their crew looked a bit startled but it was our old share boat, Dragonfly! It’s the first time we’ve met her since we sold our shares almost four years ago. We were shouting to tell them that we’d been owners and that she was looking fine (we think they’ve had the paintwork done). They looked bewildered – Dragonfly always had the noisiest engine so I don’t know whether they heard us. I wonder if they blog? Will there be a post about the mad shouty people on Indigo Dream? 🙂

Wyn and the crew did a fine mooring back at Wilmcote and, with some last minute and largely unnecessary advice, I headed back to the train station.

We had a text from Denise on Friday morning to say that they’d had a great night’s sleep and were busy exploring Stratford. I think they’d taken the train from Wilmcote – it takes less than 10 minutes to get to Stratford (4 hours or so by boat!) and the fare for all of four of them was less than a fiver. Their long weekend is off to a flying start…..

Update – Monday 22nd June:

Denise and family have set off for home after a weekend of roaming around the area by foot, road and rail, in the end they just used the boat as a hotel. Indigo Dream’s still afloat – that’s all we needed to know! Denise has promised me lots of photos so hopefully the next post will be a bit more colourful than this one!

The Odyssey 2009: Day 26 and 27

Monday 15^th June Catherine de Barnes to Wilmcote

Back in the countryside

We had a wonderfully quiet night at Catherine De Barnes and had a lazy start to the day, enjoying the luxury of a Monday lie-in when everyone else was busily commuting to work. It’s 25 years since we first met – what a landmark! Tomorrow’s our actual wedding anniversary but that’s just a little one – only 8 years.

We celebrated by boating – an anniversary is a great excuse to be taking days off work!!

It was gone 10am by the time we set off down an increasingly rural canal. There was the brief noisy incursion of the M42 crossing the canal then peace descended again. Unusually for us, we decided to visit the village of Knowle. Nicholson’s highly recommends a visit to the church so we duly set off with the dogs. It’s a pleasant walk down quiet country lanes into the village from Bridge 72. There are some very attractive cottages along the way, though I was a little disappointed by the church itself. Maybe we’re just heathens – there were certainly interesting features (good gargoyles) but possibly not enough to warrant the time after a late start to our cruising day.

The interior of Knowle Church

Richard had that ‘look’ on his face, the one he wears when I’ve insisted on doing something that isn’t half as interesting as I’d told him it would be. Luckily his humour, and appreciation of Knowle, was restored when we found an amazing bakery/patisserie on the High Street. We reluctantly declined the pastries as the boat was full of Krispy Crème doughnuts, but we did indulge in some excellent French bread. The dogs had a good run round the park after some pigeons on the way back so we set off for the Knowle locks in fine form.

In some ways, the Grand Union’s a very reliable waterway – once you’re on it you know you’re going to enjoy some unimpeded cruising through a wonderfully mixed English landscape. But this stretch has a unique feature – FLIES! Yes, horsefiles, blackflies, unidentified nuisances and greenfly – Blue retreated to his den in the bow – he has a real fly phobia. Meanwhile Richard was dancing the fly fandango as the horrible horseflies took a fancy to his juicy flesh. We were saved by some super-powerful insect repellent and, later, by an apocalyptic downpour which must have knocked most of the beasts out of the air.

A view from the Knowle Locks

The Knowle flight marks the return to double locks and undisturbed countryside. Each lock has a slightly weird layout where the towpath weaves around the  defunct single locks that used to form the flight. This meant a longer walk between locks and deep confusion for Blue who got stuck at one lock because he couldn’t work out where the path was – he stared down pathetically as the boat moved on. In the end, Richard had to cycle back to get him – I’m afraid that we won’t be entering Blue in the ‘cleverest greyhound’ class in the next dog show! Lou’s intelligence is of a different sort – she just stayed in bed and flatly refused have anything to do with her surroundings.

On the technical side, Richard reports that the towpath side downstream paddles are a little stiff but the offside paddles are easy. The locks empty very quickly and he got into a good rhythm on the flight. The view from the helm is that hovering in the pounds here is a bit tricky as there is a ferocious pull to the left towards the bywash (which runs over where the narrow locks used to be). Stay in the jaws of the upper lock until the next one’s ready if you can.

View up the Knowle flight - it's not that many locks but they certainly do make and impression on the landscape

There’s a big ‘Stephen Goldsbrough’ presence here, as at the Hatton flight. I hadn’t realised that their operation was quite so big. We’ll get a quote from them when we win the lottery……

Fortunately the weather stayed dry for the flight but as we mooched down the canal I realised that I might have been a tad optimistic with my choice of clothing. Being very mindful of the old wives tales I had finally decided that ‘May was out’ and that I’d seen two swallows so it must be safe to put on some summer trousers, a T-shirt and sandals. By the time we got the bottom of the Knowle flight I’d added a fleece, soon after the sandals were replaced by shoes and socks, then the rain started and my knee length waterproof coat came out of the cupboard. And what rain it was – great globules of water and jagged hailstones. It went on and on, drowning out our pitiful bleating – “this wasn’t forecast; there was only supposed to be millimeter of rain today” – ignoring the fact that there was a millimetre of water in each gobbet of rain. You could tell it was bad because Richard even suggested that we stop for half an hour and take shelter! But the canal edge was shallow so we pressed on.

Sylvan waterway - the lovely Lapworth locks

The rain finally stopped when we got to Kingswood Junction. It felt strange to be turning left now instead of right towards our beloved Birmingham. Then I realised that we’d just completed another great loop – what a fantastic odyssey we’re having this year.

The basin just after the turn is lovely and here we saw the first of the barrel-shaped lock cottages that characterise the southernmost stretch of the Stratford canal. Apparently they’re this shape because the original builders used the same technology as they did for forming the road bridges along the canal.

There’s such a different atmosphere here. Richard reports that Lock 22 of the Lapworth flight was slow to empty, lock 23 was slow to fill but we soon stopped thinking about speed.

Typical 'Barrel' shaped lock cottage on the Stratford Canal

The canal and it’s pastoral surroundings take away all sense of urgency and we felt no need to hurry. The real world intrudes briefly at Lapworth Bottom Lock, where the M40 runs so low over the canal that you can almost reach out and touch the cars. But this is the only inkling of the pace of life back in the real world.

It’s locks all the way along this stretch as the canal falls away from Birmingham’s grand plateau to the floodplains of the Avon.

Richard bravely cycled between the locks. They were more widely spaced now – too close to justify his cadging a lift on the boat but just widely spaced enough to give his leg muscles a workout. Blue roused himself to run around and between a few of the locks but he was nowhere near as active as usual. Lou just stayed on board, having a minor potter around when it suited her.

I must thank the onlookers on Bridge 40 who kindly applauded my perfect lock entry!

Preston Bagot lock cottage

You might think that an empty and rural canal would get boring after a while but there are bits and pieces of interest. The lock cottage at Preston Bagot Lodge is stunningly attractive and has an intriguing tower as well as lovingly maintained grounds. No wonder they have reflective mirror glass in their windows – it’s a real temptation to stare! Just opposite there’s an unusual woodland. I couldn’t put my finger on what was odd about it until I realised that the trees were growing in straight lines. The trees were tall, slender, graceful and decidious, so not your usual forestry. I thought it would be a real wrench when it came to cutting them down – it’ll leave a big hole in the landscape, even if new trees are planted.

A little further down the Preston Bagot flight I did a double take when I spotted a car lodged in the branches of a tree. Yes, that’s right, someone has hoisted a reliant robin us into the tree and left it there at a stable but crazy angle. Too crooked to be a tree-house, too eccentric to be art; mind you, if you can pickle a shark and call it art then maybe a car in a tree is barely noteworthy!

They take SORN declarations seriously round here!

We met a few boats on our travels – mainly hirers but also a pair of hotel boats and later on a single hotel boat. It looked like a pleasant thing to be doing, and the notion of having a crew doing everything for us while we lounged around inside suddenly appealed. A monstrous thunderstorm had brewed up behind us and the clouds were the most boding shade of bruised blue that I’ve ever seen. We saw the lightning flashes and heard the thunder rumbling. Poor old Blue was on the towpath when the thunder started and simply panicked. He ran along the path alternately looking as if he was going to try the 10 foot leap onto the boat and jumping onto other moored boats in an attempt to get back to his ‘safe’ place. Richard had to cycle back and calm him down until I could pull in to get him on board. Lou was untroubled – loud bangs and the like don’t bother her at all; her only phobia is going under railway bridges.

Wootton Wawen Aquaduct with its sunken towpath

We despaired of getting to our target for the day. But fate was with us – the storm was being blown northwards and we were cruising into the sunshine without seeing another drop of rain. We spared a thought for the boats that had passed us – I hope they didn’t get too drenched.

Our first target for the day was Wootton Wawen. It’s a busy boating community with what looks to be a thriving Anglo Welsh hire base as well as generous visitor moorings. But by now the weather had brightened and we were clear of the lowering storm so we carried on to our next target – Wilmcote.

Wilmcote suited us on many levels – its train station is virtually on the canal, it has two dog-friendly pubs, a village shop and convenient road access with largely unrestricted parking for loading/unloading. We arrived quite late so we headed straight to the first of the pubs – the Mary Arden. To find the pubs, walk to the road bridge, turn right, walk past Mary Arden’s House and the first pub is on the junction; turn right again and you’ll see the village shop and the second pub, the Mason’s Arms. We were made welcome in the Mary Arden pub and had a pleasant meal – not spectacular but very satisfying at the end of a long day.

Lou untroubled by the height of the Edstone Aqueduct

We’d thoroughly enjoyed our day’s cruising – there were such contrasts along the way and the bottom of the Stratford Canal is delightful – pastoral scenery, bold aqueducts and friendly pubs – what more can a boater ask for 🙂

Tuesday 16th June

We’ve been “uhming” and “aahing” over what to do today -in the end we settled for the simplest option of staying put in Wilmcote. The reason for this uncharacteristic indecision was the fact that we’re lending the boat to my cousin Denise and family on Friday. My cousin’s daughter, Christina, has just finished her A-Levels and loves Stratford; Denise has been very unwell and I think they all just need a break.

In the end, there were too many reasons for staying in Wilmcote:

• We were really uncertain about getting a long enough mooring in Stratford (minimum 7-days needed)
• Wilmcote is a very pleasant place
• There are 14-day moorings just beyond the winding hole and there is a lively if transient community of boaters inhabiting the 48-hour moorings between the winding hole and the bridge
• The train station has great connections to Stratford, Birmingham and, as it happens, Leamington Spa (gateway to Surrey without crossing London)
• The village has TWO dog-friendly pubs
• The village has a small shop which later proved to be excellent

Lou really did enjoy the view from the Edstone Aqueduct

The only downside is that Wilmcote doesn’t have any boater facilities, like a water or refuse point but we figured we could always track back to Wootton Wawen if need be.

It was decided, here we would stay. Well, here I’d stay – Richard had to take the train back to Birmingham to get the car while I started the laborious process of deep cleaning the boat.

Cousin Denise is not so fastidious but after months of cruising, especially the 24-hour marathon, Indigo Dream was looking a little lived-in! She looks fabulous now, especially without the heaps of dog beds which we’ve temporarily removed.

The cleaning took nigh on all day and we eventually got away late afternoon. We had a good drive home though – these long days make everything so much easier. It’s only a brief respite – I’ll be back on the boat on Thursday ready to greet Denise and family on Friday. We’ve let them loose on the boat for 24 hours before now (Wyn’s a natural on the helm) but this time they’re taking her for the whole weekend.

Worried, about handing over our beloved boat, of course we’re not worried, that’s why I’ve written them about 20 pages of ‘how to…’ guides 🙂

Photoblog:

Blue wasn't too sure about the geography of the Knowle Locks......

Locks, what locks, who needs locks when you've got a sofa???

Blue the gongoozler

Towpath sign - bumpy canal coming up??

Blossom on the water

Lonesome pines on the Lapworth? Maybe, there aren't many people/boats here.

Daddy's girl! Lou will get off the sofa for a fuss.......

That's enough rummaging - where's my sofa??

Foraging for firewood on a grand scale.....

That's the M40!

"and all our hire boats come with a duck on the roof, for that authentic waterways experience......"

The ducks are exceptionally tame around here...and greedy!

Aqueduct leading into a lock - a unique structure....

Just lovely.....

Another dog-proof deck - nice open design

Narrow footbridges on this section - they've been given a fair battering judging by the notches, missing bricks and cracking.....

The Odyssey 2009: Day 24 and 25

Saturday 13th June Cambrian Wharf to Catherine de Barnes

With Indigo Dream safely moored in Cambrian Wharf, we took some time off from boating last weekend. It was a chance to reflect on our overwhelmingly positive experience of the BCN Marathon Challenge and to catch up with our sleep, of course.

By the time we got to this Saturday we were well into boat withdrawal syndrome (characterised by lack of concentration and long sighs). Nonetheless we delayed our trip to the boat until after we’d enjoyed the company of greyhounds at the Stifford Village show.

When we arrived in Birmingham early on Saturday evening, Indigo Dream looked fine. Cambrian Wharf is a hidden gem of a mooring, tucked away from the busy-ness of Gas Street and has a full 14-day mooring allowance.  Shhhh – don’t tell everyone about it……

Starting down the flight

As we had the car with us, we found the large Tesco Store in Edgbaston (BH16 8HA), just a couple of miles from the mooring before settling the car into the Brindley Drive Car Park which is secure, close to the mooring, and has the phone payment system which means that you can renew your parking without needing to go back to the car. Richard had just paid when another boater told him that on a Sunday parking is free on he road just below Farmers Bridge Top Lock – just below the towpath.

By the time we got all this done it was far too late to start cruising so we went back to our favourite ‘Handmade Burger Co’ restaurant on the canal in Brindley Place. We had truly great service there and they were particularly thoughtful and attentive towards the dogs (stretched out on the pavement on their sheepskins). We ate well, dogs ate well.

Although it wasn’t even 10pm by the time we got back to the boat, we were all so tired. The rest of the crew were soon comatose in their beds; I stayed awake a bit longer, bothered by the babble from the pub opposite. Fortunately the pub closes at 11.30pm and from then on Cambrian Wharf is as peaceful mooring as you could hope for.

Sunday 14th June

We had a quiet night on Cambrian Wharf and set off from the moorings at around 9.30am-ish. We didn’t go very far – just to the

View back up the fantastic Farmers Bridge Flight

waterpoint opposite! We reported last year that the water pressure was low at this water point – I’m afraid to report that thing’s haven’t changed. Our tank was running very low, but nonetheless it took over an hour to fill.

Note: the mooring bollards just behind the waterpoint are discreetly marked as a disabled mooring spot.

Never mind, it worked to our advantage in some ways. We got to chat to passing boaters including one man who’d walked from the other side of Gas Street in order to use the BW showers here. He told us that the pressure’s much better at the waterpoint in Gas Street Basin, so that’s a top tip for the future.

I think we also persuaded one muscular runner from Dubai to take his family on a boating holiday. He was fascinated by the boat, as were many of the passersby. We could market the canals but we had no success in interesting people in owning a greyhound. Our two were absolutely flat out asleep –

New architecture facing onto the canal

they could have come out for a rummage but chose not to. This trend continued right through the day – Blue had the odd desultory wander round one or two of the locks; Lou stayed in bed nigh on all day and had to be dragged off for the essentials. We knew they’d be knackered after all the stimulation of yesterday’s dog show!

We were being joined by some very old friends today – Liz, Pal and children Nathan and Sasha. I’ve known Liz and Pal since my first day in university – a frighteningly long time ago. Their son, Nathan, has developed an obsession with canals and boating – we heartily approve! He also likes trains, so maybe we should introduce him to Khayamanzi some time. They all came for a cruise last year, when we did the trip from Merryhill to Cambrian Wharf. This time they’d do the next leg down from Cambrian Wharf and out through Solihull.

We set off down the Farmer’s Bridge flight with the promise that they’d meet us a few locks down. All the locks were set our way and we passed down the flight at a fearsome rate. We must have been four or five locks down by the time they caught up with us – never mind, plenty more to go!

This is such a great flight - go out of your way to experience it

One reason for our speed was a BW worker who had the rotten job of clearing rubbish from the lockside towpath. I think he does it on a daily basis – the lock flight is immaculate. I thanked him profusely for clearing up some broken glass that I’d encountered with the dogs on our morning walk (fortunately without injury). I’d picked up some of the more jagged bits and vowed to come back with a broom later. It was a relief that it was being done – our dogs are accident-prone enough as it is! Anyway, I don’t think that the towpath sweepers are thanked very often and the kind man opened many of the lock gates for us on his way down.

Birmingham is a fascinating city – I’m way to lazy to actually read a history book but I did wonder at the mixture of architectural styles here. I understand that the city was bombed during the war but didn’t suffer the wholesale destruction of its neighbour, Coventry. You get a sense that Birmingham’s a city that’s constantly being rebuilt and redesigned, as though the town planners haven’t yet found the style that will leave an indelible mark on future history books. In the meantime, old redbrick gothic churches tuck themselves into the corners of modern developments and the ancient canal flows beneath all, maybe Birmingham’s most enduring feature.

Yes this is a lock under a skyscraper

I was really encouraged when Liz said that the local people are really proud of their canals. They may be hidden from sight, but not from the people’s minds, where the canals are apparently still cherished. It was notable that when we drove to Tesco last night, there were prominent signs wherever the roads crossed a canal – you wouldn’t know the waterways were there otherwise.

The Farmer’s Bridge flight was stunning as ever. We’ve been up it three times but we’ve never been down before. It felt surreal to drop out of the blazing sunshine of the basin into the deepening shade of the buildings, finally being buried under the mountain of the BT tower and the cavern under Snowhill train station. It’s a great experience.

We actually had the flight to ourselves today and didn’t meet another boat until we got to the longer pounds past Snowhill. Hurrah!

Pal is a very able crew member, equally adept lockside and on the helm. With his

Yes the lock really is just under the brown building

help, we got down the flight even faster and we were on for a great cruise.

We did see one sad sight on the lockside – a ragged man leaning heavily on a walking stick came out of nowhere to help with one of the locks. From my brief chat with him, I think he was hoping for some money in recognition of his help. None was forthcoming, but he told me that he and two others live under the canal bridge by the lock. I think he was telling the truth – there was heap of quilts and blankets under the bridge concealing at least one person. Liz, who is a child psychologist, was desperately worried as she suspected that one of them might have been a child. She’ll be on to the authorities later.

Snow Hill Railway Tunnel

It was locks all the way today. We left the Farmer’s Bridge flight behind just to run straight into the Ashtead flight. I was a bit gloomy about this flight last year, but I thought it was quite pleasant today with much less garbage than I remembered. My view of any waterway is closely related to the time of the cruising day – if it’s late and it’s been a long day then even the most sylvan waterway comes in for a whinge; if it’s early and the sun’s shining I can see merit in just about any old manky puddle 🙂

Going through the Science Park

We didn’t take our guests for a spin into the Typhoo Basin – although it’s open there’s nothing left of its heritage and lucrative relationship with tea, which used to be more precious than gold. The fishermen casting their lines just outside the basin seemed very grateful that we were turning away from them!

So, we were back on the broad and businesslike Grand Union, though the locks remain narrow until you get out to Knowle. The Grand Union’s commercial past was reinforced where we stopped for lunch. We moored up opposite ‘The Bond’, presumably an old warehouse now sympathetically developed with a few moored boats in a small basin. They’d kept the old loading gantries in place, though they were now converted into fine balconies overlooking the canal.

Quick rest before starting the next lot of locks

At Bordesley Junction we entered yet more new territory. We’ve never been along this part of the Grant Union before.

The first bit of excitement was, you’ve guessed it, yet more locks – going up this time though. This whole stretch from Cambrian Wharf is great if you want to introduce guests to locking. The Camp Hill locks are very urban, though strangely enough, isolated from the roads so dogs could have come out for a rummage if they’d been interested – they weren’t! There is obviously a danger for less loved pets here, whether by accident or design, we did see a dead dog at one lock and a dead cat at the next. That’s the trouble with these steep-sided canals – if an animal falls in then they have no hope of getting out without human intervention. There simply aren’t any ramps here – I think there should be.

Note: There are useful services towards the Top of the Camp Hill Flight but they are not shown on our Nicholsons.

Just not enough room for all the photos we want to put in.

The air of urban desolation soon gives way to richly wooded embankments and the green tinge of dappled sunlight through the leaves. It’s quite a remarkable transition. Only the ever-present garbage and graffiti remind you that you’re actually still in the suburbs and the ‘real’ countryside is still half a day’s cruise away.

We tried to tempt Blue and Lou for a rummage here. There are some good spots along the towpath by Bridge 86. There are even better spots in the offside woodland which looks as if some effort has been made to put in decent paths and steps leading to the water. It seemed to be a popular picnic spot.

Pal's first lock entry of the day

I think this stretch would be worth another visit. We’d certainly like to stop and wander around the Tyseley museum some day. Apparently there’s also a brilliant science museum nearby. Nathan was asking whether we could stop and have a wander around – what a sensible child. I think he sees a future in getting the right balance of cruising and sightseeing. We still tend to stay on the move – maybe when we feel we’ve done the entire network then we’ll do it again, but with more stops along the way.

The reason for pressing on was practical. There were advantages to reaching our target of Catherine De Barnes reasonably early. Pal had parked his car in the pub car park (with their permission), ready for the trip home. We’d decided to eat there as well so it was all starting to look like a late night. More alarmingly, Nathan had a weekly French test on Monday and I can honestly say that he had no hope of passing based on the accumulated

Top of the Camp Hill Flight

language skills of the adults present!

The Boat Inn at Catherine de Barnes (walk back to the canal bridge, cross over and there’s the pub) is yet another ‘Chef and Brewer’. The dogs are only allowed in the garden, but it was a lovely evening so that wasn’t a problem. The service was efficient and pleasant, the food reliable, reasonably priced and plentiful (especially the puddings); what’s more, the chef wasn’t too proud to cook four sausages for the dogs!

We said goodbye to Liz and Pal with some reluctance – it’s been wonderful to meet up. The fact that Liz and I spent most of the day gossiping explains why Indigo Dream has acquired a few more scratches, especially in the Ashtead Tunnel, which I swear has sagged even more since last year. We’re heading south to Stratford next but when we head back north for the rest of the summer we’ll inevitably swing past Birmingham again, giving us the perfect excuse for another get-together. Nathan thoroughly approved!

Photo Blog

Going through Birmingham by canal is just so interesting. This has been such a great day’s cruising, we took loads of photos but how do you fit them in? How do you select which are worth keeping? Well here are a few:

Looking back up the Farmers Bridge Flight

A457 Bridge - Looking down the flight

I think this is lock 6

There are useful Interpretation Boards on the flight

Emerging out from under the BT & Brindley Towers

This time we managed to pass boats in sensible places

and another easy place to pass a boat

Fantastic mix of old and new on the Farmers Bridge Flight

We have just been under that!

In the pound between Aston & Farmers Bridge

Aston Junction

Old Photo: Top of the Aston Flight in 2005

Old Photo: Aston Junction in 2005

Turning into the Digbeth Branch

We safely moored on the Digbeth Branch

Ashtead Tunnel

More Locks!!

Aqueducts, railway bridges, road bridges - this short branch was it all!

Bordesley Junction

First of the Camp Hill Locks

Heave .....

Lock 55

Big Bend below Lock 54

Lock Crew at Work

Canal silently slips past, unseen from the railway above

Camp Hill Top Lock - useful services on the right

Old Industry by B91

Did you have a good day?

Dog Blog: A great grey day…..

Saturday 13th June

Stifford Show

We delayed our journey up to the boat to follow our other obsession – greyhounds. We popped into the village show in Stifford where greyhoundhomer (where we got Lou) has a vital presence. It was great to see village life being maintained via this lively show with brass bands and morris dancers, and, most importantly, greyhounds. They were everywhere – wandering about, strutting round the show ring, or, most commonly, lying flat out on the grass looking totally unconcerned by the passing crowds. Each and every one was a fine advertisment for the merits of rehoming a greyhound. Blue and Lou were particularly well-behaved. Lou characteristically waited until she got to the centre of the showground then had a good bark just to let everyone know she was there. Once that was done she was quiet for the rest of the day!

In some confusion, another greyhound owner persuaded us to enter Blue and Lou into the fun dog show in the ‘best brace’ class. We had no chance – the places were taken by three spectacularly well-matched pairs. Ah, if only Mickey had been there – Blue and his brother would surely have swept the board – they’re such a handsome pair. Nonetheless, doting mum was very proud of

Greyhounds everywhere

Blue and Lou as they did a perfect walk to heel round the show ring; Richard thought they looked very fit indeed. I was amused when a little girl leading one of the greyhounds from the shelter commented that it was the ‘taking part that counts’ as she quite seriously reassured her dog that it didn’t matter that he hadn’t won. She told me that some people take the show very seriously indeed and get very upset when their dogs don’t take a rosette – takes all sorts.

We were there to support the shelter though it does occur to me that Blue and Lou might have done better in competition if their last contact with water hadn’t been a muddy pond on one of our favourite walks!

Lou & Blue getting ready for posing

Photoblog: BCN Marathon Challenge Day 2

Congestion – and it’s not 5am yet!

Dawn on the Cannock Extension Canal

Fulbourne moored up at Pelsall Junction

Malus and Atlas

View from a high canal

Daw End moorings – a pleasant mix of residential and visitor moorings (further along) – looked like a good place to moor

The first of the dramatic views over the valley and the red quarry

More magnificent views

A million bricks? It may be more….

The Daw End branch is very pleasant

The long straight of the Rushall Canal contrasts sharply with the twists and turns of the Daw End Branch

nb Black Beauty on the Rushall Flight

Canada geese enjoying a stroll along the towpath…

Attractive lock cottage on the Rushall Flight

Swallow’s nest under a busy road bridge on the Rushall Flight; you can just make out a chick peeping over the edge; the parents were whizzing in an out at head height – it’s a low bridge!

Such a beautiful canal – great views even towards the bottom of the flight

Confident swans on the Tame Valley Canal

Looking back towards Rushall Junction

The Tame Valley still towers above the surrounding landscape

Slow down! Leave those grey motorways and join us on the lush green BCN

The cheery crew of nb Elemiah on the Tame Valley Canal

A ‘lovely maned’ horse by the Tame Valley Canal

The Walsall Canal doesn’t look so bad from here…..

But it soon closes in…..

Wonder what this narrowing on the Walsall Canal was for? There’s a tiny landing stage nearby as well.

No kidding!

Aqueduct on the Walsall Canal – it’s a broad aqueduct made narrow by vegetation; good views from up here though.

Walsall Town Basin – full of welcome boating life

And back to normal on Monday morning – just think of all these empty and safe moorings just waiting for you to visit…..

Photoblog: BCN Marathon Challenge Day 1

On the way up the day before:

Following a well driven hire boat through Lady Lane Wharf

Fulbourne stuck mid-channel (or were they trying to save on diesel?)

Traffic jam

On their way to the marathon (Thursday) – many hands helping Fulbourne through Shirley Drawbridge

Almost through ….

Such a perfect pose…..

Hawne Basin looking lovely – a good omen for tomorrow’s challenge

And we’re off…..

The fortified approach to Gosty Tunnel’s southern portal

Fine views on the approach to Windmill End Junction

The view up a ventilation shaft in the Netherton Tunnel

Passing nb Saltaire near Dudley Port Junction – the first of many meetings!

Marathon first aid – fuel and service boat. We’ll be seeing you tomorrow!

nb Api Wanderings at Spon Lane

Tug Joanna at Spon Lane Top Lock

Crossing over the New Main Line

The traditional Blakeley Hall Bridge under the elephantine legs of the M5

Gloomy surroundings at Anchor Bridge

The boat-friendly cafe by Chemical Arm – no time to stop for coffee though…..

The cheery crew of nb Solatium

We’ve squared the circle! Looking down at Netherton Tunnel’s northern portal from Tividale Aqueduct

Tividale Aqueduct: the view the other way with the fine sight of narrowboats on the move…

The broad reaches of the Wolverhampton Levels

nb Shropshire Lass

Dudley Tunnel’s northern portal – good moorings, services and a museum – what more could you ask for?

Green and pleasant land around Coseley Tunnel

And it’s positively rural on the Wednesbury Oak Loop

End of the road – Bradley Works at the end of the Wednesdbury Oak Loop

Passing nb Whitchurch (or should that be Just) – only just enough room to pass through the weed near the end of the Wednesbury Oak Loop

Oooh another trip down the weed hatch

Traffic on the Wolverhampton Levels!

An opportunity for youth to take out (of the canal) what they put in! This yard near Horseley Fields Junction had several ‘community’ boats

View towards Horseley Fields Junction

Promising outlook – a view onto the Wyrley and Essington Canal

Where are you taking that mattress?! It would be nice to think that the towpath was just a shortcut to the local rubbish tip….

Reflective pipe bridge on the Curly Wurley – so shapely, a real feature.

Grand duck house – which MP paid for that on expenses then??

Fulbourne be-weeded on the Wyrley and Essington

Good place for a rummage while the boat keeps moving….

Quite a convoy – the tug’s pushing the dredger and pulling a full size butty…..

Ooh that’s good – cooling splosh on a hot hot day….

The Wyrley and Essington at its best…..

Friendly boating community at Sneyd Junction

Sue, Mark, Steve and Robert of nb Tawny Owl looking good with the bunting – we must get some for next time…

Passing nb. Kershez in the wonderful dusk light

Sunset