Winter Cruise - Day Three

The moorings at the Black Country Museum are both noisy (being next to a busy road), and bright (as the BW service block is very well illuminated).  However, it was extremely heavy rain which woke us up during the night.

We left at 8 o'clock, and turned right onto the Old Main Line.  Our route to Birmingham had been the subject of some discussion, as we've done the journey between Wolverhampton and Birmingham several times over the years.  On one occasion we used the Factory Locks at Tipton to move between the levels of the New and Old main lines, and most recently we used the Smethwick Locks.  So this time, we decided to take a left turn at Brades Hall Junction and use the Brades Locks to take us down onto the Gower Branch and onto the New Main Line.  The Brades Locks include the BCN's only staircase pair.

At the bottom, Brades Hall Bridge has very low headroom, and we had to stop and take off the chimney and the internet antenna.

After completing the third (single) lock and the rest of the Gower Branch, we turned right onto the New Main Line, wide, deep, and straight.  We went under the M5 on its huge concrete pillars, and under the Old Main Line on the Stewart Aqueduct.

As we approached the city centre, we turned off round the Oozells Stree Loop, and spotted that Sherborne Wharf must be one of the few marinas in the country with two electric boats: Waterway Routes, and Felonious Mongoose.

We moored at the end of the Oozells Loop, had a shower and lunch, then went to find Lesley on Caxton, moored just round the corner.  Later in the afternoon, we went along to have a look at The Cube, as it was just a huge hole in the ground when we were last here.  Then we walked into town through the Frankfurt Christmas Market, which has taken over virtually all the centre of town.

This evening, Lesley and Joe, and Jill and Graham from Matilda Rose are coming round for a drink before we all go out for something to eat.  Tomorrow, lots of locks.

9 miles, 3 locks (32 miles, 26 locks)

September Cruise - Day Seven

Thursday 18 September

The pub by Walsall town basin was still quite noisy when we went to bed, but when I woke up in the early hours there was absolute silence. It's a pity more boats don't use the basin. It seems like a perfectly safe place to moor (even though the pontoons are not secure), and the more boats there are about, the better everything would be.

Adrian was awake early, and decided we should set off. So it was 7am when we slipped out of the basin. It was chilly, misty, but showed the promise of a sunny day. The stretch of the Walsall Canal from just after the town arm to Bughole Bridge was full of weed, meaning that we made very slow progress. It felt as though we were wading uphill through treacle. The weed made the water very shallow, and we needed frequent blasts of reverse to clear the prop. In addition, in places the bullrushes made the channel very narrow.

What did come as a surprise, though, was how green the canal was. Even though there were often factories, houses, or roads nearby, we were surrounded by trees and wildlife. We saw dozens of herons, the occasional kingfisher, and three-inch dragon flies.

We reached Ryders Green Locks at around 10 am. It was busy with BW men mowing and strimming, and one of them went up the flight and set all the locks for us. It was another surprisingly attractive flight, considering that there's industry all around.

At Ryders Green Junction we continued onto the Wednesbury Old Canal, then at Pudding Green Junction we turned onto the Birmingham Main Line. We stayed on the New Main Line all the way into the city, passing under the Stewart Aqueduct that's we'd crossed over the other day. We arrived at Sherborne Wharf at 1.30pm, and filled with diesel, pumped out, replaced a gas bottle, and started some washing. Then we moored at the end of the Oozells Street Loop, and went for a late lunch. The rest of the afternoon wa spent pottering about.


We're glad we did the W&E and the Walsall Canals. They're much more pleasant than we'd expected, and although the rubbish and the weed is a problem, it's not insurmountable. And if more boats used the waterways, surely things would improve.

Tomorrow, we head out of Birmingham on the Worcs and Birmingham Canal, then turn onto the Stratford.

14 miles, 8 locks. (Totals: 71 miles, 92 locks)

September Cruise - Day Four

Monday 15 September

After a quick visit to the village shop, we left our moorings at Catherine de Barnes just before 8am. I was at the tiller; limited movement from the rest of the crew! The canal follows a cutting through the Solihull, so there's not much to see. Two and a half hours brought us to the top of the Camp Hill Locks, where we reversed into the little basin to fill with water at the BW facilities block. Then it was down the locks, (back to narrow ones, thank goodness), crossing with a couple of hire boats coming up.

The takes a strange loop, the result of a road scheme, which puts the two forms of transport right next to each other. There's also lots of graffitti all over the place. The bottom lock is next to Bordesley Junction, where the Saltley Cut goes off to the right. We continued on the Grand Union, through Warwick Bar, and took a quick spin into Typhoo Basin (there's not much to see!). Then it was on to the Digbeth Branch, and up the six Ashted Locks. These had the advantage of single gates at both ends, and there are attractive reedy pounds. The problem is that none of the locks are on the same line, so lining up properly is almost impossible.

We stopped for lunch at the top of the locks, then made the short journey to Aston Junction, to turn onto the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal towards the Farmer's Bridge Flight. A boat was just going into the bottom lock, and apparently hadn't enjoyed their trip down the locks. I told them it was one of my favourite flights!

A little way up the flight, I could hear paddles being wound, but couldn't see a boat. Then I spotted a man in a suit, carrying a windlass. "Are you Paul?", I asked. And it was: Paul Balmer, from Waterway Routes, who'd been reading the blog and came to help us up the flight! There are some unusual locks, with some under bridges and a couple under a tower block.

Paul was also helping a couple of New Zealanders, readers of his blog, who were on their way down. We crossed in one of the smallest pounds of the flight. Thanks to Paul's help, we completed the thirteen locks of the Farmer's Bridge in just an hour and a quarter, and were soon at the top.

After a quick cuppa, Paul then took me for a look at his boat, and we were for a cruise round the Icknield Port Loop so I could experience electric powered boating. The silence and smoothness make it ideal for the filming Paul does.


In the evening, Adrian and I went to pick up take away burgers from the Gourmet Burger Company, which we took back to the boat. No TV signal here, so we've been watching the DVD of the Llangollen Canal, which Paul kindly gave us. All in all, a fascinating day, through some interesting industrial heritage, with the added excitement of meeting a fellow blogger!

11 miles, 25 locks. (Totals: 36 miles, 73 locks)