We were surprised at how quiet it was here last night. There were a few early movers about, even before breakfast. It was very misty as I took Meg out first thing. Someone was making an early start coming down the Shroppie.
Most of the Anglo-Welsh boats seem to be in now. We set off at about 9, well wrapped up and with our tea in insulated cups. There are lots of bridges between the two junctions, and two had great reed mace (aka bulrushes) growing on them.
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| Water plants above your head |
We arrived at the bottom of the Wolverhampton flight to find the bottom lock empty – we were the first up this morning.
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| Lock 21 |
Apart from a couple of walkers it was all very quiet. After the first couple of locks and past the racecourse we started to hear the noise of industry behind the fences and trees. Most of the locks were set for us, or nearly so, so early progress was quite good.
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| The flight is very well greased |
A couple of volunteers approached – one was training the other as a lockie, and although they were supposed to be litter-picking today he asked if Francis could work us through a couple of locks. Of course we said yes!
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| Thanks guys |
It probably took a little longer that way but we thought of it as an investment for the future! A few locks later, another whizzed along on an electric bike and helped us for a couple of locks – he was supposed to be recording the condition of the flight, so I told him about the top gate that was very difficult to close two locks back, which he recorded. Then I pointed out the bracket fungus growing on the bottom gate he was about to close.
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| Very poor condition altogether |
Then he went back down the flight. We had spotted a boat behind us a while before, and he gave them a hand too before he disappeared. They were very slick and were slowly starting to gain on us. I was just closing up the top lock when the crew arrived to empty it again.
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| A few bits of weed around in the locks – hope it’s not
too bad on the way to Tipton |
They turned out to be on an Anglo-Welsh hire boat. We congratulated them on their efficiency as they passed us, not mooring up for lunch like us. After a sausage sandwich to recharge our batteries we moved round to the Broad Street facilities to top up the water tank. I couldn’t find any rubbish bins though. Then off we went through a mixture of dereliction, scruffy industry and new housing. The morning had been quite bright, with the occasional glimpse of sun and I had been gradually shedding layers as we worked our way up, but now the skies were grey and a cold wind had sprung up. Dave saw a kingfisher in one of the boskier sections, though I missed it. But to my delight there were little grebes, probably half a dozen over a mile or two, as we got closer to the Coseley tunnel. At least I think they were little grebes – the pictures on the web match my memory, but my photos were zoomed in, taken on the move, and then cropped and enlarged – not very good!
They seemed to like hanging out with coot, but tended to dive or swim away when we got close. Anyway, I have only seen one once before, so I was very pleased. The stretch from Millfields to Coseley tunnel was full of water birds – mallard, coot, moorhen and the little grebes. Much more so than rural stretches of the Staffs and Worcester, interestingly. Eventually we made it to Coseley Tunnel and moored on the bollards a couple of hundred yards past the south portal. There hadn’t been much weed, luckily; though the engine had to be put in reverse a few times, Dave didn’t have to go down the weed hatch at all.
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| Coseley tunnel north portal |
The mooring is a lot scruffier than we remembered, with fly-tipping clearly visible on the offside bank. We could have gone on to Tipton but we were cold by now and it was already 5 o’clock so we stayed. Dave had to take Meg out straight away. You’d think the 21 would be ideal exercise for a dog – my watch tells me I walked over 5 miles – but there is so much broken glass about that we daren’t risk cut paws.
21 locks, 6½ miles, Coseley tunnel
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