Roundup for 2025; part 1

Part 1; January to June

The year’s cruising was very much shaped by outside influences, not least the drought.  But that came later.

Our first visit to Bonjour was in January.  The leisure batteries needed replacing and we had the new ones ready, but quickly discovered that the design of the battery tray, coupled with the inconvenient factor of us both getting on a bit, meant that Dave was unable to remove them himself.  They were, after all, 31 kg apiece and tucked away underneath the stern locker.

The pale horizontal bar is the edge of the engine hole where the deck board rests.  The battery tray could not be dismantled, or Dave would have done the job himself.

The weather was either very wet or very windy, so we stayed in the marina, doing a few jobs and preparing the boat to come out of the water for blacking in early March.  When we came back towards the end of March, we went down to Worcester where we had an appointment at Lowesmoor Basin to get the leisure batteries replaced.

First lock of the year - Hanbury bottom lock

It was spring-like with lots of sunshine but early frost, and it was very cold cruising.  At Lowesmoor Basin, Stuart the engineer declared that our batteries, at 31kg each, were at the limit of his strength.  Any heavier and he would have needed another pair of hands, and a winch. 

A very heavy job – battery no 3

The basin was sheltered from the wind and Stuart was quickly down to a t-shirt.  Once the job was completed we pottered off again back towards Hanbury Junction.  The skies had clouded over and it had become very cold –it was still March, after all.

Violets shivering in the wind 

Now we were travelling northwards the wind was in our faces, and it was definitely wintry cruising.  It didn’t stop Dave washing the winter grot from the starboard side, and he had a go with the polish to see if he could improve the paintwork.  It didn’t do much though.

Maybe we should start thinking about repainting

We wanted to get to the rest of the network for the summer, and we should have had a choice of three routes. The Tardebigge option was quickly scuppered.  The top lock had been closed in mid-February when one of the walls started bulging, but it soon became clear that repairs on this listed structure would be extensive and the lock would be closed for months.  We really fancied going south on the Severn to join the Avon, returning to the canals via Stratford.  But with a stoppage near Stratford on the Wilmcote locks until the end of May, we would have had to leave the boat at Shakespeare marina on the Avon with the additional cost of an Avon licence for the duration, as well as any marina fees.  Instead, in April we left Droitwich marina to join the Severn at Hawford junction.

A new mooring for us at Salwarpe on the Droitwich Barge canal

 

The Severn is beautiful, but with no views over the flood banks it can get a bit tedious at times.

With no moorings left on the river at Stourport we decided to get out of the centre and moored at the Bird in Hand.  We’d had a long 8-hour day cruising, and thought we deserved a pie and a pint – though no pies, as they weren’t serving food.  But we enjoyed a pint and the sight of a male swan patrolling the busy towpath opposite his nest where the pen was brooding her eggs.

Kidderminster isn’t far from Stourport, and is a useful stopping point for supplies with a choice of supermarkets.  But the place is busy and the roads are noisy.  Once you have risen up Kidderminster lock the much-photographed church signals that the more rural part of the Staffs and Worcester is not far away.

Springtime in Kidderminster

At the Kinver facilities we spotted our first food waste bin.  By the end of the summer it was clear that the roll-out of these bins has been very patchy and not many people seem to be using them, which I think is a great shame.  Most marinas don’t seem keen on the idea either.  We were aiming for Calcutt marina, so needed to pass through Birmingham and chose the Dudley canals route rather than the Wolverhampton 21.

Our progress up the Stourbridge flight was delayed by this coot, which crashed into the boat and ended up in the lock.  I raised a single paddle very gently to let it recover and it hopped out once the lock was filled.

Already in April the weather was very warm.  We left Birmingham down the Farmer’s bridge flight, cool in the canyon between the buildings, but the rest of the journey to Fazeley Junction was scorchingly hot.

Horse Chestnut at Minworth bottom lock

After all the heavy lock work we had had so far it was a delight to reach the Atherstone flight.  The weather now reminded us it was still spring, with hat-and-glove starts in the morning!

The blossom this year has been prolific

We had run out of time to get to Calcutt, so left the boat at Springwood Haven on the Coventry near Hartshill.

A different view of the famous telegraph pole near Hartshill.

Our timings in the first half of the year were governed by several visits to the dentist, both planned and not!  We also needed a flat roof replacement at home; the old one, already well beyond its expected lifespan, was no longer responding to Dave’s repairs.  It was an expensive time, and about to get worse.  A couple of days after we got home in early May, our water supply failed - and we are not on the mains.  The foot valve in the original well fittings (which could be 70 years old) had fallen apart and the copper pipe it was fitted to creased as it was lifted out.  Our lovely neighbour let us run a hose from her garden tap so we could fill our tank in the roof, and a firm from Exeter rigged up a temporary supply from our well a couple of days later.  At least with the boat we are accustomed to being careful with water use!

A new blue alkathene pipe was temporarily installed to run above ground down to the house.  The full repair will need a 100-metre trench to be dug. 

Our June trip had to be fairly short, as we were waiting for a quote to complete the work on our water supply, and more dentist visits were looming too.  So we had a gentle time pottering up the Ashby and then down to Coventry before returning to Springwood Haven.  There hadn’t been much rain but the Ashby had been dredged over winter, and we had no depth problems.  There were even showers on this trip to keep the vegetation looking fresh and green.

The small winding hole at the current Ashby terminus.  The unrestored part of the route stretches away in the middle of the photo.

We pottered on down to Coventry basin, where we went to visit Dippy the Diplodocus (on holiday from the Natural History Museum)

Hello Dippy

and we popped into Coventry Cathedral, where the glorious stained glass has to be seen in person to appreciate the way it glows.

Piper's burst of glory

It had to be a short visit, as there was a large conference taking place and it was crowded with clergy on their lunch break.   Instead, we treated ourselves to lunch at the Playwright’s café and cruised back to Hawkesbury Junction.

Bye bye Mr Brindley

A couple of days later, we were soaked in a heavy shower as we waited at the marina for fuel and a pump-out – we weren’t going into our berth till the next day, but that would be turnaround day for the hire base so we got the domestics done in good time.  And that was the last rain we would see this summer!  We winded at Mancetter and found a quiet mooring for the rest of the day.

The clock tower at Hartshill yard

This area around Springwood Haven is one of the loveliest stretches on the Coventry.

The rest of the year, as we all know, was to be severely affected by the lack of rain.

Teenage gang at Hartshill

*********** 

 

Tolladine lock

Tolladine lock non-update

After our last trip, I contacted CRT about the continued ‘undergoing repair’ status of the offside ground paddle at Tolladine lock, as it doesn’t appear on the winter stoppages list.  I said how stiff the towpath side paddle had got and sent them my photos.

March 2024

October 2025

This is the reply they sent.

I've been told that the reactive team will be undertaking the repair to the paddle stand and On Site will also be clearing the blocked paddle hole at the same time, we are waiting for the dates from them before we can issue the stoppage notice because it will require a two day closure.

‘Reactive team’, eh?  I wonder if they are waiting for a specific number of complaints before they get around to scheduling it?

 

Packing up for winter

Monday 13^th October; Hanbury Junction to the marina

We awoke to fine drizzle, not the best weather for packing up!  We stayed where we were for a couple of hours, getting most of the packing out of the way, and once the drizzle had cleared Dave did some outside stuff too.  The damage from the bottle strike is much less obvious than it was although it still needs a bit of work, but at least will be protected over the winter.  A swan family was hanging around, but paddled off once it was clear there would be no food forthcoming.  I think it’s the family from the marina. The cygnets have a lot of white feathers now and I’m surprised the parents haven’t seen them off yet.  The swanlife website suggests it’s the development of the white feathers that triggers the territorial instinct in the parents.   

By the time we moved down to the marina the vollies had arrived on the Hanbury flight and were fully occupied with three boats all going down – we were the middle one.  We stopped at the wharf to fill up with fuel and do a pump-out before slipping into our berth.  There was very little wind which made it fuss-free.  Dave spent an hour or so down the engine-hole making sure everything was all set for winter.  I took the first trolley-load of bags to the car, the contents mostly from the galley cupboards which are now empty apart from a few tins.  I discovered the car was filthy, the windows so covered in dust that Dave had to take a bucket up to give it a clean before we could leave.   Because of the dry weather the dusty element of the ballast-type surface of the roadway round the marina gets kicked up every time a car goes by.

It took till four o'clock to finish cleaning and packing up.  As usual, we wondered whether all the bags and bedding would fit in the car and leave enough room for us, but it always does – just.  With everything turned off that needs to be for winter, taps open and the water tank virtually empty, I just needed to close the cratch cover.  The new zips are great (winter winds would have quickly ripped the fabric of the old ones which had started rotting) and the replacement Velcro too, except for one little bit.  I think the canvas must gradually shrink just a little as it ages; I seem to remember it was like that on Chuffed too.  I might try adding an extra bit of Velcro next year – I’ve still got the canvas-mending tool I bought to repair Chuffed’s old cratch cover.

It wasn’t that grubby when I took it in for repair, honest

On past form it’s unlikely we’ll be back before the New Year, but you never know.

Trip stats;

Worcester and Birmingham canal, Droitwich Junction canal.

34 locks, 19 miles, all but half a furlong on narrow canals – only the basin at Diglis (where we winded) is classed as broad because of the locks going down to the Severn.  2 tunnels – Dunhampstead, once each way.

A very short cruise to the junction

Sunday 12^th October; Dunhampstead to Hanbury Junction

It was cold and grey this morning with a dank autumnal air.

Not so gloomy that people won’t get out to enjoy the water

After a while the air was dry enough for Dave to do a bit more work on the bottle-damaged area of the starboard side while I started work inside on removal of the drifts of dog-hair which always accumulate no matter how little she seems to shed day-to-day.  We set off mid-morning for the short hop to Hanbury Junction.  Just beyond the visitor mooring at Dunhampstead is the previous home of Trinity Boats, whose hire and boat-building business has now moved to the old Anglo-Welsh base at Tardebigge.  Yesterday was the official opening of the new business whose principal work is fit-outs. 

A rogue apostrophe I think

The café/trip boat Patricia is currently moored there, but has just gone on sale with Evesham Marina. 

The picture was taken from their Facebook page.

It was an uneventful cruise to the junction apart from a hold-up at one of the bridges, where a dangling bramble swiped at Dave’s head.

Hey!  That’s mine!

So there was a slight delay while we reversed back to the bridge hole to retrieve it.  I had the grabber in my hand in case his hat fell into the water, but the bramble wasn’t giving its trophy up easily.  I got the secateurs and snipped off the dangling bits I could reach before we moved on. 

Expert reversing!

We had the pick of the moorings at the junction so chose the best bit - furthest from the noisy road bridge and away from the overhanging trees which make the other spots rather gloomy.  It may be overcast today but at least here there is a trickle of solar for the batteries.  I left Dave getting on with various jobs and made the trek to Waitrose for milk and some snacks for our journey home tomorrow. 

We didn’t do much after lunch.  Dave took Jess for a decent walk but I was tired, having walked as fast as I could for the 3 mile round trip to Waitrose and back with a heavy(ish) rucksack.  Instead I looked up the opening hours of the carvery at the Eagle and Sun back at the bridge as we didn’t have anything planned for our evening meal and I didn’t feel like cooking.  It is under new ownership and their grand opening is …. in a couple of days’ time.  Never mind, I had the ingredients for pastry and made an onion quiche so at least it wasn’t beans on toast again.

There was quite a bit of boat activity with hire boats on their way to and from Black Prince to the north or ABC, Diamond Resorts and Canal Boat Club in Worcester to the south.  We didn’t bother to look but could hear several boats turning at the junction, to or from the Droitwich direction, too. 

Less than 2 miles, Dunhampstead tunnel, 1 hour’s slow cruising.

Too much water now!

Saturday 11^th October; Perdiswell Park to Dunhampstead

It was another quiet, grey and cloudy day.  Dave took Jess for a decent walk in the park while I went up to get bread and the paper in the retail park.  I noticed when we drove through Droitwich on our way to the marina, when we came through Bilford top lock and also here, that the lamp-posts on the main roads are all adorned with St George’s flags.

I’m not passing any comment here on the motivation of the people putting these flags up.  But I was always taught that flags are only flown at half-mast to show respect for someone who has died.  I think these rows of half-mast flags look a bit daft and slightly creepy.

We set off mid-morning, knowing that the locks would not be in our favour, as two boats had already passed this morning.  The top paddles on Blackpole and Tolladine locks were very stiff, no change there.  It’s less than a mile then to the bottom of the Offerton flight.  I turned the bottom lock, left Dave to close up at the top and walked the couple of hundred yards to the next lock.

A splash of autumn colour in the gloom at bridge 23

As we were working up the second lock (no 5) I could see activity at the next (no 4), so walked up to ensure they left the bottom gates open for us.  A hire boat was moored on the lock landing above it and all four crew were straining every sinew to open the top gate against the water flooding over it.  The levels just would not equalise.  There was so much water coming down that one of the crew had already been back to the lock above (no 3) to ask – beg! - the crew not to let any more water down until their hire boat had got in, descended, and left lock 4.  Two of the four were owners - their own boat had been trapped above Knowle locks because of the low water levels, scuppering their summer cruising plans with friends.  As they are booked in for a repaint at the end of the month they weren’t going to risk getting stuck below the locks so they had hired instead.  They got down eventually, then it was our turn.

The crew above had opened their paddles by now

Thankfully the excess water was soon spent and we had no further trouble.  There was another boat on its way down too which had added to the problem.  By the time we reached the top of the flight it was lunchtime, so we went on to the Tibberton moorings for a break.  The Bridge pub, canalside at Tibberton, had re-opened in the summer and we toyed with the idea of staying for a meal tonight though we really wanted to be a little further on.  I wandered up to have a look at the menu but found the pub closed and dark, the new management clearly not having been able to make a go of it.  We carried on.  We could have squeezed in to moor at Oddingley, but went on a little further to Dunhampstead where we knew there was a good edge.

Scots Pines at Oddingley

Dave needed a good edge so he could start repairing the damage sustained when that lout chucked a bottle at us on the last trip.

A reminder of the damage.  Vactan has been protecting it since then

He used filler on the bigger areas but will see if paint on its own will deal with the small chips of the splatter pattern.  He also put a strip of masking tape along the very bottom of the tumblehome so he could paint a straight black line along the gunwale edge – when we bought the boat the edge of the cream paint on the side was rather ragged and he was keen to neaten it up at last.

4½ miles, 8 locks

 

Back to the park

Friday 10^th October; the Commandery to Perdiswell park

We uncharacteristically slept in this morning, so were all behind like a cow’s tail for a bit.  We had a think about how far we wanted to get today (not very) and what else we needed to do (bits and pieces).  Dave wanted to get on with refreshing the paintwork now the starboard side is accessible, so first I got the milk from the handy garage above the canal on the way to Diglis Basin.

Take care!  The canal is down behind the wall

Then Jess and I went for a walk to Fort Royal, not far away.  These days it is a pretty municipal park on a steep hill overlooking the Severn and the city, but on 3^rd September 1651 the Battle of Worcester, the last major battle of the Civil War, raged all around.  Worcester was in the possession of the Royalists, and Charles Stuart, then only 21, watched the battle’s progress from the tower of the Cathedral before spotting an unguarded flank and leading an attack in person.  But eventually the Royalists were forced back into the city, and Fort Royal was stormed and captured by the Parliamentarians.  Its cannon were then turned on the city.  The battle raged until the Parliamentarians triumphed late in the evening.  Charles escaped to France but many thousands of Royalists were not so lucky.

Nowadays there is a peaceful view across the Severn valley to the Malvern Hills

The main attraction for Jess though was the squirrels, which are hard at work hiding acorns and other goodies for the winter, and she got far more exercise running back and forth staring up into the trees as she did from walking.  We slipped our moorings at 11, going up one lock to the bollards at bridge 5 where Dave set off to find Screwfix for a replacement galley tap – the leak in ours is getting worse and it will be easier to replace than repair.  

There is some excellent artwork under bridges, part of the Worcester Paint street art festival last year.

Then we went a little further on, past the ABC hire base to a small park ideal for a lunch stop.

Slightly blurred action photo

After a quick lunch we set off again, now in sunshine.  The remaining four locks were quickly dealt with.  At Gregory’s Mill top lock was the last of the floating pennywort we saw on this trip – a little pile on the lockside, to which I added the floating bits I could reach.

Floating no more

We arrived back at Perdiswell Park by 4.  I gave Dave a hand for a while polishing off some of the paint restorer until my arm got too tired (I blame the wretchedly stiff paddle gear on some of these locks).  He did the lion’s share though.  By evening the clear skies meant the temperature was dropping, but the sun had warmed the boat and we only needed to run the Eber for an hour – it did need testing before the winter, after all.

2½ miles, 5 locks