Back to base

Tuesday 13^th October; Hanbury junction to the marina

The weather was lovely today, in fact perfect for cruising apart from the wind.  Apart from yesterday it has been so dry that I wore trainers to take Jess along the towpath for her early walk – normally at this time of year it is muddy with some sections becoming waterlogged.  Last year there was a burnt-out cruiser along here with some loose bits shoved into the hedge – most of it has now been recovered and it is hard to see what's left.  And last year there was much less vegetation – soon the last vestiges will have disappeared into the reeds.

Not a lot left now 

We started packing up but didn’t want to move off too early as the marina office doesn’t open till 10 and we needed fuel.

It’s the start of the leaf soup season

It could have taken us a fair time to get down the three Hanbury locks if the locks had been empty as they usually are first thing in the morning, and we knew we would be the first using them.  But to our delight,

The volunteers were arriving!

Before the first lock was full two more vollies had arrived.  As we opened the bottom gates of the first lock the middle one was already set for us, so the first volunteer went back to their hut to put the kettle on.  I was invited to get aboard at the last lock which I was happy to do as there were still two vollies to do the work.

Waiting for the side pond to fill

I’m not usually on board in these locks as I get back on from the steps below the bottom gates.  They do feel very deep when the lock is empty.

Ten feet nine inches

We took on diesel to ensure the tank is completely full before winter and were soon berthed up in spite of the tricky wind.  Going in bow first – which we do as it makes loading and unloading much easier – means the side of the boat spends less time exposed to the wind than if you go in stern-first.  The first job for Dave was to sort out the headlamp while he waited for the engine to cool a little.  The problem was a loose earth connection, which was of course the last connection he tested.  Then he did the stern gland and all the engine checks ready for winter.  The last important thing to do was clear all the channels round the engine board and poke out the leaves and cobwebs from the channel that takes rainwater overboard.  By that time I had finished most of the cleaning, so we had lunch and then carted everything out to the car in glorious sunshine, t-shirt weather – if only it had been like this yesterday! 

We will return at some point during the winter to take Bonjour along to Crafted Boats as, if all goes to plan, they will be repainting above the gunwales in February.  Fingers crossed there will not be an unexpected problem or a big freeze – we will be keeping a beady eye on the CRT stoppage alerts as well as the long range weather forecast.

1 mile, 3 locks

Trip stats; 19 miles narrow canal, 34 narrow locks, Dunhampstead tunnel (twice); 2 furlongs underground.  Droitwich Junction canal and the Worcester and Birmingham.

A drizzly day and a dark tunnel

Monday 12^th October; Blackpole bridge to Hanbury junction

We knew we would have a damp cruising day unless we started before dawn, but although it was cloudy I still managed to walk Jess in the dry.  But by the time I was walking to M&S for some milk it had started to drizzle, which it would continue to do, with a few brief pauses, till late in the afternoon.  As I came back to the towpath I could see the two weed boats had come down from their mooring below the lock and were having a break before starting work.

Time for a crafty fag.  I hope the chap on the collector does a better job than he did last week.

We left at 10 and by 11 had gone up Blackpole and Tolladine locks, more or less damply.  Under bridge 22A, where a busy A road crosses both the canal and a wide track, there are two extra walls for the local graffiti artists to decorate.  But unless you get off the boat and walk across the towpath and down to the track, you can’t get more than a brief glimpse.

Wacky Races

The other end has both Dick Dastardly and Muttley but there is only the briefest of moments to capture them – I failed.  But I did smile at the title of the cartoon faces I snapped a couple of days ago – Wacky Faces.  I wish they’d done it the other way round; Dick D is a lot more fun.  I made a pot of coffee before we had reached the 6 locks of the Offerton flight, and used an insulated cup for mine to ensure it stayed hot enough to drink.  The drizzle stopped for a little while and I got so hot I put my waterproof back on the boat, which was foolish as the rain started again as I waited for Dave at the lock with the cottage beside it.

Someone needs to clear the gutter

We were up the flight at about midday – the locks are close enough to lock ahead, and there was so little wind that Dave could close up and I didn’t need to walk back again to do it.  We stopped at Tibberton for some lunch.  It was still drizzling – lightly but very wetly – and was set to continue for 2 or 3 hours so we togged up in our waterproofs and continued. 

The bridges at Oddingley have heavy duty netting to catch the bits falling off

We realised the weed-cutter had been through the previous week, as this time we spotted the piles of cut reeds on the offside.  The floating debris seemed to have cleared a bit, although where we had moored the other day another large pile of reeds had been hauled out to join ours.  Dave could clear the prop with the occasional blast of reverse, but then I noticed a bit of a wake from the bow, and then a large bit of branch could be seen sticking out above the water.  A stop to release the accumulation was essential and fortunately Dunhampstead visitor mooring wasn’t far – but the contractor’s clear-up had been woefully incomplete.

The biggest pile yet.  My arms were aching like billy-o

Dave had to remove some from the weed hatch too.  Next, it was headlamp on and Jess on the lead for Dunhampstead tunnel, and in we went.  The headlamp flickered and went out – came on again – then stayed off.  The tunnel is only 230 yards long so we could see where we were going, but Dave beeped the horn a few times in case a boat was approaching round the bend at the exit.  The rain finally stopped as we approached Hanbury Junction.  Dave turned the boat, as there is a forecast of wind tomorrow, and we pulled right back onto the end of the mooring furthest from the road and away from the trees.  And the sun even came out for a bit but it was already down behind the trees by then.  Dave had a brief look at the headlamp wiring but the weather was too gloomy to really see what he was doing so that will wait till tomorrow.

6¼ miles, 8 locks, Dunhampstead tunnel

The first fire of the autumn

Sunday 11^th October; Commandery to Perdiswell Park, bridge 17

By the time we were awake the Cathedral clock was striking 8, so it was a slow start to the day.  When Jess and I walked down to the garage to buy the Sunday paper I noticed that Sidbury lock was full, ready for our descent later.   But by the time we were ready to leave, a hire boat had gone by on its way down to the river so I would need to fill it again before we could leave.  We had made up our minds last night to retrace our route back to the marina rather than go round the Droitwich ring.  As we made ready to leave at 10 o’clock, the Cathedral bells had started ringing for morning service.  Cathedral bands are very skilled and it was wonderful to hear – 14 bells I thought, though it’s difficult to tell when there are more than 8 or 10.

Sidbury lock, the first and second of the day.

We made our way along the few hundred yards to Diglis basin to wind.  NB The Boat was making ready to leave, which was a bit of a drag as they would have the benefit of the empty lock.  Diglis basin is often a tricky place to turn round as the wind can be very troublesome – either funnelling down from the north between tall buildings and a high wall, blowing up from the river to the south or just being a nuisance from the other directions as it blows through gaps between buildings.  But today was calm and it was a very easy turn.  The Boat was just leaving Sidbury lock so I closed up for them.  They were booked in at Lowesmoor Basin for some work later in the week so would be mooring above the next lock.  It was ages before we got though the next lock, as both Sidbury and Blockhouse are 9’6” deep.

Jess was fully occupied at Blockhouse lock with a log

It was a beautiful sunny day as we pottered along, passing The Boat soon afterwards.  They warned us of some fishermen beyond the next bridge – it was a match, of course.  The sun was so bright that it was difficult to take a photo but this one has some interesting effects caused by the glare – I had to wait until we were under the bridge to take it.

The halo effect

The walker does indeed have blue hair, and her clothes seem to match the cladding on the building.  The water is full of coloured shiny sparkles and the fisherman on the right appears to be using a light sabre as part of his rod!  We stopped briefly by the park at bridge 11 for lunch and to give Jess some playtime before we moved on.

The artwork at bridge 11 used to be of animals, elephants, lions and so on

After yesterday’s empty pound we were slightly concerned about water levels as we came up the two Gregory’s Mill locks, but everything was fine.  We had been told that there were more fishermen ‘further along the other side of the bridge’ but they weren’t anywhere to be seen. They must be above Bilford top lock, as there isn’t much room along the towpath here, but maybe yesterday’s empty pound would have caused problems too.  There were a few chaps there above the lock, but would there be more, even as far as our planned mooring at Perdiswell Park?  It’s hard to see as there is a lot of reed growth along the towpath, which also restricts the places to fish.  We have woken up in the past to find fishermen setting up at both our bow and stern so were prepared to stop temporarily through the bridge and then pull back – but they had gone, if they had ever been there.  Once moored I got the shears and trimmed the nettles and brambles on the edge so Dave could paint this side below the gunwale, then I took Jess to the park where we had a good long walk and she spent a lot of time barking up trees at squirrels.

Dave had started on the rust on the sliding hatch

At least the rust spots have been dealt with.  Later on we lit the first fire of the autumn.

3 ¼ miles, 7 locks

 

Just an hour’s delay …

Saturday 10^th October; Perdiswell Park to Commandery, Worcester

I took Jess into the park for her early walk and I didn’t take photos this morning as I realised I hadn’t downloaded yesterday’s completely.

Perdiswell Park alongside the golf course

These fine fungi could have been the edible Parasol Mushroom but are probably the poisonous Panther Cap.  I didn’t get down low enough to check the base which would have told me for certain. Even if I thought they were Parasols I still wouldn't eat them without an expert to confirm the identification!

One of the local households planted a Russian Vine (aka Mile-a-Minute) some years ago, and now in autumn it covers a large area of fence and rampages over the bushes by the towpath.

I nipped down the footpath and under the railway to M&S in the Blackpole Retail Park for some snacks and the Saturday paper before we set off towards Bilford top lock at the far end of the park.  It was sunny but we were cruising into a chilly wind.  Some locking would soon warm me up.  But what was this?  Activity at the lock but a CRT bod walking towards us, a regretful smile on her face.  She was very apologetic but the pound below the bottom Bilford lock had been completely empty and we were in for a bit of a wait.  We moored above the top lock and I walked down to have a look. 

Below the bottom lock – the swans had been walking along the bottom when she arrived.

The pound is about 300 yards long and would take a long time to fill – she was being very careful not to run water down too quickly to avoid the pound we were in getting too low.  So she spent a lot of time walking back and forth to check the levels.  There was no obvious reason for the pound to have drained and the paddles had all been in order, so the reason remained a mystery.  After about an hour we were allowed to proceed, but the boat behind, being deeper-draughted, opted to wait a while longer.  We didn’t have any trouble getting through the pound to the two Gregory's Mill locks.

Gregory's Mill bottom lock.  It was years before we twigged how to use these handy steps to get back on the boat!

A couple of CRT men were at the first of the two locks and had been hauling out floating pennywort and bits of fallen branch.  They hastened to check we had been given permission to continue!  I chatted to them about the cut reeds that had caused us such trouble and they were pretty scathing about some of the contractors, and reckoned CRT should take it all the towpath maintenance and reed-cutting back in-house.  We reached the Commandery moorings at about 2.  After a late lunch I left Dave painting the port side between the gunwale and the rubbing strake and went shopping. 

It’s a good edge for ground-level painting

I took the scenic route to M&S, walking up Friar Street, and along Pump Street to the Shambles, passing the back entrance to M&S along the way before turning down the High Street. 

Friar Street

I bought some fruit in the greengrocer’s before battling through the clustering teenagers in the beauty department of Boots to get to the far end where all the useful stuff is.  Back out again into the busy street to find the front entrance of M&S for an essential visit – we both need some new underwear.  Mission accomplished – and with a cosy new pair of pyjamas for me too – I hot-footed it away from the Saturday crowds, past the statue of Elgar and the two girls taking selfies in front of him.

A slightly odd angle to keep the youngsters out of the picture

The busy City Walls Road has to be crossed to get back to the canal – we can hear the traffic till late in the evening.

This acrobat is perusing the menu of the restaurant on the left

There are many sites around Worcester associated with the English Civil War, the Commandery being one of them.  This plaque is on the bridge next to it.

Maybe his sentiment is true but an awful lot of people died for it whatever their beliefs

Smarter now!  How long before it gets scruffy again?

I filled the coal scuttle ready for a fire but it wasn’t quite cold enough this evening to light it.

2½ miles, 5 locks

More visits down the weed hatch

Friday 9^th October; Oddingley to Perdiswell Park, bridge 17

Last night’s rain had more or less cleared when I took Jess out first thing, but it was overcast and rather mild.  We were ready to leave soon after 9, but first Dave had to go down the weed hatch to remove last night’s collection of reed stems.  They get wound so tightly that it is more effective to pull them out by hand than to use the Prop-mate.

There was still plenty of weed about - it was clear that the CRT’s contractors had been doing the end of season edge-to-edge cut as there were long stretches where the cut ends of reeds and other plants were visible along the Armco.  With lots of floating debris it wasn’t surprising that we had to stop at Tibberton bridge to clear the prop again.

The Bridge pub at Tibberton has had mixed fortunes in the last couple of years with periods of closure and a change of ownership.  The current rumour is that it will become an Indian restaurant, which would be great, but a dog-walker said he wasn’t sure they had even applied for planning permission yet for the changes they need.

Looking rather neglected now.  There used to be a nice garden behind that boarding.

Having seen no moving boats yesterday we were pleased to see one at Tibberton making ready to leave, so we warned him about the clutter in the water.  Then another boat appeared just before we reached the motorway bridge so we hoped the six Offerton locks would have held on to some of their water and not emptied themselves before we got there.  They had mostly stayed fairly full so it was an easy descent, especially as we met a boat coming up. 

Offerton bottom lock

There were just a couple more locks to do before our planned lunch stop.   We picked up more reeds on the bow but they floated off as we went through Tolladine lock, where the last few damsons were still squished on the offside bank. 

Artwork under bridge 22A

One more lock to go, Blackpole.  We could see activity – was a boat coming up?  Well yes, but the lovely crew had seen us coming and with the lock almost full had refilled it for us instead of emptying it for themselves.  They were seasoned hirers who had already been down to Diglis basin this morning, turned and were on their way back.  We had a friendly discussion on the differences between hirers and owners – they are there ‘to boat’, not potter about as we do!  We still haven’t decided whether to turn at Diglis and potter gently back or carry on down to the river and complete the Droitwich Ring. 

The weed-cutter was moored below Blackpole lock.  The hirers are just leaving the picture.

There were a few drops of rain as we moored below bridge 17 opposite Perdiswell Park in time for lunch, but the afternoon was dry.  Once more I had had to haul out a great pile of cut reeds and yellow flag from the bow, while Dave went down the weed hatch once again.  We then had to decide whether to move on closer to Diglis or stay put, and staying put easily won.  Dave took Jess over to the park for a good long walk straight after lunch, and I took her out again later before it got dark.  Lucky dog.

I reported the floating debris situation to CRT via the website.  It is clear that the contractors have done a slapdash job, just strimming along the edge with no thought to where the cuttings end up, and have caused delays and annoyance to several boaters.

8 locks, 3¾ miles, a lot of strimmed reeds in the water

 

 

It's the towpath cutting season

Thursday 8^th October; Droitwich Spa marina to Oddingley

We had an easy journey up the M5 till the approach to Gloucester, where traffic slowed to about 25 mph.  We guessed we had caught up with the abnormal load we knew would be travelling today from Avonmouth.  Dave had prepared a list of escape routes should we need them.  The giant silo would be taking up 2 lanes, and lucky for us they had stopped on an extra-wide section of hard shoulder to let the traffic build-up clear.  The photo shows that the bed of the trailer has been lowered; this has to be done for some of the bridges too, and all traffic is halted for that process, apparently for safety reasons.

This is only half its length! 

We arrived at the marina by lunchtime and were off cruising at 2.30, the stiff breeze assisting for once as we reversed out of the berth and turned left onto the canal.  We rose up Hanbury locks to join the Worcester and Birmingham canal where we turned right towards Worcester.  The side ponds on the Hanbury flight are fully operational, unlike most of the others on the network.

These side pond paddles don’t push the boat about

A walker told us the volunteers had just left, but we weren’t expecting to see them in October anyway.  The locks were all in our favour and are close enough for locking ahead so we were soon up.

Coming round the tight turn at Hanbury Junction

After a mile or so Dave noticed there was something round the prop and a long streamer of reed trailing behind.  A blast of reverse helped but didn’t shift the reed – Dave used the grabber to reach it then he could pull it free.

There was a large bank collapse at Dunhampstead tunnel the year before last I think.  The towpath diversion looks to be a permanent feature now, but the area of collapse is still protected with waterproof sheeting to save further erosion.  I wonder if anything more will be done?

Once through the tunnel it wasn’t far to Oddingley where we hoped to moor.  Once we had passed the winding hole at Lake bridge it was clear we had more stuff round the prop.  Would we make it as far as Oddingley?  No we wouldn’t, and with reeds all along the towpath edge we had to limp on to the first of the three bridges where there was just enough reed-free edge for me to hold the centre-line while Dave went down the weed-hatch.   

What are you doing down there Dad?

It was only three hundred yards further to the mooring but we couldn’t even get that far without collecting another load of cut reeds – this time mostly as a moustache on the bow.  Dave decided to leave the second weed hatch visit till tomorrow as the sun had gone and it had become very cold and windy.

I warmed up by hauling this lot off the bow.  If I hadn't we'd probably just collect it all again tomorrow!

By 6 pm it was raining.

3 locks, 3 miles

 

Into the marina

Friday 11^th September; Vines park to Droitwich Spa marina, and home

It was sunny first thing.  We were up bright and early and away by 8.30.  The swing bridges in Droitwich are notoriously tricky, but although the first one was very heavy to move I managed perfectly well. 

The first swing bridge

The second was a different matter however.  Unlocking the padlock can be very tricky!  Once closed, the bridge moves back a little and the padlock gets jammed against the vertical post that holds everything in place.  So you have to lean against the bridge and push hard to allow the padlock to hang freely and then you can unlock it - if your arms are long and/or strong enough.  It was quicker to wait for someone to cross the bridge to help me than for Dave to tie up on the landing and come to my aid.  Lucky for me a friendly gentleman soon came along and lent a hand.  I swung the bridge closed again, but still couldn’t manage the padlock – I haven't been doing enough locks to build up my arm strength enough.  But an older lady with a walking frame offered to lean on the gate!  That worked a treat.  Foolishly I failed to take a photo to show the difficulty.  The last swing bridge is over Barge lock but that one was quite easy.

The navigation uses the little river Salwarpe above Barge lock.  The river carries a lot of silt which drops behind the gates and boaters normally need to open both gates.

Although the rise to the river is never more than a few inches it is strongly advised to always swing the bridge even if you think you can squeeze underneath, even if you are going down.  During the summer there was an accident when, even though the hire company had specifically told the hirers to open the bridge before going in, the steerer thought they would fit and in he went.  They were going down so he would have got away with it except that he hadn’t told the crew.  The one in the well deck stood up, whacked her head on the bridge and spent the rest of the week in hospital.  Fortunately she made a full recovery.

We had no trouble for the rest of the journey except for a wait at the staircase pair where a boat had just arrived at the top and beaten us to it.  By the time we had done a pump-out, sorted out the office admin and found our berth it was midday.  We managed to get away by 4 and had a reasonable drive home.

5 locks, 3 swing bridges, M5 tunnel.

Trip stats;

70 miles and 63 locks; 55 miles 5 furlongs narrow canals, 52 locks; 5 miles 6½ f broad canals (Droitwich Barge canal), 9 locks; 8½ miles large rivers (Severn), 2 large locks.

Tunnels; Dunsley, Cookley, A449, Impney way, M5; a mere 1¼ furlongs underground.

Aqueducts; Sow, Trent.

Swing bridges; 3.

Thanks to Canalplan.uk

Car shuffle day

Thursday 10^th September; Vines Park

It was cold this morning!  But at least it was dry at 8.15 as Dave set off to the station for the journey to Aston marina to fetch the car.  As I started the fridge defrosting, a council truck arrived and disgorged three hi-vis chaps with a noisy hedge trimmer, loppers and secateurs to prune the shrubs at this end of the park.  Noisy!  And as they started right next to us, Jess and I went for our walk a little earlier than planned.  We crossed the swing bridge to Waitrose, through the gap to the High Street and turned left.

I will have you know that the camera was dead level, 0 degrees on the little indicator on the screen.  This is one of the many older buildings affected by subsidence caused by salt extraction

At the bottom of the High Street we turned right and were soon at the Lido Park where there is an open-air saltwater brine pool.  In the summer there are long opening hours, but at this time of year it seems to be open on Sundays only, and you have to book whatever time of year it is.  If that is your thing you can go cold-water swimming in the dead of winter.  But the park is great for walking your dog and has many fine trees.

Come on Mum, this ball won’t throw itself!

There is some good play equipment, with a Splash Zone (being jet-washed), an enclosed part for younger children, and a deserted extensive area for older kids.

Did I have a go on the wobbly bridge things?  You bet I did!

On the way home we called in to the St Richard’s Hospice shop (close to Waitrose), where Jess had a great fuss made of her.  I think it’s one of the best I’ve ever been in, and well worth a visit.  Upstairs is a decent book department and I bought a couple of cosy crime novels, ideal for a winter’s  evening by the fire.

Dave had arrived at Aston marina by the time we finished our walk.  The fridge had finished defrosting but the council workmen hadn't, though thankfully were working further away now.  By lunch time Dave had returned, after an easy journey apart from a long delay caused by roadworks just a couple of miles outside Droitwich.  He had parked in the car park over the road so I took the car back to the marina while he had a well-deserved cup of tea.  It’s a nice walk back along the towpath.  The council men had started again after their lunch break and apologised for all the disturbance.  I congratulated them on their careful trimming to preserve as many berries as they could – they were delighted I had noticed.

Later we wandered up to town to check out the pubs for a meal, but in the end decided to stay on board with a Waitrose curry.

Several attractive murals on the sides of buildings, but difficult to get a good photo.  This must be of the original Brine Baths

 

Heavy locks on a quiet canal

Wednesday 9^th September; Mildenhall lock to Vines Park

A lovely sunny morning today, and as we weren’t intending to go far we did a few jobs before leaving.

Bonjour from the lock landing opposite, early morning

Among other things Dave finished scrubbing the algae off the port side of the cratch cover and I picked more blackberries to go with the cooking apples we’d brought from the garden.

We left at about 10.30 once the first boat of the day had come past – going downhill towards the river, so we knew the locks would all be empty for us.  The first lock was almost a mile from our mooring so I could finish my cuppa while it was hot. 

This pretty little fern is wall-rue, (Asplenium ruta-muraria), growing out of the mortar on bridge 5 at the bottom lock.

To get to the bottom lock from below, the crew must cross the little road bridge and go through a gate on the offside, easy enough.  The upper landing is back on the towpath side, and you squeeze past the garden hedge (needs cutting) and through a small gate to get to it.  If you are walking to the next lock, which isn’t far, you go through another gate (BW key, Yale lock) to regain the towpath.  The last time we used this lock the swans were occupying the top landing, so I had to cross back over the bridge, past the cottage, and down the access track to return to the towpath.  At least they weren’t there today so Jess and I blithely went through the gate to discover this fellow lying in wait!  He objected, hissing furiously.

Jess has a healthy respect for swans and twinkled nervously round behind me to get past.  The other four Ladywood locks were no problem, as they were all empty and apart from the heavy gates taking a while to get moving we were soon through them all.  There was a fishing match going on so Jess was on the lead for a while.  There was the long drag into Droitwich after that, with reedy bends and some bridges, but apart from the tight bend under bridge 7 at Salwarpe, followed by an attractive little rough mooring, there is not much to say about it until you get to this bridge, which I think must be the railway bridge.

The graffiti (just scrawly tags) on the towpath side has kept itself to the edge of the mural

Apart from the hire boat before we started out, we hadn’t seen another moving boat all morning, in fact no other boats at all until we reached Netherwich basin in Droitwich.  We are not a fan of mooring here – yes it is secure, and if you get the spot the mooring side of the water point pontoon (already taken) it is easy and convenient, but all the other pontoons are short, so boats of our length must use their centre line and tying up is awkward.  There are a couple of spots along the park – the better one was taken but we did manage to moor on the other, though the edge isn’t very straight and fenders need to be strategically placed to avoid banging about.  We had hoped to eat at the Gardener’s Arms, where we have had several good meals in the past, but it is now closed and the owner has applied for planning permission to build 2 houses.  So we walked down the High Street to the Talbot, one of seven in the area owned by the Craddock’s brewery in Stourbridge.  I had a pint of Crazy Sheep and Dave had Saxon Gold, and jolly nice they were.  It was a bit crowded so we went back to the boat to eat.

St Augustine’s church at sunset

5½ miles, 5 heavy locks