Dodging the showers

Sunday 6^th September; below Greensforge to outside Stourport

It rained overnight, but it had stopped by 7 am so we had a dry start, although there were a few showers during the day.  We were away by 9, passing first Ashwood marina and then the lovely John’s Garden which is often open to the public but we have always missed those days.

John’s garden

Our first lock was Rocky lock, with on the offside our first sight of the red sandstone cliffs which are a feature of this part of the canal.

Rocky lock, gates not in the best of condition

Gothersley lock followed soon after, and those gates were in a state too.

Shortly before Stourton junction the canal crosses the river Stour on an aqueduct.  The Smestow brook, which has been running close to the canal for miles, joins the Stour nearby.

The Stour is quite small at this point

At Stourton junction the Stourbridge canal heads off to Birmingham.  We have often been that way and could have done so today – but the Tardebigge flight, which we would need to use to get back to Droitwich, is only open on three days a week at the moment so we opted for the Severn instead.

That way to Birmingham

A hire boat was coming down Stourton locks and they caught us up at Stewponey lock.  We went through the short Dunsley tunnel, a mere 25 yards, and on past the lovely moorings on the way to Kinver.  No stopping today sadly, instead we descended Hyde lock and crept past the long stretch of moored boats to the Kinver facilities where we topped up the water tank and disposed of some recycling.

Clearly a local moorer is infuriated by someone who is not using the bins properly!

The canal was quite busy now and the hire boat went by as we filled, then we had to wait for another to pass before we could leave.  Of course, they both beat us to Kinver lock, and then it rained.  We had quite a wait as the offside ground paddle is inoperable.

Something missing there

We stopped a little way before Whittington lock for some lunch, and thought we’d move on as far as Clay House bridge near Austcliff where there is a nice mooring.

Whittington lock

The canal twists and turns to skirt the sandstone outcrops.  In years gone by an overhang at Austcliff had to be removed when it became unstable.

It is still tricky to get round some of the bends, especially if someone is coming the other way!  Not today though.

It wasn’t raining at this point, and the sun was out too so we decided to go a little further, through Cookley tunnel which passes underneath houses and the village street high above up the cliff, and down Debdale lock.  This is one of the few with no footbridge to cross at the bottom gates.  I suspect there used to be, but the footpath from the north of Cookley across the canal to the southern part is very well-used and there is now a wider and probably much safer bridge.  It starts in a field on the towpath side and crosses at a higher level.  It is quicker to cross the lock via the top gate than that footbridge.  We moored in a nice sunny spot between Wolverley Forge bridge and Wolverley lock.  The only drawback was the lack of signal from both the boat wi-fi and our phones.

9 miles, 7 locks, Stour aqueduct, Dunsley and Cookley tunnels.