Monday, 17th August
We were up and away early (for us) this morning, with Brenda on board. She was keen to do the run into Birmingham with us. We were hoping to be able to moor in the Black Country Museum tonight, which is the only place where we feel safe to stay overnight between Wolverhampton and Birmingham. But if we can't get in there, then we would have to go on into Birmingham, and that is quite a long day, so that is why we were setting off early.

So we left Brewood around 9.00 and went to the end of the Shropshire Union Canal, to its junction with the Staffs and Worcs Canal at Autherley Junction. Here there is a stop lock, with a difference in height of about a foot between the two canals. Once through the stop lock, we turned right along the Staffs and Worcs and then, within a mile, we turned left, at Aldersley Junction. Now we were on the Birmingham Canal Navigations, and straight into the "Wolverhampton 21", a flight of locks up to the city centre. These locks all have a security lock on them, and are opened with what is euphemistically called a "water conservation key"--in other words, a handcuff key to prevent the local wildlife from opening all the paddles and letting the water out. So Brenda went ahead with the key and undid the paddles whilst I steered and Trev shut the lock gates after me. He was going to use the bike, but, as usual, it had a puncture!

It took us about two and a bit hours to get through all the locks and then we pulled into the BW basin to fill up with water. Then on again, through Wolverhampton, until we had to stop to get rubbish out of the prop. We had to stop three times today to free the prop. There was a group of youths throwing house bricks at the ducks in one place, but luckily they decided not to throw house bricks at us!

We went through Coseley tunnel,which fortunately isn't a long one. I say fortunately because, try as he may, Trev can't get the tunnel light working. He's tried all ways to fix it but without any luck. However, Coseley tunnel is only 350 yards long, so we could see through it well. Well enough indeed, to see there were some people at the other end throwing things into the water. There's a towpath all the way through the tunnel, so Trev got off and walked ahead to see what was up. Some boys about ten years old were throwing anything they could find into the canal, but they ran away as Trev approached, so he got back on the boat. (Why is always boys..........?)

We passed a moored boat just before the Museum, and the occupant put his head out and asked us to slow down please. "Only if I go into reverse," said Trev, which didn't go down too well! But honestly, we DO pass moored boats slowly, I just think it must be because we are a long boat and pull a lot of water. I wonder whatever they say to the hire boats who have never heard about slowing down and come past like there's no tomorrow.

And now we were at the Black Country Museum. Yes, there was a space so we pulled in, greatly relieved. It was nearly 6.00 p.m. and if we had had to carry on into Birmingham tonight, it would have been nearly 9.00 by the time we arrived. Trev and Brenda fetched us fish and chips and we spent a safe and pleasant evening on board.

Tuesday, 18th August
We filled up with water and then set off for Birmingham. The canal passes over other canals and junctions, all of which link up with each other. Many of the factories which were along here had a canal cutting going into them so that the barges could load up. Most have gone now, but a few remain, along with "loops" which go around the back and out again a bit further up. Eventually we came through the three Smethwick locks and along the long straight into Birmingham. We moored outside the National Indoor Arena, and Trev and Brenda went for a walk into the city centre.

We went for a meal at an Italian restaurant called "Strada" part of a chain, but very good, and enhanced by the fact that I had printed a voucher out from the internet, which gave two meals for the price of one, so the three of us ate for the price of two. It was warm enough to sit outside near the waterfront and it was a lovely evening.

(Do you know about these vouchers you can print out from the internet? I found out from a good website:

Martin's Money Tips

Click on the link above and then you can sign up for a weekly newsletter which gives loads of financial advice on how to save money, including where to find restaurant vouchers.)

Wednesday, 19th August
We all walked into town today and Brenda caught the train home. Trev went to the doctor in Solihull, and I did some shopping. Then, in the evening, Trev came back with Catharine and Mamdooh, and we all went to "Strada" again, and four of us ate for the price of two! Even better than last night! Though this evening it was colder and we ate inside.

Thursday, 20th August
Today I caught the train to the National Exhibition Centre to visit the National Quilting Exhition, and to meet my friend Margaret, a fellow boater and quilter. We had a splendid day, ogling the wonderful quilts we shall never be able to make, spending our money and catching up on the gossip. Margaret's boat was moored in Oxford and she came up on the train. Sadly the time passed too quickly and she had to go home. I stayed on a little longer and then caught a bus to Solihull. There I went to Catharine's and had tea, and then she took me back to the boat. Now, the more alert of you will wonder why she took me back to the boat when that morning I had come by train from Birmingham. Well, whilst I was at the exhibtion, Smartypants Trevor brought Liberty Belle out of Brum and down to Earlswood, all on his own! I think he quite enjoyed it, though he was glad he didn't meet anyone in Brandwood Tunnel, 300 yards, as the light still isn't working.

Click here to see some of the quilts from the exhibition

Friday, 21st August
Now we were on the Stratford-upon-Avon Canal, and we set off for the Lapworth flight of nineteen locks. On the way we stopped at Hockley Heath and bought the Saturday papers. Then we went on down through the locks. I steered through some of them, but there are some pretty tight corners and short pounds on this flight, so whenever I didn't fancy doing it, we swopped over. It was a lovely day, and there were lots of people out enjoying the canal and all the boats. At Lapworth, there was a "Stop Me and Buy One" old fashioned ice cream cart, and we had one each. The ice cream was delicious.

At the bottom of the flight, at Kingswood Junction, there is a junction with the Grand Union Canal, and we left the Stratford canal and joined the GU. Tonight we moored in one of our favourite mooring places, on Rowington embankment. It's a peaceful spot, there's only a distant rumble from the M40.

Saturday, 22nd August
Now we have Warwick in our sights! Only twenty-one more locks............... But first we had another tunnel--Shrewley Tunnel. I sat at the front with all the torches we have on the boat, but even when I put them all on together they were lost in the darkness. Luckily, this is only a short tunnel, 433 yards, we could see the other end and no one was coming. But we're going to have to do something about the light, we have to go back through the Harecastle Tunnel on our way to Llangollen.

Usually I steer the boat through the Hatton flight and Trev does the locks. I did the first lock, but the wind was strong today and blew the boat all over the place, so Trev and I swopped, and I did about the next dozen locks. I was between a rock and a hard place. I didn't want to steer because of the wind and the number of boats on the flight, and the locks were such hard work I was running out of energy. Eventually, as we lost height, the wind dropped and so did the number of boats about, and so we swopped over agian, and finished the flight. At the bottom of the flight, I gave Ian at the Saltisford Canal Centre a ring to say we were coming in and please could we have a pump out. So he met us at the pump out station and then we went on and moored up.

The wanderers have returned at last. I always enjoy coming back to Warwick--I lived here for the first fifty years of my life. We have business to attend to, friends to see--and a tunnel light to fix! We hope to leave on Thursday, 10th September, so hopefully there will be more news about a week after that, say around the 18th.

When we leave Warwick, we shall go along the Grand Union to Braunston, then on the Oxford Canal to Coventry. There we shall join the Coventry Canal and travel through Nuneaton and Tamworth, and eventually join the Trent & Mersey Canal to go north.

SummerCruise 2009

Home Page