Rural England

Having had a good and uninterrupted nights sleep on the outskirts of ‘The Badlands’ we set off at 8am as planned and made for the staircase locks of Chester on our return journey.

Passing thru’ the locks after only a half hour we moored in the town centre and went for a walkabout. There’s actually loads to see in this Roman city. You can walk right around the city over the old city gates and past the defensive turrets, including King Charles’s Tower above the canal. We also walked down to the River Dee and past the old amphitheatre which was being excavated. There is also a Tesco supermarket 500yds from the mooring which enabled us to fully stock on food and drink.
At 2.30pm and after treating ourselves to a McDonalds we set off up the 5 locks and out of the city. We completed the stretch after around 2 hours. Although we enjoyed the city we were glad to be back in rural England and this lovely stretch back towards Beeston Castle. Our intention was to moor just after Waverton in a lovely spot we’d stayed in on our way down but unfortunately the spot, quite capable of handling 2 boats, was taken up by a single craft who’d selfishly moored smack in the middle. Another example of a thoughtless idiot. I must remember to name and shame these selfish sods!!
Sufficed to say we soon found an equally inviting mooring with ample shade. Tonight (Tues 26th) was the hottest this summer with the temperature at 10pm still in the high 20s.
Moving down on Wednesday we spent the evening once again with Mel and Trish, NB-Chardonnay, still moored at bridge 109 and barbequed.
On Thursday we continued South stopping at Chas Arden for diesel, Elsan and water, turning back onto the Middlewich Branch and mooring once again at Cholmondeston at around 5pm.
Friday began with a breakfast treat at Venetian Marina Cafe and then we moved on eastwards heading towards the Trent and Mersey Canal. Friday night we moored in a lovely spot with superb views to the west over the River Weaver and Winsford Top Flash.

Today Saturday July 29th began at around 10.30am locking thru’ onto the Trent and Mersey at around 1pm. Turning North towards our next destination of the Anderton Boat Lift which will drop us 50feet down onto the River Weaver. We continued thru’ the 3 locks at Middlewich arriving at a wide 14foot lock. This used to represent the beginning of a wide, almost lock-free navigation right thru’ to Preston Brook, Manchester and Wigan (very convenient for the salt industry when it shipped all of its goods by boat), but this long since redundant. We moored at 3.30pm in our first rain for almost a month just prior to reaching Billinge Green Flash.
The above picture is of a recent unknown visitor to Quidditch!!

The Badlands

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Ahoy!

No we haven’t got lost we’re up and running again! Computer problems!

The journey continues...

Departing Wheaton Aston we continued towards our next destination of Norbury Junction. Just prior to leaving we saw the cheapest diesel so far at 43.7p (Tavern Bridge 19). It makes you wonder how prices of 63P are achieved on the Gloucester and Sharpness!
After passing under Cowley Tunnel, (This short tunnel was originally designed to be much longer – 690yds – but most of it was opened out at an early stage during construction – 1831 – because of dangerous faults in the rock, and now only 81yds remain), we stopped briefly at Gnosall for shopping.
Passing over the huge Shelmore embankment we reached Norbury Junction. This is where the Newport branch used to lock down from the main line. Here there are excellent moorings, chandlery and coffee shop, not to mention the pub. We made the decision to lay up for the weekend having got a satellite link for the impending finale to the World Cup. Later in the day we had a long walk to Loynton Moss Nature Reserve, (bridge 39). This is a floating bog with an interesting plant community. We saw Spotted Flycatcher amongst other things and many Meadow Brown butterflies. Watch out for the horse flies! Dee got bitten several times but unusually I wore jeans instead of my customary shorts and survived.
Leaving Norbury we continued on, over-nighting at Market Drayton and after completing the 15 locks of the Audlem flight we visited the famous Shroppie Fly pub. This is a converted warehouse on the canal side, the main feature being the bar, which is shaped like a narrowboat. The most disappointing thing is the food price. I resent paying an amazing 12.95 for Gammon and chips!!! The whole menu was extremely pricey for a pub! We ended up having a portion of chips each.
After Audlem we moved down slightly to just North of bridge 83, Coole Pilate, where there is an attractive picnic and barbecue area. From here we cycled to and visited Hack Green Secret Nuclear Bunker, (pictured). This is an excellent and unique day out discovering the world of ‘Nuclear Government’. I found the whole thing really sinister!
Last Thursday July 13th we passed thru’ Nantwich and bypassed the Llangollen Canal Turn making a right shortly after and headed east along the Middlewich Branch, mooring at Charlmondeston Lock at around 2pm. Here we remain until Next Thursday 20th. The plan is to hire a car for the weekend and for me to visit my old mum in Liverpool who’s not too well at present. Dee has made off to Reading to visit her friend for a few days who’s over from Jamaica. The plan this Thursday is to turn about and head for Ellsmere Port.

Shropshire Union

Thursday July 6th @ Wheaton Aston. After leaving Whittington Lock at around 10.30am on Monday we continued on thru’ Kinver.

This section of the canal is shrouded by delightful scenes. On both sides are cottages, pretty gardens, moored boats and a very low bridge! Tall steep hills rising to over 250ft appear on the east bank. The canal then leaves this damp, mossy area and bends round to Kinver Lock. Continuing on we pass thru’ the charming and diminutive Dunsley Tunnel a rough-hewn bore carved out of the rock, with overhanging foliage at either end. The next lock is at Stewponey, accompanied by a toll house. We pass the Stourbridge Canal turn at Stourton Junction which would be the first of many locks that carry this canal up towards Dudley and the Birmingham Canal Navigations. Not on our list for this year.
A few miles on and just prior to Rocky Lock in 33 degree heat we decided to moor having found excellent tree cover in idyllic surroundings. The rest of the day was spent crashed on the bank. In the evening we were entertained by an array of bird life in the woods opposite which included Nuthatch, Sparrowhawk and Tawny Owl’s.
Over the next few days we plan to navigate through Wombourne and the outskirts of Wolverhampton, not the most auspicious of areas but nevertheless pleasant in parts. After passing thru’ Wombourne on Tuesday we moored at Dimmingsdale Lock, luckily just prior to a thunderstorm. On the Wednesday we progressed north on the Staffs and Worcester, stopping at Compton for diesel and water. At around 2pm we entered onto the Shropshire Union Canal at Aldersley Junction. We then completed a very long day, mooring at Wheaton Aston at around 5.30pm last night. Today, Thursday, we laid up for the day having been woken by a thunderstorm at around 5.30am and torrential rain. Dee stayed aboard and I cycled some 8 miles into Pentkridge for a few provisions. Tonight we’re having a curry take-away.

Monthly Log (June)

Well it’s just on a week now since our last post at Gloucester Dock and already I find myself writing our June monthly log too.

(Pictured.. Quidditch moored at Slimbridge with Dee's dingy).

In brief June was spent primarily on the rivers. We arrived on the River Avon at Stratford on June 1st and progressed along the whole extent of this beautiful river progressing thru' onto the River Severn at Tewkesbury. After arriving at Gloucester Dock on June 9th we moved onto the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal and here we stayed to explore, visiting Sharpness, Saul Junction and Slimbridge, until finally returning to Gloucester Dock. On June 27th we headed out and northward. The weather was exceptional apart from the odd torrential downpour and not too busy until the build up towards the Saul festival this weekend. We now leave these waters for the 2nd year in succession perhaps to return in a future year but for now we say farewell.
Since leaving the dock on Tuesday (a day late due to torrential rain) we progressed out of Gloucester and onto the River Severn mooring for the night at Tewkesbury once again. After leaving Tewkesbury on Wednesday morning we had a brief stop at Upton on Severn Marina to empty our Elsan toilets, (Gloucester was unfortunately broken!) and continued on thru’ Worcester mooring at the extremely attractive Bevere Lock at around 5pm, one of our longest days. This is the 2nd time we’ve passed straight thru’ Worcester! In our opinion Worcester council does nothing to attract the boater. The moorings are poor. You have a choice of mooring right under a busy road bridge or alongside Worcester race course, which at the time of passing had a race meeting in progress. Well maybe some peoples idea of a dream mooring!
We eventually arrived at Stourport on Thursday and moored river side, surprisingly the only boat there overnight. We’d completed the 43 mile Gloucester to Stourport stretch in 2 days as planned.
On Friday morning we locked thru’ Stourport Basin taking on drinking water and thus returning back onto the narrow canals.
Today we’re currently moored at Whittington Lock on the beautiful Staffordshire and Worcestershire canal just short of Kinver. We arrived here yesterday in 30 degrees and managed to achieve a tree sheltered mooring and satellite signal, only to have our hopes dashed by yet another England shootout! Lets not dwell. Here we stay until tomorrow when we move off northward heading up towards the Shropshire Union Canal which we hope to enter later in the week.
P.S. HAPPY BIRTHDAY PATTIE XXX

Return Leg

Friday June 23rd 10am. Gloucester Docks.
We arrived into Gloucester Docks yesterday on our return leg of the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal at around 12.30hrs.

Pictured is the friendly Gloucester lock keeper John... The main feature over the past few days has been the strong wind. Unusual for this time of year and when your moored next to an estuary you really feel it too!
We’ve now completed this lovely canal and will stay in the docks until Monday. We then move thru' Gloucester Lock and off onto the River Severn for a 42 mile stretch, entering the Staffs and Worcester Canal at Stourport later in the week. We see the River Severn, although an attractive river in parts, as purely a means of getting from A to B. The Severn unfortunately has high banks on either side for many miles thus preventing a view of what is probably lovely rural landscape. Severn moorings are also extremely scarce and is therefore to our mind an unattractive proposition. This year are timing is slightly out as a Jazz Festival this weekend at Upton compounds the lack of moorings even further. Our reason for not leaving until Monday!
The Gloucester and Sharpness Canal.... Having completed this section 2 years in succession it’s fair to say that we’ve explored the area fairly well. However, there’s still more to do and see, but that’s for another time. Dee’s dingy has once again been deflated and back in the hold! This year we considered attending the Saul Festival but decided that that too is for the future. We enjoyed our visit to the WWT-Slimbridge once again, (a large section of the grass had been cut on our return, see earlier post) and as ever we enjoyed our break from the locks, the G and S has only swing bridges which are manned. That said we’re now looking forward to returning to the narrow canal sections and our journey northward.Later we're off to see the Devinci Code...

Sharpness

Sunday June 18th @ 11am. Moored at Sharpness situated beside the Severn Estuary.

Across the water is the hilly ‘Forest of Dean’, where my grandfather was born! We arrived here on Friday at around 1pm in gorgeous sunshine. We’ll remain here until Monday, (after the weekenders have returned home).
This is the most Southerly point of our tour this year. The Gloucester and Sharpness Canal was built to bypass this dangerous stretch of the River Severn between Sharpness and Gloucester. Pictured is what remains of the old 22-arched railway bridge that used to cross the river here, some of the piers can still be seen at low tide. The bridge was badly damaged one foggy night in November 1959, when a vessel collided with it; the bridge then stood with a whole in the middle until it was demolished and the iron girders sold to – of all places – Chile, where they now form a road-carrying viaduct.
On Friday we cycled down to the Sharpness docks and the 1 and only shop that services this area, it’s also a post office. Last night, Saturday, we barbequed. At around 7pm the huge hotel boat ‘Oliver Cromwell’ passed by and turned. To our amazement she moored just off our bow sending another moored narrowboat who’d been here all day, scurrying away into the distance. We didn’t mind we had free entertainment for the evening and enjoyed the company. She left dead on 8 am this morning.
The weather is cooler today and breezy. I’ve also noticed a sharp drop in the water height. Later we intend to visit the ‘Sharpness Dockers Club’ where you can get a good, reasonably priced meal.
Tomorrow we make our way back Northward and return to Gloucester, likely stopping at Slimbridge and Saul Junction once again. Traffic will start building come next weekend as the popular Saul Festival nears. We’ll be on our way towards Worcester and Stourport by then!

Slimbridge

Thursday June 15th 10am. Moored at Slimbridge.


After a couple of days we made our way down from Saul Junction on Tuesday morning stopping at Fretherne Bridge to visit the beautiful linear village of Frampton on Severn. The village is notable mainly for it’s green which is about 100 yds wide and fully half a mile long. The church of St. Mary at the South end of the village, near the canal, is mainly of the 14th C. Facing the village green is a Georgian mansion (1731/3) whose gardens contain a gothic orangery (1745) and an octagonal dovecote. Visits are only permitted by written application.
After 3 more miles we arrived at our next destination of Slimbridge in torrential rain. Here we plan to stay until after the next England match. We enjoy these moorings very much, firstly there only a 10 minute walk from Slimbridge Wildfowl Trust and secondly we can breakfast in the Boat Station Cafe and dinner at the Tudor Arms. Easy living!
One disappointing element to our visit this time around was the moorings. Last year we remember being able to moor either side of the canal after Patch Bridge but this year the West side is completely overgrown (pictured)! It’s also completely overgrown from Cambridge Arms Bridge to Patch Bridge, just short of a mile, prior to arriving. We managed to secure the last mooring. The East side of Slimbridge was taken solely by local boats, half of which had nobody aboard, and the 2 moorings on the West side, one of which was ours, the other being taken by a local boat, which also had nobody aboard. I’m all for wildlife preservation and BW’s initiative on not cutting certain stretches for this purpose but in my opinion these moorings should be 48hrs only (and enforced) and another half dozen established by good ground management! The swing bridge is also in a shocking state! (That’s my moan of the day!)
Yesterday, Wednesday, was a much cooler and overcast day but Dee prepared a packed lunch and we duly set off to visit the Wildfowl Trust, always a treat for us twitchers and had a thoroughly enjoyable time. We rounded off the day with dinner at the Tudor Arms. Today Summer has returned once again....

Saul Junction

If your an England fan like me you’l be baffled as to what occurred in the 2nd half however, it’s the 3 points that count and we will get better!


We spent a nice and I have to say quiet 2 days in Gloucester Dock (pictured), only 4 boats moored on the pontoons when we left at around 11am. This morning (Monday 12th 10am) we're moored at Saul Junction on the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal and where awoken at around 6am by a nice thunderstorm. I say nice as I really enjoy storms. The weather has now turned humid and I fully expect more storms later. Yesterday afternoon we inflated our dingy for the 1st time this season and duly went a rowing! We intend to stay on this stretch for a while and with no locks, only manned swing bridges, it’s an easy life. We’ll progress over the next few days to our farthest point South, Sharpness. Sharpness exists only for it’s docks and their tall cranes, old and new warehouses and ever-changing display of foreign ships. The Severn is wide here and wild: the tidal range at Sharpness is believed to be the 2nd biggest in the world (only the bay of Fundy, sandwiched between Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, has a greater range) and the current is swift, especially when accompanied by the high winds that often race up the estuary from the sea. I think we’ll pass on locking through this time!

Gloucester Dock

Saturday June 10th moored at Gloucester Docks.(Pictured)

On Wednesday we moved from our spot at Wyre Piddle lock with the plan of mooring at Pershore for the night. However, after doing a spot of shopping and once again wall to wall sunshine we made the decision to move on around 2pm. We progressed further South and on towards our eventual mooring at Tewksbury, where we’ll end our journey down the Avon and enter the River Severn.
By the time we reached Eckington Wharf we decided it was time to stop, the heat was beginning to get to us both. Here we moored for the night and were later joined by ‘Willow’ a 70 foot hotel boat enroute to Stratford. We awoke to another beautiful cloudless day on Thursday morning and after breakfast set off on our final stretch down the Avon to Tewksbury. On this final stretch the river widens by comparison into open meadows and farmland. The river passes under the M5 motorway surrounded by flood plain and beyond you can see the village of Brendon, where the fine 14th – C tithe barn can be seen from the river.
We arrived at Tewksbury at 1pm and moored just prior to the lock. After a stroll around the town in 80 degree heat we crashed for the day under some trees which we were lucky enough to be moored next to.
Friday morning and more glorious weather. We locked through from the Avon to the Severn at around 10am and made for the huge, manned Upper Lode Lock. Once through we progressed to Gloucester, no tides or Severn Bore, (Huge 8ft tidal surges), to contend with! After a 2 hour sail, passing only 4 boats enroute we telephoned Gloucester Dock of our imminent arrival and upon reaching the lock everything was set in our favour. At around 12.45 we were moored in Gloucester Dock. Here we’ll stay until Sunday and are already preparing for the England Vs Paraguay game!!

The Beautiful Avon

Today June 7th we’re now on the Upper Avon on an idyllic lock mooring at the wonderfully named Wyre Piddle, just up from Wyre Mill which the traveller Charles Showell called ‘the ugliest, of which the Avon is ashamed’.
It’s now a sailing and social club. This lock is diamond shaped, the last of it’s kind on the river and is our favourite all time river mooring. Your literally marooned at this lock and free from the many gongoozlers (boaty term for onlookers) which are plentiful at Stratford.
Over the past week we’ve continued at a slow pace South-West from Stratford through Bidford-on-Avon and Evesham. We continued some of our journey with ‘Best O Mates’ who caught up with us once again at Luddington, where we moored at the Stan Glover Lock. We parted at Evesham yesterday having spent several days with Jennifer and Graham.
The Avon is a beautiful river and for me just out shines the Thames which we navigated last year. If you intend navigating the Avon the one thing one should bare in mind is the mooring availability. On the lower Avon from Stratford-upon-Avon to Evesham the mooring is idyllic and plentiful, from Evesham to Tewkesbury not so! After starting off from George Billington Lock yesterday morning and stopping at Evesham for lunch, we continued a further 10 canal miles, (our longest day to date), before finding a decent mooring. Fortunately having travelled the Avon last year we’re familiar with where the moorings are. Try to moor before the weekend! The moorings can fill up quickly with the many weekend cruisers which frequent the river.
One thing that’s surprised us so far is the lack of traffic. Not that we’re complaining. We’ve passed very few private boats, the majority of traffic being hire fleets. Even quieter this week after the school half-term. Both Dee and I don’t have any problems with hire boats but the one criticism we have of some irresponsible parties is the lack of respect for others. Speeding boats being the worst problem. Irresponsible mooring being the other. Enough said!
Last night we had our first barbeque, a feast of fish, burgers and sausages, my favourite food and Dee’s too provided I burn the sausages to a cinder!
The weather has been wall to wall sunshine and so at last our tans are starting to progress. The wildlife has been good but with nothing unusual to report. Plenty of Buzzards, Kingfishers, Cuckoo’s and Bats. We heard a Tawny Owl last night but still no Barn Owls.
Today we’ll move just a couple of miles to Pershore and then tomorrow on to Tewkesbury for a couple of days before leaving the Avon for the River Severn and Gloucester Docks.

Monthly Log (May)

Well June 1st has arrived and we've finally made it onto the River Avon at Stratford-on-Avon and moored across from the Royal Shakespeare Theatre and yes it's raining!

Amazingly despite the major backlog of boats earlier the moorings at the basin and out onto the Avon were plentiful. Another mystery of where boats disappear to!

We’ve now been out for exactly 2 weeks. In this time we’ve completed our section of the Grand Union from Wigram’s Turn, turned South onto the Stratford Canal and arrived on the Upper Avon. 101 locks completed and 33 canal miles.
Our first fortnight has been dominated by the weather. Rain and more rain resulted in the closure of the River Avon for 9 days (in flood) and thus meant that our transit was a lot slower than anticipated. The River Severn, our next challenge in around 9 days time, was apparently 12 feet over height during this time!
Having said that we did manage to get some good cycling time in over the period. I don’t know whether it was this that caused my 18 year old mountain bike to give up the ghost on Tuesday! Fortunately we we’re able to walk to a nearby shop and purchase an ‘off the shelf’ replacement. God knows how many miles I covered on my old bike but I did manage to salvage wheels, tyres, seat etc. It’s now been laid to rest.
Quidditch has performed well and the central heating I installed over the Winter has already proved to be a success. As mentioned in earlier posts Celtic Kiwi who we discovered broken down at the Shrewley Tunnel is back underway passing us twice enroute, new prop shaft installed! To be fair the early stages of our tour have passed without much event apart from yesterday when I almost went for a swim in the Avon. I’m not offering much detail here but it involved a rowing boat, a passing site-seeing launch and me wearing only socks walking down the gunnels! Funny how these events seem to happen with about 15 tourists filming.
As keen wildlife enthusiasts we’ve nothing out of the ordinary to report. However, it’s already noticeable that so far we’ve yet to see any Barn Owls. Apparently it’s been a bad year for voles, their main diet. We have however seen good numbers of baby Mallard, Canada Geese, Swans and Moorhen.
Tomorrow (Friday 2nd June) we set off South-West down the Avon towards Evesham and Tewksbury. From here we’ll lock through onto the River Severn and make a 3 hours dash to Gloucester Docks. After a short stay in Gloucester we then make our most Southerly trip onto the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal and down towards the Severn Estuary. Stay tuned!

The Aftermath!

Tuesday May 30th @ 22:40

As planned we moved off from Lowsonford at around 11am (Sunday) and progressed further South taking on water at Lowsonford Bridge.
Being school halfterm and Bank Holiday the canal was busy with holiday boats which only added to the termoil. As mentioned in earlier posts the River Avon remains closed so boats are now starting to back up. The news filtering down is that Stratford Basin is currently full!
We continued down and through Preston Bagot after completing 8 locks and managed to secure the one and only mooring available at Wooton Wawen at around 2pm.
Monday we decided to bike to Stratford to check out the situation for ourselves. Well that is to say we cycled to Wooton station and took a 10 minute journey by train into Stratford. After lunch at one of my old pubs (The Windmill) we checked out the basin which was indeed full. More so the backlog extended quite a distance back.
This morning (Tuesday) we progressed on to Stratford and so set off at around 10.30am. The Avon has finally receeded and re-opened but judging by the amount of traffic moving North it was still extremely busy! We continued our decent towards Stratford crossing the Edstone Aquaduct a half hour later. This aquaduct is around 200yds in lenth and is a narrow cast iron trough carried on brick piers across a shallow valley. Passing through Wilmcote where we moored last year and on past the famous Mary Ardens House we decended the 11 Wilmcote locks in good time and decided to moor just short of Stratford at bridge 62A, which turned out to be a good strategy. In the late afternoon we cycled into Stratford for a look and found the basin still full! The plan now is to set off early tomorrow (Wednesday) and try and secure a mooring on the Avon hopefully vacated by an early leaver. We shall see!!!

Delay On River Avon

Saturday 27th @ 7.45pm.

With each day the weather continues to improve. Our transit up the 21 locks of the Hatton Flight was only interrupted by the occasional shower.

After starting the flight of double locks alone we were joined by ‘Scruffy Fox’ who were ahead of us at the start but decided to wait after we were about 5 locks in. We then completed the flight together, entering the final lock in just short of 3 hours.
At the top lock we stopped to empty our toilets and bins, which we had to complete from inside the lock due to a hire boat moored on the water point having lunch! Not the done thing!! We then continued on through a wooded cutting towards the Shrewley Tunnel and moored for the night.
On day 6 we moved off around 11am after a heavy downpour. As we approached the entrance to the 433 yard Shrewley Tunnel we came across ‘Celtic Kiwi’ a time-share boat from our home marina that had passed us that morning. They had unfortunately broken down. After checking that help was on the way we continued through. The Shrewley tunnel was opened in 1799 with the completion of the Warwick and Birmingham Canal. After emerging, stopping briefly at Turners Green to take on water opposite a beautiful old beamed house, we continued lock free until our turn onto the Stratford and Avon Canal at Kingswood Junction. We were looking forward once again to getting back onto one of our favourite canals and single locks.
After turning South and locking through the canal pursues a fairly direct and wholly peaceful course, apart from passing under the busy M40 motorway! By lock 28 we passed a barrel-roofed cottage, typical of this part of the canal and was given some plant cuttings by it’s sociable owner. After chatting for a while we moved on and met coming in the opposite direction ‘Patience’ another boat moored at our marina. After a brief chat we finally moored at around 5pm at Lowsonford, opposite the Fleur-De-Lys pub, an attractive 13th century cottage which once incorporated a bake house. This was in fact the first day we hadn't got wet!
With all the recent rain we checked with the River Avon Trust to establish if the river was in flood. We’ll be joining the Avon next week. As we had thought it was and so currently closed to navigation. We took the decision to slow down and so we'll remain at Lowsonford until the 28th.
Here we have so far enjoyed some good pub food, decent weather and some excellent company with Graham and Jennifer off 'Best-O-Mates' who we met having moored next to. We've also got some good cycling time in over the 3 days visiting Henley-In-Arden and Hatton. Are plan is to move off tomorrow, Sunday..

Rain, Rain, Rain...

'Onboard Weather Station'

Current Temp @ 10.00Hrs : 10c
Current Weather : Scattered Cloud
Wind : WSW @ 8mph
Pressure : 1012mb
Sunrise 5:00 Sunset 21:04



Continuing down from Bickley’s Bridge the weather still seems to be the main theme so far. Rain, rain and more rain! Drought? What drought!

We progressed, Saturday, through Bascote Locks (4) and continued down mooring just prior to Fosse Lock, pictured, thus completing 8 locks today. This mooring was idyllic. Just prior to Leamington Spa with nothing but countryside in view. The idea was to moor here until Monday. We had a good Satellite signal and we wanted to watch the Leeds V Watford playoff tomorrow. Saturday evening we took a 5 mile cycle ride to Asda in Leamington to pick up a few supplies. Remarkably the ride was rain free!
Monday we made our decent through Fosse Lock and continued West passing to the North of Radford Semele. The Grand Union then carves a fairly discreet course through Leamington where we stopped quickly for food supplies.
Leaving Leamington the canal swings North-West under a main road and crosses the railway and River Avon on aqueducts, to immediately enter the outskirts of Warwick.
We then passed around the North side of central Warwick and started our climb at Cape Locks (2), where we took on water. After climbing the 2 Cape Locks, the canal swings South to Budbrooke Junction, where the old Warwick and Napton canal joined the Warwick and Birmingham Canal. A short section of the arm to the East of the junction has been restored and has a winding hole, moorings and other facilities. To the West of the junction , beyond a large road bridge, is the first of the 21 locks of the Hatton Flight, a daunting site which we’ll complete tomorrow!