26 - 28 May 2024 Saltisford to Hockley Heath

Sunday 26 May  2024 

We arrrived back at the boat on Sunday evening after contemporary worship with our son at the local parish church. We were settling in for the evening when nb Castlecroft came up behind and asked if we were going up the Hatton Flight, We said that we were considering a few of the locks to give us a bit of a start and to make use of the good  weather window. So we joined them and worked through locks 26 to 30 before stopping for the evening. The weather promised overnight rain which started faily shortly after sunset.

1 mile 4 locks 1.1/2 hour 

Monday 27th May 2024

I was ready to go at 0700 but the crew of nb Castlecroft were not in evidence. I had a chat with B.L.D. (Bottom Lock Dave) a CRT volunteer lockie of many years standing. He asked whether we had done the flight before. Only about 20 times! As we spoke, the skipper of nb Castlecroft came along to tell me that his crew were having breakfast and would be ready soon. We went on and set Lock 31 and then entered and waited for them to join us. 

Ascending the flight with company makes a lot of difference. nb Castlecroft had three crew ashore and with our one we could set the locks ahead. We did have to cross over with one pair and  two single boats during the ascent. We were at the summit in time to take an early brunch.  

Things have changed. This flagship flight and tourist attraction needs a lick of paint. There are more volunteers here than most other flights so I would have thought this could be managed. There is also a large patch of himalayan balsam between locks 34 and 35 whihc needs maa=naging before the seeds set.

There is an obvious "no mow May" on the lock landings:

We kept an eye on the weather. Heavy showers were forecast and we managed to miss them and make it to Lapworth flight in the dry. 

Turning into Lock 20 Stratford Canal

We did not complete the ascent to the summit and decided to stop at lock 5 when the rain began to get really heavy. We feasted on the remains of our food: meatball and pepper skewers with nachos.

8 miles 32 locks  9 hours

Tuesday 28 May 2024

We arose early but heavy rain persisted. We ate breakfast and waited for the weather to imporove then started off up the remaining four locks. At lock 3 we were held up by CRT personel who were looking at the nearside top paddle. The rack was missing. We lent them our sea searcher magnet and they went fishing for about half an hour but the rack was not found or retrieved so the paddle remains out of operation. I checked the magenet on the rack of another lock paddle and found that the casting was very lightly magnetic, My guess is that ist is cast from an alloy steel with high austenitic content. CRT will have to find another way of fishing to retrieve the lost rack. 

We were following nb Rosery so had to empty down every lock and we were being followed by a single hander so we left a paddle up for him too. The skipper of nb Rosery tripped over one of the superfluous bollards at one lock. Fortunately he stayed on the bank and reported that he was OK. He told us that he had told BW that these wer a hazard when they put them in! We completed the floight and the rain started again as we arrived at the  Wharfe Tavern, Hockley Heath. Peter called a taxi and returned to collect the car before we settled in for a nice lunch in this welcoming hostelry.

2 miles, 4 locks  2 hours

25 May 2025 Napton to Saltisford Junction

We pulled off our overnight mooeing at about 7.00 and were turning onto the Warwick and Birmingham secrion of the Grand Union Canal by 8 am. This was not without slapping the side and thumping the towpath at Wigrams Turn! We worked down Calcutt Locks and Stockton flight before lunch at The Two Boats beckoned. This pub has one of the best selections of real ale on the canal and I was ready for a pint of London Pride. Our  crew gave the buffalo burger and home made chilli 5 stars!

After lunch The Best Mate and Suepercrew left to return home and we continued through Leamington Spa amd Warwick to a mooring just past Saltisford Junction. 

We marvelled at the large number of planted coir rills that have sprouted along thus stretch of canal. It was modernised in 1932 with concrete pile and capping to 7ft depth and 4ft 6 " dredge. Water voles are not known for their ability to bore through concrete but someone has decided that they need to be prepared with welcomong coir roll hotels. I asked CRT at Crick who pays for this folly. I was assured that it is funded from donations from  well meaning companies with money to dissipate from their social responsibility budgets. Maybe I am wrong and this wull attract voles from the near by rivers Leam and Avon.

 

The planting in the rolls will eventually produce a reed bed like this. 

Reed beds require managing. Having re3ed ingress the canal to this extent, and on a bend too is, in my opinion, not safe.

The remaining crew returned home by the 1942 train.

17.1/2 miles, 14 locks , 9 hours

  

Cropredy to Napton 24 May 2024

 We left Cropredy about 7.15 and had a good road through to the too level. There were a few boats moving: 2 up and 1 down recorded in chalk by the Claydon vlockie. Then we joined a queue at a fallen tree just at the start of Fenny Compton Tunnel. Fortunately "Dusty" the Jules Fuels coal boat was in the queue coming the other way  and he trimmed the branches below the trunk to form a boat sized arch. Thank you! 

We stopped at Fenny C marina for gas and pump out and then arrived at The Wharf Inn in time for lunch. The crew enjoyed the meal vowing to return on the way back!

After lunch we set a target of Marston Doles by 4.15pm. If we got there by then we would descend the locks. This target was achieved and we had a trouble free descent. We took on water at the bottom and then moored for a salad tea at the winding hole.

14 miles, 17 locks, 9 hours

Off we go! 23 May 2024

 The best laid plans need to be variable. We are going back to Birminham to join the Jume Birmongham Canal Navigations Society Explorer Cruise. We have planned out getting to Wolverhampton in small bites. The first was to start at 0930 to take the boat to Royal Leamington Spa where we can catch a train home so that we can do a days duty on  the Waterways Chaplaincy/Boaters'  Christian Fellowship stand at Crick on Saturday. 

But it rained. Not just gentle raib that you can cruise through but eye blinding stair rods coat drenching rain. It eased off at 3.00pm and we cruised in the sunny bits and light showers to  Cropredy where we moored above the lock at 6.15pm.

Apart from the rain this short routine trip was not withour difficulty. The bywash culvert at Hardwick lock was totally clogged with cut vegetation. This increased the level in the pound and the bottom gates were overflowing making gwtting the top one difficult to open.

 The bywash was blocked at Slat Mill lock too. Here the level in the pound was artuficially high to the extent that the towing pzth was flooded. This made retying nb  Humble Bumble, which had come adrift acriss the cut, difficult as the piling rail could not be reached.