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 managing 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 improve then started off up the remaining four locks. At lock 3 we were held up by CRT personnel 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 magnet 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 were a hazard when they put them in! We completed the flight 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

Out of Birmingham

 This is the view from Cambrian Wharf at the top of Farmers Bridge Flight yesterday morning just before sunrise. We were up early because we had 11.1/2 to 12 hours boating ahead of us and only 11.1/2 hours of daylight to do it in.  We knew that around the corner was a barrier with blue flashing lights and this sign!

No-one was there when we arrived a fraction past 7AM. There are no rings so The Best Mate held the boat on the centre rope while I looked for the police. So although not technically "out of hours" (10PM to 7AM) I called the number. The police respondent said "I'll be with you in 10-15 minutes". He did arrive at the path beside The Malt Shovel to tell us that he could not find the "water team": they had not arrived yet. We had a visit from a lovely little spaniel search dog at about 8.30 and, with two policemen and the dog aboard as escorts we were cleared to make passage to Worcester Bar at 0837h.

It was one of those wonderfully crisp and sunny mornings as we headed south past the University hall and campus where I was an undergrad so many years ago. Over a new aqueduct over a new dual carriageway road past Selly Oak and Bourneville, once a proud centre for chocolate manufacture, now a theme park. Gliding easily across an ebony marble surface. Why the water here has a blackened glassy look to it I do not really know. We used to call it a "smelly ditch" but now, with a re-furbished cycleway on the towpath it is a delightful cruising waterway.

So to the tightest of turns under the King's Norton junction footbridge to join the Stratford canal with its guillotine gated stop lock that would no longer stop anything judging by the gaps between the planks of the guillotines. After Brandwood Tunnel we had a brief stop to pump out, fill with diesel and buy a pair of cornettos. After Lyons Boatyard the canal is a winding delight. Often wooded on both sides and overhead the sunlight splashes through the leafy arch to dapple the mirror surface of the canal and the path beside it. An occasional leaf fell to make wavy circles in the way ahead. Three herons and two kingfishers were seen here too. There are many new waterside developments to accommodate an expanding population on the leafy edge of the Birmingham Solihull conurbation. One has a stairway waterfall which stops just short of the canalside on a mock wharfe. No boats would be allowed to moor there.

We continued apace with no time to stop at Wedge's Bakery and only a following timeshare nb Steelaway for company. They were not in quite sight when we had to close the Shirley Swing bridge to let the traffic flow again but we held the next lift bridge open for them. The Best Mate dawdled on to make sure they could not pass while I lowered it again as we did not want to lose any benefit of any locks that were set for us!  We needn't have worried as they winded before the second and last lift bridge before the locks.

And anyway locks 2 and 3 were set against us so had to be filled. However, locks 4 and 5 were full and from then on we were on a good road. How that happened we were not sure but next to the Lapworth cricket field we saw three CRT blue shirts get into their lorry and scoot away. maybe they had been playing with the levels:we will never know.

Shadows lengthen as sun sinks

A couple of boats came up the other way to interrupt our lonely routine and we had the company of a few walkers and dog walkers in the sunshine.

We left the 20 locks behind as the sun dipped below the hedgerows and we headed out into the Birmingham and Warwick canal, turning south toward Warwick. It got darker and darker until we entered Shrewley Tunnel. When I left it the light didn't get much brighter so I pulled over and we moored on the rings. We were short of our target and a long way short of Warwick Parkway station. We had moored here before and we knew the way up over the tunnel to Shrewley Common where there is a Post Office. I did not notice the 48hour restriction until I lit up the post with my torch. Oops! Near the PO, a kind gentleman suggested that we walk to the Durham Ox to ask after a taxi. This we did and were soon provided with the taxi company's number and a cab was in its way.

The driver suggested that he could take us home for not much more than the train fare so we accepted his offer and were home, exhausted but glad to get home before the train would have left Warwick Parkway.

Now all we need to do is find a time to move the boat the remaining distance to the top of Hatton locks.

Cambrian Wharf to Shrewley Tunnel SE portal:
                                            22.5 miles, 20 locks. 3 moveable bridges, 3 tunnels 12.1/2 hours