On the move

We seem to have covered a lot of ground since the last blog although on a fine day (!!) we can still see the same hills that we could see last Sunday albeit from a different direction.

Saturday saw us arrive at Gt Haywood on the Trent and Mersey in a torrential downpour but we found a good mooring and decided to stay there for the Sunday and have lunch at the Clifford Arms in the village. We wandered around the grounds of Shugborough Hall in the morning but didn't go into the formal gardens as the entry charge of £15 each seemed a bit steep. A bit of shopping in the local shop which had a good deli section and a restful afternoon with some sunshine after a good lunch.

Monday we turned left onto the Staff and Worchester canal and decided to have a couple of long days so that we could get to the Shropshire Canal and turn north again. We spent the night at Penkridge and had a wander round this very pleasant town before setting off the following morning aiming to make it to the Shroppie which we did although we almost missed the turning assuming in our minds eye that it would be a very busy junction with lots of activity but it turned out to be very quiet although after we moored just up on the Shropshire we discovered a huge housing estate hidden behind the trees; its apparently built on the old Wolverhampton aerodrome.

Having had a couple of fairly full days Wednesday saw us travel under 3 miles to some lovely moorings with a great view all the way back to Cannock Chase and the centre of Wolverhampton. It was a gorgeous day and for the first time in four weeks of travel we could actually get the chairs out and sit on the towpath to enjoy the sun (it had been too hot in the early days and too wet and cold since) We were moored with a number of other boats, a couple with cats on board which was a little bit scary but we managed to avoid a scrap with the two girls claiming scalps.

Thursday saw us move on starting off in monsoon type conditions with the rain bouncing off the Cut. By the time we got to Brewood (pronounced Brood) the rain had eased and we wandered into the village for some supplies and a look round. Really pleasant place, was a town as it had been granted a market but as that ceased a couple of hundred years ago its now termed a village but has a good range of shops and we spent an interesting 15 minutes chatting to the butcher whose family have run the shop since 1946.

We then called at a boatyard for a pumpout and then on to a garage for diesel. Yes, a garage, its set right on the edge of the canal at a bridge and serves both motorists and boats. The thing I'm (David) likely to remember about this was thats its the nearest I've come to falling in. Due to the weather I was in full waterproofs including trousers and when we had called into the boatyard for the pumpout I'd undone the waterproof trousers to get to my wallet to pay but hadn't refastened them properly so when I went to step off the boat at the garage across a two foot gap to the jetty I found my ability to stretch my legs was somewhat hampered by the waterproof trousers being round my knees! Lucklily I did just manage to get across the gap but I can assure you  it made a very pleasant diversion for the first mate!

Friday - another day another deluge and to think that a month ago before we started our biggest worry was that the canals would not have enough water in them.

 We had planned to move on about 12 miles today but in the end found a lovely quiet mooring just after the old Cadbury wharf and decided to stop there for the night. Moored up. lit the fire and spent the afternoon watching the racing from Royal Ascot, then took the dogs for a walk to find that the evening was actually a lot warmer and drier than the start of the day. Tomorrow we plan to move on through 5 locks to Market Drayton which is apparently a rather atractive town. Depending on the moorings we night stay there till Monday.

Herons usually fly off before the boat gets to them but this one didn't and we had a long discussion as to whether it was real as it didn't move at all. I assume it was concentrating on a fish it could see

Shugborough Hall

A hitchhiker

Tixall Wide it is part of the Staff and Worc canal but the local landowner insisted that it be disguised as it went through his land

Lock on the Staff and Worc

Top lock on the Staffs and Worc looking towards Cannock Chase

First nights mooring on the Shroppie

Still looking at Cannock Chase

Wooded cutting near Brewood

Ornamental bridge near Brewood leading to Chillington Hall

"Speedwell Castle" in Brewood - built in the 18thC by an apothocary reportedly after winning a large sum on a horse named Speedwell

Our first glimpse of the Wrekin

An interesting bridge with a telegraph pole embedded

Cadbury's Wharf still in use up to 1967

Decisions decisions

Bored with mentioning the weather so I wont!

We have now arrived at Fradley Junction where the Coventry and the Trent and Mersey canals meet and spent last night here and will stay here tonight and move on reasonably early tomorrow. Fradley junction is a very busy spot but steeped in canal history and has a really good feel to it. We did think we were going to have a problem stopping here as all the moorings approaching the junction were full so although we hadn't wanted to we had to go through the two locks and then managed to find the last mooring close to the junction.

Today was sunshine and showers - oops sorry said I wasn't going to mention the weather - but we had a good wander around, bought some more maps for our future travels and stopped for a hot chocolate and cake at the Kingfisher cafe where we were when it started raining again - oops sorry - so back to the boat and time for a few chores. I had managed to find some tool clips in a really old fashioned hardware store in Atherstone and so I put those up today which means we now have a more tidy boatman's area.

So we then had to decide where to next. Originally we had thought to go north up the Macclesfield and on to the Peak Forest which takes you right into the Peak District but Sarah wants to spend some time on the northerly canals and also to visit a woolfest which is near Lancaster so we have decided to leave that till next year when we should be out for longer and instead to go down the Staff and Worcester, then up the Shropshire and if time permits on to the Llangollen.

Tomorrow we plan to move on to Rugeley, do a bit of provisioning and possibly stop over for a night before going on to Gt Haywood to start our trip down the Staff and Worcester.

Sarah, on the left, manning a lock

A lovely collection of flowers at Bridge 78 on the Coventry canal

I think they must have been planted but are most pleasingly random

The Swan, Fradley Junction

Ditto

View down the canal at Fradley

The Swan again

A very imaginative bench in the wildlife area at Fradley

Mountaineering in Warwickshire

The day dawned dry so we decided to push on a bit. After Sarah's marathon with the 11 locks yesterday she was feeling a bit sore in the rib area so we had a very leisurely breakfast and started off about 10.30 and sailed up to Polesworth where we stopped to try to find a butcher - the only one we could find in Atherstone yesterday was closed - This we did and had a short wander around this pleasant town. Not really attractive but a good atmosphere. Its amazing when you look around at the countryside which is green and pleasant to think that this was still a mining area up to the 80's.

We decided not to go much further today so just moved on a mile or so and moored up next to the Pooley Field Nature reserve an area which has been reclaimed from the mining era and is now full of a huge variety of flora and fauna with wet woodlands and ponds attracting many species. Sarah decided the locks of yesterday were catching up with her so put her feet up whilst I took the dogs for a walk. Within the nature reserve is a slag heap and the visitor information said that there were good views from the top so I decided to see if that were true and, yes, I think I can say that it was. There's an example below and if you look carefully you can see 2 church spires in one of them which are the churches at Stoke Golding and Market Bosworth, where we were some 5 or 6 days ago! I'm not sure what the monument on the top of the heap is made of but its meant to represent leaves. It was quite a climb but well worth it, not Mount Everest perhaps, but quite a climb for someone from East Anglia! Apparently, I now find out that there is a spiral route to the top but I did it the hard way, up the north face you might say, as in the picture below.

Tomorrow should see us through Tamworth and Fazeley Junction and we plan to moor at Hopwas where there just happens to be a pub!

View from the top of the slag heap with Stoke Golding and Market Bosworth church spires in the distance

The golden tower of leaves unveiled 2011

View from the bottom of the slag heap showing my route to the top

Hoddy moored at the Pooley Field Nature Reserve

What would we talk about.....

.....if we didn't have the weather?

Its been the main point of discussion with every boater we meet. Since our last post we have had quite a mixture. After the train ride we travelled just a few hours the following day to moor up to visit Dadlington village and more importantly the Dog and Hedgehog for lunch. If you are ever in the area do give it a visit, not the most extensive of menus but an absolutely brilliant meal, not cheap but reasonably priced for the quality and a great atmosphere and a very personable mine host.

We had an eye on the weather when we walked up to the pub over the fields but arrived dry and although we had some rain whilst eating our lunch we walked back in the dry too but it didn't last.

The following day we travelled on to Hinkley where we had to visit a pet shop to get some special food for Tansie who is on a diet due to her problem stomach. It was quite a trek into town and although downhill on the way back carrying 6kg of dog food was not helpful!

We didn't want to stay on the mooring we had so moved down to Bridge 15 which just happened to have a pub next to it. It also happened to have "Button End" moored there too. This boat we had been playing leap frog with since Market Bosworth on our way up and we had had a conversation with Kate and Marc in the pub at Snarestone. Friday was forecast to be a very wet and especially windy day and wind and a narrowboat don't mix as they are flat bottomed so very susceptible to cross winds. So we had decided to stay put. Marc and Kate were going to move on but the allure of a pub  meal and a few jars with us meant that they decided to stay too and we had a very pleasant lunch in the pub.

Moving off the following morning it was difficult to believe that it was/is June (see below) but unbelievably by the afternoon the sun was out and the temperature must have risen 10 degrees. We wanted to go through Nuneaton fairly early on Sunday morning (lying in time for the yobs) so moored near the end of the Ashby for the night. Sunday morning was a pure joy. We started off about 7.30 in bright warm sunshine and Sarah brought me a crispy bacon sandwich and a cup of tea for breakfast on the move - heaven!!

We moored up early just south of Hartshill and had a super walk with the dogs over the fields to Caldecoat and then back to the pub we just happened to be moored near for a couple of drinks before lunch.

We had wanted to be in this area as we had arranged for a TV engineer to call to try to discover what was wrong with the satellite system, not having got a lot of help from the company we bought it from. He duly arrived and found that it appears to be the cable which runs internally from the cratch to the TV cupboard which could be a bit unfortunate as I have no idea how they can repair/replace that but at least we can now get a TV picture by running a wire straight from the dish to the receiver.

Today has been a long day. we were in desperate need of reprovisioning, the fridge being totally empty so another early start this time in cloudy conditions to get to Atherstone and a supermarket. The town is quite a pleasant one and we found most of what we wanted, borrowed the supermarket trolley to bring it back to the boat - I must have chosen the worst one in the line, no way would it be pushed in a straight line so we ended up pulling it - and after a hurried bacon sandwich for lunch set off to go down the flight of 11 locks. That's when it started to rain and the waterproof outfits were given a real test. We managed the flight in two and a half hours as we were lucky that there were quite a few boats coming in the opposite direction so had most of the locks set right for us. As soon as we were through the last we moored up, I took the dogs for a quick walk whilst Sarah got the fire going and we dried out. Tomorrow depends on the weather, if its fine as forecast we will travel on - no locks now for ages - if its wet we will stay put and enjoy the comforts of a home fire!

NB This post should have gone up yesterday but for some reason I couldn't upload the photos so its a day late.

Yes this really is June

Hoddy on the Ashby

Saying goodbye to the Ashby

Heaven on Sunday morning

Teazle choosing lunch

The British Waterways bulding at Hartshill Yard

Nostalga

Really felt as though we were on holiday today as we acted the tourists and went for a ride on the Battle Line steam train which runs from Shackerstone to Shenton which is virtually at the Battle of Bosworth site.

We had left our mooring at the top of the canal yesterday morning in sunshine and the whole of yesterday was a very considerable improvement on Sunday as everyone we met commented!

Since getting the boat we hadn't tried to light the stove as it had been either too hot to contemplate of too cold to have the windows open for the first burn to get rid of the smell so yesterday seemed ideal and we took the plunge and are now able to have the homely warmth of the fire going which obviously in June we are going to need quite a bit!

A leisurely walk yesterday afternoon with the dogs was interesting in that we saw a hidden camera over a badger set beside the canal and then a videographer with a crew of about 6 including a sound recordist with a huge amount of equipment round his neck. No idea what they were filming but is was notable for the fact that as I walked through the throng the sound recordist nudged a colleague and said "Look a man with a real camera"  (I was carrying my 35mm film camera which I'm playing with at the moment)

So today we had our trip down memory lane. The station is only about 5 minutes walk from where we are moored and we arrived bought our 2 OAP tickets for us and 2 dog specials (£2 each) and waited for the train. We have to say that the sight and sound of a steam engine takes us both back to a childhood of going to a main terminus in London and being filled with the smell and the noise of engines and soot and smut everywhere but what a sight! The trip only lasts for about 20 minutes but the tickets enabled us to do the journey as many times as wished during the day - something for the anoraks! Instead we walked up to the battlefield and then over to Sutton Cheney wharf for lunch. Then a quite meander back to the station for the trip back. Probably the biggest surprise of the journey was how laid back the dogs were. I thought they would be terrified of the noise but it didn't seem to worry them at all and indeed Teazle really enjoyed the view.

The view from the top of the Ashby Canal

Interesting mooring post near the top of the Ashby

Old railway bridge at Shackerstone

Hoddy showing off her chimney

Ah the sight of that smoke

Teazle watching for passing rabbits

Wheres Noah?

I knew I shouldn't have complained about the heat! The last couple of days have not been brilliant but we haven't really got too wet. However today the dogs decided they need to go out at about 5.30 this morning and the rain at that time was somewhat heavy to say the least. We are currently at the top of the Ashby, a more peaceful spot in middle England you would be hard pressed to find and I think the views are quite stunning, I'll tell you when the clouds lift!

We have had a good couple of days since I last posted with a super fun and leisurely lunch with our friends John and Louise in Market Bosworth on Friday who are now on their way back home to go back to work, poor them. We spent the night there and then came on up to the top of the canal yesterday and intend working our way slowly down taking in the local steam museum tomorrow and then the Bosworth battlefield on Tuesday and then back to Stoke Golding.

We feel sorry for all the organisers of Jubilee events and for the crews on the craft taking part in the pageant on the Thames. Our day has been very much an indoor one with me (David) spending the morning cleaning my brass horn and light. Having done it and being asked by Sarah if I had put it back up I told her that there was no way I was getting it dirty again and for any tunnel we came to she would have to sit on the bow with a torch. The idea didn't go down too well.

Having done that I ventured out with the dogs and got wet from head to foot and then back to a well earned bear and pork chops.

Higham on the Hill

Baptist Chapel Higham on the Hill

Stoke Golding church

Pumping station at the top of the Ashby Canal

Not sure what to do now. I've finished reading the books I brought and Sarah has pinched the Kindle with my other reading material on it, the satellite seems to have busted so no TV (anyone reading this who understands satellite TV and finders etc  - help!) I cant go outside and polish any brass, ah, just had a thought; I bought a kit to try making rope fenders so I'll dig that out and see if I can succeed, if not the weathers so depressing I could always make a noose.... no not really absolutely loving the experience!