Repatriation: Day 6

Another cloudy day but a bit warmer, and the sun did make efforts to break through a couple of times.  We set off at just before 8.  As I got ready to leave, a towpath walker stopped for a chat; she also spoke to the angler just down the towpath, some boaters coming the other way, and other boaters still moored up.  We were very soon at Fazeley Junction.

It’s always further from the junction to Glascote Locks than we remember.  Once there, both locks needed turning, but we were soon up.  We stopped on the water point at the top to fill the tank and start a wash load.  While there, Adrian popped along to the Co-op at the next bridge to stock up on veg.  A couple more boats came up the locks while we were there.  It’s not the fastest tap so filling the tank took a while, but we were eventually on our way.  Through Amington the piling is being replaced along quite a stretch.  Near Grendon Dock we passed Harnser, with Brian and Diana getting ready to set off.  At Atherstone Locks, a boat was coming down the bottom lock so we could go straight in.  Another arrived as we left.  Both said the flight had been very busy.  It was 12.30 so we tied up in the pound above for lunch — the first time we’ve actually stopped for lunch on this trip.  After half an hour we were on our way again.

There were a few boats coming down, including one who put the length of our days to shame.  The father was helping his son move a boat he’d bought at Devizes on the K&A to Pillings Lock Marina; they’d set off last Friday, and said they didn’t usually stop until it was almost dark at 10pm.  The traffic meant some locks were ready for us but others we had to turn.  They take an age to fill, but empty very quickly — it’s a rather pretty flight. (Fortunately both of these photos show the clean side of the boat!)

Things came to a bit of a halt below the penultimate lock, as we caught up with the boat ahead, who’d caught up with the boat ahead of them.  It was a former Norbury Wharf hire boat, just bought as they are reducing the size of their fleet.  The family on board seemed to be enjoying themselves.  We got to the top at about 3, so not bad going.  The new marina by Bridge 35 has progressed a lot since March.

We’d been aiming for Hartshill, but it was only a little past 3.30 when we got there so we decided to go on for a couple more miles, and moored through the bridge past Springwood Haven, with one of the nicest outlooks we’ve had all trip.

15 miles, 13 locks. (97 miles, 59 locks)

Repatriation: Day 5

We needed an early start this morning, and that knowledge meant we were awake early.  I got up and showered, during while Adrian went to sleep again, so I had breakfast and got the boat ready to go.  There are many aspects of the departure procedure which can be done quietly, but starting the engine is not one of them — so he was woken up at just a few minutes past 7.  I crept past the boats moored in Rugeley, noted that they are building a ramp up from the towpath at the Tesco bridge, and put my coat on as it started drizzling.  We were soon at the start of the former Armitage Tunnel, which is very narrow.  Signs say to send a crew member ahead to check the way is clear and stop boats entering the other end.  But my crew (having provided me with a cup of tea) was about to shower, it was still before 8am, and you can see 80 per cent of the way through heading in this direction, so I just went for it — and it was fine.

At Handsacre, another Braidbar boat was moored, Autumn Years, and Graham said hello.  His boat is exceptionally shiny, and really put us to shame!  We carried on to Woodend Lock, where a boat was coming up and more were waiting below.  Adrian went to help the boat in the lock, and a crew member from one of the other boats arrived to check that we were going down.  She then went back to stand by her boat, while Adrian worked us down on his own.  By the time we were ready to leave the lock a third boat had arrived, meaning it was a bit busy down there.

At the Fradley Locks, a volunteer saw us coming and set the lock.  A boat was also coming up the lock below, so you’d have thought we could have just swapped locks, but the volunteer at the second lock turned it for another uphill boat.  When it was our turn, he checked which way we were going at the junction, and displayed a sign to the volunteer at the lock below the junction.

Adrian walked down to swing the bridge at the start of the Coventry Canal.  A boat was coming out of Junction Lock, and I though he might also be going our way, because the volunteer at the lock we’d just left insisted that Adrian shut the gates.  As it happened, he was going on up — which makes you wonder why the Junction Lock volunteer doesn’t also have signs so the one above knows what’s going on.  Anyway, I made the turn.

Our initial target for the day was beyond Bridge 91 — because Adrian needed to do a video call, and the coverage maps suggested that 4G returned there.  This is where a feature of Paul Balmer’s Waterway Routes maps comes in very handy: the fact that many good, yet unofficial, mooring places are noted.  There was one after Bridge 90.  I couldn’t remember what was there, but sure enough, a long stretch of piling presented itself.  With two boats coming the other way, we ended up towards the far end of it, where our stern wouldn’t come right in to the side, but it would do.  We were moored up soon after 11, in good time for Adrian to check that the signal was strong enough and everything worked ok.  While he had his call, I washed the towpath side of the boat, and got some polish on it.  It’s a big improvement (although not up to Autumn Years standard!

With the call done by 1pm we set off again, having lunch on the move.  There had been masses of boats on the move, and we continued to meet more.  It also rained on and off.  At 3pm I joined a virtual staff meeting as I steered, to hear about the latest BBC cuts.

We called it a day on the approach towards Fazeley Junction, stopping a bit sooner than normal where the canal is wide and before both sides are built up; it was around 4.30.  Once moored, Adrian took everything off the well deck and gave the area a good clean — so we are gradually getting there.

18 miles, 3 locks.  (82 miles, 46 locks)

Repatriation: Day 4

We left at 8, straight into Brick Kiln lock, which a boat had not long come up.  The third lock of the day was Rodbaston Lock, which is right next to the M6.

As we got towards Penkridge we began meeting boats coming the other way.  This meant that for the next several locks, we could either go straight in, or just had to wait a few moments for someone to come up.  The traffic coming the other way also meant that care was needed at the many blind bridge holes.

Through Acton Trussell, several houses had scarecrows outside, one dressed as a nurse, another as a sinister Little Bo Peep.  It seems there’s some kind of scarecrow festival on.  Eventually we got to Tixall Lock, the last on the Staffs and Worcs.  It is the prettiest on this half of the canal.

After Tixall Lock is Tixall Wide, with the Gatehouse on the far side of the water.

Had we been on a normal trip we might well have moored here for the night, as it’s a lovely mooring.  But we are on a mission and it was barely 2pm so we kept going.  Before Haywood Junction, I got off to go up to the junction bridge to make sure the way was clear.  Adrian brought the boat past the boats at Anglo Welsh, then right onto the Trent and Mersey.

In coming through the junction bridge, we had completed the Four Counties Ring (with extensions) that we started on 13 March!  I walked down to Haywood Lock, and the moorings below we’re fairly busy.  At Colwich Lock, we joined our first queue of the day — albeit only one boat.  This is one of my favourite locks, because of the very attractive cottage alongside.

Once the boat had gone down, there was nothing to come up, so Adrian turned the lock.  Shortly afterwards a lady came up to help from a boat which had arrived below.  By the time we were leaving the lock there were three boats there — with another two close behind.

We had planned on stopping at the moorings opposite the pig farm (although there’s no evidence of any pigs any more) but they were very busy.  The next option was Brindley Bank, and there was a space there, but it seemed very noisy with the road and the railway nearby, so we carried on over the Trent and round the corner and moored on the edge of Rugeley.  It was almost 4pm, so a slightly shorter day today.

The outside of the boat is filthy, the result of having sat for three months, so I made a start by washing the roof.  Adrian walked up to the Tesco further along the canal for a top up shop.

17 miles, 13 locks.  (64 miles, 43 locks)

Repatriation: Day 3

Today is another that replicates a day of our trip in 2013.  Then it rained all the way down the Shroppie but then the sun came out when we’d turned onto the Staffs and Worcs; today it was cloudy all day, with several showers.  We set off at 8am, with the first landmark being Cowley Tunnel, the only one on the Shroppie, only 81 yards long, and blasted out of the rock.

A couple of hours later we got to Wheaton Aston, and pulled onto the diesel point at Turner’s Garage.  Surprisingly, it’s the first time we’ve filled up here, even though they are known as one of the cheapest places on the whole network.  It’s self service, so I filled it to the brim.  Meanwhile, Adrian walked into the village for eye drops and onions (no connection between the two), and found not only a village store but a pharmacy, which we don’t remember being there.  Once I was finished at Turner’s I moved onto the water point, where we filled the tank and started a wash load.  A motor and butty was there when I arrived, but they soon moved off up the lock.  Once the water was full I walked up to the lock, where a hire boat was coming down, and Adrian brought the boat.

There was work under way to various boats at Stretton Wharf, then we crossed the A5 on the Stretton Aqueduct.

At Brewood, Countrywide Cruisers had quite a lot of boats in and being moved around.  We carried on, meeting boats at bridges and narrows. By the time we got to Autherley Stop Lock, we had caught up with the motor and butty, which turned out to be a candy shop.  They needed to get both boats through, and one was coming the other way, so Adrian went to help while I held alongside a couple of Napton hire boats.

Eventually it was our turn; the shallowest locks had taken longer than any other so far!  We turned left onto the Staffs and Worcs, a stretch we haven’t done since 2013.

At the narrows known as Pendeford Rockin’, where the canal goes through rock, I was about to enter the first narrow section when I spotted a boat coming, so pulled back into a passing place.  The steerer told me there was no-one behind him, but by the time I was in position to go again, I saw another one coming.

‘There’s no-one behind us’, they said.  ‘That’s what the previous guy said’, I replied.  Anyway, we got through without meeting anyone else.

While the Shroppie has long straight sections, the Staffs and Worcs has twists and turns, with bridges on blind bends.  We carried on past Calf Heath Marina, and through the chemical works where no mooring is allowed.  At Gailey Lock, a boat was coming up, so we could go straight in.

There was additional help from a chap from a boat waiting below the lock to come up.  In fact, there were five boats waiting.  We moored below the lock at 5.30, having now come under the A5, and with so many waiting boats we ended up within sight of the next one.

21 miles, 3 locks.  (47 miles, 30 locks)

Repatriation: Day 2

We travelled the Shropshire Union lots when Debdale was based at Norbury Junction, but this is the third time we’ve done it on this boat — always in this direction.  In both 2013 and 2017 we did exactly this day’s journey, from Coxbank to Gnosall.  In 2017 it was a misty start, but today we had sunshine from the word go.  We left at 8 and did the top two Audlem locks.

Above the locks we crossed into Shropshire, (only for a few miles, before Staffordshire cropped up) with a scene that could hardly be more English.

At Adderly Locks, what usually happens is that we have to turn every lock then at least two boats arrive to come down as we get to the top.  Today we had to turn every lock, and we passed three boats heading towards the locks within half a mile of leaving the top lock.  It’s another pretty flight, and all five took us just under 45 minutes.

We went through Market Drayton.  Below Tyrley Locks, a tree trunk that just used to have a face on it, has had lots of additions.

We had better luck at Tyrley Locks, where all five were in our favour, thanks to boats coming down.  The cottages at the top lock had an interesting plaque.

The house at the top lock is for sale for £385,000.  The garden looks huge, and there’s a mooring.

Woodseaves was our first cutting of the day.  You are asked to go slowly through here because of the instability of the banks.  Sure enough, shortly after the high bridge there has been a rock fall onto the towpath, with lots more big rocks looking rather precarious higher up.

Having crawled through the cutting, we came across a fishing match.  It lasted two miles, so progress was slow — although there are also long lines of moored boats on the offside, so it would always be fairly slow. The former Cadbury loading dock at Knighton used to have quite a nice selection of old boats under its canopy; now there’s a wet dock there.

An unusual boat passed us at High Offley, then we were into Grub Street Cutting, where we took the obligatory photo of the double arched bridge with the telegraph pole.

As we passed the line moored boats before Norbury Junction, one of the permanent moorers said we were the slowest of the many boats that had been past during the day.  We took that a a compliment!  Norbury Junction was its usual cheerful self, although most of the hire boats were still in.

We carried on to Gnosall, arriving at 5pm.  One of the houses opposite has a rather interesting display on its mooring.

19 miles, 12 locks.  (26 miles, 27 locks)

Repatriation: Day 1

I worked a night shift last night, while Adrian stayed in a hotel in Milton Keynes.  We met at our marina at 8.30 and continued in one car to Nantwich.  There we saw Bill, paid our dues, and thanked him for looking after BR for 108 days!  It’s been good knowing he’s been keeping an eye on her.  As the turn south out of the arm is very tight, we spun around in the basin and reversed out.  We were soon going under the junction bridge.

At Hack Green locks there was a boat going up and another waiting.  He said they’d been waiting an hour, having been fifth in the queue.  There were also boats waiting in the middle pound to come down.  By the time we were up, another boat had come down meaning we could go straight into the top lock.

We had lunch on the move, crossing the Cheshire plain, with great views each side.  Before long we got to the bottom of Audlem locks.  We had a boat in front so had to turn the bottom lock, but they emptied the next one for us, then stopped at the water point.  From then on we met boats at many locks, meaning we had to turn just one more.  At the third lock my sister and family arrived for a visit.  Strangely, we were the last visit they made before lockdown (at Dunham Massey) and this was the first since the easing.  Audlem locks are very pretty; one of my favourite flights.

We were aiming for the Coxbank moorings above lock 3, and there was a BR sized gap that we slotted into perfectly.  The kettle went on, and we enjoyed chocolate brownies made by Emily this morning (while Rachel was at a friend’s birthday party).  I walked back down the flight with the family for more chatting time.  We have made good progress on day one of our repatriation trip; it’s been a really enjoyable day and the views here are great.

7 miles, 15 locks