Wolverley Court Lock - Top of Bratch locks - (Monday & Tuesday) - 13.5 miles, 19 locks

Monday was quite a nice start, we were aiming to travel till just after 12:00, as we had an appointment in Stourbridge at 3:00 to test drive a car for when I go back to work.

In comparison to our recent excitement it was a pretty uneventful day.

We passed some beautiful homes on the canal side

Would be nice to be able to moor your boat at the bottom of the garden.

There are quit a lot of what would previously have been lock keepers cottages on this stretch.

It is also at times like being on a jungle, you are so closed in by vegetation.

But other stretches are very picturesque .

Having completed quite a few locks it was clearly all too much for George, or was it just that he was missing the girls :-).

We moored up and made into into Stourbridge for the test drive.

Monday night, we had no internet or tv, so we had a couple of games of cribbage, ended one a peice - very diplomatic.

Tuesday we travelled to the top of the Bratch flight.

We were really lucky we were straight in, the last of 3 boats heading up.  Thankfully the lock keeper was in attendance as the instructions are quite complicated.

The view at the top of the locks.

Heading back to the boat after taking George for a little walk.

Two days of work for Rod now and I am off back to the house to continue with my decorating.

(EH 620.3, M 674.5, L 575)

Stourport-on-Severn to Wolverley Court Lock (Sunday) - 9 locks, 5.5 miles

OMG It's official Rivers and us don't go together!!

We have had a nightmare - so on Friday afternoon the indicator at the lock showed about 4 inches of green, if only we had known on Friday afternoon what was to come we would have carried on and made the short journey to the Droitwich canal - hindsight is such a wonderful thing!

So it had rained heavily on Thursday night, then Saturday it was torrential all day, so we stupidly stayed where we were and laughed at the poor people on the couple of boats that ventured past us.

We were laughing on the other side of our face by Saturday afternoon, the river was flowing at pace, with great big branches flowing down the middle, the indicators had moved into Amber, but Saturday night it was in red.  We were stuck, and the flow was getting faster.

Sunday morning arrived with more rain, and locals keen to inform us that the water from Wales hadn't yet arrived.

A couple of boats arrived travelling upstream.  Rod had a chat with one of the guys, who advised that the lock keepers at the locks downstream were talking about locking down the locks, whilst they were currently in amber they were starting to nudge red.  He said the journey he had done that morning usually takes him 20 mins but had taken an hour.  Coming upstream into the flow he was able to steer, going downstream if the current was flowing faster than the boats propolsion we would have no ability to steer.

The boat that was moored behind us decided he was going to turn round and head back through the locks and back onto the canal.  This was the scariest thing I have ever seen.  The guy was driving the boat and his wife was holding the front rope, the plan being that her holding onto the front rope would enable the boat to in effect pivot on the rope to then be facing upstream, the current got hold of the boat and at one point it was travelling down the river side ways with such force that the lady had to let go of the rope or she was going to get pulled in, luckily the guy was able to put sufficient power on to get the boat facing upstream - scared the living day lights out of us all!!

So now we were in a real dilemna, the flow was getting faster, we were no longer protected from the flow by the boat behind and the thought of turning round as they had was frightening. 

Luckily we had visitors coming for the day, Marie, Antony, Jamie, Charlotte and Sophie.  So we decided that there was a better way to turn the boat, between the four of us we were able to pull the boat back along the pontoon and then pull the back end into the cut out of the large lock, our first attempt didn't work and the flow caught the back end, but we managed to pull the boat back into the pontoon.  The second time was more successful, largely due to the fact that this time Ant was on the bank of the lock cut out pulling the back end round.

After this it was pretty straight forward to pull her round to face upstream, the only challenge then was manoeuvring into the narrow lock.  The relief when we were finally in that lock was absolutely immense.

This is the two pairs of staircase locks that join the canal and the river Severn.

We were so lucky that we had people to help us. Thanks guys we couldn't have done it without you :-).

 We travelled back up the Staffordshire & Worcester canal and moored at Wolverley court.

On the way Ant got to grips with the locks, Jamie drove the boat (he sounded scarily like Rodney when he gave us a low down on the advantages of solar panels) and Marie, Charlotte and Sophie looked after George, he was in his element.

Marie tries to avoid a face wash from George.

Jamie's in charge.

George shares the love with Chatlotte and Sophie - bless :-)

So as they say "All's well that ends well".

Our route home is now back to the top of the Staffordshire and Worcester, onto the Trent & Mersey, followed by the Coventry and the finishing on the Grand Union, more miles but less locks.

(EH 611, M 661, L 556)

Dimmingsdale to Stourport-on-Severn (Friday 16 May -23 May) - 30 locks, 21 miles, 11 hours

What a mixed bag of weather, we have had gorgeous sunshine, followed by torrential rain, thunderstorms and hail.

As we left Dimmingsdale at the end of last week the sun was glorious we were supposedly heading for a two week heat wave which was reduced to 5 days!!! Still 5 is better than none.

This is what English summers are supposed to be like, anyone for cricket!!

We headed down the Staff and Worc canal through the unusual but beautifully kept locks at Bratch.

These locks used to be a traditional staircase flight, but the locks have been shortened to create small pounds in between the locks, thereby reducing the amount of water lost.  Luckily the flight is manned so you have the nice lock keeper telling you which paddles to open when.

We had a few more locks to get through but the sun was shining as made our downward journey along the canal, T-Shirt and sun glasses day :-)).

We moored up at Ashwood Marina, which was a real test of Rods driving skills, as we had to reverse in through the narrow entrance down the marina to our mooring spot.  We were then off for the weekend to see Mike and Liz.

The forecast for the week was pretty dire so we cruised on Monday which was still warm but more overcast than we had seen in the last few days.

You see some great sights outside the houses backing onto the canal.

This stretch of the canal is pretty but a bit claustrophic, as it weaves its way round the hard rocky out crops and the expansive wooded areas - would have to say it is not my favourite stretch of canal but it is very pretty in its own way.

We past the junction for the Stourbridge canal, which connects you to the Dudley canal and into Birmingham.

Look out Stourport here we come.

We didn't move on Tuesday as the weather was forecast for rain all day, I headed back to the house to start some decorating and Rod spent the day fishing - it didn't rain at all!!!  Why do we even bother to look at the forecast :-)).

I spent Tuesday and Wednesday at the house and made some good progress with the decorating the lounge.

We managed an hour or so on Thursday evening after Rod finished work, and managed to get to a lovely spot that opened up a bit, just before Kidderminster. We did unfortunately get caught in a thunder storm at a lock, I actually got wetter from the spray off the road above the lock than I did from the storm.

Friday we set off reasonably early hoping to get to Stourport before the heavy rain came. 

The canal continues to be dominated by height

As we went through one of the locks, there was a cave cut into the rock this was apparently used for stabling the horses over night.

Not sure I would fancy having my house sitting on top of the tunnel going over the canal!!

As we headed out of one of the locks there was a wren nesting in the brickwork, you can't really see the nest but you can see the hole, and you will just have to trust me re the Wren :-).

We had been advised to moor at York Street and then walk down to the basin and the river moorings to check for availability.  We made it to Stourport fairly dry.  There was plenty of mooring on the river, but a few boats had just gone by our mooring, but most of them were heading for the lower basin for a boat festival.

So we decided to risk it.  We were helped down the two sets of staircase locks and then we were on the river Severn.  Not quite as wide as the Thames but still pretty expansive.

I have to take my hat off to the rowers they have been out in all weather, true dedication and commitment.

We only have a short stretch to do on here before we turn onto the Droitwich, and the levels are well in the green so we are hopefully not in danger of getting stuck here - us and rivers really don't go together!!!

(M 655.5, L547)

Brewood to Dimmingsdale - 7.5 miles, 4 locks, 5 hours

The sun was shining when we set off at 7:30 this morning, we were heading for the Staffordshire and Worcester canal heading south, skirting Wolverhampton.

We arrived at the junction to make the right turn onto a new stretch of canal for us.

As we travelled down the canal we got to the first lock, Rod dropped me off and I headed to the lock, suddenly the heavens opened, massive rain drops and hail!!! It came from nowhere and we both got soaked, but luckily a very nice guy was there to help me, and sent me back to the boat offering to do the lock for us.

The rest of the day followed this pattern, with a real mix of sunshine and showers, the canopy was up and down like a yo-yo!!

The weather didn't seem to bother this cheeky Heron.

We also saw our first Signets of the year, following very close to Mum.

We found a nice spot to moor up, near a lock.

As we were seating enjoying a cuppa, a work boat and it's butty came through the lock.  This looked like really hard work.  The butty has no engine so is towed by the first boat, which means that the lock has to be done twice and the butty had to be pulled in to the lock by hand.

Slow progress and very hard work, Rodney reckons I've got it easy :-)).

( EH 592.3, 634.5M, 517L)

Audlem to Brewood - 26 locks, 29 miles

We had a lovely day off in Audlem, really pretty little village, as a little treat we had lunch in the tea rooms, it was warm enough to sit outside and if it had got chilly the chairs had blankets ...... Really cute.

Tuesday we tackled the Audlem flight, 15 locks, unfortunately a boat had travelled up in front of us and nothing was coming the other way, so of the 15 locks 13 of them had to be turned, so our progress was slow, but we were soon in a rhythm.

At the top lock there is a small cottage which sells homemade cakes, so we had to purchase, got to support the local community! Scones and bakewells, gorgeous!!  These were enjoyed whilst savouring the beautiful views from our mooring spot.

The weather has been very hit and miss this week, but overall we have managed to move in the best of the weather.

Wednesday and Thursday were work days or Rod, so it was Friday before we were on the move again.

We set off really early as the forecast for later in the day was very wet, we were only planning to do the 5 locks at Adderley and then stop and Market Drayton, but the weather was good so we continued on our merry way and did the 5 locks at Tyrley as well.

The locks at Adderley are a bit of a challenge as they all have really strong run offs just before you get to the entrance, which means it is almost impossible not to dink the sides....more painting.

We moored up near a nice pub and again had some beautiful views.  

From the book we both thought we knew which pub it was from our journey up the Shropshire Union in September/October, but we were wrong!!! It was a totally different pub, but again we felt the need to support the local community........... We have been accused of being on one long pub crawl....how could anyone think that!!

Saturday morning we made our way to Norbury Junction, George and Carol were coming to see us for the weekend, their first stay on the boat but unfortunately the weather was looking like being pretty wet.  As we made the short journey we went through the infamous bridge with the telegraph pole half way up.

We also passed another diddly little boat, I think this one was a little concerned about being hit, judging by the number of fenders it had out!!

We made it to Norbury just before the rain started and George and Carol arrived just before 7:00.  We just had time to get them settled and it was off to the pub to meet Nic, Ant & Steph.  We had a lovely evening catching up.

Sunday George took Rod to pick up the van and then move it on to where we hoped to be on Monday.  The weather was not too bad, some sun and quite a few showers.  George (the dog) soon made himself comfortable.

We were also lucky enough to see our first Kingfisher for quite some time, too quick for me to catch on camera I'm afraid!!

Monday morning the heavens opened it was really wet and pretty grey. We made the short journey to Brewood, where the van was parked.  

George being unaccustomed to cruising with the canopy down, decided the view was not good enough for him so he promptly found a small gap, shoved his head in and forced the zip up!!

I took George and Carol back to get their car, whilst Rod cruised on to our planned stopping point.

When we finally caught up later, the sun decided to put in an appearance, was hard to believe it was the same day.

Gurnett to Audlem - Macclesfield canal to Shropshire Union via Trent & Mersey - 48 locks, 45miles, 29hours

Sorry been very naughty and not updated for a few days - no valid excuses to offer!!!

We are making good progress on our homeward journey.  The weather has been great and we have even caught a little bit of sun!! The foot is continuing to make very slow progress........ But getting there I think :-).

The sun has encouraged Mr B's boat cleaning.

What a lovely sight a man at work!!

Not content with cleaning the boat, later that day the bike got cleaned as well.

We have seen loads of ducks with chicks but this has to be one of the biggest broods so far, with a little yellow chick thrown in for good measure, imagine trying to keep this lot under control.

As we started our journey on the Trent & Mersey we saw what has to be one of the largest items ever being transported, escorted by police outriders and with a couple of trucks pushing at the back.  We were right next to a water treatment plant so I am guessing that was where it was headed but could be totally wrong, it certainly caused a massive tailback of traffic.

We have also seen our first hot air balloon of the year, summer must be on its way!

We had a big day on Friday with 20 locks to get through and a physio appt to squeeze in, in the middle, so we were up at 6:30 and had set off by 6:55.

As we made our way down the locks, we met another boat heading down, which George had gone visiting on a couple of days earlier - old habits die hard and just recently he has popped onto at least 4 boats to check them out!!!  One had its own resident German Shepherd, luckily for George he was quite happy to welcome a fellow four legged friend on board. The dog from this boat had his revenge as he jumped on the back of our boat and reappeared getting off the front!!  George was totally oblivious :-)).

As we headed down the locks, Rod spotted this car sitting on a drive, there is definitely a bit of work to be done to this one.  Maybe one for Ant to add to his ongoing Corsair project?

Saturday was beautiful, could this be right a bank holiday weekend and the sun was shining?

As we made our way down the Trent & Mersey we passed a boat called "No Problem" this is the first narrow boat blog that Rodney started to follow and we had last seen them back in July on the Grand Union just outside London.

The Trent and Mersey was pretty quiet and we made good progress through the locks before turning onto the Middlewich branch of the Shropshire Union.

I'd forgotten how deep some of these locks are, will soon have pop eye muscles again.

We found a great spot to moor with fantastic views and enjoyed a lazy afternoon in the sun.

The view from our side window above and looking down the canal below.

On Sunday we got to the end of the Middlewich branch and turned onto the Shropshire Union main line.  

Suddenly it was like being on the canal equivalent of the M25, we must have passed more boats today than we have passed in the last two weeks!!!   We had our first queue at a lock since back in September, but this a beautiful stretch of canal, the weather is pretty good and it's a bank holiday, so shouldn't really have been a surprise.  We met up with Mike and Liz who brought their dog Sandy with them and we made our way to just before Audlem. We had a great afternoon and finished off with a lovely pub meal.