Hazlestrine Saturday 28 November 2015

Well the weather has been very changeable over the past 36 hours. Yesterday we woke to sunshine and by 1030 hrs the sky was black and threatening rain but it stayed dry all day, the temperature was up in double figures, when it got dark it rained hard and at 1930 hrs the wind was doing over 25 mph. It quickly died away, the moon came out and it was just above freezing. This morning started sunny again, then the wind got up and lunchtime it was blowing and raining.

We set off at 10 am meeting the Steve Hudson “Harnser” at Hoo Mill lock. We carried on to Gt Haywood where we topped up with water before turning sharp right onto the Staffs and Worcester canal. There was only one boat moored on Tixal wide. Tixal lock was against us and as we looked up I was able to get this photograph of the entrance to Tixal railway tunnel, its hard to see when the leaves are on the trees. I even managed to get a shot of a train coming out.

There is a lot of work going on on the off side of the canal and I suspect they are planning to tunnel under the canal with a pipeline of some sorts by sinking a hole each side like they have a Fradley. 

There have been some new mooring rings installed between St.Thomas’s bridge and the old junction to the River Sow Navigation. The Staffordshire Riverway Link have erected a signpost at the old junction with one arm pointing to Stafford. One of the other arms points to the headquarters of River and canal Rescue who also part sponsored the post.

We continued on for about another half mile before mooring for the night in the wind and rain just below Deptmore Lock.

Today’s Journey 8¼ miles, 2 Locks, 1 Junction, 2 canals in 3½ hours