Alvecote Wednesday 6 November 2019

Day : Wednesday
Date : 6 November 2019
Start : 0925
Finish : 1020 Alvecote Marina

It seems that every one walking the towpath at Glascote can't resist knocking on a boat as they pass. I didn't even bother to go and look out. I can also report that the fox I photographed last week was in fine voice.

A boat went by before we were up this morning and when we were up it was bit of a miserable morning following a cold night. We set off a little before nine thirty not seeing a single boat on the move. It wasn't particularly cold and just a few spots of rain when we arrived back at the moorings.

Shortly before we reach the marina we pass this house just behind the towpath. It seems that Charlotte Bill was a regular visitor here, but I was attracted by Humpty Dumpty sitting on the wall.

This trip we have done 80 Locks in 11 days covering 65 miles

Today's Journey2¼ Miles 0 Locks in 55 minutes

IMPORTANT NOTICE All of the above is my personal opinion and does not represent those of any official body or notices. All comments made to this blog are checked before being accepted any made anonymously are accepted but if you leave a name I could say thanks.

Gmail and Blogger

A massage to all my fellow Bloggers.

I found out this week that if you send an email to someone who used Gmail as their mail server and you include your Blog address that email doesn't get delivered, it doesn't bounce it just disappears . This change has happened sometime in October.

I send an email to several friends when I am cruising telling them the Blog Address, but those who use Gmail never received them, non Gmail uses got them OK.

What has Gmail got against Blogger????????

Glascote Tuesday 5 November 2019

Day : Tuesday
Date : 5 November 2019
Start : 1015hrs
Finish : 1645 hrs Glascote

There was one other person in the Cuttle Bridge Inn last night, I actually thought they were closed. Last time we were here I picked up on an offer, buy two large glasses of wine and get the rest of the bottle free, so I enquired and yes it was still on, also I would recommend their pizzas, so that is 4 different meals we have had there now and no complaints.

This morning we woke to the rain, however it stopped just as we set off and didn't start again until we stopped for water.

This is the bulge in the brickwork at the west end of Curdworth tunnel as you can see its slowly being warn away by boat handrails as they leave the tunnel. The tunnel is completely lined with cobwebs from end to end.

By lock 3 they are installing lots of steel pipework, I don't know if this is anything to do with HS2 or just new gas mains, all the joints are welded so I wouldn't thought them to be electrical cable ducts.

As we worked lock 4 two CRT chaps walked up the flight with the good news they had just dropped the level in the pound below lock 5 by a couple of feet but were about to let water down, as it turned out we crossed it OK with a bit of scraping as there was a good flow round the bywash so the level had made a few inches.

Just below lock 10 we met a boat, the first one we have seen on the move since we left Cambrian Wharf on Sunday morning, then we met a second boat who had just entered the bottom lock. That was it for the day. A short way below the locks we stopped for lunch and watched the horses out on the water park, I think they are a useful management tool as the National Trust have them at Wicken Fen. It wasn't long before we reached Fazeley Junction where we took a hard right on the Coventry Canal, both the Glascote Locks were with us, the first for three days and once up the locks we stopped for water, Whilst filling an old friend from our days cruising with Waterways World holidays came by and stopped for a chat, suggesting yet another cruise be may enjoy. Once the tank was full in the very light rain that was falling we moved on past Glascote basin to the 48 hr visitor moorings for the night.

Today's Journey10 Miles 13 Locks in 5½ hours.

IMPORTANT NOTICE All of the above is my personal opinion and does not represent those of any official body or notices. All comments made to this blog are checked before being accepted any made anonymously are accepted but if you leave a name I could say thanks.

Wiggins Hill monday 4 November 2019

Day : Monday
Date : 4 November 2019
Start : 1115
Finish : 1530 hrs Cuttle Bridge Inn

Last night was the most disturbed all trip, but first dinner, an Indian vegetarian takeaway from Shobhas , needless to say we ordered too much again so it was also lunch today. We went to bed just before midnight and then the music started, It sounded like someone had opened the door to a night club but I suspect it was actually a car in the carpark making the boat vibrate with the heave base and rap music, It eventually went quiet and we went to sleep, then the road sweeper going round and finally the builders started working, as we were about to get up it went quieter so we had an extra hour in bed.

We set off at quarter past eleven down through the stop lock and onto the Birmingham and Fazeley canal, again a spring like morning. The water is getting quite clear now and as Diana was driving I could see the rubbish on the bottom as we passed over it. Diana jumped ship at Brace Factory Bridge to do a bit of shopping and I carried on to Butlers bridge to wait for her. As the fly tipping is still there I sent a photo to CRT, maybe they will get it cleared. While I was there I wandered up onto the bridge, this is the first time I have looked at the fire hose access doors from the road side and surprising the padlocks don't look vandalised.

When Diana returned we had lunch of Masala Dosa before setting off to Minworth locks, you can see from this photograph what a nice day it was but its turning cooler this afternoon. We had soon done all tree Minworth Locks and were heading to moor by Wiggins Hill bridge, outside the Cuttle Bridge Inn, just before the bridge , the field on the off side is covered in short shallow trenches all set at 90°. Something in my mind tell me these trenches are used to carry out an archaeological survey before land is developed.

Today's Journey6 Miles 3 Locks in 3 hours.

IMPORTANT NOTICE All of the above is my personal opinion and does not represent those of any official body or notices. All comments made to this blog are checked before being accepted any made anonymously are accepted but if you leave a name I could say thanks.

Star City Sunday 3 November 2019

Day : Sunday
Date : 3 November 2019
Start : 1050hrs
Finish : 1630 Star City

A very enjoyable evening last night with members of the BCNS at the Crescent Studio Theatre and we even got a nice brass plaque for attending the weekend.

This morning, after chatting to my Grand daughter in Australia we left the mooring and headed out to the water point. I was amazed to see this notice in the services, this is a service block in a city in the 21 centaury and the water supply to it is so bad that the shower goes cold it someone stops to fill their water tank. We decided not to wait until the tank was full, but to wind in the basin and head off down the Farmers bridge flight, all the locks were against us but there was no wind and the sun was shine just like spring again. At Aston Junction we turned left and moored by the university to have a bite of lunch before tackling the 6 Ashted locks. At the first one there was an nice collection of fungi growing on the offside lock moorings, immediately below the lock is Ashted tunnel, I remembered from out last visit down this way that the offside wall is not straight towards the far end, last time I caught the top corner of the rear door, more care was taken this time. Just the other side of the tunnel on the off side is a rather splendid old building now in a very sad state of disrepair, I would imagine its listed or it would have been flattened by now. After Ashted bottom lock you are back into another tunnel, Curzon Street Tunnel, however this is a very large one with the railway and road over it and is actually curved.

At Digbeth Junction we turned left through Warwick Bar which was once a stop lock but now the gates at each end are always open, it was hear that we picked up a bed quilt, luckily not on the propeller but just on the rudder and skeg so after we pulled over I was able to remove it with the boat hook and not drag it all up through the weed hatch. On to Bordesley Junction for another sharp left turn down the Grand Union Canal and the 5 Garrison locks, it wasn't until the last one, number 5 that it started to rain, it did clear for a few minutes to give us a nice rainbow but then continued raining all the way to Star City where we have moored for the night, at which point it stopped again, before packing in for the night I took the opportunity to check the prop and removed some black and white thin polythene, its been the first visit this trip, lets hope its the last.

Today's Journey7 Miles 24 Locks in 4½ hours.

IMPORTANT NOTICE All of the above is my personal opinion and does not represent those of any official body or notices. All comments made to this blog are checked before being accepted any made anonymously are accepted but if you leave name I could say thanks.

Birmingham Saturday 2 November 2019

Day : Saturday
Date : 2 November 2019
Start : 0900
Finish : 1530 Cambrian Wharf

Well last night didn't go to plan, We were just about to head out and the sky's opened, so Diana fixed dinner onboard, Mr Tesco I will get you another time.

This morning when we got up it was dry, unfortunately it didn't last and when we set off at 9am. it was raining quite steadily. Our plane was to go along the New Main Line, past the Round House where the procession should start, as far as Smethwick Junction, wind and wait for the boats from Windmill End, we hadn't even tied up when the first boat went by and we pulled out behindMartin and followed him to Birmingham.

We all gathered near Monument Road bridge where we were joined by Dimitrios and Carine who have a boat at Droitwich, they only called in to say hello but ended up riding through the procession on our front deck.

The plan was to start the procession at 1250 when CRT had arranged for someone to cut a ribbon to open the canal, that almost went to plan, we all set off in the dry as the rain had now stopped but it wasn't long before there was quite a bottle neck, some boats would follow the main line round to the Mail Box, some would go round the Oozells Street loop and wind at Cambrian Wharf, Quite a length of mooring had been reserved for the event so that boats could moor in town for the night, however they still ended up three abreast in places.

We chose to follow the main line and round to the Mail Box where we not only dropped our guests off but stopped to eat lunch. There was a bit of congestion at Gas Street where its single file through Broad Street Tunnel then a short way afterward through the bar, due to the steady flow of boats in both directions. After lunch we headed back to our mooring of the past 2 nights in Cambrian Wharf.

Today's Journey6¾ Miles 0 Locks in 3½ hours.

IMPORTANT NOTICE All of the above is my personal opinion and does not represent those of any official body or notices. All comments made to this blog are checked before being accepted any made anonymously are accepted but if you leave a name I could say thanks.

Birmingham Friday 1 November 2019

Day : Friday
Date : 1 November 2019
Start : NA
Finish : NA

Well we haven't moved the boat today and decided to have a day in Birmingham. Last night dinner was taken in Carluccios, tonight we will eat on Mr Tesco thanks to the club card points.

The moorings were quite noisy until about 11-30pm last night from the Flapper and then quietened right down all night. The only noise we heard was the rain overnight. It felt quite autumnal today as we walked to the jewellery Quarter to visit the Jewellery Museum and then to the Pen Museum, it was almost 3 o'clock before we got back so had a quick bit in The Malt House. We are now sitting with the engine running charging the batteries.

PS, Its the first of the month again, so please check you smoke and CO alarms, it only takes a moment to press that button.

IMPORTANT NOTICE All of the above is my personal opinion and does not represent those of any official body or notices. All comments made to this blog are checked before being accepted any made anonymously are accepted but if you leave a name I could say thanks.