Halesowen

Well we woke to quite a nice dry bright moorings, the hire boat we met on Christmas Eve went by at about 9am and we set off at 10am by five past it was raining and did so for the rest of the day.

We decided to take a trip round the port loop, building is still going on but the latest waterside ones you need to like living in a gold fish bowl as they have a floor to ceiling wall to wall window facing the canal. On the far side of the site as we returned to the main line where they are still putting the footings in for more dwellings they have installed mooring rings all along the brick canal edge, I have no idea if the will be visitor moorings. Back on the main line we turned left and stayed on the New Main Line passing through a very overgrown toll island, The BCNS have recently completed clearing one so I don’t know if they plan to do them all.

I suspect they were also responsible for clearing this one as well. The octagonal brick work marks where the walls of the old toll house use to stand, it would be nice if some decided to fund building a new one.

Along the New Main Line there are still some telegraph poles standing, all the cross beams have been removed at some point. After passing under the Old Main Line you go under a concrete pillared bridge supporting the M5 motorway.

We continued on until we reached Dudley Port Junction where we turned onto the Dudley Number 2 canal and again passed under the Old main Line before entering Netherton or Dudley No.2 canal we then turned left yet again down the Dudley No. 1 canal. We stopped in Gosty Hill tunnel just before the low section to remove the stove chimney as it wouldn’t fit under that section, After the low section the roof is again a lot higher almost to the far end when it drops down again

It was still raining when we left the tunnel to go past the old tube works long since gone and moor for the night by the industrial estate just before the Coombeswood Canal Trust moorings at Hawne Basin.

Todays Journey 12¼ miles, no locks in 4 hours