We weren’t wasting any time, and as soon as I’d got back from an obligatory trip to Coates Butchers we donned our life jackets and set off.
Woman on a mission
We got swept along the mile between Alrewas and Wychnor where the River Trent and the canal compete for supremacy.
Alrewas Weir
It’s an interesting experience when you’re not used to a flow. But once you’re past the weir it’s time to enjoy the the view of St Leonards Church on the hill.
We weren’t the only ones keen to get going as we met an oncoming boat
I’d like to say the canal carries on peacefully but the A38 becomes the dominant feature as it runs parallel to the canal nearly all the way to Mercia marina. And I don’t think these swans were bothered by the noise
Sharing the responsibility
And the lovely lambs weren’t that bothered either
We stopped off at Shobnall for some of the best value diesel on the cut, just under £1 a litre if you need over 50 l. Then moored up at Willington enjoyed fish and chips for tea and called it a day.
I don’t believe it….. We finally get cruising, and ….. the memo comes through from CTR that there’s been a landslide and trees down ahead of us stopping navigation for at least 2 days. Not only that but the weather is perfect cruising weather.
We were sitting at the Fazeley Junction
Sitting at the junction, waiting to turn onto the Birmingham and Fazeley canal
Our options included staying put until we got the allclear, detouring through Aston and centre of Birmingham, or …. back tracking back to Fradley Junction, and carrying on along the Trent and Mersey then up the River Soar. Rightly or wrongly, we didn’t fancy sitting it out, or facing all the Aston locks with unknown mooring options, so we winded and back tracked.
So near yet it wasn’t to be
We’ll do the Fazeley canal another time. As I’d just had another few days off the boat sorting out mum’s affairs, we were desperate to be cruising again, and my reward was seeing our first ducklings of the year.
12th April
I had an easy lock free day, and even when we turned right at Fradley the volunteers were ready and willing to help us through,
Fradley Junction
Then we got to Alrewas, such a pretty place,
Until you see this
“Oh no, A red warning sign”
It didn’t take us completely by surprise to see the red warning signs but we’d spoken to the lockies and we knew the river levels were falling. Much to the consternation of a holiday boater we went through the lock knowing we could moor up on the other side of the village and await our go ahead.
We walked along the towpath to see what awaited us
Sure enough, CRT came along and removed the padlocks giving us the all clear ride the rapids. Several boats were itching to go through ASAP, but we decided to wait until the morning.
I think those fields would be more suited to water buffalo than our cows
Speed boating, or Endurance boating, ….Well it felt like it for us. We rarely cruise for over 3 hours a day, but with so many delays both Eric and I were keen to push on. 5 or 6 hours cruising on a few days.
Approaching Aston Lock, below Stone
Back in mid December, a few days before the breach at Scholar’s Green halted our journey south, we treated ourselves to a Gold Licence intending to spend the season cruising the East Anglia waterways. 10 weeks later we finally broke free and sailed through to Kidsgrove.
Almost at Kidsgrove, still on the Macc
10 and half weeks later I got the phone call to return home, but now 4 weeks later we’re finally on the move again. We dutifully checked our route maps and CanalPlanAC says 115 miles, 69 locks, 57 hours.. Kidsgrove to Northampton. But no, there’s been a major landslide at Brinklow and our direct route is blocked until mid June. We’ll have to travel via Birmingham, 125 miles and 128 locks and 68 hours. That’s almost twice as many locks to do. (James if you’re reading this, be warned we’re coming via Hatton.) But we all love locking, especially when the sun’s shining, and we’ve already done 23.
Approaching one of our 128, somewhere below Stoke
We got very lucky with the Easter Bank Holiday weather, and we had some perfect cruising weather from Stoke. Even the occassional heavy showers ended with a rainbow
No one offered to swim across to find the pot of gold
We were surprised at how quiet the canal was, despite it being the start of the hire season and a 4 day weekend,
Dead quiet, This person obviously spent too long on their mobile
Perhaps the wild swan at Weston had seen everyone off. We’ve cruised this way a couple of times and for the past few years, this territorial swan has chased us off his patch, pecking at the boat. This time we were brave enough to moor overnight in Weston and saw him attack several trespassers.
Pick on someone your own size, mate
The much nicer Swan at Fradley was doing a roaring trade and has provided a photo fit for next years self print calender
Leaving the Trent and Mersey at Fradley junction, and joining the Coventry canal
What Eric hauled up from the prop wasn’t quite so pretty,
It could have been worse, only a rope fender this time
And talking of pretty
We had a rained off day, so we caught the bus into Lichfield to have a wander around. The weather didn’t make for good photos, but we did both enjoy our mooch. It’s quite a historic place, in the 7th century, Chad established his Bishopric, and it became the ecclesiastical centre of Mercia. Unfortunately the famous 3 spired cathedral was wearing scaffolding so not looking its best.
Lichfield cathedral
One of Lichfields other claims to fame is that it is the birthplace of Samuel Johnson, who complied the first English Dictionary
But whilst I might enjoy words, not a lot beats sunrise on your own boat.
