Wed 1st July Birmingham to Dudley
Apart from walkers, cyclists and runners being unaware of people trying to sleep on boats, we had a reasonably undisturbed night. We managed to catch up with Tim and Tracey in the entrance to the Round House, slightly off the busy towpath.
We departed after our time together, and headed for the Black Country Museum where there are good safe moorings. On the way there were several side loops and junctions.
At Smethwick Junction the Old Main Line branches off to the right, goes up three locks and eventually crosses over the New Main Line on an aqueduct. We followed the New Main Line as it is straighter and deeper than the Old Main Line, with less likelihood of weed.
At Stewart Aqueduct, the Old Main Line crosses over both the New Main Line and the railway, while high above, the M5 crosses everything.
There are several toll islands in Birmingham, where a very narrow channel causes boats to go very slowly, and tolls could be collected. Now they are covered with wild plants.
There were
flowers everywhere, and Hazel picked some wild sweet peas to enjoy in the boat.
We arrived at the Factory Locks, and had to bring the boat in to the side, where we immediately had weed and plastic on the prop, which needed to be cleared before we started up.
The Factory Locks brought us up to the Wolverhampton Level, where the Old Main Line reconnects. We turned left here for a short section of the Old Main Line, and a bit of the Dudley Canal to reach the Black Country Museum moorings. It was very weedy and slow.
The museum was closed, but we have visited twice before. This time we just looked over the wall. We emptied cassettes before mooring up near the tunnel entrance, opposite the new Dudley Tunnel Visitor Centre, which wasn’t yet open last time. (It wasn’t open this time either due to the pandemic!). Later we had a Canal Ministries Zoom meeting.
3 locks, 5 miles, 1 tunnel. Dep 1210, arr 1550
Thu 2nd July Dudley to Wolverhampton
We left the museum moorings early, as rain was forecast later. We retraced our route as far as Factory Junction, and then turned left towards Wolverhampton.
Weedy channel
At Horseley Fields Junction, the Wyrley and Essington Canal goes off to the right towards Brownhills. We went that way in 2013.
We went off to do some shopping in Aldi, and on our return we checked out the facilities at the CRT depot. The basin itself was very weedy so we didn’t want to take the boat in there. Instead we decided to walk back with the rubbish and a cassette in the morning.
We decided that, as we were having to put up with a noisy city environment, we would make the most of it and have an Indian takeaway. While we were in the city waiting, we spoke to the landlord of one of the pubs.. He was concerned that they are due to open again on Saturday which is a match day when Wolves are playing Arsenal. They usually have the pub crammed with up to 300 people. This time they will be limited to about 40.
Later we had a life group meeting on Zoom. While we were doing that, a large rat ran past! We came here twenty years ago, in 2000, and we saw a rat in the same spot, raiding the rubbish bins.
0 locks, 6 miles, 2 tunnels. Dep 0830, arr 1120
Fri 3rd July Wolverhampton to Autherley
Junction
We had a disturbed night. Firstly, the trains were very close and noisy.
Secondly, Hazel had breathing difficulties in the night, which she put down to
the polluted air. Thirdly, just a few feet away, someone was speaking loudly on
a phone at 2.45am, probably to somewhere in India. Many people don’t realise
that boats are usually occupied.
The forecast had changed from being dry all day, to being mostly wet,
with some gaps. It was raining early, so we monitored our rain alarm app to see
when the gaps would be.
As soon as the rain paused, James went to empty a cassette. Normally he
would have reversed back and gone to the depot by boat, but the amount of weed
suggested this was not a good plan. So he went on foot, up through the park,
across the traffic lights, over the canal to the main entrance to the CRT depot
we had found yesterday. It was locked! It had two padlocks, neither of which were the
CRT boaters key. It was now 0840, and the other business on site did not open
until 1000. Looking from the road bridge, he spotted a side gate onto the towpath, but to get there he had to go back across
the canal, across the road by the traffic lights, across the canal once more, down though
the park opposite our boat, under the road on the towpath, and through the side
gate. It all took time, and some of the route was cobbled, so trundling the
cassette was not easy.
Back on the boat, we set off straight away, moving across the canal to
reach the top lock. We could barely move due the amount of weed that found our
prop, so before we could start the locks, James had to visit the weed hatch.
The water was very clear, and the weed was festooned around the prop. When it was
clear, we moved into the top lock and started our journey down.
Top Lock Wolverhampton 21
Although we had seen a boat come up last night, the first six locks were
all empty, and needed filling. Then we met a boat coming up, so they were in
our favour. Halfway down we met a CRT work boat coming up, but they had not
closed all the paddles properly, and two locks had emptied again. With two more
locks to go, we met a third boat.
Lower down the flight the locks looked quite rural. Lock 20 was unusual
in that it had a single bottom gate instead of the usual pair of mitre gates.
Leaving Aldersley Junction
We left the final lock and emerged onto the Staffs and Worcs Canal, and
found a mooring with rings near the entrance to the Shroppie. There had been a
few spots of rain on the way down the locks, and more was forecast very soon.
We took down the bag of coal from the roof, and lit a fire before the rain
started properly later.
21 locks, 3 miles. Dep 0910, arr 1245
Next: Into the Shropshire Union Canal. We are not sure how far we will
go.
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