I didn't think I'd get this far up the Ridgeacre Branch

We moved on from central Birmingham today, but not before visiting the Ikon Gallery with its modern art installations. You have to wonder what whacky ideas artists will think of next. We engaged fully with one particular work; details coming up.

First a summary of our travelling today. We set off after lunch, taking a quick spin round Gas Street Basin (winding at the 90 degree bend at Holliday Wharf) before returning along the New Main Line as far as Pudding Green Junction. Here we turned right along the Wednesbury Old Canal heading for Ryder's Green Locks and the Ocker Hill Tunnel Branch.

Just before the locks is Ryder's Green Junction where the Ridgeacre Branch, er, branches off. The last time I passed this way, three years ago I think, reeds were blocking the entrance. This time the way looked clear, apart from a notice advising against navigation.

The sign talks about reeds and silt but doesn't actually forbid entry, so I took Jubilee in on tickover.

Well, if boats don't navigate a canal it will be lost, so I was only doing my bit. Has anyone else been up there recently?

At one point we ran over something a bit hard, but we got through Hadley Bridge and almost up to the marked winding hole. Here the reeds closed in and it seemed prudent to stop and go back.

Up to this point neither silt nor reeds had impeded our progress. Nor had the plastic bags I removed from the prop when we got back onto the main line. The prop did stir up a lot of evil black stuff from the canal bed, especially when making correction thrusts when reversing. David at the bow with a cabin shaft helped to keep the boat pointing the right way going backwards, and it all went smoothly. I removed a decent amount of plastic from the weed hatch after that little excursion.

All the Ryder's Green Locks were against us and we stopped twice more for plastic bag removal, but the run down was reasonably pleasant. Some local lads were friendly and helped with gates at a couple of locks; a group of older people with drinks cans under a bridge looked rougher but exchanged greetings and warned Jan about the submerged trollies.

We tied up in the Ocker Hill Tunnel Branch and I got inside just as the heavens opened. Phew!

I mentioned the art in the Ikon. One piece was interactive and involved the participant climbing onto a wooden board and then propelling him/herself out of the window 20 or 30 feet above ground! Naturally I volunteered first.

I was hoping that I'd be sticking out a long way, but it was only my head which got drizzled on. And one is looking up, not down.

Here's Jan enjoying the experience.

Tomorrow we have the delights of the Tame Valley and Rushall Canals to look forward to. And a rendezvous with the Tidys. Excellent.

Timelapse: Ocker Hill Tunnel Branch to Wolverhampton

The sixth day of our April 2011 cruise took us on more canals which seem to be rarely used. We passed only one moving boat all day (10 hours cruising time)!

This 6'49" timelapse film shows us turning right out of the Ocker Hill Tunnel Branch onto the Walsall Canal; then winding in a shallow winding hole (shaft needed); turning into the Walsall Town Arm and tying up just before the basin (I didn't know I could have pushed the yellow boom out of the way to moor in the basin itself); ascending the Walsall Locks; turning left onto the Wyrley and Essington Canal towards Wolverhampton. You'll see we stopped a few times for prop clearance.



The next timelapse film should show the continuation of this day, where Captain Ahab joins us for the descent of the Wolverhampton 21.

Timelapse: Holloway Bank Bridge to Ocker Hill Tunnel Branch

This is really the last little bit of yesterday's timelapse, covering the westernmost mile of the Tame Valley Canal, a tiny bit of the Walsall Canal, and our exploration of the Ocker Hill Tunnel Branch. We went to the ends of the two sub-branches before tying up on the fenced-in visitor mooring. Well, we hadn't planned to go anywhere that night!



The actual cruise was on 6th April 2011 and my contemporaneous account is here.

Ocker Hill Tunnel Branch

Argh! I'm getting behind with my blog posts, not helped by being unable to upload photos last night. Blogger was slow, or my broadband connection was slow, or my computer was slow. Or I was slow.

I've nowhere finished writing up our April two week cruise, and now there's the just-completed four day trip with my brother to talk about. At least I have plenty of photos to share.


Back to 6th April 2011, then, and my personal BCN challenge. We have just come off the Tame Valley Canal and tied up by the facilities at the junction with the Walsall Canal. Wanting to explore the Ocker Hill Tunnel Branch I walked across to talk to the residential moorers there to sound out the possibility of going to the ends of the arms.

Come on in, they said, but mind the low bridge (this one, at the entrance to the branch, wasn't it - it was the next one along).


So we squeezed past the moored boats, squeezed under the low bridge, and squeezed as much silt out of the way under the bows as we could before reversing back. This is as far as we got. I was disappointed not to see any evidence of a tunnel mouth, but I suppose it's been many decades since it was last in use.


To turn the boat we reversed into the other arm, and then tied up at what we were told was a visitor mooring just before the main line.


Curiously this was completely cut off from the towpath. Even the facilities were the other side of the branch. At least it was safe, not that we suffered any form of banditry anywhere on the BCN.

I've just reread what I wrote at the time. It's interesting how I've forgotten lots of detail in just two months:

Our destination was Ocker Hill. I didn't know what I'd find there. Nicholson's suggested there'd be some sort of services, and also maps the Ocker Hill Tunnel Branch, just a few yards south of Doe Bank or Tame Valley Junction. I walked over the towpath bridge over the entrance to the arm, and, by leaning over the bridge, could read a BW sign "Welcome to Ocker Hill residential moorings". Nothing saying "Private moorings: Keep Out", so I was hopeful that I might be able to explore. I accessed the moorings (still by foot) with a BW key and asked a residential boater if there were visitor moorings there. He said yes, by the entrance. Excellent! I reversed Shadow to the junction and went in, all the way to the end of the longer of the two "fingers", then reversed and winded to come back to tie up where indicated, right by a water point. Very convenient (for water, not so convenient for the facilities block!)

That shows me how important it is either to write up as soon as possible after the event, or to make extensive notes. I can't trust my memory!

Extremes of the Tame Valley Canal

This morning we left Curdworth and continued up the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal towards Birmingham. The last time I did this canal was something like 25 years ago, so it was like cruising fresh territory.


I couldn't remember the huge building straddling the canal by Erdington Hall Bridge, but it must have been there on that earlier trip. It was there, incidentally, that we met the only other moving boat of the day!


The B&F joins the Tame Valley Canal at Salford Junction. It's a strange and noisy place under Spaghetti Junction. The M6 follows the Tame Valley Canal for more than half its length, criss-crossing at Perry Barr locks, and returning at Rushall Junction before sweeping away on stilts as the TVC crosses the M5 on an aqueduct. It's a surreal feeling looking down on the rushing traffic while steadily motoring on to our own destination.


Our destination was Ocker Hill. I didn't know what I'd find there. Nicholson's suggested there'd be some sort of services, and also maps the Ocker Hill Tunnel Branch, just a few yards south of Doe Bank or Tame Valley Junction. I walked over the towpath bridge over the entrance to the arm, and, by leaning over the bridge, could read a BW sign "Welcome to Ocker Hill residential moorings". Nothing saying "Private moorings: Keep Out", so I was hopeful that I might be able to explore. I accessed the moorings (still by foot) with a BW key and asked a residential boater if there were visitor moorings there. He said yes, by the entrance. Excellent! I reversed Shadow to the junction and went in, all the way to the end of the longer of the two "fingers", then reversed and winded to come back to tie up where indicated, right by a water point. Very convenient (for water, not so convenient for the facilities block!)


the end of Ocker Hill Tunnel Branch

The extremes of the Tame Valley Canal?

Extremely straight
Extremely free of boating traffic
An extremely high bridge - is there a bridge anywhere on the system higher than this?


Chimney Bridge, Tame Valley Canal

The sun beat down ...


... and I got a sunburned neck!