Misleading canal sign?

We were the first boat up the Wolverhampton 21 locks today, as evidenced by the fresh black paint someone had carefully applied to the spindles of the lock gear The spindles!

We had a fairly uneventful trip up the locks, most of which were in our favour. I did my usual lockwheeling, setting a lock ahead each time. In the two and a half hours or so we took to get to the top, I therefore cycled three times the distance Jan covered in the boat. One lockside was adorned with cowslips.

At Factory Junction we turned right to keep on the Old Main Line. We passed some interesting creatures beyond Tipton.

There were plenty of moorhens on their floating nests. There were a few families of moorchicks about too.

At Tividale an aqueduct carries the Old Main Line over the Netherton Tunnel Branch. There is a canal junction sign ...

... but you can't simply turn right here. Yes, Netherton Tunnel is in the direction indicated, but to get there you'd have to turn left, left and left again, having gone down Brades Locks in the process.

High Bridge, which we passed under, is a bridge, certainly, but not what I would call high.

One more photo from today: a goose watches as Jan approaches Smethwick Locks. The Engine Arm goes off to the left under the towpath bridge (even though the bank looks continuous).

We tied up at Cambrian Wharf in central Birmingham, where I removed a large quantity of plastic from the blades.

Log? More like a tree trunk!

Shortly after we set off from Gnosall this morning a man on the towpath warned us about an obstruction in the water. Some kids, he said, had pushed in a large log. This was what I call potential logs, in that it had not yet been cut up. The piece of tree - thankfully trimmed of all sticking out bits - was about 15 feet long and stretched almost from the moored boats on one side of the canal to the other.

We carefully nudged it out of the way, conveniently into a space between moored boats. Not, unfortunately, to the offside where our towpath walker was hoping to pull it into his garden. At High Onn (I think) we passed a boat with a device to catch and dispel the tar dribbling down the chimney.

A tray fixed around the base of the chimney collects the tar and feeds it into a hose pipe from where it drips into the canal. I think I have seen this arrangement before - or was it this same boat some time ago?

At Wheaton Aston we pulled in to stop for lunch just as Brian and Diana were winding in order to present the correct side of the boat to the pumpout. After the operation was complete Brian winded again to continue their journey north.

It was good to chat, albeit briefly.

The last of my photos today is of a peaceful scene south of Avenue Bridge.

We have stopped for the night at Autherley Junction ready for the Wolverhampton 21 tomorrow, and then on to Brum via the Old Main Line. That's the plan.

Stop, gate! Don't close!

We were still in bed this morning when the boat we tied up in front of last night set off. We got under way at about 0915 and headed for the Wolverhampton 21 locks which were all* against us. We guessed that the early starter had gone up the flight in front of us - this was confirmed by the volunteer lockies (and when we saw it moored at the top).

Speaking of volunteers, as we set the bottom lock two hi-viz'd and life jacketed members of that clan appeared and offered to help us up the locks.  We couldn't very well refuse, so one went to assist the hire boat which was following us, leaving Brian who stayed with us all the way to the top.

There was just one faulty paddle in the 84.
 

The wooden structure around the rack is missing. No need for black-and-yellow tape here. (I think that's Stewart, not Brian, posing with it.)

We had the luxury of no fewer than three volunteers for the last half dozen locks. The other two had been helping the early starter; that job done, they came down to us. We emerged from the top lock at 1200 having completed the flight in about two and a half hours (and shaving a full hour off the time estimated on Waterway Routes, but Paul doesn't assume that a generous helping of volunteer lockies will always be available!)

Jubilee's prop stayed clean all the way up the locks but, on the weedy Wolverhampton Level, we had to stop a couple of time so I could disappear down the weed hatch. I did one more clearance after we'd descended Factory Locks onto the Birmingham Level.

Approaching the aqueducts just west of Dudley Port I could see that a stop gate was partially closed in front of us.  (Sorry the photo is poor quality.)
 

I wondered if I should nudge it back into its fully open position but that rare thing in these parts - a boat - was approaching. There was plenty of room to get past.

A lot of redevelopment is going on in the Icknield Port Loop area. I'm fairly sure this graffiti "artist" is not part of the official scheme.

I'd always assumed they did their paint spraying under cover of darkness, but this was in as broad a daylight as you could get (without the sun actually shining).

After a dry day (hooray!) we tied up in our favourite Cambrian Wharf spot as the sun did, indeed, come out.

 *One of the locks near the top of the flight was empty - the water had presumably leaked out.

(Updated to correct typo)

A swivel bridge that doesn't, a lockdown memorial, a swallow that might be.

This morning we walked into Great Haywood to buy a paper from Spar, then I did a little painting: priming the bare patches on the front wooden doors.

The first bridge between Tixall Wide and Great Haywood Junction is called Swivel Bridge.
 

I'd like to see that swivel. (Perhaps the brick structure replaces an earlier conventionally swivelling bridge.)

At Tixall Wide there is a wooden plaque commemorating boaters who shared the first lockdown together there. It reads: 

 

Covid 19 Lock Down March to June 2020

Survivors

Tixall Wide Moorings

Keith & Carol  Serona Latis

Mark & Abigail  Utopia

David & Josie  Red Red Wine

Cornish Chris  Joan The Wad

Penny  Campanula

Lucky (with a paw print)

The plaque is lovingly etched and varnished.  Well, I suppose they had plenty of time ...

Near the bridge was a boat with an interesting wooden-framed, multi-panelled front window. Jan pointed out that the frame resembles a tree. Oh yes! A real work of art. The lower two panels are hinged so presumably can be opened for ventilation.

We turned left onto the Trent and Mersey where Jan spotted our first swallow. At least, we think it was a swallow.

I didn't think they rested, but this bird sat on an overhead line so I could take its photograph. Very nice, but next time could you please face my way? Thanks.

We tied up just past Weston upon Trent, away from the pub and the noisy chickens/cockerels. After tea we walked back to Weston and talked to fellow BCF member Peter who had joined his daughter's hire boat for a few days. We then looked round the churchyard before returning to Jubilee, where we saw red condensation trails from aeroplanes in the vicinity of the sunset.

Lockdown boating and lock tail bridge widening

On Wednesday morning I saw Nev approaching. He stopped Percy mid-channel while we exchanged greetings; as he got going again he turned round to take a photo of Jan and me at the front of Jubilee. I'm trying to remember when we last met up. It might have been some years ago. Anyway, while Nev was taking his photo Percy was drifting rather close to the moored boats in front of us. I pointed this out and Nev took avoiding action. Close one!

At Gailey we took on water and observed a boat coming up the lock. I remarked on the boat's name to the owner.

He said he bought it just as the first lockdown started and wanted something to remember it by. After all, he said, it was only going to last a month, wasn't it? Hence Lockdown (!)

As we approached Penkridge we rounded a bend, came through a bridge hole and saw Percy looking just about to set off. Nev held back and graciously allowed us to pass and take the lock. We were only going to the 48 hour moorings just below the lock, so I reset the lock for them.

We walked round the village but didn't need to buy anything. The next morning (today!) we had a very pleasant cruise in unbroken sunshine to Baswich, stopping just before Radford Bridge (handy for Aldi). These are the very neat park home-type dwellings on the north of Penkridge.

At one of today's four locks it looks like the tail bridge has been widened with the addition of a wooden beam. I suppose the original bridge was somehow deemed too narrow for today's plus-size generation.

At Baswich (or is it Stafford to the west of the canal? Or maybe even Weeping Cross?) we stocked up at Aldi and took a lovely dusk walk along the canal, over a long narrow footbridge over the Penk flood plain, through a housing estate with roads named after public schools and back past Aldi again.

Our view from the boat:
 

Hey - I've caught up! Unless I get behind again there should be just one day's worth of happenings to blog about every day from now on. While cruising. I hope.

Rust affecting wood; crinkle-cut logs; normal trolley service resumes

Over the last few years Jubilee's wooden front doors have become increasingly difficult to open or shut. The threshold had bowed up in the middle, catching the undersides of both doors. I tried sanding the undersides of the doors to no avail. It was a problem we lived with, and one which more or less disappeared in the summer months. I assumed this was because the doors dried out and shrank in the warmer weather, combining with the steelwork of the boat expanding.

On Monday I found the root of the problem.  Our friends Chris and Di joined us for a (socially distanced, outside) coffee and I mentioned that I should have asked him to bring a chisel.  As we talked Chris pulled off the (loose) horizontal architrave immediately under the threshold.  The photo shows the bowed threshold with the architrave removed.
 

I could then see what was going on. The threshold sat on two wooden packing pieces lifting it off a lip of steelwork. The steel had rusted; the rust had expanded and pushed up the packing and, with it, the threshold. In the middle of the picture below is what's left of one of the packing pieces after I dug most of it away. You can see an extra-thick area of rust under it.

With the packing gone the doors work properly! I have inserted a thinner piece of packing; I will have to try to treat the rust to stop it happening again.

After lunch we continued south along the Shroppie to Brewood.  On the way from Wheaton Aston were several areas where trees had been cut down, leaving logs for collection.  They were mostly too big for us (with no chain saw on board) but I did find a few smaller pieces.
 

These I sawed up with a bow saw when we'd tied up at Brewood. The cut faces display a phenomenon I'd noticed before: a series of ridges at 90 degrees to the direction of cut.

Comparing the pitch of the ridges with that of the saw shows that there is a correspondence. I think what's happening is that the teeth set up a sort of resonance as I draw the saw to and fro.

We walked round Brewood before returning to the boat for tea, which was part two of the previous day's takeaway.

On Tuesday 20th April we continued our journey.  After leaving Brewood we saw another sort of brood - of ducklings.
 

As we approached Pendeford we saw that some things are returning to normal: the dumping of supermarket trollies in the cut.

We stopped at Bridge 2 to walk to Morrisons. Just over the bridge, by a children's play area, was a patch of snake's head fritillaries growing out of the grass.

With our supplies back on board we passed through the stop lock and turned left at Autherley Junction onto the Staffs and Worcs Canal. We tied up at Coven Heath, out of earshot of the M54. It was nice to hear one or two trains, though.

I'm almost up to date with this blog now.  Tomorrow I shall write about a close encounter with Nev, Rachel and Percy.

(Updated to correct a typo)

Rocky McLockface

One of today's locks was Rocky Lock.

As at Northgate Locks in Chester the sandstone has been cut away to put the lock in. Unlike Northgate Locks Rocky Lock and its neighbours are brick lined.

We stopped for water and Elsan at Greensforge, greeting Rob and Jill on Chrissie who were just about to depart. Later on, as we neared Stourton Junction, we had a message from a passing boat that soup was being prepared on Chrissie. And as we tied up behind them, Jill invited us for lunch. This was a real treat: Jill's chicken soup was wonderful. Jan provided some of her amazing chocolate tiffin and we spent an hour plus enjoying each other's company. I was able to lend Rob a tyre pressure gauge so he could adjust the accumulator pressure in his water system and we had a look round their new Stoke Boats boat. One really excellent feature was the reversible back to the Pullman dinette. This had an ingenious double-pivotted support, hidden in the sides of the seat, which made the flip very quick and easy. The electrics were a combination of 12V for lighting and 24V for most of the rest. The boat was exhibited at Crick; was this one of the punters' favourites? Adam? We certainly liked it!

At Stourton Junction we turned left onto the Stourbridge Canal and immediately climbed the four lovely Stourton Locks.

The Stourbridge Canal below Wordsley Junction is mostly rural, with lots of trees ...

... and a field of horses coming right to the water's edge.

We turned onto the Stourbridge Town Arm and moored right at the end, opposite the Bonded Warehouse. These are secure moorings, run by the Stourbridge Canal Trust. Overnight mooring is permitted provided there is space and you check in with Colin, the manager. There was plenty of space; we haven't seen Colin yet.

We walked into the town for one or two non-essentials; we'll go back for a better look round in the morning.

Botterham repair

The first locks of the day for us were the delightful Bratch Locks. These look like a staircase and are operated in a similar fashion with three boats traversing in one direction followed by three going the other way. But each lock has its own top and bottom gates and there are pounds between the locks; it's only that the intermediate pounds are to one side of the flight with a very short section between the locks. Paddles have to be raised in the right order to avoid flooding.

There were three lock keepers/volunteer lock keepers so it all ran smoothly.

Our neighbours last night were Jill and Rob on Chrissie. We invited them over for coffee at the bottom of the Bratch; we saw them again at Swindon but they had to continue to Greensforge for water.

I could hardly believe it when a boat came towards us with its stove belching smoke. It might be a British summer, but it really isn't that cold! (As I have observed with another boat before, though, they might need the stove for cooking.)  It did seem rather incongruous.

At the Botterham staircase locks the repair to the balance beam was all too evident. Steel plates bolted together hold the wooden beam in place.

We stopped at Swindon (Staffs, not Wilts) and ate at the Green Man pub. This does excellent home-cooked food. We had a two-course meal for £6.50 each. We both had the pea and ham soup; I followed this with roast lamb; Jan had liver and onions. We just managed to eat it all.  During the meal we chatted to a couple we'd seen at Audlem; I cannot now remember the name of their red 70' Steve Hudson boat.

Tomorrow should see us on the Stourbridge Canal.