The best laid plans.......

.......often fall apart.

I have 6 batteries to recycle, I had been told of a scrap dealer by the canal at Tamworth so I checked their website for opening hours and Saturday’s they closed at 1pm, so I set off this morning at 8:45 to be sure of making it.

Passing through Hopwas again, I had stopped here on my trip down.

I bet the Red Lion was busy later, it’s been lovely weather.

And then on to Fazely junction, it was raining here when I came up and I had a perfectly timed short lunch stop here avoiding a downpour, not necessary today.

The Coventry canal is left-ish and Birmingham off to the right

Nice artwork

The branch off to Birmingham looked very tempting with the sun and the still water but not this trip.

Over the river Tame aqueduct.

And approaching the two Glascote locks at Tamworth

I had some good fortune here as a boat was coming down, I am now heading upwards and so he left the bottom gates open for me and the second lock was empty with a nice gap between the bottom gates to indicate that, so I was able to nudge those open saving more time stopping and setting off again, a gongoozler (canal watcher) videoed my progress up the second lock (after asking first, not that he needed to) to show his son later, or so he said J

The recycling scrap yard was just after the locks so I moored up at 11:30 and walked up to the road to check all was ok, and here’s that annoying fly in the ointment, they were closed, the sign on the locked gate said 1pm Staurdays so I assume they had all gone to the pub! I did not relish waiting until Monday so it’s plan ‘B’, whatever that is.

There was some strange artwork beneath this bridge, the words ‘ Support Structure’ followed by a white sketch of a mining pit prop which looked very amateurish and this, it say’s Wives and Mothers

I’ve no idea what it was about but never mind, I’ve no idea about lots of things these days!

Further along in the area of Drayton nature reserve was this colourful wheel, I assume ‘pit’ related but could see any information from my vantage point.

I have moored up at Polesworth for the night and had a quick wander around the town.

Looking along the High Street

I think this was the old school, no signs.

The gate house to Polesworth Abbey

Polesworth Abbey

Information about this can be found HERE 

There were a number of pubs, shops and other amenities and it looked like a nice town to visit for a day.

A very enjoyable cruise today despite the battery disposal disappointment, I am now wondering whether my reamining 5 bags of smokeless fuel will get used!

Totals Today: 9 miles : 2 Locks

Blogging forgotten......

........but I'm back now at full power.

I left my mooring at Great Haywood on Saturday 5th after having a catch-up and lunch with Rod N.b. Tilly Mint on Friday and very pleasant it was as well.

I cruised to Handsacre and this is where things took a turn for the worse electrically speaking, more of that after a few pictures of the trip.

Rugeley Power Station

You wonder what some owners are actually like

 I stopped briefly in Rugeley and popped into the very convenient Tesco for some provisions.

Armitage Tunnel

Armitage factory where the make the loo's etc.

It began to rain so the camera was put away.

I moored up at Handsacre and that evening the domestic batteries (everything on the boat is powered by these apart from engine starting) went flat overnight. On Sunday they did again despite me hardly using them and turning the fridge off overnight. They had gone from just coping to virtually no life left, hence the absence of blogging.

On Monday I ordered 5x135Amp hour batteries to replace my 6x110 Ah ones, that gave me virtually the same electrical storage capacity, a little bit more, for less room taken and less links in the system, I also arranged for an electrician to look at my charging system, just to check it. The batteries arrived next day and on Wednesday after the Electrician had been I fitted the new batteries. It seems my charging system is not working properly but it is working and I need to get it looked at again.
The difference with the new batteries is amazing, I think I have always known mine were not fully functioning but I did not realise how bad they were until now. So hopefully no more worries about whether or not to put the CD player on!

Yesterday I cruised from Handsacre still on the Trent and Mersay canal to just past Whittington on the Coventry canal via Fradley Junction going back the way I had come last year, The weather was not good so no photo's. I was just looking for a mooring when through the bridge ahead of me came Rick on fuel boat Auriga so I pulled over and waved him down mooring up for the night at the same time, he topped up my diesel and I took three bags of smokeless which I think should be enough to see me through until November!

Today I pottered about, fitted some extra retaining bolts on my rear hatch lock, I also made a device to secure over my diesel filler cap, to prevent opportunist theft, I have to paint it before I start using it. The time had also come for an oil and oil filter change, the oil gets changed every 250 hours with a filter change every 500, so I did that as well and then I walked into the village about 20 minutes away to get some milk, a productive day, a productive although frustrating week.

Hopefully now I should be back to my usual with the blog, I am heading to Hinckley on the Ashby canal where a family visit has been arranged and then on to Stoke Golding where I have arranged to have the boat taken out of the water to have it 'blacked' which is basically painting the hull with a couple of coats of bitumen to protect it, should be fun, glad I am not doing it !

Winter Cruise.......

..........tick.

I had a couple of visitors for breakfast, the swan was after food and I did feed him some bread, the big brown beast only wanted a drink, which was lucky for me.

Despite the lovely calm sunrise by 8:30 it was raining, not heavily but continually, I didn’t want to get wet today and normally I would see what happened and if it didn’t clear by 11ish I would make the decision to stay put, but today at 12 there was a break and I decided I would move so I prepared and set off, as I moved away from the bank i saw a boat some distance behind me, heading my way.

Sandon lock was not too far ahead and I tied up on the landing and walked along to find it was against me, no surprise there, I set it for me and as I walked back to my boat the other chap was just tying his, I moved into the lock and he came along telling me to stay aboard and he would finish locking me through, a nice start.

As I slowly passed the long term moorings just before Weston-on-Trent this swan decided my button might be a good source of food, he followed along for 100 metres or so pecking away at it.

Past the 17^th century Weston Hall in the distance.

 and then passing through Weston itself

Next was Western lock, again against me , having gone through and closed the bottom gates and moved off again around the slight bend in the canal I saw a boat heading towards the lock, timing is everything, sorry.

Another fairly long line of moored boats slowed progress before Hoo Mill lock which I was surprised to find in my favour, someone had left the top gate paddle slightly open, so that saved me a bit of time.

Exiting Hoo Mill Lock

I wanted to moor up at Gt. Haywood before the lock, I also wanted to use the services for the usual fill and empty, the moorings were quite busy but beyond the service point there was one visible space, there was also a boat on the services, a dilemma, head straight for the mooring or use the services, I stopped at the services knowing full well what would happen and it did, the other boat finished filling with water, moved off and took the last space L oh well, can’t win ‘em all.

No real problem I carried on through Gt Haywood lock and moored just the other side, alone again, naturally, (that’s enough of that Gilbert!).

So that completes the four counties ring, as it’s known, and also the detour along the Llangollen which was my intended winter cruise and very enjoyable it was as well, soon be summer J

Tonight’s mooring

Totals today: 7.5 miles : 4 locks

And for those that didn't understand my earlier attempt at humor.....click on the link ......Alone again

All is Calm

After an horrendously windy wet night I woke this morning to this sunrise.

What a difference a few hours can make.

Strange Weather.....

.....strange lock palava, strange marina set-up.

The winter mooring rules whereby you can stay almost anywhere for 14 days ended on the 29^th February and I wanted to move anyway so despite the weather looking decidedly showery I set off at 10am in the dry.

A few minutes after that it was light rain, then 10 minutes later it was light snow, then the wind got up and as I approached the Aston lock the snow got heavier, I tied up and could see someone walking around the lock so I walked up to give him a hand, the chap was stood by the top gate trying to pull his boat forward......mmmm...... he had tied the stern to the small lock bridge and the rope was tight, I told him it was tight, I wondered what he was trying to achieve but said nothing, his stern was stopping me closing the gates for him, he wandered back along the lock, down the steps and looked up at his rope, puzzled, I watched him for a minute and then walked back to my boat to get a smoke, when I returned he had finally got all of his boat in the lock and was still wandering around, he had left his windlass on the boat, I opened the ground paddle at the top and the realised the bottom gate paddles were still up so I walked back and closed them for him, he walked around to me and told me he was trying to stop his bow from getting flooded and couldn’t see what he was doing from the stern, that’s why he had tied the boat to the bridge, oh well he was happy now, I finished locking him through then bought my boat in and as I was finishing another boat arrived so I left the bottom gates open for him and headed off.

I needed gas, diesel and smokeless fuel and Aston Marina was just ahead so I headed in, I regretted doing that, what a strange set-up they have for services, the diesel point is beneath a bridge that divides the large long marina into two halves, no signs but I saw it as I passed below the bridge and had to reverse back to it, the wind was now howling and it was snowing heavily, I was getting frustrated, I tied up and looked for a ‘service attendant’, none were visible nor was where you might find one, I spotted a chap working on a boat so walked over to him and asked, the Marina office I was told, it’s at the far end of the marina, I walked along, a fair walk in the wind and snow, when I got inside I said I would take sandwiches next time I go on an expedition. The chap and I then walked back to the boat, he filled my diesel, we then had to walk back to the office area to get gas and smokeless, I paid and walked back to my boat again, lugging the gas and smokeless on a trolley up an incline against the wind, probably bearable on a sunny day but what a stupid arrangement, of course as I finished loading it aboard the sun came out, wind still howling but dry again.

I headed out and went a mile further along until I found a nice spot to moor; the wind had beaten me after my moral was lowered by the exploits of the lock and the marina experience.

I have moored in a lovely spot though, but the wind is still howling and it has been hail stoning in between sunny moments.

Today’s mooring

Butterhill Bank

Totals today: 2 miles : 1 lock

Stone

I had a wander into Stone, there’s an information plaque just behind my mooring which gives an account of ‘The Story of the Canal’

In brief, the idea was to link the merchants in Liverpool with the potters in Staffordshire. After the necessary Act of parliament was passed on 14^th May 1766 the first committee meeting of the ‘Grand Trunk Canal Company’ was held at The Crown Inn, Stone on 10^th June 1766 where James Brindley was appointed surveyor and Josiah Wedgwood treasurer. Locals greeted the plan with enthusiasm which was reinforced when the canal company decided to locate its headquarters in Stone. Work began on the Stone section in 1771 and required the construction of the four locks, the opening ceremony was a little too enthusiastic with a newspaper report declaring that ‘the arrival of the boats up the canal at Stone ended with great damage  by the repeated firing of the cannon. One of the locks and a bridge fell in and much damaged another by which damage the boats were unable to return. 

Damages were estimated at £1000.00, they knew how to party J

However despite that start the Market town of Stone thrived and today it is still important in canal culture. My walk around found a pleasant town with a great number of Churches, I counted six at least and here’s a couple of the more substantial ones.

St Michaels and St Wulfads

Christ Church

and another

A walk up the High Street

Lead me to The Crown and Anchor, I don’t think this is the one previously mentioned, there were as any pubs as churches, but this was the prettiest in my opinion.

A fairly large pleasant town, not overly large but lively although the market wasn’t operating today, there is a Morrison’s and a Co-Op which allowed me to top up. 

Barlaston and beyond

Yesterday I went for a walk around part of Barlaston, the upper part, it would seem that the village is split by the railway and canal and I decided the upper part looked more interesting to me.

Walking up the hill I passed a lot of empty buildings that formed the now closed Wedgewood Memorial College, I think it was made up of five ‘Houses’ this one is/was Estoril House.

The green at the top of the hill with its Centenary signpost and War memorial

Lots of substantial properties on the walk to the village and some nice little rows of houses once you got more into this part.

Opposite this row was one of two pubs I found, this one being the Duke of York.

All the shops etc. seemed to be near the railway at a more central point overall.

The Wedgewood name appeared often and the estate was open for visitors but I didn’t fancy the walk along the lane without paths to reach it.

Beyond this point it opened up quite a bit to fairly new modern looking housing so I turned around and headed back passing the Parish Church of St. John The Baptist, bell ringing practice seemed to be happening which was pleasant J if you like that sort of thing.

I called in the local store and bought a newspaper and headed for ‘The Plume of Feathers’ which is canalside and boasts beneath the pub name (and just about everywhere else inside) ‘with Neil Morrisey’ (of men behaving badly fame?), I seem to remember seeing a documentary of when Neil and an associate bought the pub a few years ago and evidently today (Sat 27^th) he was going to be in attendance to celebrate its 1^st anniversary  of reopening after a refurbishment, whoooeeee, I didn’t stay the extra day to see him. I had a pint of Pedigree (50p dearer than the last pub) and read my paper before heading back to the boat. It was quite a pleasant pub though and the menu looked ok, it was a buff coloured sheet of paper with writing on it J (the snacks were called Neil’s Bites L)

Today I headed off towards Stone, it was overcast and cold, but wrapped up well with 8 locks and a flask of coffee to get through I wasn’t worried about the cold!

Not too much to say about the journey although I did like this tiny bridge hole at the first lock, it’s taken a bit of a bashing.

There are the four Meaford locks first 34-31 a total rise of 32’ 5” (or fall in my case today) before you enter Stone first of all passing a very modern housing estate with some private moorings and quite substantial houses.

And then 4 more locks to get to the far side of Stone which is very famous among the canal community, a market town and the original headquarters of The Trent and Mersey Canal Company, I will be looking around a bit more tomorrow but here’s my approach up to tonight’s mooring.

Joule's Brewery, no longer there, it's now in Market Drayton

The Star Inn pub alongside Star Lock the last of the four Stone locks

Once I got sorted at my mooring I looked on Google maps for a fish and chip shop, it was 436 feet away, if you could walk straight across the canal and through the houses, it's actually only about 5 minutes by road, so that's where I headed.

Tonight’s Mooring

Totals today: 4 miles : 8 locks