Heading North Spring Cruise Week 12

 

Monday 22nd May - Alvechurch to Tardebigge Top Lock

A short cruise today to the top of the Tardebigge Locks, so we spent the morning walking to Alvechurch and topping up on essentials.

We cruised past two Anglo Welsh hire bases, one at Alvechurch and the other at Tardebigge.  Both had lots of their boats out so manoeuvring through them was quite easy today.

Two tunnels, Shortwood Tunnel and Tardebigge Tunnel, both of which you can see through to the other end and both were clear, so an uneventful journey through both tunnels.

Once through the final tunnel we pulled over to use the services and then the plan was to drop down through the first lock and moor in the long pound before the second lock, but at the last minute we changed our mind and stayed above the top lock, very pleasant it was too!

4.5 miles, 0 locks, 2hr 18mins.

Tuesday 23rd May - Tardebigge Top Lock to Tardebigge Bottom Lock

A grey start to the day with a promise of sun later.  We made an early start as we are expecting some volunteer help at 9am, which will be most appreciated.  The fields around us are full of sheep and lambs, they have been incredibly noisy in the evening and through the night!

Tardebigge top lock is a very deep lock, it has a rise of 11 feet, unusually high for a single lock. This lock was built to replace an experimental vertical boat lift.  The Tardebigge vertical lift was invented by John Woodhouse and installed at his own expense, with excavation and masonry provided by the company. Finished on 24 June 1808, it was housed in a covered shed and used a fixed counterweight of bricks, connected by a set of eight parallel chains and pulleys. Lifting was performed by two men using a windlass. The 64 ton wooden caisson was sealed at each end by guillotine gates, as was the lock chamber. It succeeded in lifting 110 boats in 12 hours but was considered too fragile for permanent use.  Consequently there was recourse to locks for the remainder of the canal and the lift was replaced in 1815. The lift mechanism has gone but the outline of its balancing pit may be seen near the lock keeper's cottage.

We were met by two volunteers at Lock 57, Kev and Trev, Trev is a trainee and therefore can only work alongside a fully qualified volunteer.

Tardebigge Reservoir is a large feeder reservoir covering about 25 acres (ten hectares), built to supply water for the flight of locks. It is maintained by Canal and River Trust and still supplies water to the canal system. The lake is up to forty feet (twelve metres) deep at the dam end, shelving off to around fifteen feet (4.6 metres) at the inlet end. The reservoir is very popular with anglers.  The reservoir is the fullest we have seen it for a long time.

We were struck by these large fields of blue, but I’m not sure what it is.  It could be a field of flax in flower.  The cloth made from the finest fibres in the stem of linseed (flax) plants is well known to us as linen. Coarser fibres are used to make rope and twine.  Or it could be Phacelia, commonly used by farmers and vegetable growers, it works well as a green manure because it's fast growing and tolerates lower temperatures – it may even survive a mild winter. Phacelia doesn't fix nitrogen to the soil like leguminous plants but it does hold on to nitrogen, which is then dug back into the soil.

We met up with Tom, an old friend from nbMinuet days and who assessed Dave and I for our volunteer roles.  Tom used to be the lead volunteer on the Tardebigge Locks but has stepped down and enjoys a variety of different roles, he is being a volunteer ranger today and came out especially to see us!

As the reservoir is so full, there is a lot of water on the flight, here you can see the water cascading over the lock gates.  Kev was able to manage the water by filling the lock behind us and drawing the surplus water out of the pound.

A lock keepers cottage is now a Landmark Trust property, an organisation set up by John Smith in 1965 after the demolition of the Junction House at Hurleston on the Shropshire Union Canal.  The Trust is devoted to rescuing and refurbishing of worthwhile buildings in all different shapes and sizes.

Kev and Trev, our volunteer helpers today, many thanks to them both for turning out to help us today and for all the work they do generally.

2.25 miles, 30 locks, 3hrs 12mins. 

Wednesday 24th May - Tardebigge Bottom Lock to Hanbury Junction

We left The Queen’s Head, a very pleasant pub and a very nice mooring, this morning and headed towards Hanbury,. 

Toby and I worked the first few locks, you can just see Toby lying down at my feet as I finish off the lock, we then walk to the next lock and do it all over again!

These irises are so pretty.  The water-loving yellow iris can be found along the margins of waterways and ponds, and in wet woodlands, fens and saltmarshes. Often mingled among other reedbed plants, its large, bright yellow flowers appear between May and August; they are thought to be the inspiration for the fleur-de-lys symbol, which is used in heraldry and also by the Scouts.

We made a stop here to fill up with water opposite the Boat and Railway Pub, aptly named as the canal and railway run parallel here.

The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost (1874-1963)

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

We have struggled along this stretch as Canal and River Trust have been cutting the towpaths back and we have had to clear the propeller of cuttings.  This photo shows the amount of pollen that has blown from the surrounding hedges, trees and fields.  We moored up just past the Hanbury Junction here we shall spend the night.

4.2 miles, 12 locks, 3hrs 54mins.

Thursday 25th May - Hanbury Junction to Perdiswell

A lovely morning, we moved gently down canal until we got to Bridge 35 Chandlery where we stopped to put on diesel.  We then continued on our cruise to Perdiswell.

Dunhampstead Tunnel, a short tunnel which you could easily see through, and then heading towards the locks.  The tunnel was opened in 1815 and is 2 way working with chains on the inside of the tunnel for safety reasons.

Through the trees we could see this shell of a disused windmill, near to a farm, I’m sure it would be a delightful residence once renovated.  The Offerton Locks were in good condition today, pounds all full and an excellent journey down.

The welcome to Worcester marker as we approach the City.

Two more cygnets with their parents and I also saw another swan standing beside a nest which had 4 eggs in it.  We stopped just opposite the golf course at Perdiswell and spent a quiet night there before finishing off our cruise into Worcester.

6.75 miles, 8 locks, 3hrs 54mins

Friday 26th May - Perdiswell to Diglis Basin

The last day of our trip, leaving our mooring and heading for the first of our 6 locks.

Here we are passing a Trinity hireboat, and unfortunately their crew had turned the lock on us.  The lock was in our favour, they emptied it and we waited in a pound that was already low on water.  It was a real shame, that after 12 weeks this was the first boat to do this to us, combined with the low water, I was not pleased!

The last time we saw a hole in a bridge like this was the Marple Aqueduct, and the reason was to cut down on the weight bearing above the arch way.

This is the first time we have seen the cathedral from this lock, as there has always been a line of trees blocking the view.  The trees have recently been cut down and suddenly there is the Cathedral!

Sidbury Lock beside The Commandery, with decoration on the bridge of swords and helmets.

The last stretch, towards the swing bridge and into the Basin where I was able to moor the boat backwards into our space, very happy with that!

2.5 miles, 6 locks, 2hrs 18mins

Some thoughts on our trip

- very pleased with the distance we have covered.

- a challenge - rivers, canals, tunnels

- hugely enjoyable - excited to see what was around the next corner

- new experiences - Hebble spike, short locks, huge river locks, deepest lock, highest canal pound.

- stunning scenery - Pennines, Yorkshire, Lancashire

- wonders of the waterways - Bingley 5 Rise, Burnley Embankment, Barton Swing Bridge

- Leeds - loved the city, Hebden Bridge - very friendly and fascinating 

- very friendly people

- many thanks for all the help from Canal and River Trust volunteers.

Statistics

Miles - 456

Locks - 463

Tunnels - 7

Hours - 260hrs  9mins