Valentine’s Cruise Week 3

 Monday 23rd February - Bancroft Basin to Wilmcote

We woke to light winds and blue skies, all good news  for our journey out of Bancroft Basin and back up the Stratford Canal.  As you can see here, the entrance beneath the road is very low and narrow as there is a footpath alongside the water.

We only just fit under without having to remove anything from the top of the roof.  This basin is one of two originally, the other one being filled in to create Bancroft Gardens in the 1930’s.

The daffodils are out at the garden by Lock 55.  Real evidence that spring is on its way!

We got to the beginning of the Wilmcote Locks and met up with Paul Burgess who is a Volunteer Lock Keeper on the Wilmcote Locks.  We know Paul from when he was a volunteer at Diglis but a house move meant that he changed his area.

It was great to catch up with Paul again and we took the photo to send on to his ex-colleagues at Diglis.  Many thanks to Paul for turning out to help us, it was very much appreciated!

We moored up for the evening at Wilmcote Visitor Moorings and took a walk into the village.  This is Mary Arden’s Farm, William Shakespeare’s mother grew up here.  It is now a primary Education Centre for the area.

St. Andrew’ Church is one of the most historic and significant churches in England. It was originally created as a focus for a vital new development in the Anglican church, the Oxford Movement, also known as Tractarianism, which began in the 1830s. The movement sought to restore Catholic elements to the Church of England’s organisation and worship, elements lost during the Reformation some 300 years before. It is more commonly known as the Anglo Catholic Movement. According to village tradition, some of the original leaders of the movement visited and worshipped at St. Andrew’s, which was therefore for many years the focus of national attention. 

3.25 miles, 16 locks, 4hrs 12mins

Tuesday 24th February - Wilmcote to Preston Bagot

A pleasant cruise from Wilmcote to below the locks at Preston Bagot.  Another trip across the Edstone Aqueduct but this time Dave walked across on the footpath beside the trough of water.  

From this angle it really does look like a very long iron bath full of water.  At 146m long, it is the longest aqueduct in England with the footpath at the same level as the base of the trough.

We moored below the lock at Preston Bagot and went for a walk along the canal to Yarningale Aqueduct, then through across to Yarningale Common and back down to the canal, a lovely walk through some delightful countryside.

We passed the other side of the Lock Cottage which we thought needed some TLC and you can clearly see where the original barrel roof cottage is and where it has been extended.

The end of a lovely day and an atmospheric scene as we close the boat down for the night.

6 miles, 1 lock, 2hrs 12mins.

Wednesday 25th February - Preston Bagot to above Rowington

We set off on our cruise, a lovely bright, sunny morning with the promise of warm temperatures.  Here, Dave is driving over Yarningale Aqueduct as I walk along the path at the base of the canal.  A very strange sensation!

This is the Lock Cottage at Lowsonford, now a Landmark Cottage, you can stay here for a holiday.  The extension and general upkeep of the cottage is much better than the one in Preston Bagot.

We got all the way up the 17 locks and then turned right at Kingswood Junction to return onto the Grand Union Canal.  The nose of the boat is lining up with the narrow passage to the left of the photo, then under a railway and out onto the next canal.  We moored up out in the country above the village of Rowington, shared the mooring with one other boat, a delightful spot.

6 miles, 17 locks 5hrs 30mins

Thursday 26th February - Rowington to Cape Top Lock.

Today we are going back down the Hatton Locks.  Dave has arranged for a team of Lock Keepers to help us down the locks and we are meeting them at 10.00.  We got to the top of the flight in good time and filled up with water before starting our descent.

Here we are coming out of the first lock.  I had done some washing and put the bedsheet in the bow draped over a dryer and pegged to make it secure.  However as I went into the first lock a mighty gust of wind lifted the dryer and sheet out of the boat and into the lock, sinking without trace!

Dave found the sheet in the pound below the lock and  we told the Lock Keepers so that they could retrieve it so that it doesn’t cause a propeller hazard for other boaters.

We passed two boats coming up the flight sharing the locks.  A working boat and a solo boater, he was very pleased to have all the help!

Our team of helpers today are:

Andy

Alan and John

Frank and Alan

As always a massive thank you to them all for turning out to help us.  We completed the descent in 2hrs 35mins, which was a good time.  They begin the new season at the beginning of March so if you are anywhere near give them a cheery wave.

After finishing the locks we turned left before the Saltersford Arm and had a choice of mooring above the Cape Locks.  We shall stay here a couple of nights and have an explore of Warwick tomorrow.

6.25 miles, 21 locks, 4hrs 24mins.

Friday 27th February - Warwick

Today we have decided to have a quiet day and have a wander around Warwick.  The weather was drizzly but not too unpleasant.  This is St Mary’s Church in Warwick.  

Beauchamp chapel was built between 1441 and about 1455 to house the tomb of Richard, the 13th earl of Warwick.  The medieval chapel is beautiful with an exquisite stained glass window, famous for the way it shows ‘jewels’ inserted into the glass.

The crypt is all that survives of Norman St Mary’s, dating from about 1150.  Part of the crypt has been repurposed as private burial chambers for the bodies of the Greville family, who held Warwick castle from 1604 until 1972, and were earls of Warwick from 1759.

We had a look at Warwick Castle and found this peacock which looks as though it has escaped from the castle grounds.  It moved eventually to sit on the wall looking up towards the town, did it make its escape???

This is The Lord Leicester.  Over 700 years ago, the United Guilds of Warwick built their headquarters consisting of a meeting room, banqueting hall, mansion for the Master of the Guilds, storage rooms and lodgings for travellers. The Guildsmen built this splendid example of medieval half-timbered buildings with trees felled in the 1200’s from forests across England. Today, the site survives intact and tops the list of most complete and important medieval buildings in the British Isles.

The banqueting hall, now a cafe, hosted a three day long banquet for King James I to celebrate the 50th year of his accession to the Scottish throne.  It would normally have been held in the Castle but it was undergoing major repairs at the time.  It took the town 10 years to clear the debt!

This chair was commissioned and built for King James in 1617. Tradition tells the story that the chair had to be custom built for the King as standard chairs were too narrow due to the vast amounts of padding, he wore under his clothes! 

We returned to the Cape of Good Hope and had a light lunch before returning to the boat.

Saturday 28th February - Cape Locks to Radford Semele

We only had 2 locks today and fortunately a boat arrived just as we were getting ready to set off, so we shared the locks with nbPaneke.

Lovely to see the blossom beginning to come out on the canal-side trees and bushes.  This has all happened since we passed this way 2 weeks ago.

The weeping willows are developing their new leaves, the brown twigs are gradually changing colour and you can see the very first leaf buds beginning to appear. 

It looks as though this bridge was hit by a vehicle.  A sizeable chunk of the wall is now beside the canal and also in the water.  We took it very gently through this bridge.  We moored up below the church at Radford Semele.

We went for a walk along the Offchurch Greenway, part of a disused railway line which goes from the Canal to the Fosse Way, about 1.5 miles in all.  Unfortunately you can’t get across the bridge over the canal. 

Walking back to our mooring after our walk.  Really nice to have blue skies and some warm sunshine for a change.

4.5 miles, 2 locks, 1hr 42mins.

Sunday 1st March - Radford Semele to Long Itchington

We set off from our mooring and after the first lock Toby and I walked for the next 4 locks.  Part of the canal towpath was falling away into the canal and is going to be closed for fixing in a few days time.  Toby is walking behind the fencing.

 

HS2 is going to be crossing the canal here, the parts of the bridge are ready on both sides of the canal, and the canal and towpath is going to be closed from the 3rd March to allow the bridge to be put in place.

The last 2 locks are the Bascote Staircase Locks.  Canal stair case Locks were cheaper to build and can achieve a greater drop in a short space than standard canal locks. These Bascote Staircase Locks share the centre gate - with the upper gate of one lock also being the lower gate of the other. The locks were originally built as singles but were modernised in the 1930s into wide locks however you can still see the location of the original locks.

Our mooring for the night is just past the disused railway but a good distance away from the road bridge so it is nice and quiet.  Also, the towpath is dry and clean, a real bonus!

4.5 miles, 10 locks, 3hrs 48mins

Valentine’s Cruise - Week 2

 Monday 16th February - Tom o’ the Wood to Kingswood Junction

A new week and a short hop from our mooring round to the Stratford Canal.  We stopped at the junction to fill up with water and dispose of any rubbish then dropped down one lock and moored up in the pound below the lock.

After lunch we walked back up the canal towards the Lapworth Locks hoping to call into the Canal Shop there but unfortunately it was closed.  I guess its a seasonal thing!  Instead we walked along to the village shop on the road for our milk!

On the way Toby met a friend, it must be a cockapoo thing but they seem to instantly recognise each other and love to play. 

Our mooring for the night, we stayed warm and dry whilst it continued to rain outside.

1 mile, 1 lock, 2hrs (including putting on water)

Tuesday 17th February - Lock 21 to Lowsonford

A really nice day, sunny and dry so we set off for Lowsonford at a leisurely pace.  8 locks in total which we shared.  A bit of sunshine makes a whole lot of difference!

Love these bridges on the Stratford Canal.  They have a gap in the middle of the top so the rope attached to the horse can be passed through without having to untether the horse.  Ingenious!

The remnants of the Lapworth to Henley-in-Arden branch railway line can be seen with the disused embankment on the right of the picture and we passed the remains of a bridge.  The buildings here are labelled Lowsonford Halt but the true existence of a Halt is thought to be a myth as there is no real evidence a stop was ever constructed.

We moored up in Lowsonford opposite the Fleur de Lys and Dave booked us a table there for supper tonight.

We walked back to the lock and up the hill to Finwood Farm and the Farm Shop.  Ann keeps a small herd of Dexter Cattle and Gloucester Old Spot pigs and is well worth a visit if you are passing.

1.75 miles, 8 locks, 2hrs 12mins.

Wednesday 18th February - Lowsonford to Wootton Wawen

First lock of the day, topped up the water and then out into open countryside for the next seven.  

Weather is grey, cold and breezy and the first time this trip that the boat has drifted in the wind, always makes approaching locks interesting!

Dave is driving across Yarningale Aqueduct.  The aqueduct at this site was originally a timber structure built about 1814 but this was washed away in a flood in 1834. It was replaced soon afterwards by a cast iron trough from Horseley Ironworks of Birmingham which is about 42 feet long.  

A rather dilapidated lock cottage looking a bit sad.  Evidence of coats in the window and maybe they’ll be tidying it up?

We met the couple on this boat in the pub last night, they are from Canada and are spending a month on a narrowboat for their honeymoon.  They were intending to go to Stratford but felt that time was against them, so turned round and are heading back to their hirebase in Napton.

We moored up just past bridge 52 and after some lunch we walked down to Yew Tree Farm Shopping Village.  The Farm shop is run by Kate and stocks all manner of delicious goodies for humans and dogs!  Always worth a visit if you are passing.  We also visited the craft workshops and the chocolate shop.

4 miles, 8 locks, 3hrs.

Thursday 19th February - Wootton Wawen to Bancroft Basin, Stratford

We decided as it was a dry day to travel all the way down the Wilmcote locks and into Stratford and moor up for the next few days in Bancroft Basin.  We stopped at the Wharf and filled up with diesel and then set off.

The Edstone Aqueduct, also known as the Bearley, was completed in 1816 and is among the earliest prefabricated structures, a kind of kit. Its cast iron trough is formed of 35 separate sections bolted together and carries the waterway across three railway tracks (one of which is now disused), a minor road, a stream, and a field. Thirteen brick piers create the 14 spans, to total 146 m (498 ft). The trough is 2.7m wide (9ft) and 1.5m deep (5ft).

The design of the aqueduct is considered somewhat unusual as the towpath is set level with the base of the trough, similar in design to Telford's aqueduct at Longdon on Tern. 

We then worked our way down the Wilmcote Locks and we were amazed at the amount of water there was in the canal. The by-water beside this lock was as fierce as a waterfall and pushed the boat across the canal.  

The lock gate here is very close to the bridge over the canal and has always been very difficult to open, but the mechanism must have been updated as Dave found it quite easy.

Beside one of the locks in Stratford, Canal and River Trust have made a lovely garden, I’m sure it will be well looked after by the volunteer lock keepers.

We arrived in Bancroft Basin and found ourselves a mooring.  There were only three other boats in the basin so we had a choice of where to moor.

7 miles, 17 locks, 5hrs 24mins

Friday 20th February - Bancroft Basin, Stratford

Today is our wedding anniversary and we are celebrating with an afternoon tea at Huffkins Bakery.

Fortunately for us we managed to get back to the boat before the heavens opened with another deluge of rain!

Saturday 21st February - Bancroft Basin, Stratford

Today we are going on a walk around Stratford with a view to solving the Mystery of Shakespeare’s Lucky Quill.  It seemed that many of the tourists were also wandering around with the same book and it was great to chat to people who were more than happy to guide us in the right direction.

We even saw one of the river cruiser trip boats going down on to the River Avon, the first trip for over 7 weeks.  Although the river doesn’t appear to be in flood it is flowing very fast but I’m sure they enjoyed the ride!  

We completed the mystery and solved all the clues ending up in The Garrick Inn for a well earned lunch.

In the evening we went to the Swan Theatre and saw “The Boy who Harnessed the Wind”, a very powerful musical based on the true story of William, 13 years old, living in Malawi who taught himself from library books how to make a windmill to provide power to draw water from the land and save the village during the drought periods.  A stunning production, moving to the West End at the end of April.  A must see and I would highly recommend it.  

Sunday 22nd February - Bancroft Basin, Stratford

We spent an hour checking the engine bay, making sure that it was still dry after all the heavy rain we have had and we were delighted to find that it indeed was still dry.  

We then went for a walk over the bridge over the River Avon and down the other side of the River.  This is the Tramway Bridge which opened in 1826 as a horse drawn railway between the Canal Basin and Moreton-in-Marsh.  It closed in 1918 when the rails were taken up to be used for other purposes at the end of the war.  One of the trams was discovered in Ilmington being used as a hen house!

The Royal Shakespeare Theatre where we saw the play last night.  The Swan Theatre regularly shows the work of Shakespeare’s contemporaries, as well as plays by later writers, such as Restoration playwrights, and new work by today's writers.  It shares the same foyer and bars as the main theatre.

This is Holy Trinity Church where William Shakespeare was baptised, where he worshipped and where he is buried.