Ella Travels: Looking for King Richard Autumn 2024

Monday 7th October - Masters Bridge Rugby to Ansty

After a pleasant undisturbed night in Rugby we set off for a cruise to Ansty, again hoping to avoid the rain forecast for later in the day. This is Newbold Tunnel, a short tunnel with a towpath that passes through the tunnel alongside the canal.

Dave happily steering the boat and taking a selfie at the same time, show off!

The Coventry and Oxford Canals are two of the oldest canals, and the North Oxford was originally a contour canal covering 43 miles of convoluted canal from Coventry to Napton. Many of the meanders have been cut off and the canal straightened, leaving remnants of waterways which are now used as boatyards or private moorings.

We passed the land slip at Brinklow, February this year saw a massive land slip which closed the canal for several months to allow Canal and River Trust to clear the canal and stabilise the ground, the work that has been done looked very impressive.

This is Stretton Stop, formerly a point at which tolls were taken, and came into existence with the straightening of the canal, the old route of the canal is a boatyard now. A swing bridge crosses the canal as the buildings are on both sides of the canal.

I think this is where one of the last loops of the original canal would have joined the straightened canal, the original loop goes under the railway and is now part of a golf course. We arrived at Ansty and moored up before the rain started.

9 miles, 0 locks, 3hrs 30mins

Tuesday 8th October - Ansty Visitor Moorings to Hawkesbury Junction

We left our mooring and headed towards the water point to top up the water. Dave met Will and Henry, they were carrying out a habitat survey for the Grand Union Canal Transfer - bringing water from the Midlands to the Southeast. The scheme will see canals in the Midlands used to move water to the southeast, providing thousands of homes and businesses with a reliable supply of drinking water. We also asked them about the lack of sloes this winter, and they said it was a nature thing - an abundance one year will mean not so many the next and is a natural phenomenon. No sloe gin this year then!

As we approached Hawkesbury Junction we passed this enormous electricity substation. Alongside the edge of the canal are coir rolls held in place by stakes, these pre-planted coir rolls provide water voles with the perfect conditions, with sheltered burrowing sites and lush vegetation where they can forage and hide from predators. So good to see this!

Here we are appproaching Hawkesbury Junction, we have come through the stop lock with a depth of 7 inches and are going to go under the bridge and turn through 180 degrees and head off up the Coventry Canal towards Fradley Junction. The alternative name, Sutton Stop, arises from the name of a family which provided several lock keepers there in the nineteenth century. In commercial carrying times, the junction was a major rendezvous for working boats awaiting orders for their next cargo from the many pits in the area. A stop lock on the Oxford Canal isolates the water levels of the two original canal companies, with the Oxford being a few inches higher.

The cast iron bridge over the actual junction of the two canals is a fine example of the Victorian engineer's art, and has a span of 15.2 m (50 ft). The bridge was cast at the Britannia Foundry in Derby, and was erected for the Coventry Canal Company in 1837, at a cost of £630.

The engine or pump house is a Grade II Listed Building, the lean-to at the rear is the oldest part and housed the first engine to be installed in 1821. Named "Lady Godiva", it was used to raise water into the canal from a stream flowing underneath. However, by 1837 this supply proved inadequate and a 35 m (114 ft) shaft was sunk and a new, more powerful engine installed alongside "Lady Godiva" in the handsome three-storey building which now fronts the canal. In 1913 this water supply failed due to the sinking of the new Coventry Colliery and the engine house fell into disuse.

We continued up the canal and moored up for the evening at the top of the Visitor moorings.

4 miles, 1 lock, 2hrs 0mins

Wednesday 9th October - Hawkesbury Junction to below Bridge 8 - Burton Hastings

Today we continued along the Coventry Canal until we reached the junction with the Ashby Canal. As we approached we sounded our horn and as we didn't get any response we carried on towards the turn.

Then a boat appeared through the bridge and we had to abort our turn, he then informed us there were two more boats behind him.

Fortunately for us, the lady on the bridge was from one of the boats and she made it possible for us to continue through the bridge.

Once through the bridge we passed the two boats on the wrong side but it was the only thing we could do, at least we were safely through and finally onto the Ashby Canal.

We found a very pleasant and quiet mooring before the rain returned and spent some time repositioning the WiFi antennae on the roof of the boat. We are hoping that we shall have better internet signal for the TV and phone calls.

Dave took Toby out for a walk between showers, but the ground is very soggy and they could only get a short distance. Spot the boat in the distance!

Toby drinking from the canal, he is always given fresh water but he much prefers to drink from muddy puddles, streams and canals.

5.75 miles, 0 locks, 2hrs 6mins

Thursday 10th October - Mill Bridge to Spinney Bank Farm Shop

A lovely sunny start to the day and we had a delightful cruise along the Ashby, big wide open skies and flat countryside. In some cases you could see the next bridge in the distance.

We stopped for water at Hinckley, just beside the mile marker. It tells us that we have travelled 5 miles and there are 25 miles to go to the end of the canal. This isn’t strictly correct as the last few miles of the canal are no longer in water and we can only get as far as Snarestone, about 22 miles. There is a small length of canal still in water going into Moira which is the end of the canal

The fields are very water logged, this one was like a lake in its own right! We moored up at Bridge 23, where there is a Farmshop and visited the shop to stock up on supplies. We then decided that we wouldn’t bother moving again and stayed there for the night.

We were fortunate, as the conditions were right to just see the Northern Lights over the bridge. The slight green tint to the skyline changed to blue and orange. Very exciting!

5.5 miles, 0 locks, 2 hrs 42mins

Friday 11th October - Bridge 23 to Market Bosworth

We woke to the first frost of the season, followed by mist rising from the canal and then the most glorious warm sunshine, perfect condition for an autumn cruise.

A lovely little mooring, tucked off the canal in a private tiny arm with its own pontoon, how idyllic!

The leaves are definitely beginning to turn now, stunning against the brilliant blue sky.

One of three incidents today, fortunately the boat wasn’t going too fast and was able to back up so that I could go through the bridge. However another boat was going so fast that he grounded himself when he had to go into fast reverse! This canal is so beautiful that it demands you take your time to enjoy it. We moored up at the end of Market Bosworth Visitor Moorings and went for a stroll into the village.

We passed this railway station. The Battlefield Line is the last remaining part of the former Ashby and Nuneaton Joint Railway which was opened in 1873. It runs from Shackerstone via Market Bosworth to Shenton in Leicestershire and is operated by the Shackerstone Railway Society. On its open days it runs steam and diesel trains along the 5 mile stretch.

So good to see traditional crafts still being worked. The front roof of the cottage has been completely replaced and the back is being top dressed. It has taken the craftsmen 3 weeks so far and likely to take another 3 to complete. It will look amazing when finished.

Market Bosworth square, a small medieval market town, Market Bosworth is steeped in a rich heritage and a legacy association with the Battle of Bosworth Field and more recently the Richard III trail. We treated ourselves to delicious looking patisserie from Maison Rose in the square.

6.5 miles, 0 locks, 2hrs 42mins

Saturday 12th October - Market Bosworth to Shackerstone

After a cold drizzly start we decided to move on but the weather was still against us.

The dark skies threatened rain at any moment, so we decided to pull over at Shackerstone and stop there for the night. Just beyond the canal there was a field full of sunflowers, some still in bloom.must have been quite a sight during the summer.

We moored up at Shackerstone as the rain started, a peaceful mooring with just one other boat up the canal from us. We had seen and heard the steam from a steam train whilst we were cruising, so were delighted to see that the steam train was running from Shackerstone to Shenton during the day and doing a ‘fish and chip supper’ this evening as a special. This was sold out according to the website.

We walked along the canal and up the footpath to the station crossing the River Sense as we did, the same river that flooded the fields when we were at Wistow on our way back from Leicester.

This is John, the station master, who sold us platform tickets for £1 each so we could visit the tearoom and watch the train arriving. Well worth every penny!

A roaring coal fire, it did make the room look and feel very cosy even if a lot of the heat went up the chimney!

Steam engine 5199 arriving pulling 5 carriages. We watched as the passengers disembarked, the engine uncoupled so that it could be coaled up for the evening’s fish and chip supper trip, then move to the other end of the train where it recoupled up and then pulled the train off again on its last journey of the afternoon. It was a real treat to see and even better as it was a surprise. I would highly recommend a visit if you are in this area.

A beautiful orange tree at the end of the footpath as we walked back to the boat.

3.5 miles, 0 locks, 1hr 24mins

Sunday 13th October - Shackerstone to Snarestone

A lazy start this morning and a very gentle cruise through to the end of the navigable part of the canal. Snarestone tunnel was only short, 250yds, but decidedly crooked and certainly not safe for boats to pass each other.

We arrived at the terminus and put on water in front of the swing bridge which is temporarily closed at the moment due to known badger activity. Once we had put on water we turned the boat round and moored up on the last available spot. The boat in the photo, third from the right is ‘Calisto’ Mark on the fuel boat we shared locks with in Braunston. He has gone back to his home mooring at Foxton and is waiting to load up this boat ready for his return trip.

We went for a walk down the closed off canal. This is Snarestone Pump House, built in the early 1890s by Hinckley Urban District Council for fresh water supply for Hinckley, the site made use of an existing coal exploration shaft. Later taken over by Leicester City Council, it was initially converted to electric operation, but subsequently closed completely. The buildings remain intact and have been converted to residential use.

This is the work being done to address the damage caused by badgers burrowing through the canal bank. In order to reduce the risk of a major breach of the canal, they are filling metal cages with rocks and installing new metal piling to deter the badgers.

As we walked along the disused canal bed we could clearly see prints in the mud, possibly badger?

Walking along beside the canal we could see several of these runs made by badgers as they cross the open ground, they disappeared into the hedgerows on either side and further up we found evidence of these runs entering a wooded area where the badger sett could be.