Sawley to Birmingham
Monday 4th August
Pat joined me and the two labradors and we all took the train back to Sawley (Long Eaton) after a weekend break at home. It was hot. There was a long wait at Loughborough as we had missed the connection for Long Eaton, but eventually we were crossing the Trent again over the railway bridge looking up towards Trent Lock. The half hour walk back to the marina seemed to last for ages in the heat. The poor dogs found walking on the hot pavement hard work, and there was little shade. Once we reached the grass at the marina side gate (BW key) Bella just flopped, but with a little persuasion we got her to the water for a dip.
The boat was in good fettle and with minimum delay we were on the water heading towards Shardlow. We moored up above the lock for the night and enjoyed a good meal at the Navigation
Tuesday 5th August
Cast off at 7:55 and stopped at Findern for a quick lunch. Pat needed emergency provisions, so we stopped at Horniglow hoping to find a shop. We were directed towards town which seemed a long way off, but soon came across a convenience store which was sufficient for the moment. Moving on we decided to stop at Branston Bridge (34) as allegedly there was a large supermarket (Morrisons) nearabouts. I went to recce but could see no obvious sign of anything, so we repaired to the Bridge Inn for a pint (or two) of Marstons Pedigree from the barrel (best yet). Motivated once more, I got the folding bike out and set off to find the supermarket. Very busy roads and very dodgy. No sign of the supermarket within reasonable range, so gave up.
Wednesday 6th August
Set off at 8:30 with a view to get some shopping at Alrewas. Very picturesque through the village and managed to moor up just by the iron bridge (47). Directions from a boater we chatted to at Alrewas Lock set us on the right path to a decent Coop Store. Very hot day again, but we were without the dogs so they did not have the problem of the hot surfaces again. There is also a good butchers shop on the main street, but by this time were were too laden down to bother. As the mooring was so pleasant we decided to stay for lunch and set off again at 12:20. We climbed up to Fradley Junction to find the area even more busy than expected. Pat was off the boat with the dogs and had the swing bridge at the entrance to the Coventry Canal ready for me. The visitor moorings were packed and the best we could do was in the bushes about 3 lengths beyond the prepared moorings. The water was quite shallow here so after a few passages by other boats were were well and truly aground and no longer bothered by their wash. Out came the gang plank for the first time. Since repainting it and putting some sharp sand under the final coat, the dogs now have no problem slipping. Locked up and walked back to the Swan for a meal outside and a bit of gongoozling.
Thursday 7th August Fradley Jct to Kingsley Arms
We left at 7:50. Amazingly the boat required little effort to clear the bottom. We had and an uneventful trip onto the Birmingham & Fazely Canal. The water stop at the junction was unavailable, so we carried on until Bodymoor Heath bridge where we had assistance offered from a chap cleaning his boat to lend us his waterline for a while. Continuing on we came to a very inviting pub, the Dog in Doublet which, inview of the continuing hot weather, we could not resist. This served as a lunch stop. We carried on until 17:00 where moorings near the Kingsley Arms seemed sufficiently popular to be worth trying. The pub is on a busy road and with a large car park backing onto the towpath, separated by a hedge, so the night was a little noisy, though not in the end troublesome. On reflection it might have been better to moor up beyond the bridge where it might have been quiter. We didn't visit the pub.
Friday 8th August Kingsley Arms to Farmers Bridge Jct
A good day. Upped sticks at 7:10. Two major lock flights now to Birmingham. The Aston flight was interesting passing through an area of seeming urban decay with industrial areas backing on the the canal. There was a lot of rubbish in the canal with ominous bottom scraping below the first two locks. One opposite direction helped us with the last two locks (by leaving gates open). The Farmers Bridge Flight we ascended in 1 hour 30 with the help of a following boat. On lock flights we split duties. Pat's main objective is to see (as far as traffic permits) that the succeeding lock is always ready for me to steer straight into. That leaves me to work the lock single handed. The help from the following boat was simply to close the top gate before emptying the lock for themselves. We fortuitously met the lock keeper at the top who advised us that Cambrian Wharf would be a good place to stay for a couple of days, so long as we could leave room for a working boat that he was expecting.
We enjoyed returning to Birminham. There is a vibrant canalside life which can be noisy in the evenings and I would not want to moor alonside the pubs and cafes for that reason. Cambrian Wharf was perfect. There are good shops and entertainment nearby. Previously we had stayed in Oozels St Loop at Sherborne Wharf (£10 per night). We stayed for 2 nights.
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