Gloucester 2010 - Stourport to Upton

Stourport to Upton on Severn

23rd August 2010

21 miles - 9 locks - 7 hours

As predicted, there was constant rain all night drumming its steady rythm on the roof of the boat. In fact it was the rain stopping that woke us up and by 7.30am it was all fair and clear - but very wet.

Stourport visitor moorings

With a longish stretch ahead of us we were off and away by 8.30am, working down through the Srourport Basins and out onto the river via the two narrow staircase locks. We passed a boat exiting the top lock, its sides all shiny and black only to discover it had been floated out of the dry dock a mere 15 mins earlier. Hmm, blacking - I need to start thinking about that for the end of the 2011 season. As it happened the Limekiln staff were gaining access over the lock and they advised me that the charge of £250 for a full week, including the use of a very powerful pressure washer. Not bad but the location is a bit distant from Sutton Coldfield.

Stourport Staircase Locks

Stourport fairground

And so it was out onto the Severn and into the rain, and rain it did all the way to Worcester three hours later. Soggy, cold and a bit miserable we tied to the visitor mooring pontoon above Diglis lock and has some lunch.

A wet Worcester

A rare glimpse of blue sky south of Diglis Lock

The rain eased and we were off again, passing the end of the Droitwich Barge canal which is still roped off. It has got to open soon! At this rate it will be too late in the season to get any river traffic at all. All this rain seems to have saturated the fields and the land drains were spewing torrents of water into the river. Not a good sign.

Land drains

Eventually the Malvern Hills emerged from the murk, their tops wreathed in cloud and looking rather forbidding, only to disappear behind fresh bands of rain.  Our mooring options were Upton or Tewkesbury, but given the weather we deiced on the former only to find nb Caernarfon (also from Calf Heath) edging into the last outside spot on the pontoon. However, there was one shortish space on the upstream inside edge, but it has a very tricky approach. We had to get stationary in the flow, edge in close to the bank and then let the current push us backwards into the slot. The theory is good but the current moves at an angle away from the bank so the success of the manouver was aided by other boaters who grabbed our ropes and hauled us into position.

Upton on Severn parish church

Then the sun came out and we made a forray into this curious little town, which is well worth a visit. It is very old and is dominated by its bridge, rebuilt during the second world war. There is an impressive church tower near the river and a fine operational church on the road out of town, built in yellow sandstone which looks warm to the touch as though it has absorbed the heat of many summers.

Upton tower

The town is full of little shops as well as the smaller Co - Op type mini supermarkets, which provide both interest and the essentials. Two shops are particularly interesting and worth a visit:

The Old Fashioned Sweet Shop which sells sweets from big jars. They were very happy to sell sweets by the qarter pound, which for our generation is the only way to buy loose sweets. We settled on some chocolate toffee nuts for Jeff and some Cough Candy Twist for Belle (who really does have a cough!).

The other "must visit" is the second hand bookshop. It does not have a name but is an absolute treasure trove of the unusual, all presided over by an elderly gentleman for whom the enterprise is a labour of love. Dont expect any fancy presentation, or a well defined ordering system. Its a bit of a pick and mix but there is a very well stocked waterways section to the immediate left of the door as you walk in.

Our eye was grabbed by "Shakespeare's Avon" a 1984 facimilie reproduction of Charles Showell's 1901 record of his journey from Source to Severn, including nearly 200 amazingly accurate pen and ink drawings of the things he found. The book provides a fascinating look at the Avon valley over 100 years ago - and deserves a post of its own in the future. £17.50 for an ex library book seems a lot but it was worth every penny.

I have realised that I cant do photographic justice to Upton upon Severn in this post so I will run an extra one tomorrow.

The town also offers a good fish and chip shop so we concluded the day with a take away meal and a couple of hands of 6 handed rummy in our ongoing tournament - its a bit addictive.

Gloucester 2010 - Greensforge to Stourport

Grensforge to Stourport

22nd August 2010

13 miles - 13 locks - 7 hours

What a difference a day makes - just 24 little hours! Goodbye rainclouds hello sunshine.

We woke to sunshine pouring through the portholes, backed by a clear blue sky and not a drop of the wet stuff fell all day.

Blue sky at Rocky Lock

This is a very satisfying section of the Staffs and Worcester, is in my view the prettiest with the canal following the path of the diminutive Smestow and then the Stour, often pressed up hard against the sandstone cliffs and lined with trees. Achingly pretty with hardly a boat ruffling its mirror like surface. However, the same could not be said for the towpath which is incredibly popular between Stourton and Kinver. It was overflowing with hikers, dog walkers, fishermen and cyclists.

Seat at Rocky Lock

Gothersley Lock

On the subject of cyclists I witnessed an incident which highlights the problems of overcrowded towpaths. One middle aged bloke on a mountain bike came tearing up behind me and carved his way under a bridge. I was impressed by how far he could lean and how close his head came to the brick arch of Clay House Bridge (25) but then thought "its lucky no one was coming the other way". Of course, someone was coming the other way - a group of three cyclists moving at a measured pace but by the time I saw them one was picking himself out of the hedge with a  bleeding knee and another way lying on the edge of the towpath trying hard not to topple into the water. In the midst of all this "Mr Superfast" was looking sheepish and soon disappeared - going just as fast as he was before. I now completely understand the "two tings" campaign being promoted in London. It could have been you, me, or one of our children he hit. I did have my camera in front of be but did I think to take a photo - of course not. Doh!

Stourton Tollhouse (with the ghost of photographers present in the window!)

As we approached Wolverley lock nb Independence jumped out across my bows - so close I had to reverse to avoid hitting him. He then proceeded straight up to the lock gates leaving me to draw into the landing bollards to wait till he has used the lock - except there was a boat already in it so he had to reverse back and hover in mid stream. I am pretty easy going but this kind of yobbish behaviour is downright rude. Hey ho - the delay gave us a chance to get a couple of take out pints from The Lock and some ice creams from the kiosk, so it wasn't all bad.

House at Stourton Aqueduct

I have long admired the house next to the Stour Aqueduct, with its huge lake in the garden and an access point into the canal, but have never had an opportunity to get a photo. With time on our side  veered over to that side of the bend, got my photo and then got seriously stuck. Watch out if you try this maneuver, there is no depth to the water and the mud is of a particularly strong "boat trapping" variety.

I had read that Kidderminster was holding its first ever canal festival at the weekend and was hoping to be able to stop for an hour or two to take a look. I don't know what happened to it but we saw no sign of any such event, no boats, no stalls, not activity at all. Just the usual assortment of oddballs hanging around the towpath near Tesco's. Very odd.

Caldwell Lock

The canal is lined with Himalayan Balsam in all shades of purple, all the way from a royal purple through to an off white version. It seems to have taken over the canal sides in this area. I don't remember it as a child - is it a recent introduction and is it seen as an invasive species?

Stourport Basin with a wide angled lens

Dramatic sky eh?

And the same with my normal lens

With a long day on the Severn in front of us we decided to moor in Stourport itself, but mooring spots are notoriously scarce, particularly in the basins. We therefore tagged onto the last slot opposite The Rising Sun, which was a riot of hanging basket colour. We look a look at the town, and checked out the river level (green) before taking a look at the weather forecast.

Flowers at the Rising Sun

Oh dear - rain. Storm Warnings particularly to the south east of Birmingham - which means the Avon valley. Not good.

Gloucester 2010 - Calf Heath to Greensforge

Calf Heath to Greensforge

21st August 2010

7 miles - 16 locks - 9 hours

Index of posts in this series:
1. - Calf Heath to Greensforge - this post
2. - Greensforge to Stourport
3. - Stourport to Upton on Severn
4. - Upton on Severn
5. - Upton on Severn to Gloucester
6. - Gloucester Docks
7. - To Sharpness and back
8. - Gloucester - flooded in
9. - Gloucester misc
10. - Gloucester to Worcester
11. - Worcester to Tardebigge top lock
12. - Tardebigge to Tipton
13. - Tipton to Calf Heath

Having only just returned from our London trip we find ourselves on the water once again.

Circular drop shaft on the Staffs and Worcester

This was something of an unexpected and last minute trip, replacing a planned visit to Tenerife. With 11 days at our disposal we had a number of options to cruise new waters, and settled on the Avon Ring with a couple of days in Stratford. But this plan was itself revised later on but more of that as the story unfolds.

This first day was dominated by the weather, and our "band of the day" would have to be Wet Wet Wet, or perhaps the Weathergirls who were coincidentally performing at Rewind in Reading. It was either raining, just finished raining or just starting to rain, but nowhere as bad as the gale force wind and torrential rain I witnessed form my office window yesterday.

We arrived in the late evening and slept on Wand'ring Bark setting off at a respectable 9.00am and meeting few boats, and they were Viking Afloat hirer's scurrying the last few miles back to their base at Gailey. Boaters were clearly being put off by the weather forecasts.

No play at Bratch

We endured the soggy drizzle as we made our was down off the summit pound, buoyed by the sight of disconsolate cricketers at Bratch kicking a football around a squelchy outfield in the vain hope of a break in the weather. The covers were on and looked like staying that way. 

We had one fleeting glimpse of the sun as we descended the Bratch which allowed us to enjoy the picturesque setting in all its glory. The short flight of three are always a joy to operate.

Bratch Locks

On our way down we started to hear tales of woe and delays on the Severn where something was seriously wrong with Bevere lock. Divers has been sent in but couldn't fix it and instead huge pumps were being used to fill the lock. This process was apparently very slow and the lock was only being operated once per hour. This was worrying but at least the route appeared passable with patience.

The rain returned and we assumed wet weather routine which essentially means that I run single handed. But there is no point everyone getting wet. Progress is a bit slower but we were in no particular hurry. We were following Viking's Freyia down the canal, which was kicking out huge plumes of ominously black smoke. Their passage was much delayed by their insistence of taking a cat on a walk with a lead at every lock, and then stopping below the lock and employing three crew to carefully manhandle the said creature back aboard. I am not sure that anyone, least of all the cat, enjoyed the experience. It says something when a single hander is tripping over the heels of a crew of six.

The helipad and hanger

At Swindon I came across nb San Miguel with its now complete helipad on the bows (I posted photos of this under construction a few weeks ago). This is an amazing structure perched high up on the front of the boat, overhanging the front, sides and so high is completely blocks the steerer's view. I couldn't resist a closer peek and even lifted the tarpaulin to see what mechanical marvel lay beneath. I know this was very rude of me but I really couldn't resist. Rather than the Chinook I half expected, there was actually a quad bike. I admire the engineering skill in  making a swivelling pad but I have to say that the downsides appear to far ooutweigh the advantages. My suggestion would be to get a  boat with a tug deck and simply park in on the front but as an alternative how about a small "trailer" which is pushed / pulled along? Ingenious but hopelessly vulnerable.

And I complain about the flowers obscuring my view!

We finally moored at Greensforge at 6.00pm - having made good progress in dismal conditions.

Hemel Hempstead

Hemel Hempstead

Belle has a special affection for Hemel Hempstead, having lived there as a child. For years I have heard about Gade Valley Junior School and her swimming exploits in the lock behind the cricket club, but have never actually seen the place.

Our passage through the town on the Grand Union provided an opportunity to correct this gap in my knowledge so our visit justified a stop and a walk into town. First the lock was examined in detail. To any other observer it is just a lock but this is actually "Belle's Lock" no matter what it says in Pearson.

In a fit of enthusiasm I agreed to visit the old town church she used to sing in, and get paid for every wedding of which there were sometimes four in a single afternoon. She appears to be one of the few people to make money out of organised religion. What I hadn't realised was that the church was nearly two miles away and no sooner had we started out than the heavens opened. We squelched our way through the fast thinning throngs of shoppers before wading up the hill, water dribbling out of our sandals.

The last of the storm was passing as we arrived at St Marys and we looked round the outside of the Norman structure as the clouds parted. Belle tried the doors but all were locked and access to the interior was denied us till the warden arrived to open up for.... you guessed it... a wedding.

Belle was welcomed in and reflected on years gone bye with the warden, whilst I nosed around taking a series of photos.

A lovely old church and there is certainly more to Hemel Hempstead that the new shopping centre and the confusing magic roundabout which allows cars to go round both ways.

This marks the end of of the London 2010 cruise.

Whilst we would have loved to complete the Grand Union I was needed back at work and so Mr W drove down and recovered the boat, as he has done so many times in the past.

Regrettably, the weather broke and he had a particularly wet run home, but WB behaved herself and all the trip was incident free.

Norwood Top Lock to Kings Langley

Norwood Top Lock to Kings Langley

6th August 2010

22 miles - 30 locks - 10 hours

A day which started brightly but soon descended to a drizzly murk, the kind which dampens without demanding waterproofs.

Cowley Lock

The six mile lockless pound from Norwood Top  to Cowley is at best a bit dull. It is consistently tree lined passing modes housing and light industry - nothing  to grab the attention of a slightly bored helmsman.

Whilst the scene above the water is nothing  to blog home about, the reach from Norwood to Bulls Bridge is gin clear - giving us a good view of every scrap of debris on the canal bed. Sometimes ignorance is bliss. The entrance  to the Paddington Arm is tempting, leading to Little Venice and beyond to Limehouse but that is an adventure which will have to wait.

Cowley marks the start of a relentless ascent, a lock a mile for hour after hour. Familiar names slip by: Slough, Uxbridge, West Drayton and Rickmansworth, places I know from the land but seemingly a bit out of place when connected by an unfamiliar waterway.

nb Caroline

The Monkey

The stretch inside the M25 is notable for the number if moored boats - they seem to line every inch at times, miles and miles of them which makes for very slow progress. We passed by a sad looking Adelaide Marine, now home to a collection of BW workboats and I was put in mind of nb Caroline which set out from this spot in 2001 to explore the network and made public in the book "The Water Road". It came as something of a surprise to pass by Caroline a few miles to the north, spruced up in a shine new livery but I suspect that this is the same craft.

Cassiobury Lock

The scenery picks up with the arrival of Watford and Cassiobury Park, accompanied by the sparkling River Gade which slips in and out of the canal on a number of occasions.

Kings Langley Church

We moored up in a drizzly Kings Langley, making use of the very good chippy which is at the north end of the high street, a good 10 mins walk from the canal. The High Street offers the best of this little town, with its  neat Georgian houses and a pretty little church. Nothing to set the pulse a racing but a full compliment of services and worth the effort. 

M25

The M25 dominates the area, passing by on an elevated section and casting a steady drone over the  area.