When the canal first made it to Birmingham, the people rang the church bells as they foresaw the wealth that would follow. And Birmingham soon had more canals than any other British town, a network of loops, locks, wharves, branches…
Monthly Archives: May 2013
Au revoir Brum
We have come out of hibernation in the great city of Birmingham. The constant, heavy, mood-busting rain of the last three days has finally lifted. The wind has dropped. The canal might still be full of abandoned shopping trolleys (and…
Posted in Cruising log, Routes
Price match that, Tesco!
Fourteen quid for ten days’ fruit and veg. Courtesy Birmingham market.
Posted in Boat Cuisine
What a day
On the plus side: lovely visitors, a chocolate tasting competition courtesy of Cadbury World’s shop, the characterful and welcoming canals of Brum central, and a simply glorious pub (complete with mini beer festival and BBQ) in Bournville. On the less…
Bridges on the Stratford canal
Sometimes, the canal’s builders didn’t have room for a proper brick arch. Or perhaps the vehicles using it couldn’t handle the steep gradient of a hump backed bridge. So they built drawbridges! Here’s two from today. Clever use of hydraulics…
Edstone Aqueduct
I went to scope out this little gem on the bike. We’ll sail over tomorrow!
Posted in Cruising log
Spot the difference
There’s something a bit different in this picture. Unlike Tom’s Shakespeare pun competition (still open, by the way), no prizes here. Or rather, no prize that anyone in their right mind would want. (That’s a hint; it’s just not a…
Posted in Boat Handling
Avon musings
Our voyage has now taken us 233 miles since we left Yelvertoft on 7th April. At a rather regal 3mph, and dozens and dozens of locks in between, one would be forgiven for imagining a dull, spirit-sapping trudge along an…
Posted in Boat Handling, Cruising log
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