There was quite a bit of rain overnight — the official gauge at Rodbaston recorded nearly 10mm. But by this morning it was dry and sunny. Macc had a nice walk along the towpath, and we set off at about 8.45, with the low sun making it tricky to see anything.
Offerton Lock was full, perhaps because it has also had new gates. Filling the lock makes loads of bubbles for some reason, so I always think it should be nicknamed Frotherton Lock.
Rodbaston Lock is on the winter works programme for new bottom gates, and it’s not a moment too soon judging by the state of one of them. With a bit of luck they’ll also sort out the top cill while they’re there.
This lock is right next to the M6, but for some reason it didn’t seem too intrusive today. Maybe the wind was in the right direction. I walked on to the next lock, Boggs Lock, where two of the three balance beams are the temporary fix of piles of planks.
The next pound usually has loads of boats moored, but today there wasn’t one.
Brick Kiln Lock was empty, which made a change, and so was Gailey. As I got to the lock I saw a familiar figure with a windlass striding towards me, from a boat on the water point. It was Cheryl from Firecrest, so she quickly changed plans so we could have a catch up. She helped work the lock, and we were so busy chatting that I completely forgot to take the obligatory photo of the round tower. We pulled onto the water point, as our tank badly needed filling. We used the same tap Cheryl and Eric had just finished using, so even though they were staying put a little longer, there was still the other water point available.
Although Eric had seen KV way back in Stone, Cheryl was away then — so she got the guided tour this time. Then we sat on the well deck with tea and Cheryl’s lovely fruitcake. It was really nice to see them — we knew they were probably along here somewhere, but you don’t always meet people in a place where it’s convenient to stop and talk. Once our tank was full, we headed off in one direction, and Firecrest began its descent of the locks. By coming up Gailey Lock we’d reached another summit. We’ve risen 192ft since turning around at Burton, and are now around 542ft higher than when we left the Thames at Brentford. Round the corner from Gailey is the chemical works where there’s no mooring or even stopping allowed. There used to be at least three lots of pipes over the canal, but now they’ve all gone, with some of the pipes just stopping.
This canal is pretty bendy, and often the bridges are on awkward corners. On the big bend before Hatherton, someone who’s extended their garden has also invested heavily in statues of deer.
At Hatherton Junction, the mainline of the canal is actually a big right hand turn under a bridge. The remains of the Hatherton Arm is now used as moorings, but may one day link up to Huddlesford.
We were aiming for a spot before Bridge 74, where Oleanna stopped a few days ago. There’s a nice piled edge and it’s pretty quiet, feeling like the middle of nowhere.
After lunch I took Macc for a walk. I was following footpaths marked on the All Trails app that took us up a farm track and across fields, but when we got back to a canal bridge we found there was no way down onto the towpath. We had to go into the neighbouring field and find a gap in the hedge. And we got rained on, with some hailstone thrown in. Also this afternoon I’ve finished a magazine article, and made some spicy butternut squash soup, with a butternut I roasted yesterday while a chicken was also in the oven.
It’s also podcast publication day today, with the latest episode being about the IWA’s 5000 miles, 5000 reasons campaign, which is all about reasons people like the waterways and reasons why they should be protected. One of the interviews is Tiffany from Kingsground Narrowboats, who recently cycled the towpaths from Oxfordshire to Manchester. It’s good stuff, and you can hear it here.
6 miles, 5 locks. (294 miles, 192 locks)