Away from Whilton and heading for Stoke Breune to meet some friends for lunch. Had been cruising about an hour when the heavens opened so a stop for tea was captain`s orders. After an hour things brightened up so with waterproof trousers on and coat close to hand off we go as i must make the lunch date. It wasn`t too long and down came the rain but time not being on my side just stood it out and cruised for 2 hours in the heavy rain. Bill&Eileen it was nice to see you so it was worth the soaking.

Leaving Stoke Breune involves 7 locks but after the amount we`ve come through lately this was a doddle. Stopped off at the village of Yardley Gobion to get bread & milk. The Boat Inn at Stoke Breune has a tiny shop in the corner of the dining room but they had run out and as no shops survive in the village a move to Yardley was a must. Usually carry part-baked bread that keeps for 6 weeks but somehow forgot to replace my stock. Always emergency tin milk on board.

On down to Wolverton to hit Tesco and top up the cuboard. Walking from the canal it`s a shame to see all the empty railway sheds that was part of the history of this once bustling railway town.

Before Wolverton we passed through Cosgrove lock and so began a lock free 12 miles through Milton Keynes.

Along this stretch while moored the Leighton Buzzard canoe club were holding a 13 mile race from Gt. Lindford back to L. Buzzard havind transported the canoes by road. The youngest taking part were 8yrs. These youngsters were completing the course in 3 stages, still a long 4 mile stint for each relay team member. Plenty of adults on bikes were riding the towpath keeping an eye on them all.

Had a nice visit from Jack & Jordan my Grandchildren and just to make the day complete they brought their mum&dad, Andy & Bev.We all walked to the Caldecote Arms by the lake of the same name and had a nice meal. This is by bridge 92,just walk across the lane past the car park and you will come to it , look for the windmill, Alovely spot just to walk around and the company and the meal being a bonus.

Moored at Yardley Gobion.

Sure sign we`re on the Grand Union with the passing of more & more widebeams.

Not graffiti but reflecting that Wolvertons railway history.

Bit damp,but i bet they`re warm.

WHO READS THIS BLOG

Well have just published my blog "BRAUNSTON" and checking my e- mails have one from the site meter that monitors the blog. It shows that between the 6th & 12th October the blog site had 333 visits and 625 pages were read.
I was quite chuffed so many people were looking in, could be i might beat Eastenders in the ratings war. Cheers all.

BRAUNSTON

Well getting to Braunston was a must for me as i knew Sue/Vic on no problem and Chas/Ann on Moore2Life would be passing through following their summer on the Nene.

I first met Sue/Vic at Bedford some 14 months ago before i had NB Valerie built. Reading blogs and any thing connected with canals was my way of life once i had decided to retire and live afloat. Reading Sue`s blog ( link on left, please try it) and picking her very knowledgable brain via e-mail led to that visit and we kept in touch ever since.

Also i would regularly talk to Chas of Moore2Life via instant messenger and wanted so much to meet both him and his wife Ann.

So after checking Sue`s blog i estimated the arrival of both boats and met them half way down the Braunston flight. After introductions and a big hug from Sue - thanks Sue that made feel really welcome- we had some home made soup and a good chin wag.

Saturday night myself and John on NB TUI who i have travelled with all summer were invited aboard No Problem for a good drink.

A wonderful 3 days in the excellent company of 4 nice people. Thankyou.

Party time on No Problem and left to right we have Vic, Ann, Sue, Chas, John.

No Problem & Moore2Life moored at Braunston. NB Valerie is the last boat in the line.

Approaching Norton Jct. On the horizon can be seen boats moored and the footbridge on the Leicester Arm of the Gd. Union.

The entrance to Whilton Marina, an overnight stop after leaving Braunston.

LOCKING UP, LOCKING DOWN, A LOT OF WINDING MAKES THE WATER GO DOWN

Locks and more locks, oh the joy of boating. Still i don`t mind them realy, just something that has to be done and my motto is "if i don`t get there today it`ll be tommorow" Why rush i`ve a lifetime ahead.

Lapworth was 18 with 13/14 quite close together. Hatton was 21, then 2+ a staircase at Bascote.

Shrewley tunnel at just 433yds was the wettest i have been through, the boat roof wasn`t just spotted with drips it was awash with water.

As we came through Warwick we stopped off at a large retail park and popped into Halfords for some oil & fuel filters, so much cheaper than chandlers on the cut.

At Calcutt locks (3) noticed some new marina berths being built both sides of canal. Not yet in water but rough count of jettys i would guess close on 200 berths.

From Calcutt it`s about 1/2 mile to Napton Jct. and then 5 miles to Braunston.

Two of these lift bridges to pass under. At both we were lucky as another boat was already at both and they waved us through.

Kingswood Jct. The lock on the left by the moored boats will take us down to the Gd. Union.

Hatton Locks

TO SHIRLEY

So with NB VALERIE listing and my chocolate craving satisfied for weeks to come we move off to find a night mooring away from birmingham altogether.

At Kings Norton Jct. we turn onto the Stratford on Avon Canal passing under the two wooden guillotine gates of the first lock on this canal. This was once used as a stop lock to safeguard the different canal companies water, they didn`t like losing water to each other. Now the gates are always up.

Five miles on we come to Shirley drawbridge and the Drawbridge pub so this will be a night stop.

Guillotine lock at Kings Norton Jct.

Shirley drawbridge. The control panel can be seen on the left just short of the bridge. A B.W. key is used to activate the traffic lights and lower the barriers on the road, the button to raise the bridge must be kept pressed in or the bridge will stop lifting. A second button will lower it and raise the road barriers and untill the sequence is complete you cannot remove the key.

The Drawbridge pub. Wonder how they came up with that name?

CHOCOLATE............Yummy

Out of Gas St. Basin onto the Worcester & Birmingham Canal through Edgbaston and pass the Univercity of Birmingham just 4 lock free miles brings us to Bournville.

Now anybody that knows me will realise there`s no chance of me passing a chocolate factory without stopping.

B.W. Have provided offside moorings that a BW key is needed for access but sadly only room for 3 boats. Must be hell in the peak months although of course there is the towpath side but this is not one of the best areas to leave your boat un-attended.

So we did the tour of Cadbury World and with the voucher collected on admission paid a visit to the factory shop. Now this factory shop is not in the visitor complex but nearer the railway stn you pass from the moorings. This is the shop that Cadbury staff use and is full of bargains, so don`t miss it.

Those that know me would be surprised if not shocked that i would pass this buiding and not stop. True Bev?

Now hands up all those who`s mouths are watering.

This life size chocolate statue of Elton John is in a temprature controlled cabinet to keep it in good condition and to stop chocoholics like me picking bits off.

This is one of the chocolate street scenes shown in the commercial breaks on Coronation St.

It is actually made of plastercine.

BIRMINGHAM

An early depature from the Black Country Museum will help avoid any chance of the local youth giving any problems as we travel through the Birmingham suberbs.

Out of the museum a right turn onto the Wolverhampton Level we are running paralell with the Birmingham Level Main Line some 1/4 mile to the left of us. As we travel we pass over a canal past another that joins to the B. Main Line and then a large wharf now a housing complex just the shape of the basin being the only clue as to the past.

Slowly we turn towards the B. Main and then pass over it and for a mile or so we are alongside it but some 20 odd feet above. As we drop down through the 3 Smethwick locks , like coming down a slip road onto a motorway but that was Birmingham past, a huge water road complex, we are now on the Birmingham Main Line passing canals going off left and right only to rejoin the main line a little further on.

With the map in one hand and tiller in the other we enter Gas St. Basin the heart of Brum.

Surrounded by wine bars , restaurants, the giant indoor arena , Sea Life centre and...............trust Tesco to get a small metro store in amongst it all. Still handy for some odds and ends during our stay. Moored up kettle on, this is home for 3 days.

Inside the Selfridges store.

The council building

An unusual visitor, the Mandarin duck.

The Waterbus transports passengers around central Brum stopping at several places and cost 50p per stop.

Should have been at the top of page but none the less it`s the Selfridges store at Bullring shopping centre. Can`t decide if i like it or not. It sort of looks like a silver pineapple.

BLACK COUNTRY

The Black Country was an area between Birmingham and Wolverhampton and the name came about in the mid 19thC when thousands of furnaces and chimneys belched out smoke.

Mining of coal, iron and limestone caused large derilect areas. Coal seams some 30` thick and often only a few feet below the surface resulted in many mines being started by just a handful of men.

The museum was established in 1975 and the first of many buildings saved from demolition were brought to the museum site and re-built. They were bult brick by brick, as in their original location, around the canal basin to form a village.

As you walk around the village you really get to step back in time as you look in the shop windows faithfully set out as they would have been so long ago. You can step into the shops and speak to a shop assistant who will answer any questions. The houses are open for you to wander through and see the furniture of the time.

These cast iron houses were builtfor Dudley council in 1925 to to help quickly build houses to replace slums. Only 2 lots were built in Dudley as with a cost of £1000 a pair it was cheaper to use brick. 600 cast iron plates were used in each.

The Electric tram was recued from a garden in Dudley where it had been used as a summerhouse for 45 yrs. The vintage car is one of several plus motorcycles that are driven around the site adding atmosphere.

The Tilted Cottage had in it`s original location suffered from subsidence due to mining and when it was taken down and re-built at the museum it was exactly as it had stood showing the effect the subsidence had.

Trolleybuses first appeared in Wolverhampton in 1927. The ones operated at the museum that transport visitors around the site date back to 1946/1954.

This bridge dates back to1879 and was removed from the construction site of the Wolverhampton ring road and installed at the museum.

This was truly a wonderful day out and after doing the Wolverhampton flight of 21 locks in 5hrs the previouse day it was nice to step ashore and have a relaxing stroll back in time.

SOUTH,SOUTH,SOUTH

Drifting slowly down the Shropshire Union Canal past barbridge and the jct. of the Middlewich arm from which we came on our way to Chester, on past Hurleston Jct and the right turn through 4 locks takes you onto the Llangollen Canal to north Wales. After a few stops here and there including Nantwich, a town with much history, we arrive at the start of the Audlem flight of 15 locks. Well it`s late afternoon so no hanging about we get stuck in. Through the first and then the second and ............MOOR UP because having come so far over the last week i think Audlem might be a good place to get some Blogging material. But first give me a break i have just done 2 locks, i`ll have a pint and explore in the morning.

Inside the shroppie Fly pub with yours truly posing by the narrowboat bar.

Hotel boats Dusk and Dawn moored up for an overnight stop just outside the Shroppie Fly. These are the 3rd pair i have seen since coming on the system. As in the working boat days the motorised boat tows the butty and i believe there is room for about 6/7 guests and 3 crew.

In Audlem village like many towns and cities the country over the village shop is closed, but here the newspapers hang outside with a sign displayed in the shop door saying......

Please put money through slot below. If you do not have the correct change
please pay in the shop, or claim your change, next time you are passing.
Thankyou.
Now how many shops have you seen lately that trust the local population that much.

The Butter Market, erected in 1733. A market charter was granted in 1295 by King Edward 1 and a weekly market was held here till at least 1914.
The boulder seen between the seat and church steps was fitted with a metal ring, that i could still see traces of, and stood in the middle of the village square and was used for bear baiting.

Now as you read the blog some of you might be thinking the timings don`t quite add up like someone who has e- mailed me asking if NB VALERIE is fitted with a jet engine.

Well un-like some bloggers who do a daily blog, and i love reading them, i tend to collect my info and pics to blog as and when i get time or feel like it. So folks no good thinking i am here at Audlem because i am further south than that. In fact i am at......+-(**^"###=_^^\

HEADING SOUTH

Well now we head back south for christmas. I say we in that i am still in the company of John and his boat TUI.
As we head south we will be going back over old ground as far as Barbridge Jct where we came in from Middlewich, but lets have a look at a few things as we go. We stopped off at Chester again for a few days because if you have visited you will appreciate just how much there is to see in the city.
We are heading back via Birmingham so John can see his daughter who is at Birminham Uni and besides Birmingham is the heart of the system where so many canals converge and so much has changed since the days of the working boat.
So sit back and enjoy the trip as we head back to the grandchildren and lots of christmas hugs.

Here`s a then and now shot. I took a pic of a pic in the museum and the top picture is from the mooring in Chester. Passing back through Chester reminded me so there you are. See all the buildings have been pulled down to the right. The basin is still there and in water, a swing bridge carries the towpath across the access channel.




LEAD SHOT TOWER. Built in 1800`s for production of lead shot. The molten lead was poured in a sieve at the top and fell down into a water tank as it fell the lead becme round in shape and solid finaly hardening in the water.

Just one of many nice views along the way

I just asked for a hand with the lock all i got was a look and "do your own donkey work boater"

A lengthsman`s hut. The lengthsman was responsible for a stretch of canal and in the hut he would keep tools etc to maintain his length. Inside he could light a fire in winter but other than that they offered no comforts.

THE `POOL TRIP

Isle of Man ferry

So we jumped the train and for £3.30 return had a day out in Liverpool. Had to share the train with many L`pool and Everton supporters as it was a local Derby match. Glad they all kept apart from each other.

It was a nice sunny day so we made our way down to the pierhead and sat watching the ferrys back an forth to Birkenhead. Ferry cross the Mersey who remembers the song and for a bonus point who sang it. Saw the ferry come in from the isle of man, think it was a hydro foil or jet foil. See if i got a pic and maybe someone can tell me.

Yes so a great day out let the train take the strain gave the tiller arm a rest.

Well you know it`s Liverpool when you look up and see the Liver Building.

This is Albert Dock. All the original dock buildings have been converted to shops, restaurants and best off all the maritime museum that has within it a customs & excise museum.

A nice surprise was the power boat racing on the Mersey put on for free by Honda. Plenty of hospitality tents and a large display of i would think every product Honda make. So maybe a cheap way of getting max publicity. SKY TV were in the helicopter filming the racing.

All aboard for a tour of the city and docks.

And they did say goes everywhere, but i thought TO the docks not IN them.

Inside the ADELPHI Hotel. YES i know they let any old riff-raff in nowadays including water gypsy`s.

ELLESMERE Cont`d

Sorry got the pics in wrong order........again

Life on board a working boat must have been hard not just the long hours but the cramped living space. As you can see in the pics, and that space is 8` long, yes 8`.

Of course many of the boats would pull a butty(un-powered boat) that would be steered by the wife and often the family`s children. The butty also had a cabin which was used to sleep some of the children of the often large family`s.

Often when the inspector was due a visit to make sure the number of children on board was not above the company limit the children would be passed to another boat untill he had gone.

Looking back from the double bed to the door on the left just room for a child to sleep.

The flap in position for double bed.

The view of the living space in `FERRET`, on the left is the stove for cooking (coal fired), next is a cuboard that has a pull down flap for a table. Behind the flap is storage space and also at the bottom drawers. The oil lamp is the only illumination, it is hinged to cast light through the cabin.
Straight ahead can be seen the decorated doorway that led into the engine room.
A flap came down and made a double berth crossways.

`FERRET` an old working boat 71`6" and built in 1926

View from boat museum. In the foreground the ship canal then the R. Mersey. Looking across just left of centre is the control tower of Liverpool`s `John Lennon` airport and to the left of that i can see the orange tail on an easyjet plane.
Must go to L`pool, will jump the train, can`t turn south and not pay a visit.