Cape locks and Saltisford arm

Still in the five mile prison but time is passing quickly and it`s now three weeks since Jaq`s surgery and one week since the 40 plus metal clips were removed.
It`s also just over a week since I attended the funeral of Valerie`s sister Pauline. Two lovely ladies gone from the lives of so many.
While I was gone the Physio came to the boat and was very impressed with Jaq`s progress and especially the amount of bend in her knee she has achieved. No more boat visits and with just hospital physio appointments in the gymnasium we decided to head for the open fields of Radford Semele. We can cruise back to the hospital for water and appointments as and when we need to.


About once a week we cruised up to the Cape locks for water and being able to swing the boat around had no need to go through the two locks. However as Jaq mentioned we needed coal so one trip I had to go back to my single handed days and take us up through the locks.

At the second of the two cape locks is the Cape of Good Hope pub.

Here it is courtesy of Warwickshire records office around 1900. The original pub was the first building with the second section being cottages. If you look at the modern day picture notice the end of the building is not painted White. This is a private dwelling with an entrance at the side. It appears the pub was unable buy all the cottages and this one, of  I think four originally, is the sole survivor. I do wonder though why it`s door is at the side.

Less than half a mile past the pub is the entrance to the Saltisford Arm that was when built the terminus of the Warwick and Birmingham  canal. It is now a registered charity that welcomes not just boaters but local residents who have daytime access to the gardens and canal bank.

Just a boat length from the bridge the building on the left is the coal store. I would say what you see here is about a third of the original length.
The building in the far distance is next to the winding hole(turning point) that can be seen in the Google shot below.

In the Google shot above you can see on the extreme right the end of the arm where it meets the railway. Notice just above here the Dun Cow pub and note it`s position on the old map below, showing the original canal terminus, to get some idea of locations. A is the bridge at the Saltisford canal trust entrance.

The Birmingham-London railway line still crosses the canal and if you walk under the rail bridge the one remaining piece of the canal can be seen, a bridge, arrowed is now the access to residential homes built on the site.
Below the present day Google view south of the railway line.

All that`s left of the Gasworks built in 1822 is the front. In the picture above Google shows  two white circles these are the octagonal buildings that held the original gasholders as pictured below.

The only thing left of the old canal route south of the railway.

Saltisford Wharf was the terminus for the  Warwick-Birmingham  canal. This was then joined to the Warwick-Napton canal that in turn met the Oxford. In 1895 the Warwick companies merged to form the Grand Junction that became in 1929 the Grand Union.
The Saltisford trust is a great mooring to visit Warwick. Five minutes walk past the gasworks and your in Warwick centre. First night mooring in the arm is free and there is electric hook up and water if required plus usual boater service block.