Another canal to cross off our map

 

 

We woke a little late his morning, but to another sunny spring morning, we topped up our water at the British waterways yard before the canal cut through the town of Nuneaton here the canal turns unfortunately a little untidy with lots of rubbish strewn on the banks and rubbish including bottles and cans in the waterway.

 

Houses with long gardens join the canal and we haven't seen some many allotments in a small area as here, where the owners are busy digging and tending to there vegetables.

Once through Nuneaton we pass the suburb of Chilvers Coton where it's church was built by German prisoners of War in 1946.We then take a left turn onto the Ashby Canal the longest contour canal in England which has a 22 miles of navigable water with not one lock on it, so Denise is well pleased.

The junction for the Ashby is called the Marston Junction, and the Ashby Canal Association had a lot to do with how it is today.The industrial feel which the Coventry had disappears fast with green fields, farms and trees.We pass Burton Hasting a quiet village set on a hill and moor up out side of The Limekilns pub.

 

 

 

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A busy day

Today we woke again to a lovely sunny day, before setting off we decided to go and look at the Abbey where Egbert the first Saxon King of England built a nunnery in the 10th- C also the remains of a splendid gatehouse. 

Abbey Church

Gatehouse

After another bit of shopping we set of and started to tackle our first lock one of eleven today,starting one side of Atherstone and finishing on he other side of it, we didn't stop her but we did spot our first batch of little baby ducklings.

Atherstone has a long history dating back to Roman times. An important defended Roman settlement named Mandeusseum  existed at Mancetter near the site of modern day Atherstone, and the Roman road, the  Watling street  (now known as the A5) ran through the town. It is believed by some historians that the rebel Queen of the Britons Boudecia wasdefeated at the Battle of Watling street by the Romans in her final battle near Manduessedum.

Atherstone is also famous for it Shrove Tuesday ball game, the main road  are closed to traffic, shops are boarded up, the start of they game is when the ball is thrown out of the banks window and then it a free for all, like rugby but without any rules the one rule is that you are not allowed to kill your opponents. The ball is made if heavy leather, with ribbons attached and if you manage to get a ribbon then this can be exchanged for money, the winner is the person that retains the ball at the end of the game.

P

To the west of Atherstone is Merevale hall an early 19th- C mock Tudor mansion, we then carry on for a few miles before stopping for the night before Hartshill,  here are the attractive building of British Waterways.Hartshill is notable because of the writer Michael Drayton  who knew William Shakespeare. Drayton was born at Chapel Cottage in Hartshill Green in 1563. A school in Hartshill bears his name.

 

So after eleven locks we will sleep tonight, but on the bonus side no locks for a while, as tomorrow once pass Nuneaton we turn up the lock free Ashby Canal.

 

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New waters

 

Today we left our last night mooring to a gorgeous sunny, but crispy cold morning and made our way to Fazeley junction

Where one can turn off for Birmingham, if one desires but we are going to head on towards Coventry and on to unexplored waters, at this junction we fill with more water as the washing machine is being used, and go to the local shops for more provisions which are not far from bridge 76.

The canal then meanders through Tamworth district with neat houses and gardens edging the canal.

We stop at the remains of Alvecote priory for a photo, this was an Benedictine priory and is now a ruin, but the outlining walls still remain to give an idea of how it looked. It was founded 1159 by William Burdett as a dependency of Great Malvern priory After returning from a crusade, Burdett accused his wife of being unfaithful and stabbed her, and as penance founded the monastery.So back to the boat and then passing Pooley field nature reserve with it lake. And then pass Pooley hall, which once again in private  residence and was, until recently, the home of the late Edwin Starr an American Soul and Mowtown Singer.

before mooring for the night at Polesworth an old mining village.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polesworth

Pooley Hall

 

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Leaving Fradley again

Awoke to a wet morning but with a lot of activity outside of the boat, with Canal river trust employees mowing the lawns and so forth. It was hammering down so we decided to sit it out and about 11.00 o'clock the weather broke so we filled up with water again and set for the Fradley Junction lock which was manned today so Denise was set for a easy day, with hardly any locks on the Coventry canal which we were heading for, so a left turn and we were on it.

Denise did have one job and that's was to open the swing bridge at the entrance to the canal, it's a pretty canal with open fields flanking its side, we stop at Streethay Wharf where we had a pump out and bought some paint for the boat, as I was turning the boat the tiller caught on something in the water and the force of it shot me ass over tit over the rail of the rear of the boat, luckily onto another boat otherwise I would of got extremely wet.

WE carry on pass Huddlesford Junction where at bridge 83 the now long abandoned Wyrley & Essington canal ( now called the Litchfield canal )use to join he Coventry.Next village is Whittington here The co-founder of Marks & Spencer plc, Thomas Spencer d. 1905, is buried in St. Giles Church, Whittington.(Wikipedia ) And then pass Whittington firing ranges before mooring at Hopwas for the night,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hopwas

A swan nesting

 

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A short hop to the Mucky duck

Weather today was grey but not raining which had been promised, so we had a Bacon sarnie for breakfast and off we went for a less than an hour cruise to Fradley Junction, journey was quiet and un eventful, so we moored up and went for a pint in the "Swan" which is reputed to be one of the most photographed pubs in the country, it's a 200 yrs old listed building and a really nice old canal pub, which also serves food.

We didn't have anything to eat as our Sunday dinner was in the oven waiting for us to return and consume it, and then an afternoon reading or was it a snooze, before settling down for the evening.

Trying to tell us something

 

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Back to our Arlewash

Woke this morning and spotted a couple Chris and Sahara who we met last year, so caught up with them, they have bought a Dutch narrow barge and are int the process of selling their old boat Avalon mist.

Aqueduct over River Trent

We then had breakfast and broke our mooring, filled up with water and then set of on our way, the weather was a bit overcast with the chance of rain, we left Willington and a load of anglers who look like they were in a competition, who were friendly and we exchanged pleasantries.Burton on Trent is next with it Breweries, Marston,Bass and Coors some of the remaining, at one time there was over thirty breweries in this town.

Also this is the start of the single narrow locks, which means any boat over 6 foot 6 inches wide needs to turn around as they will get stuck, luckily we fit, so on we go, most of the warehouse which use to line the canal are now gone, and well kept gardens are now the norm, we past the sports field which has a mass of Daffoidls surrounding the playing pitches.

 

The canal also enters The National Forest at bridge 30, we also pass Branston Water park wich is a pleasant park which to visit with mooring accesss on the canal. Next we pass Barton Under Needwood with its 16th century church built by John Taylor Henry VII private secatary, it's also home to a big marina, Barton Turn where we moored last year for a few days, then we pass the farming settlement of Wynchor befor reaching our destination and mooring spot for the night Arelwas, where we stock up on essential and settle for the night.

Our new neighbours looking for food

We hope you all enjoy reading our blog, and a thank you to Lynne Jones who was enquiring how our cat Firkin was now coping, which I can tell you is she is fine, not eating as much but a lot more settled as you can see.

 

 

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Hooray on our way again

We awoke early this morning to a grey morning and luckily we did as the planned opening of the lock of 12 noon was brought forward and we were allowed to go through about 9 o'clock. We filled up with water which means another hooray as we can have a shower and people will stand bit closer to us ;) we then carried on up the canal and through the Stenson lock, the home of the Bubble inn and onwards to Willington where we moored up and done a bit of food shopping which was needed as we were down to the last spud. Willington is a busy little village where the railway bisects, it comprises of three pubs a few shops and Post Office

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willington,_Derbyshire

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