21 locks in 2 miles! Birmingham Main Line Canal, part 3
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 11 ม.ค. 2024
- On Thursday 11th January 2024:
I went back to Wolverhampton (top marks to West Midlands Railways once again!), and walked the last 2 miles from there to the end of the Birmingham Main Line Canal, at Aldersley Junction, passing some 21 locks along the way! I also saw a Kingfisher, CRT maintenance being done on locks, and some fabulous railway viaducts.
After reaching the canal's end, I then walked a further mile along the Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal, as far as Autherley Junction, where the Shropshire Union Canal joins it. The 'Shroppie' is one of the best known and most widely used canals on the UK system, and when (eventually!), I get Gladys on the water, I will definitely be exploring this canal.
It was a freezing cold day - so I hope you'll enjoy the video!
Cheers,
Jeff
By the way, if you do enjoy the video, then please consider subscribing - it really helps me to grow the channel!
You can see more of my videos, including my journeys along the canals, and of my Brompton bike at:
/ @gladysthenarrowboat - แนวปฏิบัติและการใช้ชีวิต
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Hi Jeff, Yes i remember them well. 1979 i'm sure that was the year, we hired a narrowboat from Anderton boat marina near Northwich which is where i live.
There were 6 of us on board so we soon got through them.
My eldest brother had his in~laws on board who were retired boaties so no issues
driving the narrowboat.
My girlfriend at the time and my Sister in~law.
Keep these vlogs coming we love them'
As always take care & Stay safe out there. ☺
John.
.
Hi John and thanks as always for the great comment! I think I've been to Northwich once, some years ago. Yes, having 6 onboard would make a huge difference doing all those locks - be a big task to do on your own! I quite fancy having a go though!
So good to hear you are enjoying the vlogs - thanks once again John! 😊
Another interesting video. Hopefully you’ll be boating down it towards us soon.
Thanks Gerald! Yes, I hope so too! 👍
That looked like a very long walk, Jeff! Thanks so much for braving the freezing weather for an interesting canal video 🥶🥶
Thanks Angela!😊 yes it was cold, although its turned much colder here these past few days. On Tuesday I went to Cardiff and videoed a trip on the river... another cold day! Hope you'll enjoy the video !
Very interesting. I originally thought I'd do a day trip today to Alabama to viddy first hand, but wrong Birmingham.
I'm very glad you found it interesting - even though it was the wrong Birmingham! 😁
Hi Jeff, Yes i remember well, not changed much but i might done.
Another interesting vlog of yours and great filming and narrated.
Hope Gladys is getting near launch date? Can't wait to see her.
And we hope the weather picks up soon.
Take care Jeff.
John.
Hi John, thanks for the great comments - much appreciated! I'm awaiting an update from Aintree Boats any day now, so will let you know if there's any positive news. - It's very frustrating - my only consolation is that it's so cold out at the moment!
I’m oft accompanied by a rucksack. One of the features I look for in such, are outside pockets. One is invariably kept empty, for the later inclusion of waste, I take my ‘litter’ home and recycle where I can. Also, when walking a particular dog/s, I’ll have plenty of poo bags and and also an extra thick bag. So if I’m not sure of finding a dog waste bin, I bag and double bag, so such waste can be taken with me and not contaminate my rucksack or clothes. Also, said pocket is good for carrying my food packaging, if not in a clip box. And being outside pockets, they’re easy to wipe out or hose off, if a sweet or orange leaks.
The bones of the younger amongst us, still have the unwillingness of becoming cold to come. When the body is warm enough when working. But later at rest, it takes hours to warm through. Only yesterday, I was out hedging in -2-3°C and warm enough to be active in a T-shirt. Come break time, it was on with the fleece but only 10-15mins., I could feel the chill, so it was back to work and off with the fleece. When I got home, my back took hours to warm through, while the rest was toasty within the hour. So yes, old bones in the briskly cold, I know what that’s like.
But at times, one just has to get out and do, just for the hell of it… and a good view helps. Friend of mine on a recent Wednesday, did a circuit of Talybont-Pen y Fan-Brecon-Talybont. His nose & cheeks got properly wind-chilled, but then it was -17°C on the tops. He really suffered the following day while planting trees high above Cwmdu.
The place near Lock 9, appears to be ‘Total Waste Ltd.’, who hire skips. The topographic view shows scrubbers on top of the chimney. From which I take, that the company incinerates quite a bit of what they take in as waste.
A very interesting walk - thank you.
Thanks DC for a very thorough comment! Yes, a good rucksack is invaluable and the more pockets the better. Your attitude towards keeping Britain tidy is spot-on!
I definitely feel the cold more as I get older - maybe I've become a wimp, but I can't bring myself to get out on a bike at the moment ☹️
Well done for looking up that place near lock 9 - I like to leave little challenges for viewers to do after watching the videos, and you can always be relied on to find the answers DC!
Glad you liked the walk 👍
That was a nice walk, thank you.
I receive emails from CRT, the latest of which was really informative re the fact they're a charity, responsible for 2,000 miles of rivers & canals which they maintain regularly but major works obviously done in winter when it's quieter plus the huge amount of money they raised from donations to make this winter's work possible. They publish all works in detail & you can sign up for updates.
Re waste bins the old adage 'Take only pictures, leave only footprints' applies to all outdoor areas & as CRT would have to pay for waste removed from the bins it'd be sensible to take your litter home with you & in the case of coffee cups always carry your own reusable one in your bag to refill if you have to buy some. Coffee cups play a large part in littering our country, I litterpick regularly & find them everywhere.
Fingers crossed for Gladys hurrying up!
Hi Annie, thanks for leaving such a considered comment. Yes, I've known of the CRT for a while and one of my subscribers is actually a volunteer with them.👍 In the past, I've signed up for 'notifications', when going on a specific canal, but hadn't ticked the box yet for Birmingham Main Line. When I get Gladys, I'll always make sure I'm signed up for the canals I'm going on, as it's essential, I think!
I take your point about coffee cups - and I never, ever, throw litter away, whether recyclable or not. I had no idea there would be so many bins on this stretch of canal - and fully expected to carry the carton around until I got back to the station - in the event, there really were a lot of CRT rubbish bins, and I've never seen so many before, on any of my canal travels / walks. So, a big well done to the local CRT!
As you'll know, the CRT's funding from government is going to reduce substantially and I know many narrowboat users are very worried about how much their licenses are going to be increased, to help towards the shortfall.
Enormous respect to you for litter-picking Annie! It must be so frustrating finding so many items that needn't have been used at all, or could so easily have been retained and disposed later. Equally though, it must feel great when you see what a difference you've made. Good on you!
Thanks for crossing your fingers - it is so frustrating walking along these canals and wishing I was cruising along them instead of getting sore feet. Mind you, it'd be really cold standing for a couple of hours at the back of a narrowboat in this weather!
Thanks again Annie! 😊
@@Gladysthenarrowboat You're so right about the rubbish, we humans are littering every area of our planet whether it's up a mountain or in the depths of the ocean. It's a very odd behaviour which I've never understood, how hard is it to take your rubbish home with you, if you visit somewhere nice would you want to go again if you were tripping over litter every step of the way?!
Yes CRT like so many other organisations have lost a huge amount of money from the government, hard to know how they'll be able to continue to maintain the waterways. Boaters will obviously have to pay more for licences & moorings in the same way householders have to pay higher council tax, rent etc. Life's getting tougher for everyone.
Hopefully won't be long before you start enjoying your travels on Gladys, definitely a wee bit cold right now though!
Hi Annie, yes, I'm very worried about how CRT will be able to carry on - e.g., it must cost a fortune to replace lock gates, like the work I saw being done on this walk. A team of guys there for a few days on each one I should think - not to mention the cost of making the gates / transporting them.
Littering / chucking your rubbish out the car window or on the pavement... seems to be a badge of honour for some of the idiots around these days.
Brrr... its been very cold today - and worse than yesterday, when I went to Cardiff to do this Saturday's video and ventured onto the River Taff... you'll see some rubbish collection going on there too! But yes, it'd be hard work standing on the back of a narrowboat in this weather Annie!
@@Gladysthenarrowboat The gates are incredibly big aren't they, each must cost a bomb as they're made to order. When you think back to the original ones they didn't have modern vehicle to transport them or the equipment to move them into place for fitting, must have been a massive effort.
Yep, the grass verges by my home next to the roundabout are used as makeshift bins by drivers - out of the window it goes to adorn the greenery.
Sounds like you weren't a million miles from my house on the Taff, be interesting to see your video.
Yes, they're made of oak. They usually have a steel plate on them which says the year they were made and (I think), their weight in KG. How a LOT of things used to be done in the old days is beyond me Annie! I was amazed by the several railway viaducts I passed under in this walk - not only perfectly made, functional, and quite beautiful to look at... but STILL standing and in use today!
Hah - small world then eh?! I hope you'll enjoy my visit to the Taff / Bay and Cardiff city centre! Thanks for the great comments! 😊
Hi Jeff, that's a nice stretch of canal. The towpaths are in great condition and would by great to cycle along, albeit on a warmer day of course. I could feel the cold just watching from my warm living room. As you know I'm not a big fan of graffiti but there was some really good artwork along the way and those frogs were amazing. How long would you say it would take to do all those 21 locks in Gladys and could they all be done in one day? Definitely a good workout, that's for sure. No dodgy individuals on your walk Jeff so that was a good thing, however a few swans would have been nice to see but I imagine they stayed home in the warm 😊 I only just realised you had a Facebook page so I'll be giving that a visit too. Anyway, did you walk back to Wulvrampton to get the train home or did you get an Uber. Take care Jeff, see you on the next video mate 👍
Hi Dave, yes, it's a great stretch, and the towpath was ideal for a bike. It was a cold day, although not as bad as today has been!
Yes the frogs were incredible works of art - the graffiti artists really do have talent - I wonder if they ever do 'normal' paintings too.
21 locks in one day - yes I think its possible - it'd help if they were all set in your favour (i.e. another boat having just come through from the other direction), or if you had crew members who could operate the gates / go ahead to the next lock etc. They weren't very deep locks, so shouldn't take too long to fill/empty. But yes, it'd be quite a workout - I guess you'd be obliged to complete the flight in one go, as there are no overnight mooring places - given the short distances between locks, and all the bollards/rings would be for boats going through the locks to tie up temporarily.
Yesterday, I went from Hereford to Cardiff, courtesy of TFW trains and have to say that both ways, the trains were precisely on time! I saw a few swans at a distance this time. Went on the River Taff too - hope you'll enjoy the video - make you laugh a bit I hope (watch that coffee cup this time mate!).
Oh, no taxi Dave! I walked all the way to the junction with Shropshire Union Canal, and walked back to Wulvrampton.
Hey - thanks for checking out the Facebook page - its still work in progress yet, as I have only recently done it. Have to say, I find it a confusing platform compared to TH-cam! Cheers Dave 👍
you should upload videos at 1080p...
Hi Simon, thanks for the suggestion.