Worcestershire, the eighth county!

Geography is not my strong point!

I think that Worcetershire is our eighth county this year, so far! Of course we need to add in Greater London, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to make the picture complete.

Border markerBorder marker

Now we were in more open countryside and a couple of bridges appeared to go nowhere! They were both the classic Staffs and Worcs shape and it was time to duck again!

Clay House Bridge (25)Clay House Bridge

Austcliff Bridge (24)Austcliff Bridge

The canal closes in again and becomes narrow as it cuts through the cliffs of friable sandstone. The other side is thickly wooded with glimpses of pasture land the other side of the River Stour valley.

Austcliff has another claim to fame. When we first cruised this canal - on an hire boat from Great Heywood - there was a huge overhanging rock that threatened boaters after Austcliff Bridge. The canal still hugs the sandstone cliff but the rock has been removed for safety!

Watch the paintwork!Round the cliffrounding the bend

Cookley Tunnel  - ah now we are talking "low" again! From a distance it is impressive with the village sitting atop the tunnel; once in the tunnel it is also impressive, despite being only 65 yards long.

From a distanceCookley villageCookley Tunnel

Inside, note the roof and millimetres above the chimney!In Cookley Tunnel

Ah - I remember this lockDebdale Lock

Cut from the sandstone Debdale Lock is an impressive piece of engineering. There is even a cave for the horse to overnight in. The lock cottage is undergoing renovation.

The horse caveHorse stable

Looking back at the rock entranceBottom of lock

The canal now does a U - it has to double back on itself to avoid a large outcrop of yet more rock.The sandstone rock is thought to be over 200 million years old and geologically very interesting - to geologists that is!

Beginning the "U"U bend around rock

We were nearing Wolverley. Wolverley Forge Bridge (near the home and mooring of a well known writer in the waterways presswho shares my maiden name!) has a problem! We asked a towpath walker about it. Apparently there was a landslide, it has been concreted, but left like this for quite a while.

Wolverley Forge Bridge(21)Wolverlwy Forge Bridge

We moored just above Wolverley Lock on the visitor moorings. There is a very good view of St John the Baptist church from the moorings, across the River Stour. This church is built on a sandstone outcrop and it is probable that it is on the site of a Saxon church.

Wolverley ChurchWolverley Church

Staffs and Worcs Canal, total journey from Stewponey to Wolverley - 3 hours 44 minutes, 6 miles, 5 locks

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