Still on the Wyrley and Essington?

Friday, 12 February 2010 12:25

I must bow to the expert locals!

I have just looked on the Longwood Boat Club website and see that according to them we are still on the Daw End Branch of the Wyrley and Essington Canal. Longwood Junction and the remaining stub of the Hay Head Arm (once the Wyrley and Essington) is their domain, with many of their narrowboats moored here.

Narrowboat Epiphany moored on the Wyrley and Essington Canal at Longwood

The Boat Club have their HQ in the long low building in the right middle of the photo below.

The building was formerly a stable for the canal horses that pulled the workboats up and down the Daw End Branch to the Hay Head Limestone Works. There were about 200 boat movements each working day. Either that was a lot of horses or the poor horses were worked very hard!

The works were abandoned over 70 years ago and the area is now a nature reserve.

So it seems that the top Lock (1) is actually the start of the Rushall Canal! I have been misleading you all - sorry folks! Here is a repeat of yesterday's photo of the top lock showing the ex stables and the lovely lock cottages

Top Lock buildings (BCN cottage No. 93, right cottage)

The lock cottages are in an amazing state - apparently the Rushall Canal boast some of the finest and well kept lock cottages anywhere on the BCN.

The canal was nicknamed "The Ganzies" by the working boatmen. This canal is very exposed in places and they wore "Ganzies" or Guernsey style jumpers to keep warm. So we had better wrap up when we eventually get to cruise the two and three quarter miles and nine locks!

On the front of Longwood Boat Club HQ are two very informative signs -

Well I thought they were, until John pointed out that the stats do not say how many hours/day cruising time the days are calculated on. Trust a logical mathematician to think of that!

If the rest of the locks in the Rushall Canal flight are as well kept as the top lock (1)  and lock 2 I think that we shall enjoy our cruise down to the Tame Valley Canal.

Footbridge over top lock tail and paddle gear

Lock 2 in the snow

We are now debating whether we shall be stuck here over the weekend because of the ice. Epiphany was iced-in when we woke. The ice here has almost melted, but looking down the canal there are still large patches of ice to be seen.

The problem is that it we set off later in the day when most of the ice may have melted, we would end up cruising in the dark as more ice begins to form. Hey ho, it is a waiting game, I fear.