Glad to be alive!

Monday, 01 March 2010 17:04

What makes a boater feel like this?

The first day of March and March has come in like a lamb, true to form! What a glorious day to cruise. Even the prospect of Knowle Locks was not depressing, just a minor worry!

Leaving the Lapworth Link canal behind we turned onto the wide Grand Union, taking a last look behind at the long term moorings and other moorings.

On the left, a fellow bloggers boat

This part of the Grand Union route into Birmingham is through countryside and the sun made it a special sight! We turned left (northwards).

Looking back at the Junction

Bridge 67 is a turnover bridge, taking the towpath to our starboard side and is followed by a straight cut towards Bakers Lane Bridge.

Trees line the towpath and there is an unusual house on the off-side

Black Boy Bridge (69) has a pub and a cruising club with a similar name (Hint: BBCC)! I wonder which came first - the pub or the bridge. The cruising club was founded in 1963. The narrowboats line up double breasted along the off-side.

The last Bridge before Knowle Lock flight is Kings Arms Bridge - but the pub by it is The Heron's Nest! The approach to it is very attractive.

Winding hole and Kings Arms Bridge (70)

We took on water before we went up Knowle Locks, as there was a single-handed boat coming down into the second lock up (48). There was a lot of water coming over the bottom lock gates and the flight did look a little daunting!

Water cascade over bottom lock (47)

John took Epiphany into the bottom lock, as I wanted to see if I could manage the gate and top paddles! I soon found out that they are very hard work and magnanimously let John do the rest of the locks!

Fi doing her bit!

The paddle gear is unique to the Grand Union and the flights (Hatton and Bascote) below this have the same type of gear. There are large side ponds and the remains of the old narrow locks (there used to be 6 of them until 1930) are still visible.

Side pond paddle gear

Looking up the flight of the remaining 4 locks

We got into a rhythm - I had not forgotten how to keep a narrowboat to one side in a wide lock - and we completed the flight in good time.

Looking back from lock 49 the old narrow lock is just visible to the left

Arriving at the top, the view was great

After the Knowle flight are Stephen Goldsbrough Boats. The road crossing Bridge 71 would lead the walker into Knowle, a village not yet swallowed by the suburbs of Birmingham.  We continued, looking for somewhere to moor that was more in the open, but still in walking distance of Knowle.

Success, a mooring just before Kixley Bridge (72)! There are three other boats here that we saw in Birmingham and have now escaped!

We had time to wash down one side of Epiphany and have a chat to the owners of Nb Emmeline, before settling down for the evening.

Lapworth Link Canal, visitor moorings to Bridge 72, Grand Union Canal

3 hours 9 minutes, 4.25 miles, 5 locks