Date: Sun, 3 Sep 2000 21:16:09 +0100 From: Ann Harvey Reply-To: Canals To: Canals Subject: Amos's August trip - Part 3 [ The following text is in the "iso-8859-1" character set. ] [ Your display is set for the "US-ASCII" character set. ] [ Some characters may be displayed incorrectly. ] TUESDAY 15 AUGUST I woke everyone and we left at 8.15 am. The trip was warm and sunny and very pretty apart from the bits like Rugeley and Armitage that you might call ^Óinteresting^Ô. Some of this stretch is very narrow and when an oncoming cruiser forced us into the trees we lost our witch^Òs hat. We arrived at Fradley Junction at 1.15 pm. There has been plenty of traffic but we never actually had to queue for a lock. At Fradley we had a drink outside the Swan in the sunshine, Patrick filled Koinonia^Òs water tank (again) and then at 2.30 pm we turned right through the swing bridge and onto the Coventry/Birmingham and Fazeley Canal. This towpath is greatly improved since our last visit several years ago. The weather turned breezy and overcast now, and the rain began just after Streethay Wharf. I saw a Kingfisher very clearly, but was unable to point it out to anyone else before it flew away. We stopped at Whittington at 4.30 and walked into the village for shopping. After our meal we all went into the Swan for drinks, then back onto Amos to discuss the route. WEDNESDAY 16 AUGUST We set off in lovely sunshine at 8.20 am. We had a very pretty cruise in a much improved canal. Yesterday we passed Sid Arkless's boat and today we passed his home. We exchanged greetings in passing with Poppy^Òs owners on their way to the GIG at Stafford. At 1.00 pm we stopped at Polesworth and found it to be a nice little place, having at first thought that they didn^Òt want our custom judging from the state of the moorings, but there were some better ones further on. There is a garage, a Spar, greengrocer, pharmacy and a butcher^Òs etc. I was able to buy fresh meat, bread, veg and fruit and film for the camera. First things first though, and we went to have a drink at The Royal Oak, which had friendly staff and a nice drink ^Ö recommended! We sat in the sun at tables in the yard - not too pretty but the sunshine makes everything feel good. On making our way to the shops we crossed over the river and paused on the bridge to watch the shoal of trout. A couple of these would make a nice meal! Shopping done we set off again at 2.45 eating our sandwich lunch en route. We soon passed Coronation on her way to the GIG with Jeff on the stern. The rain began at 3.15 on a long open windy stretch of canal. It rained only long enough to bring in the sun lounger from the bow and tog up in macks. It continued to be windy however. Typically, I had just made a cup of tea, when we reached Atherstone locks. The rain teased all afternoon but didn^Òt amount to much. We moored at 5.15 in the middle of the flight. We were all tired now, and decided that if there were no nice moorings at the top of the flight we^Òd have to travel on for another hour so we decided to stay. The moorings are on good banking near the main road and the railway ^Ö but you can^Òt escape either far on this canal anyway. I picked some blackberries and then enjoyed a shower while the tea cooked. We went to The King^Òs Head for drinks that evening. The lager was was the best they^Òd tasted for a long while as the head lasted to the bottom of the glass, so several were tasted. Following this we went onto Koinonia for a nightcap and a meeting of the Route Planning Committee. The towpath was a little uneven on the way back ;-) and we went straight off to sleep. THURSDAY 17 AUGUST We got underway at 8.10 am with all the remaining locks for us, and were through them in an hour. It was a sunny morning but a bit windy, and turned chilly if the sun went behind a cloud. We passed Whisper on her way to the GIG and spoke to Andy and Jan as they passed, somewhere near Nuneaton. We took on water again at Hawkesbury junction as we turned onto the North Oxford Canal. The canal is covered with a thick layer of duckweed. It looks like a thick pile carpet in pea green. It opens for the boat to pass through and then closes behind like crematorial curtains. At 2 pm we stopped at the Elephant and Castle just past Hawkesbury junction, but they don^Òt do meals as we had hoped. The sun has continued all day but the wind is cooland strong. We continued on our way at 3.00 pm. The pub at Sutton Stop is no more and so we moved on but were getting tired by then. We passed the disused Brinklow Arm and found a mooring past Ansty by Bridge 34, but it was 5.50 by the time we had pulled up and hammered in the pins. The rain came down again briefly as we passed under the M6, and by the time we reached Ansty it had gone and we had lovely sunshine again. The bank shelves all along this stretch and we had to use the gangplank, which has gone warped and wobbly. We passed nb Ann moored on Ansty bank with Canal Artist on the side. Is this Linda^Òs boat? Penny said it looked like being a Cluedo evening, and so it was. We had a couple of games of Cluedo followed by dominoes on Amos, and had a good convivial evening. FRIDAY 18 AUGUST We didn^Òt start off until 10.00 am as it was only a short trip into Rugby where we intended to stop and shop. The weather was totally overcast and it had become colder. Along the way it began to rain. We passed a moored boat with a very large hinged chimney, called Laplander. I wondered if this was Sean Neil^Òs boat, but would have expected it to be at the GIG. We arrived in driving rain and moored on the park moorings at Rugby at 11.50 am under the willow trees. This must be a very pretty place to moor in nice weather. We walked up to Tesco to stock up but the rain persisted and we decided to rest the afternoon and have a meal out in the Bell and Barge that evening. After lunch Patrick suggested that we take a walk along the towpath to Clifton boatyard, but it proved to be a bridge too far as Pat deals in country miles, and so we turned back, and used the rest of the afternoon to recover. At 6.00 pm we went across to the Bell and Barge, a large Harvester pub. We were kept waiting so long for our meals that we had to go and remind staff that we were waiting to order. We ended up being served by several different members of staff, and it all took a long time. Staff were polite when we got them, and the food was good. I paid by credit card and we had a drink in the bar before going back to Koinonia for nightcaps. Just before retiring to our bed, I suddenly realised that we had not been given our discount for dining before 6.30 pm. ---