We set the alarm to be sure to be awake in time to set off to the cathedral by 8:30, to get there for the o'clock communion service. We walked along the towpath before taking to the streets at lock four and arriving at our destination in good time. Whilst we expected this to be the 'quiet' service - a full choral service is at 11 - it was a bit of a surprise to discover that we in a total of nine for the congregation and we were seated in the choir stalls. Nevertheless, it was well led by one of the cathedral team. Her sermon was especially well prepared and delivered.
We walked back to the boat via New Street in order to find some croissants for an extra breakfast. We were a bit early for the supermarkets but did find a couple at Greggs. Back on board we speedily changed and made coffee before casting off and taking the boat back to Old Turn, a hundred metres away as we now needed to retrace our steps. As we completed the turn, a large trip boat held back from emerging from Ouzells Loop, on its way to pick up the first passengers of the day.
The day was very grey and initially there was a chilly breeze but nothing like the strong storms winds of yesterday. Later on, the occasional blue patch emerged and the afternoon was a bit more comfortable.
The Roundhouse - former stables for the canal company - is under renovation.
Towpath bridges are a frequent part of the canal scene in Birmingham, especially along the Main Line. They are a reminder of just how important the canal once was to industry. Some, like this one, gave access to private wharves where factories could load their goods directly onto waiting boats.
Others mark the entrance to a longer arm, here Cape Arm, where a number of places would be served. Some of these arms were formed when the New Main Line was constructed, straightening out the old contour canal.
Yet more are where the old line was replaced by the straighter new line and the older canal gradually abandoned.
Another frequent feature is the toll island, mostly at junctions, where the canal company could collect the tolls which were the basis of its business. Elsewhere on the canal network, toll collection was much more spread out, usually at the ends of a quite long canal. But here, much of the traffic would have been between places on the Birmingham BCN network.
As industry has changed and some places no longer needed the water transport connection, the wharves were filled in and the entrances blocked up. Sometimes it takes a keen eye to spot where they once were - different shades of brickwork or indentations in the towpath may be the only remaining indication.
French Walls bridge has intrigued us on each of our visits to this canal but only now have we investigated what the names comes from. A French Walls Estate dates from at least as far back as 1660., What was then a pleasant rural estate gradually became overtaken by the might of the growing industrial might of Birmingham. By 1796, guns were being manufactured here. By 1816, James Watt the Younger was involved in improving the works.
As we passed under Rabone Road Bridge we could see a good number of walkers but after we had passed and looked back we saw a succession of carnival parade vehicles.
A little later came the impressive structure of the New Smethwick Pumping Station - and the first of blue sky patches! The engine here once transferred water from the lower to the upper level - the Old Main Line is very close at the top of the bank.
Smethwick Galton has become a significant stop on the Birmingham rail network as it provides an interchange between a line that runs between Wolverhampton and Birmingham, largely following the canal, and another line at a higher level that crosses the canal at this bridge. This north-south line originally had its station a little further away from the canal but it was later moved to this spot. The platforms have ingeniously been created by cantilevering out from the bridge.
The name of Chance Bridge had not caused us to stop and think until this time - we had not spotted this 'glass' part of the name on the derelict building but more recently as we have ravelled the nearby motorway we have seen the Chance Glassworks part of which is under restoration. From the canal the view is less obvious. Chance were the leading producers of specialist glass - they supplied the original Crystal Palace as well as the lantern glass for many lighthouses. The site closed to production in 1981.
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Again from the motorway, the giant advertising screen,with its constantly changing images (after all, unless there is a holdup, people in the cars only have moments to take in the message on display) is somewhat of a landmark.
JB & A Lees, at the Trident Steel Works, manufacture their Liberty strip steel product which is particularly used for making narrow bandsaws. The company has been here for over 150 years. At one time there were many more iron and steel factories, mostly turning the raw product into specific goods, perhaps as components used in other businesses nearby, with the output transferred by canal boat.
Eventually we passed the junction where we came out onto the Main Line from the Netherton Tunnel, just a couple of days ago.
At Watery Lane End, a sign on the bridge says "The Tipton and Toll End Communication formerly crossed the Birmingham Level at this point". This was a useful link to the Walsall and Tame Valley Canals which are otherwise some distance away. Craggy's Boatyard in the first part of the otherwise infilled canal was started in the 1960's.
We had planned lunch 'on-the-go' but when the bake-off baguette was ready we had just arrived at the bottom of the three Factory Locks. These take the Birmingham Level up to the Wolverhampton level. There are still at least four different places where this can be done, each of them with three locks. So, we paused on the lock landing to have a shorter-than-usual lunch break,
Off again and we made swift passage through the first lock but the pound between this and the middle lock was very low so we had to run some water down from an upper level. This did not take long to enable the boat to make it through, slowly, into the next lock and as soon as we were in, Christine started to close the bottom gate. The locks here are of the BCN design with a single, heavy, bottom gate. It would not close, with a heavy object under water blocking progress.
Mike deployed our long pole (Oh, he wished for a proper keb!) and he made numerous attempts to move whatever was the cause of the problem, out of the way. Although sometimes something moved and the gate would shut a different amount, nothing would allow it to close properly.
Eventually, we gave in and rang the CaTRT emergency line and they promised action as soon as possible. Meanwhile, as Mike continued to work away with the pole, a large group of people ca,me down from the top - two hire boats had arrived and they were due back at Alvechurch tomorrow morning. They had not heard about stoppages before! Fortunately, Mike was unable to hear most of their comments and 'helpful' suggestions. After some time, the brick or stone, or whatever, moved enough to allow Christine to shut the gate (the crowd by now had returned to their boats as the long slog was no longer interesting!)
Just as we had come up the lock and waited for one of the boats to come down, the two staff from CaRT arrived. They were not at all put out by the fact that the immediate problem had been solved and agreed that it was important to find whatever had been the problem. Much to thew frustration of the two hire boat crews, they allowed us to complete the flight but then stopped them from going any further down until they had checked around. After telling them where Mike thought that he had moved the 'stone' we thanked CaRT and were allowed to set off up the last lock and on our way, an hour later than expected. We had been too busy with fixing the problem to take any interesting photos!
We think that is otherwise unremarkable piece of towpath is the point at which the original line of the canal left to wind its way to Bradley. The rest of that line is still navigable and at the end is the Bradley Workshop where many a lock gate is still manufactured, custom built for each lock.
At Coseley we noticed that the towpath was blocked off either side of Hills Bridge. We later discovered a stoppage notice about this which gives the cause a the imminent collapse of a third party wall very close to a narrow section of towpath. When we were here last in 2015 we moored at this point and made our way up to nearest church for Sunday morning service. At the time we noticed how near to collapse was this wall.
It can sometimes be quite intriguing what message lies behind items of graffiti. We did not know this one but subsequently discovered it to refer to one of the various conspiracy theories about the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center buildings. Quite why it merits this wall on a new housing estate in Coseley remains a mystery.
A little further and yet another new housing estate. Some very heavy duty equipment was on site being used to break up industrial quantities of concrete and stone to prepare for the new houses to be built. One just wonders what the gardens will be like when their new owners start to cultivate them!
Chillington Wharf was originally built by a nearby iron works to transport their product to the canal and load it onto waiting boats. It later became an important canal-rail interchange and what remains is now listed although little seems to be done to prevent its further deterioration. Historic England records it as the last remaining of some thirty similar developments across the country.
Just outside Wolverhampton, Albion Wharf is a large apartment development although one original warehouse has been preserved and converted, amongst all the new structures.
Rather later than we had hoped at lunch time, we arrived into Wolverhampton and moored where we have before, just outside Broad Street Basin. There are boater facilities here but we will leave using them until the morning!
13.8 Miles - 3 Locks
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