Wilmcote

 Today's Canal - Stratford

Gradually the weather is drifting into autumn - a mixture of some of the more beautiful lighting conditions with swift alternation of sun, chill and wet.

Immediately we set off we had to descend Lowsonford Top Lock. 

Alongside is another barrel cottage but this one is now owned by the Landmark Trust and rented out as a holiday cottage. As a result it is very much the original configuration from the outside but no doubt has mod cons inside. We doubt if the small brick building in the garden remains as the only sanitary provision! 

As the lock emptied, from on the boat we could see this inscribed coping stone that is a reminder of the way in which prisoners, military personnel and volunteers were all marshalled into working on the restoration in the early 1960's. There are some old photos here and a short video here. The latter shows just how far attitudes to safety have progressed in the intervening half a century!

Christine started to walk ahead to set the next lock - bad idea! A she came down under the bridge a boat that was using the water point (and which had passed us ages earlier) spotted that we were coming through and quickly packed away their hosepipe and cast off just in front of us. Alas we had to follow them down the locks for the rest of the morning at what seemed more like a snail's pace. The seven minutes to go through a lock of yesterday turned into up to 20 minutes or more today.

The former bridge hole carried the only access to a small farm cottage which seems now to be abandoned. Older maps indicate that the track comes a couple of miles from not-the-nearest road. There is perhaps a story to be discovered here - was it part of a large estate or farm? How did the occupiers cope with being so remote from transport?

Just above Bucket Lock is the very short Yarningdale Aqueduct that carries the canal over a modest stream. We will cross two more aqueducts this morning, all built using this same cast iron trough design with the towpath at the level of the base of the canal. It is not obvious from this angle but this barrel cottage has one of the largest extensions that we have so far seen.

Mystery Photo: what is this?

Many of the accommodation bridges along the southern Stratford are of this type with simple block abutments and cast iron cantilevers in between. As they date from the time when the boats were pulled by horses, the fact that the towpath went around the bridge rather than underneath meant that the boat could not remain attached to he horse by the towrope. To avoid having to uncouple the rope, the two cantilevers have a small gap between them to allow the rope to pass. However this would still be cumbersome and take time but the cheaper construction cost was much more attractive to the canal promoters rather than easing the work of the boatmen. Capital v Labour is a long standing issue!

Although the hire base at Wootton Wawen had a number of boats tied up we imagine that quite a number are out. Reports suggest that there are plenty of people taking their holidays right through to half term at the end of the month.

Hill Farm Marina had only just opened three years ago when we took a short term visitor mooring here. Only some of the pontoons were occupied then but now it seems to be full - but does it attract any boaters? No gaps to suggest that any moorers were actually out boating!

The cafe and facilities block on the top of the hill had barely started construction then but is now complete.

Bearley (or Odd) Lock stands well apart from the nearest lock both above and below. However, just ahead is the long Edstone (or Bearley) Aqueduct crossing a small valley so perhaps the lock gave a more realistic height for the structure.

Andrew powered up his drone to record our crossing - here is a still as we neared the far side and shows the full extent of the engineering undertaking.

We reached Wilmcote and found plenty of room on the 48 hr moorings (actually there was no-one else, although an unofficial mooring a few hundred metres earlier was packed!) This was the last point we could be sure of a mooring before the long 13 lock Wilmcote flight and the towpath here is generally unsuitable for mooring other than at designated or recognised locations.

7.35 Miles - 9 Locks