Ken X

As Tony says I would definitely try water only. You have a few unknowns to sort and I suspect you will be draining again before the cooler weather. Once you have a stable system then introduce the antifreeze.

They have something similar on the top gate balance beams at Evesham lock on the Avon. There are sliding extensions which you can pull out of the end of the balance beam to give extra leverage. Around three feet long Iong IIRC.

Might be worth a chat to the Anglo Welsh engineers, being as you must be right outside their yard. They could suggest a welder or source of spares.

The wide beam at Hanbury Wharf caught our eye a couple of weeks ago. Did wonder how it got there and why. Not the biggest cruising area.

Don't know about duckweed and algae but the floating Pennywort at Alvechurch is thriving. Saw some at the Shirley lift Bridge as well.

Thats great, many thanks, I will put aside some time to play. Looks like I have some learning to do which is always a good thing.

Hi, if you will tolerate a bit of thread drift, what software was used to create the map with photos? I have been asked to produce a similar display recently and was wondering how to achieve the very effect you have shown. Many thanks.

Indeed, this is us tucked up for the night after a days winter boating. Everything to hand and very warm when winter boating.

The plan we follow is to decide where we wish to cruise, pick a hire base then spend an evening or two planning stops, locating possible eateries and local shops. We find that we eat in and out on alternate nights and take enough food to achieve most of the meals. Our stocks are generally tinned or dry foods we can take home again with a locally bought meat or veggie ingredient if we chose to use them. Inevitably we have a second look after mooring to check if other or better options are available. Google maps, open canal map etc are our apps of choice. Flexibility is key.

We were surprised to be honest. It always struck us as a location with plenty of route options. Talking with the bods at Wootton Wawen it was a bit quick in closing. One minute they had all the boats prepped for the coming season the next minute closure was announced. Apparently Wootton Wawen engineers are covering the Oxford yard for call outs so what with an unexpected influx of unfamiliar boats from Tardebigge they are flat out. Diesel pump was inop on Saturday so they were struggling all round. It'll be interesting to see how Anglo get on running three sites on the K & A now they have picked up Sally Boats.

Just to report back and close off our trip. Thanks to everyone who assisted with advice. We wombled round the ring in 10 days with stops at Stratford and Worcester and an extra pootle up to Knowle locks just because we could. Points of interest, the Stratford Canal down to Stratford was fine if a little low on water. Mooring in Bancroft basin was easy with several places available. The Avon proved a bit challenging for OC Domestic due to the height of the lock landings. At 4' 11" she is a bit lacking in the leg department and had to scramble up and down a few times. Lock gates occasionally a bit stiff but generally OK. Loads of moorings available but had to do a bit of boat shuffling at Tewkesbury. The Severn was fine and provided our first Kingfisher sighting of the trip. We arrived at the aggregate wharf just as they were doing a bit of boat rearranging but a few horn signals soon sorted out who was going where. Diglis lock was quiet and we slid onto the pontoon just above, where there was plenty of room. After a day in Worcester we ascended the Worcester and Birmingham Canal stopping at Tibberton and Stoke Prior where our second Kingfisher perched on the boat. Again moorings were easy to find at both locations. The Tardebigge flight was a real pleasure, we bumped into a volunteer at the second or third lock and he went ahead setting for us for the whole flight. Result was we topped out the flight in four hours having got into a nice rhythm. We noticed Anglo Welsh have closed their Tardebigge operation which was a pity as we have used the site many times over the years. Stopping at Alvechurch we then turned right at King's Norton, pausing for a pump-out at Lyons Yard. Very pleasant lady sorted us out. Turned out they are just getting over a nasty fire so hopefully they will be up and running fully soon. Shirley lift bridge was a dream as the road was closed for resurfacing. Just had to make sure the road crew were clear of the barriers and counterweight and we were through. Picked up a couple of volunteers halfway down Lapworth who were happy to help if we wanted them to and we moored easily at Kingswood. Some of the Lapworth locks proved difficult to achieve a top level but we got there. Having spent a day on the Grand Union, where we saw our final Kingfisher, we returned to Kingswood to find the same mooring still free. The last day down the Stratford to Wootton Wawen proved to be the most difficult with heavy gates not fully opening and jumping cogs on paddle gear. Overall impressions were that it was generally quiet on the network. The grass was very long everywhere and there was no sign of contractors which was unusual as we usually either see them or the evidence of their activities. We saw as many hire boats as private and well over half the hirers we chatted to were from overseas. We had conversations with a few C&RT bods and moral is sadly low. We commented that the system seems to be generally decaying and they agreed. The consensus was that there was not enough money or staff to arrest the degradation despite them working as hard as they could to keep things going. The policy appears to be fix after failure rather than preventative maintenance. Disappointingly this is resulting in verbal abuse from boaters towards staff and one engineer we met had just received a real pasting. We stopped, chatted, and hopefully brightened his day a bit. He was trying to fix a lock paddle gear he knew was in poor condition and had numerous jobs he knew needed doing in the area. He seemed to be overwhelmed with work with no prospect of clearing the backlog. In conclusion the Avon is a great little ring plenty of interest and numerous places to eat and visit. The only caveat is enjoy it whilst we still can as the network is creaking and seems nearer to failing every trip.

The Black Boy has 24 hr moorings for patrons. Three or perhaps four smaller boats worth.

If you have allowed four nights for this ring I would definitely be heading for Gas Street for your first night. It's around 10 1/2 miles, so four hours is quite possible. Not many moored boats to pass on this stretch.

This is probably the case. Over the years we have been hiring we have met several historic boats and, so far, they have been chatty and more than happy to show us their boats. Two examples come to mind. A few years ago we were just closing the top gates at Braunston when a bow hove into view behind us, presumably followed by a boat. We reopened the gates and George slid in alongside. We shared the Braunston and Buckby flights with the owners and had a good look at the Bolinder which was causing the whole boat to oscillate up and down in the locks. They were very pleasant to work with. Last year we travelled from Middlewich to Lymm with a boat who's name escapes me but we were behind her waiting at the first timed tunnel. The solo lady helm insisted we pass her and transit the tunnels in front of her as she said she would be slow and smokey making our journey unpleasant.