Ian Mac
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Posts posted by Ian Mac
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We pass the old engine Arm at the top of the locks and head off towards Oldbury and the Crow. then under the new Telford Way tunnel, which hides the once great views of Galton Bridge.
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On returning to the mainline we pass Smethwick Corporation, Gas Works on the North side of the canal. Well not being a group to miss an opportunity, we pick up another load of Gas water, 17 tons this time. The "Automat Sehnsucht" fades off and we are back in the present, so its up Smethwick locks, these were originally a paired flight the other set of lock being on the off line side now. We did consider leaving the "" on however there are no extra points for using this lost part of the flight. The second set of locks were slowly being filled in in the late 60's, early Seventies. Some of the paddle gear from the in-filled locks made its way to the Upper Avon Trust.
credit - https://museumofthinobjects.com/blog/2014/05/23/iron-boat-dock-2/
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Having set the "Automat Sehnsucht" to 1848 off up the cape arm we go, first pass London Works manufactures of Ironwork for roofs, they tell us they made the roof for New St Station, we then pass the newly built Birmingham Screw Co St Georges Works, a fine industrial building designed by Thomas Plevins. Later to suffer a hostile take over and become part of GKN. We carry on down the line of the old canal to its end and then return to the original Cape arm which head of at right angles in a south westerly direction, we bag this as well, just managing to wind into the arm. This bit has been lost to modern development but the old main line is still in water if not accessible.
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Winson Green Junction 09:00am Tuesday 5th May
A good night out at the pub, having set the "Automat Sehnsucht" to 1957. So we are off to the home yard today, may dial the time back when we get there and have a chat with Charles and John, may have to do a quick bit of research to work out the best date.
First thing though is to head for for the Cape Arm. This is yet another arm where we can not get the horse in, so we will have to shaft up, and back
You enter the arm through a silly little tunnel under an old railway embankment. Although called the Cape arm now this was originally the main Brindley route and it came out at Winson Green Junction near enough. the original Cape Arm left about have way along. The far end was closed off with the coming of the railway and Telfords New Main Line, making it into an arm with a forked end. -
24 minutes ago, Captain Pegg said:
Point of order and it’s a common mistake but Winston was a Prime Minister not a Green. There’s no ‘t’ - Winson Green.
Fixed
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Winson Green Junction, taken just before we leave for the pub having started to activated started to the "Automat Sehnsucht" so you can't see the boat! We are retiring to either the Old Smithy or the Acorn Inn, in having set the magic gizmo set to 1957.
Credit - Wikimedia
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Leaving the top of Farmer Bridge Locks and Farmers Bridge Junction behind, we head of for Deep Cuttings Junction, passing the roundabout to the right. This repositioned Roundabout was installed for the second World War and allowed stanks to be installed at night to stop the possibility of bombs dropping onto the cut and piercing the railway tunnels leading to New St station. When the canal was drained in the mid 19080's to allow the bed to be examined especially over the tunnels, the opportunity was taken to reposition the island in a more boater friendly position, very few people notice this.
We let go of the line and head for the Oozell St wharf Loop, which we shaft along, we getting a dab hand at this and having a full deck makes it a lot easier.
Picking the Hos' up again we are running a bit late so we head straight to Atlas Works on the Soho loop, where using the magic of the "Automat Sehnsucht" we are able to off-load our load of Gas Water, and more to the point get paid. Unfortunately it might just buy the first round, so we may have to use the magic machine again tonight.
Having spent over an hour at the works we are off again, to Winston Green Junction where we will spend the night. -
6 hours ago, cheshire~rose said:
You could have knitted another scarf with those cobwebs
Flipping stables, not the same as the use to be!
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Good run through to Gas Street, turned the "" to 1840 on and stuck our nose through the bridge into Old wharfe just to have a looksee - flipping Heck its all full of coal boats.
shafted back out of the bridge and turned the magic machine off, through the line to Richard and set off for Farmers Bridge Junction.
This is not where the silly roundabout island is that is actually Deep Cuttings Junction, and its not Old Turn which is a little further back along the mainline towards Hampton where the Ozzell St Wharf Loop Line goes off.
Farmers Bridge Junction is at the top of the lock flight, where Cambrian Wharf and what is now the boarded up Flapper pub is/was The old Longboat Pub with its Bolinder in for those old enough to remember.
Cambrian Wharf is the start of the Newhall Branch, a branch built by law. The Birmingham Canal Co was about to build what is called Old Wharfe then called Birmingham Wharf on land at Brickkiln Place, but the owner of the land where the Newhall Branch was due to go on New Hall Ring was upset that the BCC where not proposing to build the branch onto his land, so he went to parliament and got an act to force then to do so. His name William Colmore.
We turn the "Automat Sehnsucht" on set to 1890 and proceeded all the way along the Newhall Branch shafting in and out past col boats galore, on the way back we ventured unannounce up the Gibson branch and through the lock, got into trouble for wasting water but a silver sixpence sorted that out. Several arms up here so we took the longest one and bungled down to the end and back. Then it was back down the lock and back to the hos' at Cambrian Wharf.
Whilst we were there we quickly set the "" to 1998 and met one of our sister boats
although they were not loaded
Credits
https://www.birminghammail.co.uk
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Further info about our passage of Lapal
It cost us an extra 3 bob, which having planned ahead we had a load of proper money, but we thought it would just be for beer. Off to the antique shops in Brum this afternoon to get more!
The 3 Shillings was to pay for the extra leggers which we had to have as we were part loaded. We had set the "Automat Sehnsucht" to 1843 so we could take advantage of the newly installed pumping system which speeds up the passage through the tunnel. Even so it still took nearly 3hrs to do the 3470m of Tunnel. Lots of "Interesting" brickwork as we came through!
really quite a slow day this day what with Gosty Hill and Lapal, and having to leg through both, not that it made much difference to the time taken through Gosty Hill! -
So whats the problem you ask, we we carried on to Lapal Dropped Richard off with the Hos' and prepared to enter the tunnel. All of a sudden Richard yells back that he has reaach the limit of the "Automat Sehnsucht" time warping field and what should he do, we agree the "Automat Sehnsucht" has to stay with the boat, and Richard has to revert to modern times a take some route over the top. We set off into the tunnel with Gods grace the level is up the correct way and the water flow is helping, but its a long leg to the other end.
When we arrive we take a couple of scoops in the California Inn conveniently situated above the Eastern Portal. However No Richard, and more to the point no Hos' i dawns on us of cause Richard and the Hos' can not discover us as we are in a different time period and we can't turn of the "Automat Sehnsucht" because we will be stuck high and dry or maybe under the soil!!! So we have to bow haul the boat to the Worcester & Brum where once round the juction we can turn the "Automat Sehnsucht" off and discover Richard.As Richard is not behind the door, when he still see green fields he carries on walking along the best route getting over the mM5 he said was fun! When arrives at the W&B, we have turned off the dreaded machine, we are knackered, but we have the horse now, so we off to Old Wharfe, to start getting points again.
Credits
image 1 https://www.closedpubs.co.uk/warwickshire/birmingham_b29_california.html
look at their interactive map
image 2 Lapal Canal Trust FB page
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Discovered a new problem!
Having legged through Gosty Hill whilst Richard walked the hos' over the top, we decided to engaged the "Automat Sehnsucht" a bit early before we got to Hanwe Basin, Bloody hell there are a lot of boats about all of a sudden! Fortunately because we had a part load on the empties coming back from the basin had to drop their lines.
image stolen from http://www.workingboats.com/bcn.htm
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Richard, whom is the horse lad, didn't realise to start with, that he was going to have to walk through the tunnel, he thought he was going to get it easy for all three, and wrapped up well warm.
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I've another suggestion for next time can we make the columns on the Daily score sheet have the same order as the columns on the Route Planner so one can just copy and paste the info across.
Also noted 145A Should be "Junction" not Juction-
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With it being With it being so cold this morning, we were glad to get inside Netherton Tunnel once we had the hos' past the stupid gate thing. quite warn in there
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Whilst my mate was down in the stables, I popped in to get fill the can, with water. Bloody Cold out, however it will some warm up a bit and then hopefully the sun will come out.
Wonder why my neck was getting cold and I had two scarfs on!-
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No Hard Stuff for us tonight - the pub had a beer and cider only licence. The ladies had to use the same loo, not that we saw many.
Mixing the Dark Mild and the rough Cider to make what was called Mud seemed a jolly good idea though. -
Just spotted another little gremlin on the Route Planner.
Row 93 is Tipton Green Junction to Factory Junction and is 0.5Miles
Row 94 is Factory Junction to Tipton Green Junction and is 1Mile
Canal Planner says its 0.7 and my Edwards says 0.4 and Mr Dunham also implies 0.4miles
It really is pick a number time. -
Those in the know would not call him Alan but Taff. I'm looking forwards to hearing the stories of just how you handle the Bolinder. Also how you go on rigging a "Automat Sehnsucht" up to an engine which will run in either direction just for the fun of it! Even if it does have a gear box
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Well we have moored up for the night at Dudley Port Junction. We have been playing with our "Automat Sehnsucht" attempting to discover how to adapt it to use with the hos'. We have been given the special power pack for unpowered boats. We think we have sussed a method. This has had the wonderful side effect of allowing us to use it as well. So we have set it to 1870 and we are about to walking back up the cut to Dudley Port where we are thinking of going to "The Aqueduct Inn" for a few scoops.
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Well the boat is swimming a lot better have taken on a load of Gas Water from 'Hampton works as we passed yesterday. Stopped overnight at Horseley Field, now in Tipton getting provisions. Some people don't understand social distancing here. We are slowly doing to terms with the load!
On a separate point, I notice from the scoring that the distance from Old Turn to Smethwick does not vary with route, A little unfair I think especially as the aim of the challenge was to get people to use the less used waterways. Its over a mile shorter by the mainline, that is after all why it was built. -
Another question - I notice whilst planning that line 127 of the planner refers to the Cape Arm, I thought it was a loop of the old mainline and came out near Wiston Green Stop, at the eastern end and where the Cape Arm is labelled at the other. More research required. I thought the Winston Stop end went when the railways came. Missing additional easy miles.
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3 minutes ago, TheBiscuits said:
Just in case you actually mean you don't understand, Withymoor Island Trust is where the "real" 2020 challenge was meant to finish before the virus cancelled it.
The great people at that club were moving their own boats out of the way so we could all moor up there on the Sunday, and the guys from Ma Pardoe's were bringing a beer tent down for the weekend.
Oh I get it now, still not sure what the OR means, but Hey Ho. Currently having to share my polly pin of TinPlate Mild from Irwell Works Brewery with the First Mate!, hope he's brought some as we appear to be make a large hole in it
I never really plan to attend these events, however every now and then we seems to take part, its always just a bit of a mystery!Oh I do get it you and only claim one OR the other!
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Having stopped for the night (at a junction) to allow our Chef and cabin boy to catch up with us, and give the Hos' a rest, I thought I might get down to doing a bit of planning.
However I have got mightily confused, easily done I'm looking at the route planner and getting in a mess
On the route planner in the spreadsheet lines 135 & 137
gets me from Park Head J to Windmill end J via Blackbrook junction ( which is the end of the two lock line)
This is in black so it exists now, this I understand.
Also in black on line 139 Park Head Junction to Withymoor island OR
and on line 140 is Windmill end to Withymoor island.
I do not understand these last two, what am I missing?And then to really finish it off line 148 talks about Blackwood Junction - i'm guessing Captain Cock-up visited and this should be Blackbrook Junction as this entry is for the two lock line.
Richard, whom is the horse lad, didn't realise to start with, that he was going to have to walk through the tunnel, he thought he was going to get it easy for all three, and wrapped up well warm.
With it being With it being so cold this morning, we were glad to get inside Netherton Tunnel once we had the hos' past the stupid gate thing. quite warn in there
Team NB Styxl - Virtual BCN Challenge 2020 Cruise Log
in Cruise Diaries & Reports
Posted · Edited by Ian Mac
We pass the top of Spon Lane locks, over the railway and the New Main line and round the corner to Oldbury locks. We make our way up the Crow, as they were know, half way up we invoke the "Automat Sehnsucht" and shove our nose into the Crow Arm, a half mile arm serving the various chemical work here about, we are quickly unloaded.
You can see the entrance to the crow branch on the left of the image going under the towpath, below the lock
credit - https://birminghamhistory.co.uk/forum/index.php?threads/canals-of-birmingham.4054/page-42"