john6767

If you are desperate there is Tesco's at Brownhills, as least it is close to the canal.

That is even more madness, that differs from the information on the web site. The web site and the T&C's say that you can not stay for more than 7 consecutive days, that sign says a single visit is a maximum of 7 days, a very different thing, given the lack of any return restrictions.

It it common for the larger Willow Wren boats to have young crews and stag or hen groups on them. Usually they are drunk, but so long as they are not hitting boats, or they are putting themselves or others in danger what is the issue. Just don't moor overnight near one!

Somebody likes it there

Having done the W&E 4 times (well more if you include both directions) in the last 3 years I would agree that it is so much better then people imagine. There is no issue with navigability, and on the BCN challenge I had no problem in achieving good average speeds of 3.5-3.8 mph, so dredging is certainly not an issue. The Daw End is slower though and I think that is due to be dredged soon, which it does need. My personal choice in doing what you are doing would be to head for Pellsall common for overnight. Also make certain that you get to Anglesey Basin, it is somewhere that I would like to visit in daylight, having only visited for an overnight stop in this year BCN challenge arriving at 10:40pm and leaving at 4:0am the next morning! If you are going out on the B&F the logical thing is to then gown gown Daw End and Rushall, and onto the Tame Valley to Salford Junction. The Tame Valley locks can be quite hard work in my opinion as there are different to the other BCN flights in that they are more spaced out, so with just 2 people it is not so easy to be setting the lock ahead without lots of walking.

I would have said the idea of the app to share the connection is just a throw back to early Android versions where it was not built it. My wife's (rubbish) HTC she is about to replace has Android 2.1, and even that has the wifi router capability in it.

And another thing is how are the wardens going to keep track of the fact that you may have left the defined Stoke Bruerne area and returned between his visits? For example I could be moored pointing north on the tunnel approach, when my 2 days is up I go a full boat length into the tunnel (hence have left the defined Stoke Bruerne area) and then reverse out of the tunnel and tie up again. By the rules that seems to be fine and I get another 2 days at that spot, but a mooring warden coming round once per day would presumable think I have been there 3 days when I was in fact on day 1 of my second visit. So how does this work?

That is really poor. That notice says from 23 August, the web page it directs you to say 24 August. Have they got an intern doing this (which is an insult to interns really)? The web page says So it seems to treat the different areas as "zones" and it sounds to me from the first point that it is 2 days is per zone not 2 days in Stoke Bruerne as a whole, and the second point says it is a max for 7 consecutive days in Stoke Bruerne as a whole (the referenced map and terms also say that). It does not say anything about return rules, so I guess any departure from Stoke Bruerne, means you can immediately return.

I think it has been said previous on all this malarkey that hire boats would be exempt from the X days part month part. I would assume share boats would not be though, so they would need to keep records.

Sorry about your dog, it must be very upsetting. I can't really see why a vet would care, or even understand what you meant, if you said you lived on a boat, but perhaps this one did. As to money, I think must peoples perception is that if you have a boat then you are loaded, andI thougth vets would treat strays etc first anyway and worry about payment later.

That was my point, it is not clear at all, and it think if you are going to have "strict" rules then it needs to be clear what those are. We can assume that it means tunnel mouth to bottom lock (and I guess it does), but it needs to say that. It also needs to state the return rules . I for one would not really understand where I stood here, and with a £25 fine if you get it wrong that does not seem to be acceptable. While I am not a big fan of lots of signs, this really needs one that fully explains the rules.

As it does not make any statement about return time, what is the intention here, 2 days is Stoke Bruerne as a whole, then what time period before you can return? Or can you have 2 days on the tunnel approach, and then 2 days on the long pound, then 2 days on the tunnel approach etc, until you hit your 10 days in a month?

You could contact Hawne Basin, there is a contact form on their web site not sure if there is a phone number, I used the web site when we stayed there. They will find you a (free) overnight spot in the basin. Remember Ghosty Hill tunnel is low, so clear the roof of stuff.

We were at Merry Hill a couple of weeks ago, and did what you are planning but in the other direction. There is a lot of mooring at Merry Hill. You will find lots of space I am certain on the rings on the embankment between the top of Delph and the Waterfront basin at Merry Hill. As we were coming the other way, and there was space, we stopped in the basin. It is very quiet there, most of the bars are closed down with the exception of Weatherspoons, which was handy for a cheap pint on our way out for the evening and a cooked breakfast in the morning.

He He, my thoughts exactly. Anyway on the boating front, what's keeping you, it will be winter at this rate before you get to Llangollen

I have been struggling a bit to know what to say here, as I have been very impressed with what John has apparently been achieving here in making some stuff happen, and I don't think this should take away from that. If I read the quote from John Dodwell in isolation, I don't think there is too much wrong there, perhaps some wording, but the sentiment that boaters contribute 30% of CRT revenue, makes boaters massively important to CRT to me, I would be interested to see if CRT themselves think that really is not the case, as presumably these are his personal comments and do not reflect those of CRT? What business could afford to ignore a segment that generates 30% of its revenue, that would be commercial madness. The whole idea that there are this huge number of people, quoted as 10 million but that seems like plucking numbers out of the air to me, who are bigger beneficiaries is great and I would agree, but not sure that really takes anything away from the fact the boats, and by implication boaters, are very important to CRT.

Richard has listed all the options I think, here is my personal insight. If you are at Shirley presumable near the Drawbridge now, then you have about 4 hours to the centre of Birmingham. If you are heading for the Shroppie then presumably you are doing down the 21 after that. So it depends on your timescales what you do. If you stop in the centre of Birmingham tomorrow, remember it is Friday night so all the bars etc in Brindley place will be heaving with all the after work get togethers, but is will quieten down around 9 when they all go home, and before the party animals arrive for the late shift. After than you could do a long run and down the 21 or go to the Black Country Museum. If you want to get further tomorrow you could aim straight for the Black Country Museum, (probably about 8 hours), and then you have an easy run on Saturday from there down the 21 and up the Shroppie to Wheaton Aston area, we did exactly that last summer. The Engine Arm also make a good stop off part way down the Main Line, but with Smethwick locks closed that does not make sense really.

But that is Warwick, and the other side of Warwick to Leamington at that. The OP ask specifically about Leamington. If you wanted a shopping trip or a night out in Leamington, then it would really be a taxi ride from Saltisford Arm. On the other hand if you are just looking for somewhere to stop to break the journey down into the Avon valley and up again, then it is fine, as is above Cape Locks (Warwick) or by Radford road bridge (Napton side of Leamington).

Quoting from the Telegraph article (yep, the same one describing the GU as in Oxford) "The backpack will be lent to the Canals and Rivers Trust, which is responsible for much of the country’s 200-year-old waterways." and "Volunteers at the trust will be fitted with the 4ft, 40lbs backpack, which has 15-angle lenses taking a picture every 2.5 seconds which can be merged into a 360degree view." so perhaps you can read into that no cost, I don't know.

I don't agree, at least what I have seen as the cyclists that cause the issues. What I am talking about is the mostly younger adult males on heavy duty mountain bikes, covered head to foot in mud. They are not looking to cycle on the road they want the rough mud covered towpaths and they want to go as fast as possible. They don't believe they are doing anything wrong, as far as they are concerned the towpath is a public cycleway, hence I believe education is needed here.

CRT have been promoting this on Twitter. There is some more info and a videos in this BBC article http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-23694523 and this Telegraph one http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/google/10242911/Google-Street-View-backpack-visits-UK-to-capture-countrys-canals-and-rivers.html. Looking forward to seeing the "Grand Union in Oxford" as the Telegraph reports . The disappointing part is that they are only doing 100 miles of the network it seems, so it is really a marketing exercise rather than providing a useful tool.

For those that don't know it, Leamington is a very nice upmarket town, it is just that the canal goes through the worst bit of it and not the centre. Because Leamington is such a good shopping centre the adjoining Warwick is very quiet in comparison, with not many shops at all. So if you want a shopping town, it is Leamington that you want not Warwick.

This summer the whole thing with cyclists on heavy duty mountain bikes riding at speed seems to have got a lot worse. There certainly needs to be some serious education if they are to be allowed to continue to use the towpaths, it is not safe the way things are.