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Birmingham short routes


Jim B

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Afternoon boaters.

 

In mid-may we're taking a boat from Tardebigge up to Gas Street Basin in Brum. The route doesn't include any locks and one of our party is going to be very disappointed if we don't do any locking at all.

We'll have half a day or more spare in Birmingham; are there any routes we can do starting and ending at Gas Street (so most likely fore and back) that include a lock or 2 or, failing that, other interesting mechanical/engineering boat facilities?

Is it possible to, for example, join the Old Mainline, go through the Smethwick locks, wind at Engine Arm Junction and return? Is the Engine Arm canal navigable? Is the Soho loop worth doing?

 

Any suggestions/input appreciated, thanks!

 

Jim

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There is a CaRT video around showing the cleaning/ repair of the Engine arm - so if open it's a different place that few visit. Good facilities I understand.

How's about going dow from the centre and visit the Aston flight. A view of the mess on the HSR site plus a visit to the Science Place?

Plenty of locks but eay to use  

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Go down the new main line to Smethwick, turn onto the Old Main Line and up Smethwick locks.  Go round the Old Main Line and down Spon Lane locks and back not the old mail line to return to the centre of Birmingham.  That is the short variation, if you want to go a bit further you could continue on the old main line and then down Brades locks on the Gower branch to get back to the new main line,  you then get to do a staircase as well.

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Agree with John, go up Smethwick and then back via Spon Lane or Brades.  3 locks up and 3 locks down with a few hours of boating. On the way back you could also take in the Soho and Icknield Port loops if you wanted to.

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