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Mooring near Oldbury?


gatekrash

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We're currently sat on the Stourbridge, near the bottom of the 16.

 

Tomorrow's plan was originally up the 16 and Delph, and stop at Merry Hill, with Saturday being to push on through Netherton tunnel, right through Brum and stop at Hopwood which is one of our usual haunts and then crack on down Tardebigge to Droitwich on Sunday, which we know we can nail in a long day as we've done it many times. Need to get back home down south by Monday evening for an appointment with a tree surgeon on Tuesday morning 🙂

 

However given the weather forecast is foul for Saturday we are thinking of pushing on tomorrow instead. Pearson reckons from where we are to Netherton tunnel entrance is going to be about 8 hours. That means if we want to push on we're realistically looking at stopping somewhere around Oldbury / Smethwick tomorrow night, assuming the Pearson times are accurate.

 

Should I just stick with plan A and get wet on Saturday or should I divert onto the old main line on Friday evening to find somewhere secure in that area, or are the Pearson times pessimistic for the flights, in which case I'll be able to push on to Ouzells loop or gas street, assuming that they're not rammed by the evening. 

 

We're pretty fast up flights, our usual average for Tardebigge is 3 and a half hours going up with the Mrs driving and me setting ahead and coming back to work the lock we're in but that flight is easy, and I don't know what the 16 and Delph are like.

 

Any suggestions to avoid having to move too far in the forecast torrential rain welcome !

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You could stop at Windmill End before Netherton tunnel or go through the tunnel and moor, there are bollards just through the narrows which I've used overnight.  If you get through Netherton at a reasonable time you could just run along the main line in to Birmingham.

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If you think you can get to Smethwick then is not long from there to centre of Birmingham.  If you get to the top of Smethwick and want to stop there is a visitor mooring in the winding hole at the end of the Engine Arm which is secure.

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A couple of years ago I stopped on the New Main Line at Bromford Junction, heading towards Wolverhampton. Not a secure location, but I didn't see a soul all evening or next morning before I set off.  If I had been going the other way I think I would have pushed on to Birmingham.

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4 minutes ago, ditchcrawler said:

The pontoon was quite silted when I stopped for lunch last time

I would have said that but dinner beckoned.

The thing is that there are many places to moor between Netherton and Birmingham. We've probably stopped at all of them.

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Bottom of Stourbridge to centre of Birmingham is possible in a day. I think Stourbridge and Delph are quite hard work as narrow locks go, they are mostly very deep, particularly at Delph. The combined fall of the 24 locks is more than the 30 locks of Tardebigge.

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12 hours ago, gatekrash said:

We're currently sat on the Stourbridge, near the bottom of the 16.

 

Tomorrow's plan was originally up the 16 and Delph, and stop at Merry Hill, with Saturday being to push on through Netherton tunnel, right through Brum and stop at Hopwood which is one of our usual haunts and then crack on down Tardebigge to Droitwich on Sunday, which we know we can nail in a long day as we've done it many times. Need to get back home down south by Monday evening for an appointment with a tree surgeon on Tuesday morning 🙂

 

However given the weather forecast is foul for Saturday we are thinking of pushing on tomorrow instead. Pearson reckons from where we are to Netherton tunnel entrance is going to be about 8 hours. That means if we want to push on we're realistically looking at stopping somewhere around Oldbury / Smethwick tomorrow night, assuming the Pearson times are accurate.

 

Should I just stick with plan A and get wet on Saturday or should I divert onto the old main line on Friday evening to find somewhere secure in that area, or are the Pearson times pessimistic for the flights, in which case I'll be able to push on to Ouzells loop or gas street, assuming that they're not rammed by the evening. 

 

We're pretty fast up flights, our usual average for Tardebigge is 3 and a half hours going up with the Mrs driving and me setting ahead and coming back to work the lock we're in but that flight is easy, and I don't know what the 16 and Delph are like.

 

Any suggestions to avoid having to move too far in the forecast torrential rain welcome !

 

 A few years ago myself and a friend did Stourton, above the locks, to the centre of Brum in 10.5 hours, this included going in on the Old Main Line via Brades and a trip up the Engine Arm.

 

A few pictures:

 

(4) Facebook

 

 

Edited by Tim Lewis
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I've done Stourbridge to Birmingham in a day.  Wasn't too bad.

 

If that's too much, these are places I've moored beyond Merry Hell:

 

Windmill End,

Just North of Netherton Tunnel,

Just East of Bromford Lane Bridge (very near Oldbury),

Just below Spon Lane bottom lock

Below Smethwick Pump House.

 

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You could always stop at the Withymoor Island Trust (give them a ring first to check there's space), secure and friendly, £10 deposit for a gate key but you get it back when you leave. It's the nearest mooring to Ma Pardoe's too... 😉

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Cheers all, we made better time than expected, except for a slight delay at Delph locks whilst we removed the fishing net from our prop... Hardly saw a boat all day. Now sat on Gas Street mooring on the first Friday after "freedom day" and the first week of the summer holidays. Could be a noisy night !!

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3 hours ago, gatekrash said:

Cheers all, we made better time than expected, except for a slight delay at Delph locks whilst we removed the fishing net from our prop... Hardly saw a boat all day. Now sat on Gas Street mooring on the first Friday after "freedom day" and the first week of the summer holidays. Could be a noisy night !!

Wasn't to bad last weekend

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