No go areas

[Heartland]

On another forum, there was mention of towpaths where cyclists and walkers might be threatened by certain individuals who congregate there. Do boaters experience such abuse?

 

[magnetman]

Northampton arm and the town part of the Nene were a little discombobulating when we went there about 20 yars ago but things could have changed. 

 

 

[Ex Brummie]

On the last couple of occasions I've used the Grand Union from Camp Hill through to Acocks Green I've felt uneasy, and that's on a boat!. There is little access off the towpath and there is little development around the canal. There is some history of the area through Small Heath. 

It's disappointing to see this as it was our adventure playground as kids, digging up the old landfill from Birmingham Refuse Dept, and bullets from the disused rifle ranges of the B.S.A. 

Another place where I was always careful was at Sekky Oak on the Worcs -Bham where the canal passed under the road and railway line and was reduced to 7ft for about 100yds (at least it seemed that long. ) There was evidence of glue sniffers and other drug use but I only ever saw one individual and he was so out of it that I doubt he saw me.

[Nightwatch]

I don’t particularly like Crook now after our attempted break in. But it’s the only time I have heard of such an incident.

 

 

Edited May 2 by Nightwatch

[rusty69]

2 minutes ago, Nightwatch said:

I don’t particularly like Crook now after our attempted break in. But it’s the only time I have heard of such an incident.

 

 

I'm not sure what you expected. The place is probably full of them. 

[Pie Eater]

49 minutes ago, Nightwatch said:

I don’t particularly like Crook now after our attempted break in. But it’s the only time I have heard of such an incident.

 

 

Is that Crooke in Wigan or is there a Crook somewhere else.

[magnetman]

Henley on Thames is full of crooks. 

[rusty69]

Kingston upon Thames is full of Queens. 

Kingston upon Hull is full of boats. 

[Nightwatch]

54 minutes ago, Pie Eater said:

Is that Crooke in Wigan or is there a Crook somewhere else.

Wigan.

[magnetman]

I had trouble with scrotes half way up Wigan flight in 2009. Ended up mooring in a lock chamber until they went away. Untied the boat and jumped on the roof. The buggers. 

 

That was yars ago. 

 

Another dodgy place was Tottenham Hell on the Lee. 

 

Aggressive cows were encountered near Kelmscott on Thames which was quite alarming at the time. 

[Captain Pegg]

1 hour ago, Ex Brummie said:

On the last couple of occasions I've used the Grand Union from Camp Hill through to Acocks Green I've felt uneasy, and that's on a boat!. There is little access off the towpath and there is little development around the canal. There is some history of the area through Small Heath. 

It's disappointing to see this as it was our adventure playground as kids, digging up the old landfill from Birmingham Refuse Dept, and bullets from the disused rifle ranges of the B.S.A. 

Another place where I was always careful was at Sekky Oak on the Worcs -Bham where the canal passed under the road and railway line and was reduced to 7ft for about 100yds (at least it seemed that long. ) There was evidence of glue sniffers and other drug use but I only ever saw one individual and he was so out of it that I doubt he saw me.

 

I think Selly Oak has become a lot more welcoming in recent times. The building of the Unite Students accomodation, the footbridge, the new winding hole and public space opposite and the general towpath upgrades that result in a lot of towpath footfall is a big improvement in making it feel a lot less isolated. It's still a bit gloomy under the bridges, particularly the southern one which is away from the development but I've never felt threatened there.

 

As for Acocks Green to Camp Hill it's pretty grim for sure but generally you can stay in mid-channel and mind your own business. I think anyone up to no good on the towpath is generally happy for you to mind your own business while they attend to theirs. I don't think most of them are much interested in what you're doing.

 

 

Edited May 2 by Captain Pegg

[Hudds Lad]

4 hours ago, Ex Brummie said:

On the last couple of occasions I've used the Grand Union from Camp Hill through to Acocks Green I've felt uneasy, and that's on a boat!. There is little access off the towpath and there is little development around the canal. There is some history of the area through Small Heath. 

It's disappointing to see this as it was our adventure playground as kids, digging up the old landfill from Birmingham Refuse Dept, and bullets from the disused rifle ranges of the B.S.A.

Did that stretch last year, ended up pushing right through to Minworth to moor up in the dark. Never seen so many empty whipped cream cans in me life (now know they are nitrous oxide cans). We met a bunch of teens at a lock who took time out of their weed dealing to try and sell us a CD of their own music, another bunch under a bridge who just wanted us to sound the horn, and a bunch of lads under a bridge who just didn’t want to be seen.

At one point, i think it was whilst waiting for Camp Hill Top Lock, a local chap on a bike doubled back to ask if we were mad enough to be considering mooring there and advised against it as there was a nearby halfway house that had just opened and he said it was fine in daylight but not safe after dark. When we assured him we were moving a lot further on he just chatted about the chained up service block by the wharf that he told us seemed to get renovated, opened, trashed and then chained up again on a frequent basis. He couldn’t understand why they keep on wasting money on it.

It was an interesting cruise, but i’m glad we pushed through.

[Neil TNC]

8 hours ago, Hudds Lad said:

Did that stretch last year, ended up pushing right through to Minworth to moor up in the dark. Never seen so many empty whipped cream cans in me life (now know they are nitrous oxide cans). We met a bunch of teens at a lock who took time out of their weed dealing to try and sell us a CD of their own music, another bunch under a bridge who just wanted us to sound the horn, and a bunch of lads under a bridge who just didn’t want to be seen.

At one point, i think it was whilst waiting for Camp Hill Top Lock, a local chap on a bike doubled back to ask if we were mad enough to be considering mooring there and advised against it as there was a nearby halfway house that had just opened and he said it was fine in daylight but not safe after dark. When we assured him we were moving a lot further on he just chatted about the chained up service block by the wharf that he told us seemed to get renovated, opened, trashed and then chained up again on a frequent basis. He couldn’t understand why they keep on wasting money on it.

It was an interesting cruise, but i’m glad we pushed through.

When we last stopped at the Camp Hill "Lock in" The shut Services was in a mildly trashed state, with the extra security smashed off the doors. That evening we heard youths in the services, I went in, they scarpered. They legged it out through the outer yard and (with the locked gate) and over a wall. The inner gate had no padlock on, so we put on one of our own. The next morning there were still kids fiddling around in the services block, when we got up  they casually left easily getting past the fence spikes, where the fence meets the water.

[frahkn]

14 hours ago, Captain Pegg said:

 

I think Selly Oak has become a lot more welcoming in recent times. The building of the Unite Students accomodation, the footbridge, the new winding hole and public space opposite and the general towpath upgrades that result in a lot of towpath footfall is a big improvement in making it feel a lot less isolated. It's still a bit gloomy under the bridges, particularly the southern one which is away from the development but I've never felt threatened there.

 

As for Acocks Green to Camp Hill it's pretty grim for sure but generally you can stay in mid-channel and mind your own business. I think anyone up to no good on the towpath is generally happy for you to mind your own business while they attend to theirs. I don't think most of them are much interested in what you're doing.

 

 

When we are off the boat (about 6 months of the year) we walk the dog along that stretch most days, I've never experienced any difficulty on the towpath.

 

I'm always impressed with boats (particularly hire boats) willing to use that route - there are more of them than you would expect given the general scruffiness of the surroundings.

[beerbeerbeerbeerbeer]

Interesting to read the comments about Selly Oak.

I passed through yesterday and stopped on way to Brum to do a bit of shopping.

It all looked quite busy and pleasant.
There’re are new benches that the locals enjoy.

A lot of effort has gone in to making it a decent spot. 
 

The Wharf looked so inviting I have returned on this sunny day to set up shop and trade.

And my task is to fathom out the old route and the new proposed routes to and from Halesowen. 

 

 

 

Edited May 3 by Goliath

[robtheplod]

Dudley is a bit grim, just outside the Black Country Museum... got kids untying us and calling me an old man (for the record i was about 50!)... we ended up squeezing into the museum itself and it was fine...

[enigmatic]

19 hours ago, magnetman said:

Northampton arm and the town part of the Nene were a little discombobulating when we went there about 20 yars ago but things could have changed. 

Was absolutely fine when I've been there (a couple of times in the last couple of years)

 

The flight has the option of using the services of Leon the boozy unofficial volockie and the park mooring was taken over by CMers in scruffy cruisers, but otherwise it's a very standard mid-size town centre, and the locals I met were very nice.

 

Selly Oak looks fine these days too: I considered using the ring moorings the new development has added overnight. Now the bit of northern Brum the Birmingham and Fazeley passes through really does look like a hole, but even there the middle aged lady tagging the bridges with a spray can cheerfully ignored me, the passer by who did acknowledge me shut a gate for me and the only really bad thing about the Aston Business Park moorings was the desperately poor choice in the local food stores. The rain might have scared some of the dodgier characters away, mind you.

[Hudds Lad]

25 minutes ago, robtheplod said:

Dudley is a bit grim, just outside the Black Country Museum... got kids untying us and calling me an old man (for the record i was about 50!)... we ended up squeezing into the museum itself and it was fine...

[Ex Brummie]

I did specify just the one stretch of Selly Oak where the canal narrows below the bridges, and it was some years ago. We often stop for shopping near the supermarkets.

[Heartland]

It was regarding Camp Hill- Small Heath where concern was raised. There seems to be a particular issues regarding there where walkers fear to tread.

 

[john6767]

20 hours ago, Ex Brummie said:

On the last couple of occasions I've used the Grand Union from Camp Hill through to Acocks Green I've felt uneasy, and that's on a boat!. There is little access off the towpath and there is little development around the canal. There is some history of the area through Small Heath. 

It's disappointing to see this as it was our adventure playground as kids, digging up the old landfill from Birmingham Refuse Dept, and bullets from the disused rifle ranges of the B.S.A. 

Another place where I was always careful was at Sekky Oak on the Worcs -Bham where the canal passed under the road and railway line and was reduced to 7ft for about 100yds (at least it seemed that long. ) There was evidence of glue sniffers and other drug use but I only ever saw one individual and he was so out of it that I doubt he saw me.

We done both those areas over the last few days.  Sally Oak on the W&B has a very busy towpath with walkers and cyclists, it does not feel threatening at all given the number of people about in the daytime at least.  Busy with boats too.

 

Camp Hill is a different matter!  Approaching Bordesley junction from Birmingham it is a real post apocalyptic scene, every surface is covered in graffiti, and the surrounding area is a right mess.  The top on Camp Hill locks is worse than it was, the services are closed and trashed and some of the surrounding buildings are demolished, there is no longer any secure mooring there.  That said, yesterday there were few people about on the flight and the only issue was stiff paddles.  From Camp Hill to Catherine de Barnes has few redeeming features, even when you get past to worst of the rubbish in the water at Olton, it’s in a gloomy cutting.

[Captain Pegg]

3 hours ago, robtheplod said:

Dudley is a bit grim, just outside the Black Country Museum... got kids untying us and calling me an old man (for the record i was about 50!)... we ended up squeezing into the museum itself and it was fine...

That’s Tipton. Dudley is in a different county altogether. Historically at any rate.

[frahkn]

1 hour ago, Heartland said:

It was regarding Camp Hill- Small Heath where concern was raised. There seems to be a particular issues regarding there where walkers fear to tread.

 

As I said, a few posts ago, there is no reason for walkers to be concerned in this area.

 

I don't worry and I'll be 70 later this year - of course I don't look like a cop, nor a potential customer for the occasional "traders" along the stretch.

[ditchcrawler]

52 minutes ago, Captain Pegg said:

That’s Tipton. Dudley is in a different county altogether. Historically at any rate.

If I am that way its John the Lock mooring in Tipton, I really dont like the moorings at the BCM

[Captain Pegg]

5 minutes ago, ditchcrawler said:

If I am that way its John the Lock mooring in Tipton, I really dont like the moorings at the BCM

The BCLM moorings should be secure but it seems the gate on the access road to the service block is left open or unlocked.