Which Way shall I go?

[churchward]

I shall be taking our boat out on a trip shortly. We will be making our way to Stourport on the Staffs & Worcester but the question taxing me has been which way to return to our home mooring at Brinklow.

 

First thought was to go out on the river for short way and turn onto the Droitwhich and then connect up with the Worcester & Brum etc.

 

alternative that has got me thinking is back track from Stourport to Stourton Jcn and go onto the BCN on the Stourbridge canal through Netherton tunnel and thru Brum connecting up with the Worcester & brum canal later. We enjoyed the BCN a lot a couple of years ago so an opportunity to do some more we haven't been through before would be good.

 

Any thoughts and preferences?

[OldGoat]

I shall be taking our boat out on a trip shortly. We will be making our way to Stourport on the Staffs & Worcester but the question taxing me has been which way to return to our home mooring at Brinklow.

 

First thought was to go out on the river for short way and turn onto the Droitwhich and then connect up with the Worcester & Brum etc.

 

alternative that has got me thinking is back track from Stourport to Stourton Jcn and go onto the BCN on the Stourbridge canal through Netherton tunnel and thru Brum connecting up with the Worcester & brum canal later. We enjoyed the BCN a lot a couple of years ago so an opportunity to do some more we haven't been through before would be good.

 

Any thoughts and preferences?

 

 

There has much been said on these fora recently - did you read them??

 

My personal preference is for a ring, rather than a "there and back" which is your first choice. Presumably for brevity's sake you didn't expand on what parts of the BCN you have already done which makes a sensible suggestion more difficult.

 

Anyway the best parts of the BCN to my mind are all around the centre, the further away you get the less attractive some areas are. The Stourbridge up to the arm is delightful, but I find the 16, Delph and Dudley canals dour and oppressive in places. Haven't been there for years, so it may have changed. The new Mainline is straight and featureless, whereas the Old line has more character, but not worth turning onto it unless you've never gone to BCM which can be a delight the first time you visit it. Mooring and services outside are also useful.

 

 

 

If you are going down the Severn, why not visit Worcester - quite a bit to see and it isn't much more time than turning up the Droitwich. Tardebigge is a "thing to be done", but there's nowhere to pause - so you rush through (no difference to any long flight of locks - just more).

 

In reality it depends on what you like doing - crash on as we used to do, "better to travel than arrive" or whether you take pleasure in visiting places lik Brum, that you would never contemplate visiting by car. Those decisions effectively determine your route.

[churchward]

There has much been said on these fora recently - did you read them??

 

Thanks for the overall comments.

 

If you meant have I read all the topics here then no I haven't. I did read some topics on travel in and around Brum which got me thinking about the Stourbridge. But the nature of such Fora is to be transient and so there is nothing like asking ones own question.

 

I too prefer circular routes when going on a more extended trip. Both the routes I have in mind (which I didn't completly detail of course) are circular after a fashion.

 

Last trip on the BCN mostly involved coming up the GU and through Brum via the main and Old lines stopping off at places like Tipton for the Black country museum etc. then down the Wolverhampton flight. So this times going up the Stourbridge and through Netherton could be fun and then loop round and do a bit more of the old line. before going down to Salford Jcn and back out to Fazely.

[adam1uk]

I too prefer circular routes when going on a more extended trip. Both the routes I have in mind (which I didn't completly detail of course) are circular after a fashion.

 

Which way were you planning to go to get to Stourport? From Brinklow you could head towards Braunston, then Calcutt, Hatton, Lapworth, Tardebigge, do the Droitwich, and then the Severn to Stourport. Then you could head up the Staffs and Worcs and do your Stourbridge route.

 

Last trip on the BCN mostly involved coming up the GU and through Brum via the main and Old lines stopping off at places like Tipton for the Black country museum etc. then down the Wolverhampton flight. So this times going up the Stourbridge and through Netherton could be fun and then loop round and do a bit more of the old line. before going down to Salford Jcn and back out to Fazely.

 

And how would you get to Salford Junction? Last time we left Birmingham (having done Farmer's Bridge several times, and been both the Aston and Garrison routes) we went via the Tame Valley and thoroughly enjoyed it. It's quite something crossing the motorway on an aqueduct, and the Perry Barr locks are rather attractive. Then arriving under Spaghetti Junction is even more dramatic coming from that direction.

 

Having put this route into Canal Plan, it comes out at 14 days at 7 hours per day, which seems quite reasonable to me.

Edited May 18, 2012 by adam1uk

[OldGoat]

Thanks for the overall comments.

 

If you meant have I read all the topics here then no I haven't. I did read some topics on travel in and around Brum which got me thinking about the Stourbridge. But the nature of such Fora is to be transient and so there is nothing like asking ones own question.

 

I too prefer circular routes when going on a more extended trip. Both the routes I have in mind (which I didn't completly detail of course) are circular after a fashion.

 

Last trip on the BCN mostly involved coming up the GU and through Brum via the main and Old lines stopping off at places like Tipton for the Black country museum etc. then down the Wolverhampton flight. So this times going up the Stourbridge and through Netherton could be fun and then loop round and do a bit more of the old line. before going down to Salford Jcn and back out to Fazely.

 

Bad lad!

I suggested Stourbridge was a bit grt and got flamed!!

 

 

The problem with not searching through likely topics is that other folk get tired with answering the same questions - and you thereby might miss some gems...

If you loop round to the Old mainline and don't go back to Tipton, then be careful with Brades We made the mistake of trying to push through a shallow pound and running water down - pushing against the stream so we coudn't get into the bottom chamber of the pair.

 

The long pound leaks so fill it first before leaving the lock.

Theres a huge Sainsbury's 150 yards from the OML at what they call Walsall - that is if you didn't stop at Merry Hill..

 

As you've aloready had the joys of central Brum the suggestion from another is the Tame Valley canal, not much used but as he said great to watch the traffic queues above you on the M6 and below you on the A38 (?) - We wave at all the lorries and occasionally get a toot in reply!

If you're going to be that brave how's about doing the Curley Wyrley - hang a right before you get to Wolverhampton and you get to do most of the (different) locks down to Salford Junction for the B&F and back home.

 

OR,Or hang a right on the CW, down to Walsall and it's Town arm, join the Thame Valley and across to Salford Junc: Warning may be V.Grotty in parts.

 

I'm not an armchair canaler - we've done all of these not necassarily in the same order or at the same time. They all ahve some challenge or another..