Stratford On Avon

[Airbed]

After 20 years mainly holiday boating on a shared boat based on various popular parts of the system, I'm heading in August from Great Haywood straight to Stratford On Avon, hoping to stay a night or two, intending to explore Stratford for a whole day. I'd be interested on recent information on mooring - free/paid/river? I've been on the Trent/Soar while enjoying the Leicester Ring, and went up the Severn in one go from Worcester to Stourport, but never moored in flowing water. Sharp end to the flow, but might I end up with nowhere to go if it's busy if I go onto the river? I'm intending afterwards to either explore the BCN/central Birmingham from Worcs Bar area (preferred) or go to Dudley Black Country Museum (family prefer), the whole thing from Friday to Thursday week as you'd expect on a shared boat.

Thoughts on Stratford are why I've posted, particularly regarding moorings from anyone who's been this year. Any comments about the BCN, accessible from my return route would be just as welcome. Many thanks, Peter.

[nicknorman]

We were there in early April and loads of (free) space in the basin. I'm sure it can get busy in the summer but there are a lot of hire boats so it probably depends on which day of the week you arrive. Also plenty of moorings on the river but you have to buy a permit (from the ANT boat in the basin). Either a cheap permit just to moor on the river, or a more expensive one to navigate it through locks. Sorry can't remember the price but no doubt on the ANT website. Generally there is not much current on the Avon so it doesn't matter too much which way you point, just tie up upstream end first and untie downstream end first. However the Avon can flood quickly so best to keep an eye on the weather

[canalpubs]

Mooring in Stratford Basin is free for 48 hours and then you must move. Mooring is free and for 14 days above Birmingham Road lock and is only a short walk into town

 

If you go down lock 56 onto the River Avon, its £5 a night to moor on the recreation ground opposite the Royal Shakepeare Memorial Theatre

[RLWP]

Who collects the £5?

 

Richard

[canalpubs]

Think its a man from ANT (Avon Navigation Trust)

[Dave_P]

Who collects the £5?

 

Richard

You pay the £5, or whatever you need to pay, to the person in the ANT boat moored in the basin.

After 20 years mainly holiday boating on a shared boat based on various popular parts of the system, I'm heading in August from Great Haywood straight to Stratford On Avon, hoping to stay a night or two, intending to explore Stratford for a whole day. I'd be interested on recent information on mooring - free/paid/river? I've been on the Trent/Soar while enjoying the Leicester Ring, and went up the Severn in one go from Worcester to Stourport, but never moored in flowing water. Sharp end to the flow, but might I end up with nowhere to go if it's busy if I go onto the river? I'm intending afterwards to either explore the BCN/central Birmingham from Worcs Bar area (preferred) or go to Dudley Black Country Museum (family prefer), the whole thing from Friday to Thursday week as you'd expect on a shared boat.

Thoughts on Stratford are why I've posted, particularly regarding moorings from anyone who's been this year. Any comments about the BCN, accessible from my return route would be just as welcome. Many thanks, Peter.

 

Mooring on the river avon is just lovely as is boating there. make sure you take account of changing levels overnight or when away from your boat. Mud weights and/or an anchor would be a good idea, but it seems that few boats bother. There's good moorings opposite the RSC but go and explore and there's some really lovely places to moor. It's £5 per night on the Stratford level but more expensive if going through locks. I think it's currently £50 for a week.

[RLWP]

Isn't that odd. I loved the Avon, except for the stress of 'where are we going to moor?' The Avon seems to be a bit short of moorings

 

Richard

[nicknorman]

Isn't that odd. I loved the Avon, except for the stress of 'where are we going to moor?' The Avon seems to be a bit short of moorings

 

Richard

True in general, but in Stratford there seems to be plenty of options, as there are at many of the locks

Mooring on the river avon is just lovely as is boating there. make sure you take account of changing levels overnight or when away from your boat. Mud weights and/or an anchor would be a good idea, but it seems that few boats bother.

Perhaps worth mentioning that of course levels tend to change much more when you are at the tail (bottom) of a weir compared to if you are at the head (top) of the weir. So given the choice, its best to moor above the weir, even if that seems slightly counter-intuitive.

[john6767]

Many of the locks on the upper Avon have moorings, so I think you can always find somewhere, but perhaps not the most interesting places, the few villages like Bidford can easily be full.

 

As to Stratford there isplenty of mooring on the opposite side or the river to the basin on the recreation ground. As has been said you can buy licences from the boat moored in the canal basin, and an overnight one with no lock usage is not expensive.

[The Bagdad Boatman (waits)]

Going down the Avon Pershore is lovely and the swimming baths have a sauna. good mooring on the park there.

[PaulG]

In Stratford there are a few moorings by the Red Lion between Warwick Road bridge and the basin. These are surpisingly quiet given that they are next to a busy pub, but we have had problems with mooring lines being undone during the dark hours. Not much of a problem as you don't go anywhere, but annoying all the same. Best advice is to keep mooring lines as tight as possible, and tie them back on the boat. Prime suspects were a gang of local yoof who seem to gather under the bridge that carries the A3400 over the canal - presumably so that the CCTV operators can't see them smoking spliffs.

 

If you can get a mooring in the basin it can be noisy, and you will have Japanese tourists taking pictures though your windows. The local authority has been known to empty the bottle bank in the small hours.

 

I've never been charged for mooring on the river, but you do need to buy an ANT licence from the "William James" in the basin. "Short term excursion licences" are available for 24hrs or 48hrs. I'm not sure what the current cost is. If you moor on the river, it's usually pretty quiet, but you do have to put up with a lot cr@p on the bank from the 2000 or so ducks geese and swans that inhabit the area.

 

Sorry if I've made Stratford sound unattractive. It isn't. It's well worth a visit.

Edited June 18, 2013 by PaulG

[john6767]

You have to pay to moor on the river. A 24 hour overnight license is £5, which allows access only to the reach you enter from, ie no use of locks. For 24 hours with use of locks and return to start point it costs £10.

 

Stratford is very nice, but of course it is busy as it is a major tourist attraction for tourists from around the world, and you and you boat will be part of that tourist attraction. The lock from the basin to the river is probably one of the most "public" on the system, expect to have many people crowding round to watch you, so make a good job of it!

[Airbed]

Many thanks to everyone for their contributions. I'll cut&paste and edit everything into notes later. Things change quickly, I believe the Wolverhampton flight is blocked, might knock Dudley on the head, but one of my co-owners recommends Stourbridge. So the maps will be out this weekend or next, to get down to the nitty gritty. Canalscape estimates look good on daily timings to allow for onshore days, anyway. Thanks again.

[NickF]

Plenty of room in the basin when I visited in 1980! Only problem was no mooring rings or bollards!

 

I think it may be a bit busier these days!

 

Have a great trip

Nick

[westwd]

Just done Stratford, river licence is £50 for 7 days, mooring on the Avon from the lock to holy trinity church is £5 per night, but when we left the Avon the Tewkesbury lock keeper claimed this was not enforceable and many people don't pay it. The mooring on the rec opposite RSC was quiet with no disturbance (except what could be heard from the area around the basin, which was noisy at times). I'd recommend the rec over the basin every time. Plus, stay 2-3 nights to make the most of Stratford.

[AndrewIC]

If you can get a mooring in the basin it can be noisy, and you will have Japanese tourists taking pictures though your windows.

Or even taking pictures while posing on your boat!

[Airbed]

Hi and thanks to everyone who responded. Restrictions on Wolverhampton 21 and Minworth (Brum & Fazeley Canal) forced me to go t'other way round to intended route (anti- instead of clockwise), so went to Dudley first (well worth entry fee to Black Country Living Museum), and also managed to visit Stoubridge and Birmingham on the way round, with plenty of time. We moored in the basin at Stratford, and enjoyed looking round the town. We especially enjoyed rambling round the river, and having investigated licence costs, will look at cruising the river another holiday.

For what it's worth, the only problem was misinformation spreading about the availability/non-availability of the Wolves 21 and Minworth. At one point, we considered returning via Tewkesbury or Braunston to Great Haywood!! Happily C&RT completed their work on time, we ignored the Wolves 21 and went through Brum, overnighting round the corner from Sea Life. If you worry about noise in Stratford - well, we were right next to a building site in Birmingham, but it stioll didn't wake our teenagers!!

Had a thoroughly good two weeks, thanks to all again. Peter

[Dave_P]

Sounds like you had a great time!