Sunday 28th
October 2018
After a leisurely breakfast we set off just before 10am to time our
arrival at Hawkesbury Junction for about noon when boats that were going to move,
would have done. After yesterday’s cold and rain, it was a lovely bright day.
We quietly passed under the M6 just to the west of junction 2. Again, we
had a main line railway line right next to us. It always amuses, that we
quietly slip by when the trains fly past and the motorways are roaring away.
Although there was an occasional train passing by, we cruised through
some lovely countryside before coming upon Ansty and passing under the M69
motorway, which was very noisy. There are a couple of very tight bends in the
canal around Ansty.
Another mile brought the canal and the M6 right alongside each other
for almost a mile, although the motorway was in a dip so was not too intrusive.
Approaching the M6 with
the main-linerailway in the distance
Passing underneath the M6
with the railway sharing the
same viaduct
Main-line
railway alongside the canal
A few more tight bends, and a pub that had been converted to a house,
brought us to Hawkesbury Junction. There was an area just before the junction
where British Gas, in conjunction with CRT and Coventry Wildlife Trust, were
developing to conserve nature, especially water voles.
When wanting to moor at a prime location, especially one with a lot of
canal interest, it is always a worry that you will not be able to find a mooring
at all. There are so many tinky boats, permanent moorers as they are known, that
are attracted to these sites, stay well beyond their permitted time, and block the
moorings. Although mooring times are limited there is little or no, enforcement.
Generally speaking, mooring is limited to 24 or 48 hours in towns or popular
sites, 7 days on the outskirts of a town, and 14 days out in the country. But
some people chasing an alternative lifestyle, just stick two fingers up and ignore
the regulations, and very little is done to move them on. London and some other
major cities are a classic point. People buy canal boats as a cheaper alternative
to housing within an expensive city centre. They then class themselves as continuous
cruisers so they don’t have to pay marina fees, and then only move once a fortnight
when they tend to move at night and literally swap mooring sites with another
person on a pre-arranged basis.
We were very lucky then to get the mooring right at the end of the
canal before the junction itself. Probably the best mooring at Hawkesbury.
Hawkesbury Junction is one of the more well-known sites on the canal system.
It is the junction between the Oxford and Coventry Canals, more commonly known
as Sutton Stop after a family that provided a number of lock-keepers throughout
the 19th century.
There is much to explore here.
We went to the Greyhound Inn for our dinner. The Greyhound is well known
and popular amongst canal people. It has a wonderful, cosy atmosphere. We were
sat, to begin with, on a table full of older, local gentlemen. A number of them
were drinking mild. When you do see mild, and that is less often these days and
tends to be only in the north, it tends to be the older guys drinking it. I
thought I would give it a try, Really nice pint. I’m a convert.
Back at the boat we watched a few more episodes of Game of Thrones. We
are now halfway through the seventh series. What will life be like after Game of
Thrones?
Weather: a lovely day.
Day Total: 0 locks; 6 miles; 0 Tunnels; 0 Swing Bridges; 0 Boat Lift;
engine running hours 2.1
Overall Total: 309 locks; 528 miles; 24 tunnels; 3 Swing Bridge; 2
Boat Lifts; engine running hours 320.3
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