Easter

We left Alrewas in bright sunshine but it didn't last; the next day we set off in strong winds which hampered steering, especially at Fradley Junction's tight turn onto the Coventry canal.  This canal twists and turns following the contours so in this stretch there are no locks.  We've only travelled along this canal once before, eighteen months ago, but as we rounded the bends we were surprised how much we could remember from that previous journey.   At Fazeley Junction an old building had been painted and now boaters see the stunning kingfisher and robin as they round the bend.   

Kingfisher and robin at Fazeley Junction

Our view of the Birmingham and Fazeley canal as we continue south on the Coventry canal at Fazeley Junction.

Shortly after Fazeley Junction we arrived at Glascote Locks, the first ones on the Coventry Canal.  Lock one is notoriously slow, so much so that someone has pinned up an 'Ode to the Leaky Lock' which urges patience!  The boat traffic has started to increase as the Easter weekend approaches and as we came out of the second Glascote lock a queue, waiting to come down, had formed.   

The only other locks on the canal are at Atherstone but there are 11 of them.   We moored up at the bottom of the flight so we could have an early start to avoid any delay.   We set off before 7am the next day and were very pleased to finish the last lock 100 minutes later.  We did meet some other boaters but only after our eighth lock and at the top of the flight there were already 2 boats waiting.  

After such good progress on the locks we kept going and sailed through to Springwood Haven Marina where we topped up with diesel.  As on our previous visit the staff were friendly and helpful and in the chandlery Kev spotted a windlass with an extra long handle.  It's a weighty implement but will be very useful for extra leverage on obstinate lock gear.

Elaborate buildings for a Canal and River Trust yard at Hartshill on the Coventry Canal

We felt we'd earned a day off on Easter Sunday and enjoyed a day in the sun.  We also wanted to delay our arrival at our next destination, Hawkesbury Junction is very popular and there could have been a shortage of moorings.   On Easter Monday we continued our journey and the canal took us through the outskirts of Nuneaton with its miles of allotments bordering the west bank.    Numerous boats were sailing up from Hawkesbury and as we neared the junction we could see narrowboats lining the bank.  Luckily there was space on the visitor moorings; I had already booked us a table in The Greyhound for that evening. 

Hawkesbury Junction:  I am looking down over the Coventry Canal which continues straight on, a left hand turn under the bridge leads to the Oxford canal.  The Oxford Canal does not continue on passed the bridge so boaters have to immediately take another sharp left turn. The white building is The Greyhound which serves excellent meals.   

Our journey from Alrewas to Hawkesbury Junction