Minworth

Here I am Rune

Distance 11.9 miles

Total 1041 Locks 57 Tunnels

Running total mileage 1403.7miles

A day of contrasts I would say that today has been. We started the day at the top of Perry Barr locks in the sort of area that I would object to living in. We then travelled along the Tame Valley canal to its junction with the Rushall Canal to turn around. The areas looked OK but the canal itself was a bit tedious since it is as straight as a die. As it passes through a cutting it is also a bit shallow so that slowed us down a bit, getting back to the top of Perry Barr locks about 1hour and 25 minutes after we had left! 

Going down through the locks was harder work than coming up had been since closing the bottom gates was more problematic since the crew doesn’t like crossing the lock gates, this was eventually solved with a length of rope which was used to close the gate from the opposite side of the canal, enabling both gates to be closed from the same side of the canal.

We the passed into canal Hell, better known as Gravelly Hill. This is bad enough when travelling through ‘Spaghetti  Junction’ in the car but is worse on a boat since a) we are right at the bottom of everything and b) the noise is amazing! I will attach a photo of Gravelly Hill from the canal tomorrow but today we have a very slow internet connection and it will take forever to upload. What I failed to photograph was the memorial to DC Michael Swindells who was stabbed to death under Gravelly Hill by a paranoid schizophrenic, Glaister Earl Butler. The story of which is tragic and the death so unnecessary. Apparently Butler had been treated for his illness for between 15 and 20 years and when he was seen in public with a large knife those who had been treating him were unable to say whether or not he was dangerous, due to abysmally poor record keeping. That poor record keeping cost a Police Officer his life!

The view under Spaghetti Junction.....

......from the canal at the bottom of it!

Moving on we met the local ‘yoof’ of Aston near to Troutpool Bridge. A group of about 10 aged from about 9 to 14 years up to mischief on the towpath thought it would be funny to throw stones towards the boat, small mercies in that they were pitiful at it and we emerged unscathed!

Final irritation of the day was as we emerged from Minworth Top lock the boat, which had been labouring for a while, decided that it wasn’t going any further until it’s propeller was cleared. I turned out that a length of plastic wire insulation was wrapped around it. I would guess that someone had stolen a load of copper wire (perhaps the little stone-throwing treasures!) and, having stripped off the insulation, dumped it in the canal, which seems to be where some of the populous of Birmingham put all of their rubbish. Amazingly as you travel along the canal you see where people have thrown their rubbish over their garden fence and onto the canal embankment, I think that the stocks would be too good a punishment for these people!