Slow Boat To Brewood

Okay, so it's probably a bit too late to say Happy New Year - but what the heck! We left you last time at Tixall Wide in mid-December on the Staffs & Worcs canal, after which we retraced our steps back to Penkridge, just by chance mooring next to a friendly boater and his chocolate lab who said he'd keep an eye on Jasmine while we were away which was very kind  (thank you Mike and Chester!). Then it was back to Devon for hasty festive preparations interspersed with various appointments, life admin, catching up with friends and Christmas celebrations with family.

After a lovely break we were back in time to see in the New Year on Jasmine in a rural spot south of Gailey where we enjoyed a glass or two of prosecco, a nice dinner onboard, sparklers on the back deck and spotting a few fireworks in the distance. Then it was time to take down the decs and crack on with 2024 and our New Year's resolutions (mine is to run regularly and I can tell you that it's going well so far!). Between heavy rain we managed a few nice walks to try and walk off some of the Christmas excess - and the boxes of biscuits and chocolates we seem to have returned with! - before continuing on to Coven where we caught up on boat jobs, did some sorting and tidying and Rob busied himself chopping wood. As we still had the car with us Rob drove whilst I had a peaceful solo cruise back to Autherley Junction where we stayed for a few days.

One of our gas cannisters had run out (luckily not in the middle of cooking this time) so we moved the boat to Oxley Marine opposite to replace it and stock up on coal, then carried on to Aldersley Junction which carries the Main Line to Birmingham up 21 locks, where we winded and returned to the same spot. It was only a short trip but turned out to be quite eventful as our

alternator light came on again, as it had done on that eventful day back in October as we approached Stourport on the fast-flowing Severn... However this time we knew how to find the fuel stop lever! Rob discovered a melted fuse but luckily got a replacement at a local car parts shop and in the end replaced the whole fuse holder as it was getting warm and potentially faulty. You'll be pleased to know we've not had a problem since (fingers crossed!).

Then it was up the stop lock at Autherley Junction which would take us on to the Shropshire Union canal (or the Shroppie as it's known). Stop locks like this, which have a rise of only a few inches, were designed to prevent different canal companies pinching each others' water. We were last on the Shroppie two years ago, but right up at the northern end, so we're looking forward to filling in the gap as well as heading back to places we've been before. This particular

stretch seemed to be very popular with little grebes which we love spotting, including seeing one swimming underwater through some very clear canal

water. Then it was time to walk back to the car and drive it to our next destination which was Brewood (pronounced 'Brood') before returning on the (very muddy) towpath and under the impressive Avenue Bridge, built so that the owners of the nearby Chillington Hall could disguise the ugly new-fangled canal being built near their land.

We'd moored in a lovely rural spot with fantastic views on both sides and were visited by an array of birds who enjoyed the seed we put out for them. I'd also created a fatball hanger using some sticks held together with macrame string which we hung on the hedge and then spent far too much time watching our resident robin pecking at it along with several bluetits. It was here we finally got chatting to some fellow boaters, Dennis and Mieke aboard nb Betelgeuse, that we'd been leapfrogging since the end of last year and got invited round to their lovely boat for drinks - returning to Jasmine at 1.30am!!

When we eventually moved on to Brewood we moored in a deep cutting - so no view at all and not much solar either. But despite that it turned out to be a great place to stop. Not only is it a lovely little place, with some historic buildings, several pubs, two stores, a cafe, a bakery, and an Indian restaurant amongst other things, there is a handy

laundrette at a canalside pub. There were lots of friendly dog-walkers who we would chat to as they passed by daily, a resident goldcrest, and the lovely Barnfield Sandbeds, a nature reserve in an old sand quarry, where I spotted my first snowdrops! We also went to the Brewood Acoustic Music Club at the local cricket club. Everyone was incredibly welcoming, enjoyed the songs we played, and we had a lovely evening listening to some very talented performers.

Being so sheltered we also escaped the worst of the cold and icy weather as well as Storm Isha and then Storm Jocelyn with their 60mph winds. The canal froze over further north where it was more exposed but we avoided this until it got really cold. Luckily we'd decided to stay put for a while! We had Dennis and Mieke over for coffee and later on explored one of the local hostelries with them. Rob went and visited his Mum for a few days so I

explored the village, kept the fire going during the very cold spell and went out for a delicious curry with our neighbours (thankyou D&M!). They eventually decided to head off but didn't get far as the canal was still semi-frozen over. Out for a walk to the lovely Stretton Aqueduct one afternoon we found them chopping up some foraged wood, some of which they left for us to pick up on our way past - now that's the boating community at it's best!

As I write it's now 5pm and still light - spring is definitely on it's way!

Exploring the Staffordshire countryside