New and old

A scene familiar on many urban canals, old buildings and new build side by side. On the Limehouse Cut.

Coventry Basin

While ideally i'd like to walk every metre of a canal's towpath that isn't always possible (walking the entire Grand Union would be a mean feat for example) but if i can visit both ends of a canal then i can cross it off in my imaginary abc spotters book of canals... Today i visited Coventry Basin which is the ..er.. Coventry end of the Coventry Canal and as i've already visited the other end of that canal up at Fradley Junction that means i can cross off the Coventry too...

Though it is a bit complicated as a middle stretch of the Coventry is sometimes listed as being part of the Birmingham & Fazeley and the Coventry Canal consists of two separate canals. Well that is splitting hairs a bit, its a continuous waterway so i'm crossing it off! You can see the photos i took here.

Geese armada

An armada of geese on the Birmingham & Fazeley in Erdington.

River boats (14) : Ouse boats

Boats on the river Ouse in York.

Basins (2) : Battlebridge

Battlebridge Basin on the Regent's Canal in Islington.

The harbour

The delightful scene at Aberystwyth harbour.

River boats (13)

Dana and friends at West India Quay, East London.

Squeezing in

A rather narrow looking lock in Banbury.

Both Ends (3) : Stratford-upon-Avon Canal

The Stratford-upon-Avon Canal starts at Kings Norton Junction where it splits off the Worcester & Birmingham Canal.

Just by this junction is the Kings Norton Stop Lock, originally intended to stop water flowing from one canal to another (in the days when canals were owned by rival companies). Its the only guillotine stop lock on the canal network.

The canal then winds on through Warwickshire, meeting the Grand Union Canal at Lapworth before heading south to finally end up at Stratford-upon-Avon. The canal has a junction with the river Avon, in the original plans for the canal it was intended for the canal to stop short of the river (about where the railway station is now) but wiser heads prevailed.

River Blythe

The river Blythe is one of the small rivers of the West Midlands which eventually feeds into the Tame, which feeds into the Trent which goes up to the Humber Estuary. Here it is seen near Coleshill.

Cranes (3) : Alvechurch Marina

This crane means business!

Signposts (4) : Oldbury Locks Junction

Oldbury Junction is where the Titford Canal meets the Birmingham Old Main Line, and under the motorway too so not the most pleasant of spots.

River Boats (12)

Moored at Canary Wharf.

Bewdley

The River Severn flowing through the fine old town of Bewdley.