Reviews

Really pleased that the Tardebigge flight opened at the end of August – this allowed us to go south, round the Droitwich Ring, on to the River Severn to Worcester, and back up the Worcester and Birmingham Canal back to the marina.

The Eagle and Sun at Hanbury Junction was closed for refurbishment – opening in October.  We turned onto the Droitwich Canal at Hanbury and were pleasantly surprised how lovely Droitwich was.  There is a useful Waitrose close to the canal, but the waterpoint is hard to find and harder to stop at!

We paired up with another boat to go down through the double locks on the Droitwich Barge Canal, then turned on to the River Severn.  It was great going down the river – a very different experience from being on the canal!  The marina provided us with a useful guide to navigating the river.

Worcester was worth a visit – cathedral, old city, Elgar …  We ate dinner at an independent restaurant called The Olive Branch – exceptionally good food at a reasonable price.  Also found a lovely coffee shop called Black and White Kitchen.  Worth stocking up with supplies in Worcester, as there is not much chance further north!  Overall, a great route to do in the week.  Looking forward to next year and exploring further north!  

J, G, G, D (the artist), C, H, L and S

L, A, family and friends

We’ve had a great week on the Worcester & Birmingham, Stratford, and Grand Union Canals.  Thank you!  The masses of weed around Alvechurch Marina is Floating Pennywort (an invasive species from North America), FYI.

Perhaps I lost the knack, but I had trouble fixing the bed on the last night.  I suspect the table only fits one way round.  (I think it’s slightly wider on one side than the other.)

The engine cut-off is the handle at the back of the boat, not the “stop button” shown in the Boat Manual!

Great boat and will equipped!  We had a lovely time thanks.  Swan in Alvechurch is â, Red Lion is á (nice peas too!).

R, E and EK, ND.

There was a particular day on our recent trip on Watermark narrowboat that summed up the variety and uniqueness of a canalling holiday. So here’s my story of a day in the life of Watermark:

Lots of things were in our favour (dry days, long & light evenings, an experienced & energetic crew etc) so we had made very good time from Alvechurch, where Watermark is based, to Stratford upon Avon. It only took us two and a half days (it’s about 19 miles by road…). So we were able to spend a night moored in the picturesque Bancroft Basin, outside the Royal Shakespeare Theatre. Once the tourists leave, Stratford becomes a different place and it was a peaceful mooring spot despite being in the centre of town.

Next morning, we took the short walk around the basin to join a backstage tour of the theatre, complete with lots of lurvie stories, a view of the technical set-up for the next production, and a chance to handle some of the costumes. We then had lunch in one of the local theatre restaurants before returning, via the supermarket, to the charms of the canal.

The not-so-leisurely afternoon involved working our way up 15 locks, spread across a couple of flights, and returning to the open countryside. The facilities on board Watermark allowed us to have showers and then cook ourselves a meal. As the sun set, we realised we had aligned ourselves for a lovely reflection in the canal: and then the bats arrived! It’s not often you can sit at your dinner table and watch bats swooping over the water just 3-4 meters away..

The not-so-leisurely afternoon involved working our way up 15 locks, spread across a couple of flights, and returning to the open countryside. The facilities on board Watermark allowed us to have showers and then cook ourselves a meal. As the sun set, we realised we had aligned ourselves for a lovely reflection in the canal: and then the bats arrived! It’s not often you can sit at your dinner table and watch bats swooping over the water just 3-4 meters away…

J

We made it to Stratford!  Top lock of Wilmcote Flight now open so it’s possible to go all the way – although that means 108 locks in the week …!

Moored in the basin at Stratford, which was surprisingly quiet overnight (although all mooring places full …). Even managed to do a backstage tour at the theatre the next morning, which was well worth it.

Highlights include Wedges near Bridge 20 (visited both directions!), Yew Tree Craft Village near Bridge 53 and Fleur-de-Lys pub near Bridge 41 (excellent pies).  We also enjoyed both tunnels (passed a boat going the other way in West Hills Tunnel) and the lovely aqueducts – especially Edstone/Bearley.  We had an amazing bat display one evening north of Wilmcote, also saw herons, kingfishers, countless ducklings (goslings), cygnets and even a mink.  Evidence of otters at the Lapworth Flight.

Very much enjoyed the Stratford-upon-Avon Canal – lots of variety, plenty of activity and some very helpful CRT volunteer lock keepers.  Surprisingly few other boats on the move – perhaps put off by the heatwave/problems with water shortages elsewhere on the network.  Fingers crossed for continued access to the Stratford for the rest of the season.

Thank you Watermark!

JP & family

Leisurely week.  Alvechurch to top of Hatton and back.  Lost the first day due to a tree down just up the road.  Set off on Tuesday after a night in the boatyard.  Pleasantly surprised by the number of pubs – had some very nice meals in the Wharf Inn (good mooring and a Co-op store nearby) and Tom o’ the Woods.  Visited Hatton World, very quiet, not many people about.  Good mooring wherever we stopped.  Good fishing but only caught bream, apart from an eel.

Lapworth Locks were easier than expected.  On the way down, the CRT man held everyone to one side so we could go by – they were desperate for water.  On the way back we had most in our favour too.

Visited Wedges Bakery at bridge 20.  It’s a must – best cakes and bread ever.  Headed back to boatyard on Sunday and had lunch at the pub there.  Really nice people and a great atmosphere and food was okay, was good and plentiful, not brilliant.

Had a bit of excitement before going to the pub – while trying to put the boat back in its mooring spot, one of our crew fell into the canal.  After a bit of help from a passing boatman on shore and some huffing and puffing we rescued him.  After a quick shower and change we made our lunch reservation at the pub.

Notes for next hirers – we have mentioned the following points to the boatyard:-

• One of the bulbs has gone in the wall lights in the dining area;
• The base of the dining table needs tightening up (the screws are loose);
• Check the rear bathroom sink underneath.  We found some wate underneath the sink and tightened it up but might need checking.

Been a really good week.  Weather dry and warm and first time for a long time we have not had to use the heating 😊

F & G, S & T

Ps Boatyard team are lovely and very helpful

A leisurely week, through Lapworth Locks, south on the Grand Union to Hatton, trip to Hatton Adventure World, back north to Knowle Locks before returning up Lapworth Locks.  Thank goodness for volunteers!  Up the flight in 2 hours!!  The Wast Hill Tunnel led to some competition from the drivers.  T (aged 2 ¾) had the best time on his first boat trip.  Following in his mummy’s footsteps.  Weather was face-burning one day, soggy the next, typical bank holiday!

Until next time …

E, G, E, L & T

End of season – move to Alvechurch

A dry but cold trip moving Watermark from Rose Narrowboats to Alvechurch.  We had to go the “long” way round, via Braunston, as work on a lock on the Coventry Canal meant the canal was blocked.

Day 1 and day 2 – only 6 locks easy journey.  Day 3 – 22 locks on the Grand Union in the morning, easy afternoon, moored in Warwick by the Cape pub – very quiet, good food!  Day 4 – 21 locks in the morning, lunch at the Hatton Lock Café – excellent!  Easy afternoon, moored at Turner’s Green just before Kingswood Junction, where we turned on to the Stratford Canal.  Day 5 – 20 locks in the morning, easy afternoon, moored at the Drawbridge Inn, great pub.  Final day – to end of Stratford Canal; turned on to Worcester & Birmingham Canal, through the 2770-yard Wast Hill Tunnel, and on to the boatyard.  Will look forward to trips to Stratford-upon-Avon, Worcester and Birmingham from here!

J, D, C & E – the moving crew!!

A week of two halves as far as the weather was concerned this week – sunny with temperatures in the low 20’s for a couple of days, then rain and cooler temperatures (>10 degrees) by the end.  However, this did not deter from another great week.  We chose an easy route, being just two of us, and me recovering from recent back surgery.  So we went down to Coventry, with its interesting Basin, before travelling up the Ashby Canal and back.  The Ashby is very pretty and worth a visit.  Motorcycle fans can visit the Triumph factory in Hinckley, just 10 miles from the canal.  Also, the site of the Battle of Bosworth and the Heritage Railway from Shenton to Shackerstone.  Ther is also a glass blower at Shenton Station.

We ate twice at the Greyhound at Hawkstone Junction – definitely need to book for Sunday lunch.

The Rising Sun, Shackerstone no longer does food all week – check beforehand.  However, the Globe in Snarestone does food all week.  The farm shop in Measham Road, Snarestone (10 minutes’ walk from the south end of the tunnel) does excellent pies and other ready meals, which saves lots of preparation!

We look forward to exploring more of this whole area from Rose Narrowboats again next year.

M & J

Headed down the Oxford Canal and then on to the tranquil Ashby Canal.  Beautiful sunny weather – always a bonus.  Very impressed with Leicestershire countryside and villages – Bosworth – Market Bosworth – Shackerstone, which has a lovely old station providing Victorian afternoon teas!!  Walked to Snarestone – no village shop but a very kind lady gave us some milk – no charge.  The globe at Snarestone served delicious food, and staff and locals extremely friendly.  We were walking into Market Bosworth and a helpful taxi driver stopped for us and gave us a lift into the centre – again no charge, how kind.  Delicious fish and chips from the Batter of Bosworth – worth knowing.  Lunch at Sutton Wharf was good and again we were met with kindness when a fellow boater moved up so we could moor easily.  Unfortunately one blip, the alternator broke so we had to wait for an engineer to come out, but this was done very efficiently.  Holiday ended on Sunday with heavy rain, thunder and lightning – never mind, a good time was had.

LB

Headed down the south Oxford, expecting to wind at Fenny Compton, but the winding hole looked too small, so we carried on to the marina only to find turning there prohibited!  We carried on to Clattercote winding hole – an extra 5 locks in each direction!  Back past Rose, up to the Coventry Canal and on to the Ashby as far as winding at Hinkley Wharf Arm (plenty of space), then turned north on Coventry Canal as far as Nuneaton – winded after Bridge 21, which was quite tight!  Then back to Rose.

A complex itinerary due to meeting various people at different places, but all worked out well.  Ate at the Boathouse in Braunston, which was very good, and the Rose and Castle in Ansty, which was less inspiring.

Lots of wildlife – in particular, both kingfishers and water voles on the north end of the north Oxford and herons on the Ashby.

As ever, Watermark provided an excellent base for a great week.

JP & family

Route – Rose Narrowboats – Hawksbury Junction – Fazeley – Hawkesbury Junction – Rose Narrowboats

A repeat of last year’s journey – Oxford then Coventry Canal to Fazeley via Atherstone Locks, then short trip down Birmingham & Fazeley Canal to moor this side of Drayton Manor and return after day at the theme park.

Better weather this year, only one morning of rain and much more sun!  Great food again at Greyhound Pub at Sutton Stop (Hawkesbury Junction) and White Horse at Atherstone (good stop for supplies).

Lovely to watch the wildlife – was hoping to see kingfishers but they didn’t appear, but lots of ducks, swans, moorhens and a couple of herons.  Beautiful sight.

Water levels a bit low in places and canal not too busy.  Helpful lock keepers at Atherstone on way out but none on return.

Thank you for another great week on Watermark.

The G family

Weatherwise, the first week was cool, dry, warm, wet, you name it, we had it.  Second week was better, lots of warm, sunny, dry weather.

We headed to Oxford (not expecting to reach it but to get as far as we could).  Due to weather, we made Banbury then turned and headed back.

We have eaten in the Barley Mow at Newbold.  Not bad food, very nice people.  Good Co-op store 5 mins away.  Near Napton we met a lovely artist and bought some of her prints (Sylvia Hankin).

In Cropredy we had dinner in the Brasenose Arms – very good, not cheap but worth it.  Take note, they add 10% tip to your bill.

Also, in Cropredy, make sure you try the canal side café.  Great place to eat and have a beer.  It’s outside but even the torrential rain didn’t put us off enjoying our meal.  The store in Cropredy is not great.  Fenny Compton has a good store and on Mondays they have a community lunch in the village hall.  We popped in and had tea and cake.  Very nice and at a very cheap price!!  An elderly lady was pleased to see “boat people” and told us all about Alan Bates the PO scandal man and how he came from Fenny Compton.

Also in Fenny Compton is the Wharf Inn – great meal there and a lovely beer garden.  Near Napton-on-the-Hill is the Folly Pub.  Definitely worth having lunch/dinner there.  There is also a great village store 10 mins from the pub.

On Saturday morning it all went wrong.  Near Brinklow a tree had fallen across the canal 10 mins before we got there and were stuck.  CRT came and said it would be Monday before it could be moved.  Clifton Cruisers had a hire boat on the other side and wanted it back so, ignoring any health and safety issues, they cut back enough of the tree to get their boat past.  This caused a rush of boats passing and our mooring (and that of others) was put at risk.  In the end we managed to get past and get to Rose Boats on Sunday evening.  Not the best end to our holiday but it was different.

F & G, S and T

PAINTING – The Crown Inn, Handsacre Bridge 58

Very fortunate to have 2 weeks on Watermark, although the landslip at Brinklow meant we had to change plans.  We travelled north on to the Coventry Canal – Hawkesbury Junction provides great manoeuvring practice!  Up to Fradley Junction to join the Trent & Mersey Canal, then on to Stoke-on-Trent to meet new crew on Friday.  We stopped for afternoon tea and a walk around Shugborough Hall (NT) at Great Hayward.  We then travelled some way up the Caldon Canal for the weekend – definitely one to go back to and explore in full another time.  Sunday lunch at the Foxley Hotel in Milton was good.  Back to Stoke-on-Trent to meet more crew, then started the journey back south.  We stopped at the Plume of Feathers in Barlastone (owned by Neil Morrisey) for lunch – excellent food!

On the way back we turned into the Ashby Canal, intending to wind at Shenton before taking a trip on the Battlefield Heritage Railway.  However, the winding hole was completely silted up and after fun and games extracting ourselves from the mud, we continued to Market Bosworth to turn around.  Did the train trip and visited the site of the Battle of Bosworth – an excellent visitor centre, well worth taking time out for that.

Finally, we travelled down to Lime Kilns and had an excellent meal in the pub by the canal – really great value too!

We were really lucky with the weather – really warm for the first week and only one day of rain in week 2.  We were a bit soggy after the 11 locks at Atherstone and 11 miles – the rain hardly stopped all day!  By the end of the week the sun was back – hurrah!

We have enjoyed exploring the canals around Rose Narrowboats and look forward to new adventures from Alvechurch next year.

J, D (the artist 😊), A, H & C

With two teenagers on board, we decided that a trip to Drayton Manor would be an ideal route for us, and it worked well.  An easy trip to achieve over 3 days, including the Atherstone Locks, then 1 full day at Drayton Manor, then same route back.

Highlights were definitely the Greyhound Inn at Sutton Stop/Hawkesbury Junction with great food including great value Sunday roast.  Need to book ahead!  Also, a good meal at White Horse in Atherstone – nice town for a stop.

Canals not too busy.  Weather variable this week (caught Storm Antoni on Saturday).  Central heating worked well (for those inside the boat at any rate!).

Drayton Manor well worth a visit.  Not too busy, rides for all ages and nice zoo.  Can moor up fairly close and walk to the entrance within circa 15 minutes. 

Great fish and chip shop close by as well.  Thanks to all the Committee for all the upgrades – curtains and seating look great.  Watermark very well equipped.  Thank you!

T, S, O & A

We did the Warwickshire ring, with a not so short and very eventful detour into Napton.  We discovered it’s a bit too long of a trip to do in 7 days, and a sprained ankle and a concussion didn’t help.  We did, however, see the glorious sights of Nuneaton, Birmingham’s inner-city canals – and get filmed by a lot of gongoozlers – and of course the beautiful Napton, where we were treated to an evening of folk music and a late-night singalong with “Innkeeper”.  Followed by the aforementioned injuries.  We also picked up the McDonald’s kitchen radio on our walkie-talkies whilst passing through Warwick, though sadly I don’t think they could hear us back.

Until next year!

L, H, S, G, U, N, C

Route – Rose Boats – Stoke Bruerne – Welford Arm – Rose Boats.

Like previous hirers we have had a fortnight of two halves.  Either hot and sunny or cold enough to need the heating on in the evenings.  We dodged most of the rain which was forecast, but not all.  We’ve done about 107 miles and 72 locks.  We’ve had a great fortnight.  Places to visit are – Weedon Visitor Centre.  This is a really interesting place and nearby units have vintage shops and a great café.  Worth the walk.

In Welford, the Wharf Inn is a friendly pub with great food (huge portions) and in the High Street (no 42) is a private house that has a tearoom.  We had a cream tea at a very reasonable price.

At Stoke Bruerne, the museum is a good place to visit, and the café has good cakes.  The pub opposite (Boat Inn) is nice with good food. 

We’ve also eaten at the Admiral Nelson in Braunston, the Crossroads at Weedon, the Red Lion in Crick and the New Inn at Norton Junction.  All were good and very reasonable prices.

As for the boat, no problems.  We were warned that the shower might be too hot (a problem from 2 years ago) but we didn’t have a problem.

The light above the microwave went off (needs a new bulb?) about 2 days from the end of the holiday.

The grill gave us a problem (not that we used it more than twice).  It lit okay but went out after 3 or 4 minutes and then wouldn’t light again.

The bulb and the grill have been reported to the boatyard.

On our last night we ended up back at the boatyard – mooring on the approach to the boatyard is poor (or full) from about bridge 37 onwards.

All in all, a good holiday again.

F & G, S & T

What a lovely sunny week we have had.

Went to Market Harborough (a delightful market town) good shopping facilities.  Sainsbury’s – Cook – Tesco – Co-op and numerous dress shops!  Managed to find a round bowl for Watermark in a little jam-packed hardware shop on the way into town – a must to visit you will find things you never knew you needed!!!!

Enjoyed Foxton Locks – only boat going up and down – stunning scenery and helpful volunteers.  Love picture on previous page, unfortunately we have no artists on board.

LB & Crew

It’s been a week of two halves.  From 5 layers of clothing to begin with to suncream, sunhat, sunglasses and shorts.  J and D were able and excellent skippers with A, V and N, the willing deckhands.  What an enjoyable week it’s been.

Slightly curtailed week as we need to be back for school on Monday!

Turned right at Braunston Turn onto the Grand Union main line, then right again at Napton Junction.  Winded at Leamington – nice big winding hole near a range of supermarkets.  Headed straight back the way we had come.  So we had a couple of days of lots of locking on broad locks – but mostly found good companions to pair up with.  Ate at the Boat, Birdingbury, which was excellent, and the Blue Lias, Stockton, which was a bit more “pub grub” ish.

Then back past the boatyard, onto the Coventry Canal and then the Ashby.  Only spent a day on the Ashby but it was very pretty.  Winded at Hinkley wharf, which was challenging – not much space and a tricky wind!  Good corner shop a short walk from there.  Then headed back via same route.  Ate at the Rose and Castle at Ansty, which was also very good.

All in all, an excellent week.  Weather mostly colder than forecast but completely dry.  Not many boats on the move early in the week but got busier.

JP & family