Tuesday, December 30, 2014

Thursday, December 25, 2014

Oh Christmas tree

Merry Christmas to all canal enthusiasts and folk, here are some Christmas trees alongside the Grand Union Canal near Shrewley.

Saturday, December 20, 2014

Arms (1) : Moor Lane

Arms are branches off the canal, they can vary in length quite a bit but do tend to be rather short, as is the case with the Moor Lane Arm of the Tame Valley Canal which is just long enough for the average narrowboat to enter (though they would have to clear the rubbish out that usually collects in the arm first).

Thursday, December 18, 2014

Thursday, December 11, 2014

Ball's Bridge in the mist

An atmospheric shot though slightly ruined by the roar from the nearby M40.


Saturday, November 29, 2014

Thursday, November 27, 2014

Canal side tower

One of the more striking canal side buildings around, this one in Nottingham.

Saturday, November 22, 2014

Both Ends (5) : Limehouse Cut

The Limehouse Cut is a short canal in East London that connects the Lee Navigation to the Regent's Canal at Limehouse Basin. The canal begins (or ends depending on your point of view) at Bow Locks.
It then travels 2 miles through Tower Hamlets until it meets the Regent's Canal at Limehouse Basin which is where the canal joins the Thames. Originally the Limehouse Cut connected directly onto the Thames but that was changed in 1968 because of the need to replace the river lock. Instead a new short length of canal was built to connect the Limehouse Cut to Limehouse Basin allowing traffic to use the river lock there instead.

Tuesday, November 18, 2014

Sunday, November 16, 2014

Return to Hatton

Its been a while since i've visited the Grand Union Canal at Hatton, which is strange as its so easy to get to from the railway station (literally crossing a road) and there is a lot to see. I went up the towpath as far as Shrewley tunnel, so ground covered before but somewhat haunting in the mist and fog that was plaguing Warwickshire yesterday. You can see my photos here.


Saturday, November 15, 2014

Thursday, November 13, 2014

No gas

A gas holder that overlooks the Regent's Canal in King's Cross.

Saturday, November 8, 2014

Thursday, November 6, 2014

Tram over waters

A Nottingham Tram over the Nottingham Canal in ..er.. Nottingham.

Saturday, November 1, 2014

Nottingham Canal

Its always nice to visit a canal i haven't been to before. Today it was the Nottingham Canal, a short canal which is part of the River Trent navigation these days and flows through the town. Now it is just over a mile long and links the Trent to the Lenton Chain though originally the canal went up to the Cromford Canal at Langley Mill. You can see my photos here.



Thursday, October 30, 2014

Saturday, October 25, 2014

Less mud more tarmac

The towpath upgrade of the Birmingham & Fazeley Canal in Erdington continues.

Thursday, October 23, 2014

Saturday, October 18, 2014

Towpath upgrade

Work on upgrading the towpath on the Birmingham & Fazeley canal in Birches Green.

Thursday, October 16, 2014

Both Ends (4) : Coventry Canal

The Coventry Canal is a 38 mile canal that stretches from Fradley Junction near Lichfield where it is connected to the Trent & Mersey Canal.
As you might imagine the other end of the canal is in Coventry, and indeed the canal terminates here though before that there are connections to the Lichfield (originally the Wyrley & Essington), Ashby, Birmingham & Fazeley and Oxford canals.

One complication with the Coventry Canal is that while in reality it is a continuous stretch of waterway some maps treat it as two separate sections connected by part of the Birmingham & Fazeley. This confusion dates from the days of private ownership of the canals, but now the canals are all owned by British Waterways the canal should really be treated as it physically is.

Friday, October 10, 2014

Thursday, October 9, 2014

Tuesday, October 7, 2014

Signposts (5) : Coventry Basin

From the terminus of the Coventry Canal you can head off to these destinations among others.

Saturday, October 4, 2014

Thursday, October 2, 2014

Tuesday, September 30, 2014

New and old

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

Saturday, September 27, 2014

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.