Day out in Leamington Spa

We are off to Leamington Spa today by train so we had breakfast then walked up to the train station which is about a 15 minute from where we are moored.  The sun wasn’t shining today and it was very overcast but no rain yet.

The Royal Pump Rooms

Food Court

Shopping Centre

The train trip is about 20 minutes.  When we got off the train, there was an entrance to the road through the station car park so we followed that which took us along a footpath and across the Pump Room Gardens, past the Royal Pump rooms and then we were in the shopping area of Leamington Spa.  We had a wander around the shops and was looking for a fruit and veg shop that we had googled and just up from it there was a butchers called Aubrey Allen.  It was a fantastic butchers and we bought many things, couldn’t resist it and it reminded us of the butchers Joseph Morris which is in the Rugby area.   We were thankful we were looking for the fruit shop as we would never have come across it and what a great find it was.  We went to the fruit shop as well and that was a good shop too.

Cote Brasserie

Egg and Bacon Salad

It was then time for lunch so we walked back to the food court we had walked through earlier and chose to eat in Cote Brasserie and a great choice it was too.  They did a two course lunch for £10.95 or three courses for £12.95.  I had bacon and egg salad followed by sea bass and dark chocolate pot, Kev had whitebait followed by chicken with couscous.  The food was excellent especially for the price and the service was good as well, would highly recommend it.

We did a bit more shopping then headed back to the train station, just as well as it had started to rain.  We managed to get back to the boat before the heavy rain started, but it was a good day out.

Lapworth Lock 14 (Stratford Canal) to Kingswood Junction, (Grand Union Canal)

Starting down the six locks

We are moving on today down six locks, onto the Lapworth link at Kingswood Junction and onto the Grand Union Canal.

Heave Ho, here we go again!

It was overcast as we set off to the first lock.  It was set for us as a boat had just come up so we were soon through there and onto the next one.  We had done a couple of locks when two volunteer lock keepers came up the towpath and so the next few were easy as we had help.  We stopped at the waterpoint to fill up which today seemed to take for ever.

Coming out another lock

Our friendly lock keeper

There were two hire boats following us and they went by and into the next lock, we then found out that they wanted water as well but they never said so had to get it at the junction where there was a bit of a queue for the waterpoint, but that was their problem, there was plenty of room in front of us for one of them to moor up!

Along the Lapworth link we go

Birmingham this way

We went through two more locks with the friendly lock keepers helping and on along the Lapworth link and out onto the Grand Union canal where we turned left and moored just along there in the visitor moorings.  We haven’t been this way before so now it is all new to us, how exciting!

We had lunch which was the Dexter pie we bought yesterday at the farm shop and it was delicious, as good as last time and maybe even better.

Grand Union Canal

We then went for a walk up the Grand Union to walk off the pie, we were only going for a short stroll on the flat, but we walked up a couple of bridges then Kev looked on Google and said we could do a circle so off we went up onto the bridge and up a lane called Rising lane and it was true to its name, up a hill we went, so much for a walk on the flat!!  We then took another lane which went  downhill and eventually back to the Stratford canal, back down the towpath and onto the Grand Union and back to the boat, altogether probably about 2 miles or so and I only went out for a short stroll!!

We are staying here tonight and tomorrow as well as we are catching a train to Leamington Spa so looking forward to that. 

Moored at Kingswood Junction, Grand Union Canal

Walks to Swallow Cruisers and Finwood Hill Farm Shop, Lowsonford (Stratford Canal)

A short while ago when the weather turned warmer, we decided that we wouldn’t need any more fires so Kev took the chimney off.  As it had been there all winter it needed a bit of persuasion so Kev gave it a tap and it broke in two!!  So we have been looking in the Chandlers that we have passed for another one and have decided that we will have a stainless steel one this time.  When we were at Hockley Heath we walked down to Swallow Cruisers and although they didn’t have one in stock the chap was going to Limekiln Chandlers the next day so he was going to pick one up for us.  They were really helpful and friendly and the Chandlery is well stocked and we would recommend it.   As we went down the Lapford Flight on Friday we had to walk back up the flight to fetch it yesterday (Saturday).

The walk was about a 3½ mile round trip but it was a nice walk and the weather was lovely and this is what we bought yesterday …

Our shiny new chimney

 

Towpath on Stratford Canal to Lowsonford

Today (Sunday) we decided to walk to Lowsonford as we aren’t going by boat this time as it is further down the Stratford canal than we are going and the Finwood Hill Farm shop is there which sell the lovely Dexter pies and also pork from their Gloucester Old Spot pigs.

We set off along the canal and stopped to chat to a lady who had a Cavalier Spaniel and she asked us where we were walking to and we said to the farm shop and we told her about the scrummy pies, she said she must go and buy one sometime.  We walked on and down the canal we went past lots of locks and there were plenty of boats going through today.

Finwood Hill Farm Shop

Tom o' the Wood pub

We trotted on along the towpath and soon we were at lock 30 and we walked up the hill to the farm shop.  We bought a pie, obviously, and some pork chops and a steak for me and we were just leaving when a car came in and you will never believe it, but it was the lady we saw this morning and she had come to buy a pie to try it as we had said they were so nice, how funny was that.  She lives in Lapworth so offered us a lift back but we said we would walk as it was a nice day and we needed the exercise but we were going to walk back via the Grand Union canal so she insisted on giving us a lift to the top of the hill and dropped us by the Tom o’ the Wood pub which is on the Grand Union Canal at Rowington, very kind of her and a really nice lady with a lovely dog, I wanted to put him in our carrier bag, but she wouldn’t let met!!

And this is what we bought today ….

Dexter Beef Pie

 Just hope we don't get our two purchases muddled up!!

Towpath on the Grand Union Canal

Family of Geese

We walked down onto the Grand Union canal and followed the towpath back to the Junction with the Stratford Canal.  On the way we saw a family of Geese, we haven’t seen many of them yet on our trip but always nice to see.

We walked back up to the boat via the shop as we needed a couple of things.  The walk today was about 4 miles, but really good and didn't seem that far. 

It was such a lovely day that after we had watched the Grand Prix we went and sat in the garden by the café and had an ice-cream and a cup of tea and watched the boats going up and down.

Hockley Heath to Lapworth, Lock 14 (Stratford Canal)

Working 1st lift bridge

And down she goes

We are setting off down the Lapworth Flight today and mooring just below Lock 14, so we have 13 to do.  We were going to leave around 8.30am but left just after 9am in the end as the boat in front of us went at 8.30am and we didn’t want to follow right behind another boat down the flight.

Going through next lift bridge

Hello!

Down the lapworth flight we go

The sun was shining as we set off along the canal and soon came to Bridge 26 which is a lift bridge which you work with a windlass, so I got off the boat, went across the bridge and opened it up, Kev brought the boat through and I closed it, jumped back on the boat and off we went again.  Under Bridge 27 and the next bridge 28 is also a lift bridge and that is worked with a windlass as well, but this one is much more hard work than the last one.  By the time I had opened it and shut it again, I was out of breath and had to have a sit down for a few minutes!

In another lock

Working through the locks

We chugged on along the canal and soon we were at the top of the Lapworth flight of locks where there is 19 down to the junction, but we are only doing 13 today.  We set off down the flight, unfortunately they were set against us, but we had our little routine where Kev brought the boat in and then he did the towpath side and I did the other and then he pulled the boat out and on to the next one we went.

Heave Ho, out we go!

We did meet a boat coming up so the last few locks were set for us.  We worked on through and before we knew it we were at lock 14.  We moored up at the bottom of this lock in the visitor moorings.

We had lunch then went for a walk down the rest of the locks to the junction.  Our friends Rob and Wendy have left their boat in the marina there while they went home and all looked fine.  They will be back next week so hopefully we might meet up with them.  

Last lock of the day

We walked back up the locks and by lock 14 where we are moored there is a café/shop.  A hire boat had just come through the lock as we walked up to the shop and we noticed that one of the bottom paddles on the lock was open and so were both of the top paddles, which meant the pound was being emptied.  Kev tried to close the bottom paddle but couldn’t without a windlass.  The lady on the boat which was waiting to come into the lock shouted at us to leave it as I think she thought we were trying to pinch the lock!  We did shout to her that this paddle needed shutting, but she didn’t come down so we shouted to the boat that had just gone through and borrowed a windlass from them and then shut the paddle. The lady then realised what we had done and said thanks and blamed the boat that has just gone through.  The pound was well down through, if we hadn’t shut it when we did, I think the pound would have been empty.

A yellow wagtail

Cafe/shop by lock 14

 The lady in the café said that actually the hire boat had gone through the lock, shut the gates and then gone back and opened the top paddles for the next boat but unfortunately they hadn’t realised that they had left a bottom paddle open and the woman coming down didn’t realise, what a carry on!!

The lady in the café/shop makes lovely home-made cake and sells it in the shop for £1 a slice, so we had a drink and a slice of cake and sat by the canal.  It was very quiet and no more disasters.  A yellow wagtail came and perched on a boat in front of us, so that was nice to see.

We are now staying here for a couple of days.

Moored at Lapworth, lock 14