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