Diglis Pontoon to Worcester Basin

Going up locks into Basin

We are moving up into Worcester Basin today, so I went up to the lock to get it ready for us.  We were lucky as the lock was empty so I pushed open one gate as they are double locks and went and signalled to Kev to come on in.  There was a hire boat on the Severn turning around so I shouted to them if they were coming into the lock and they said yes so I told them to come on in so we can share the lock.  They came in and I opened the other gate and in came Kev. The gates are very heavy so I was grateful for a few passers-by who helped me shut the gates.  A lady got out the other boat to help and we filled the lock, it took ages though as they are very slow to fill.  We were soon in the next lock and through that one and out into the basin

We stopped at the water point and filled up with water which seemed to take for ever as the tap was dribbling out.  We then moored just down from there in the visitor moorings. We are staying here tomorrow as well.

We had lunch and we had a few heavy showers so we waited for them to go over and then we went out for a walk, but we timed it wrong and it started to rain again, but we sheltered under the bridge until it passed over.  We walked up to Aldi and then to Worcester Marina as we wanted to see about the leaving the boat there for a couple of days at the end of the week as we have to go back to Weston.  It is a nice marina and they had a space so we will go in there Friday morning and leave Sunday.

We walked back to the boat and just chilled out

Moored in Worcester Basin

for the rest of the day.

Day out at Stratford Car Festival

We are off to Stratford-Upon-Avon today as there is a car festival being held there where they close the main streets and all the cars park up in the town so you can look around them and then they have a cavalcade around the streets.  Our friends Steve and Ian will be there with their two Morgan cars so we will meet up with them which will be nice.

The two Morgans

We went by train to Stratford which was a two hour journey but we didn’t mind as it is a day out and we were meeting up with our friends.   Steve and Ian were parked up in High Street so we went and found them.  There was lots of cars, some really old, some new, super cars and old cars, really good and there was crowds of people.

It was really nice to see Steve and Ian and catch up.  Their two cars were gleaming and caught the attention of a lot of people especially the three wheeler, which is such a fun car.  The thing that surprised us was how people not just children (whose parents didn’t stop them) but adults as well seemed to think that it was okay to touch the cars and even attempt to climb in them and when Steve asked them not to they gave him such a look.  I wouldn’t dream of doing such as thing but I suppose that is the society of today!!

Off we go!

At lunch time they held the cavalcade around the streets which Steve and Ian were taking part in, Steve drove the four wheel Morgan and Ian was in the three wheeler and they kindly said I could ride with Ian.  Well, we dressed up for the part in hats and goggles and I looked like Biggles and we set off, it was a slow procession but such fun and Ian pleased the crowds by revving the engine at every opportunity!  There was hundreds of people lining the streets, waving, cheering and taking photos and in some places they were three deep, we felt like we had won the FA cup or something and everyone was out on the streets to see us, I don’t think I have ever had my photo taken so many times, it was great.  The Sheriff followed us all the way around so we were on our best behaviour!!

In the cavalcade

Kev took our photo as we set off and he kept appearing from behind lamp posts and people all around the route, we had our very own paparazzi chasing us!!

A lovely VW

We eventually got back to where we started and Steve and Ian parked up the cars again for a while then they set off home.  When they left, all the crowds gathered around to watch them go and we waved them off.

The Sheriff was in town!

We then had a walk around, there was a market down on the waterfront so we had a look around there and then had a coffee sat by the river.  We then walked back to the station and got the train back to Worcester.

It was a really good day and it was great to see Steve and Ian and I did so enjoy riding in the three wheeler in the cavalcade, so thanks again to them for letting me, it was a lot of fun .

Steve and Ian setting off home

Tewkesbury to Worcester (River Severn)

We were getting ready to set off this morning when Kevin just had a check in the engine and found that the fuel filter bracket had come away from the engine, the bolts had somehow unscrewed, but Kev managed to refit it.  We can’t really understand how this happened as they had to unscrew upwards, but they did, lucky we saw it before we set off.

Mythe Bridge

Passing Upton Upon Severn

We set off from Tewkesbury up the River Severn towards Worcester and soon we were going underneath the single 170ft-span of the cast iron Mythe Bridge, built by Thomas Telford in 1828.  It was sunny when we set off but during our trip we had a couple of really heavy showers with sleet and hail, lucky we have our pram cover to keep us dry!  It was really cold as well, the wind was biting.  Up past Upton Upon Severn and on up the river we went and until after a few hours we were approaching Diglis Lock.  There are two locks at Diglis a small one and a big one and usually we go in the small one but today we went in the big one, not sure why but we went up the lock very gently and soon we were going out of the lock.

Approaching Diglis Locks

We stopped to get water just outside the lock then moored on the visitor moorings pontoon before the locks into Worcester basin.

Moored with Worcester Cathedral in distance

We had some lunch, then went up into Worcester and had a walk around the shops and came back to the boat along the River path, it turned out to be a nice sunny afternoon and did warm up a bit.

We are staying here now for a few days and on Sunday we are off to Stratford Upon Avon as there is a festival of cars where all the classic cars park up in the streets and Steve and Ian will be there with their Morgans, we are looking forward to seeing them and looking around all the cars, should be good.

Moored at Worcester

Gloucester Docks to Tewkesbury (River Severn)

Leaving Gloucester Lock

We left Gloucester Docks this morning, it was dry and sunny but really cold, more like Autumn than Spring!  Into the lock we went along with three other boats, Michelle one of the bridge keepers was on one of the boats helping a friend go up to Upton as they didn’t want to go up the river alone.

Going up the partings in convoy

Down we went and soon the gates were opening and one by one we went out into the partings, I got my rope caught on the pole that I was holding on to and it gave me a bit of a panic for a minute, but we let the other boats go out and Kev reversed and I pulled it off, so all was well and up the partings we went and then onto the main part of the River Severn.

Leading convoy out of Upper Lode Lock

It was dry but a real biting wind so we were glad to see Upper Lode lock, we all went in together and soon going out the other side.  We then turned off for Tewkesbury and waved bye to Michelle and the other two boats who were going onto Upton for the folk festival which is being held there this weekend.

We moored on the pontoon outside the lock and went and saw the lock keeper who said we could moor there overnight so we paid the £5 fee.

Tewkesbury

We had a walk around the town and this time we went into Tewkesbury Abbey which is lovely.  Consecrated in 1540, the church of the Benedictine Abbey of Tewkesbury survived the monastic dissolution of 1540 thanks to the generosity of the townspeople who bought it from King Henry VIII for the sum of £453 (the cost of the lead and the bells).  It remains as the spiritual focus of parish life today.

Tewkesbury Abbey

The Abbey is of cathedral proportions and is actually one of the largest parish churches in the country.  There has been a church on this site for over 1,200 years and the present building has stood for nearly 900 years.

We haven’t done this before, but it is a lovely Abbey and well worth a walk around.

We are staying here tonight then off up to Worcester tomorrow where we will stay for a few days then off up the narrows we go and we can’t wait.

Moored at Tewkesbury

2016 Trip - In Gloucester Docks ready to start adventure tomorrow

We are now in Gloucester Docks at the start of our 2016 trip.  We are going out on the River Severn tomorrow morning and going up to Tewkesbury.

Moored in Gloucester Docks

This year we are going up the Worcester & Birmingham canal and turning off at Kings Norton Junction and going into Birmingham that way via the Grand Union Canal, we will then do a couple of the small canals that surround Birmingham then down the Wolverhampton flight of locks, onto the Staffs and Worcester canal.  We will then be making our way to the Trent & Mersey canal, then the Shropshire Union to Chester and turning round and coming back down and hopefully if we have time, we may do the Macclesfield canal, but knowing how slowly we go, we may not even do all of this, but we will try!

The weather has been very mixed today, sunny spells then heavy rain showers with hailstones, but hopefully it will be better when we chug up the river tomorrow.

We are looking forward to our trip and hope you all enjoy reading about our adventures.