It was sunny and calm so we took a stroll to get fish n chips at Hockley Heath.
We were soon sitting on a street bench watching the traffic while consuming the food from its paper wrapping. Our plan is to move on through Birmingham but we wait for the political conference to finish. The police are searching passing boats with dogs.
We set off on Thursday after using the facilities at the boat yard. Ten miles of the northern Stratford canal seemed to take an age to Kings Norton. Most of the canal is lined with trees on both sides and the prop kept getting clogged with the falling autumn leaves.
We had been told that we were heading into ‘bandit country’ so we did not stop on the way except with another boat at the water point. Then we saw policemen patrolling the tow path! After passing through the short Brandwood tunnel we found the curious guillotine lock which is now permanently open.
It was a ‘stop lock’ where private canal companies would charge working boaters for moving cargo. Just like a road toll.
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