Wednesday 11th August
If you’re old enough to remember Lobo’s 1971 number “Me And You And A Dog Named Boo” maybe you’ll remember that line. Lyrics here if you’re too young.
Since returning from our trip down to Gloucestershire we have been back to our mooring to have a couple of welding jobs done at the boatyard and several other DIY projects including making a planter and a bit of gardening!
We have had a couple of local jaunts to test out the work that has been done but now we have decided it’s time to roam further afield.
So this morning we filled up with diesel (Red diesel is also known as Gas Oil, hence my title) and off we went. We were just passing the Bird in Hand pub, not even a mile from base, when a hire boat pulled out in front of us which we followed into Kidderminster, they were first-time hirers so were a bit slow.
There is masses of Himalayan Balsam growing along the canalside here and although it has a pretty flower is an invasive species.
Himalayan balsam (Impatiens glandulifera) is a relative of the busy Lizzie, but reaches well over head height, and is a major weed problem, especially on riverbanks and waste land, but can also invade gardens. It grows rapidly and spreads quickly, smothering other vegetation as it goes.
At Kidderminster we stopped for lunch and listened to the Paul Temple serial on Radio 4 Extra. After lunch I went to post some letters and thought I’d stumbled across a real life ‘Police Incident’ a guy was lying face down on the grass beside the canal with two officers standing over him, but by the time I returned from the postbox they had him sitting up and when we left the drama was over.
We had a good afternoon’s journey meeting boats to help at every lock (the old boatmen used to call that ‘A Good Road’. At Wolverley we caught up with the novice hirers who had moored up, no doubt tempted by The Lock Inn.
We pressed on however and at Debdale Lock encountered a convoy of boats coming the other way, no problem though as we took turns (one up – one down) and two young lads on bikes were eager to help too. The canal cuts through sandstone here and there is a cave dug into the rock next to the lock.
Afterwards it was through the short Cookley Tunnel and we moored up for the night at Whittington in a nice spot to catch the last of the sun, next to a field occupied by family of geese.
