Worcester Bound

Tuesday 25^th September

The weather forecast was for rain at about 2pm so we left our moorings at 7.30am creeping past the sleeping live aboards on the opposite bank heading for Worcester.

 The Worcester and B’ham canal is very narrow, shallow and lined with high reeds just like the Droitwich Barge Canal.

We passed some nice houses at Shernal Green and a magnificent view of the church and half timbered farm at Oddingley.

* Oddingley Church and Farm

We negotiated the short, 230yd, Dunhampstead Tunnel and on to the first of the 14 locks on our route at Offerton. Making good progress through the locks we only encountered a few hire craft coming out of Worcester until the second Bilford lock where a hotel boat with butty were coming up. The guests were trying to operate the locks and June had to help or we might have been there now.

They were on their way to Stratford and had had to resort to the canal as the River Severn was in flood.

The approach to Worcester has several rows of cottages which either line the canal or their street ends at the canal and then we reached the unusual Bridge with odd holes in it at Lowesmoor Wharf the home of the Viking Afloat fleet. The wharf is at an unusual angle to the canal and winding hole and requires some skill to get in without hitting the sides.

* Canal side Cottages

* Unusual Bridge at Lowesmoor Wharf

The towpath switched to the other side of the canal as we approached The Commandary ( founded as a small hospital in 1085) and June used her chat up line to get two young men to help her with the last lock as we went under the main road into Worcester.

* The Commandery

* June Chats up a couple of Toyboys

We moored up and after lunch walked the short distance through the old Worcester Porcelain factory which is now being developed as a nice residential and retail centre into the city to explore the shops.

Later I took Phoenix a walk around the new Diglis basin development and found the River Severn to be so in flood that it had overflowed the first lock onto the river. We were just thankful that we decided to leave Stourport earlier than originally planned, you cannot believe that just one days rain could have had such a rapid effect on the river.

* Diglis Basin Marina

* Floating Cafe

* Worcester Cathedral

* River Floods Lock

* 30 Miles and 58 Locks to go.

The rain eventually arrived about 7.30pm when we were warm and snug tucked up in the boat.