The aim for today was to reach the Black Country Living Museum (BCLM) about lunch time to be measured by their guage for the Tunnel. If we fitted then we would spend the afternoon in the Museum, if we didn't then there would be enough time to get back to the start of the Netherton tunnel, ready for tommorow.
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| Trip boat entering Dudley Tunnel |
Everything was going to plan until about 11 o'clock. We had just come through the Factory locks and turned left towards the museum when we came across a British Waterways work boat stuck under Owen Street bridge. It was fully loaded with dredged spoil and appeared to have grounded. The BW tug eventually managed to push it through and we were underway after about 20 minutes. However as we passed through the bridge the prop was fouled and all propulsion lost. Eos was stranded in the middle of the cut, whilst I delved into the weed hatch to sort it out. Just under an hour later and one very torn bed sheet later we were back under way.
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| Me clearing the weed hatch. |
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| Part of one very torn bed sheet. |
These delays however meant our arrival at the BCLM was later than planned. I went to the ticket office to enquire about the measuring, unfortunately a party of school children were about to be taken into the tunnel and there would be no one availble for the measuring until the trip boat returned at 2:45. So some 3 hours later than planned we were finally measured only to find that Eos was too large.
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| Dudley Tunnel measuring guage. |
We then started the journey to the Netherton Tunnel, thinking we would be able to get there and moor up ready to through first thing the following morning. Then we came across this
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| BW/C&RT dredger at work. |
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| Surprised not to see a trolley! |
This held us up for another 30 minutes and after we were allowed through twice in the next mile the prop was fouled. Not particularly badly, but another 15 minutes lost each time.
Despite the holdups and the onset of rain we made steady progress, passing above Netherton tunnel branch.
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| Netherton tunnel branch from the Old Main Line canal. |
We did think about stopping on the Old Main Line for the night, but decided to at least get to the Gower Branch and put the Brades locks behind us. The first two Brades locks are in fact a staircase lock and as Eos left the bottom gate the boat grounded on the cill. Another half-an-hour before we got moving, walking to the bottom gate, to make sure all the paddles were down, then back to the top gate to open the paddles to let water into the lock and pound to refloat Eos. Once we had sorted this out we went through the bottom lock and called it a day, mooring in the Gower branch for the night.
One of the most frustrating days on the canal I've experienced, held up by a boat stuck in a bridge hole, delayed by a sheet wraped around the propellor, Eos being too large for the Dudley Tunnel (not entirely unexpected though). Held up by a dredger, delayed twice more by the propellor being fouled and finally being grounded (through lack of water, despite it raining most of the day).
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| Gower Branch (BCN) looking back at Brades Locks. |
