On to Oldbury

We set off this morning just after one of the dredger pans had come up the Wolverhampton 21.  I was intrigued as to where they were taking it and 4 miles later we caught up with it at Deepfields.  It's no wonder it costs so much to dredge the canal when they have to transport the spoil so far to unload it into skips.

Unfortunately, the fully laden pans lie very deep in the water and stir up all the oily sediment from the canal bed as they pass.  Once we got past Deepfields the water went back to being clear again.

It's been a good days cruising and the scenery has been very varied, from open green areas through to modern canal-side housing and more industrial sections.

There's plenty of wildlife to watch too. We've seen Canada Geese with goslings, swans with cygnets and the most coots I have ever seen before on any stretch of water.

We knew we'd almost reached our destination when we got to the M5 motorway.  The canal flows underneath it for a short while until we turned right up onto the Titford Canal and up the flight of 6 locks which is also known as "The Crow".

 As with the Wolverhampton 21, these locks are extremely well maintained and very easy to operate.

We're now moored with around 30 other boats ready for the Titford Rally which is on this weekend and are just about to go and help make sure the beer which has arrived is fit for drinking.  We've been invited to the beer tasting session.  Looks like it's going to be a good weekend!