Into town.

We moved from the rural to the urban today, heading into Rugeley. But the first few miles were splendid, a very pretty lock, woods and open fields before we met the urban sprawl at Bridge 57.

Setting off on another bright, sunny morning through Fradley Woods.

Woodend Lock



More bosky stuff above Woodend, the delightfully named Ravenshaw Woods.

Large fields of rape are just coming into flower alongside the canal, the sickly-sweet perfume drifting on the gentle breeze.

I spotted my first lambs in a field near Bridge 56, but the hedge was too thick to get a photograph.

The housing states of Armitage start to appear after Bridge 57.

In 1817 Thomas Bond built a large factory alongside the canal at Armitage, to produce what is euphemistically known as “Sanitary Ware”. The original factory is still here, and has expanded further. In 1907 Armitage merged with Shanks Holdings, resulting in the world recognised brand of Armitage Shanks. Most of the commonwealth population has either pooed, peed or washed in their products. Or all three…

The canal along here can be challenging when there’s a lot of boats about. There are narrow sections, blind bridges and the single width channel that used to be Armitage Tunnel before the roof was taken off.






Hawksyard Priory and moorings.


We topped up the water tank at the end of the moorings, then carried on into town, mooring before Bridge 66, handy for the shops.

Locks 1, miles 7