Beyond the Netherton Tunnel

 

Cruised through the Netherton Tunnel. Nothing came through towards us. No boat ramming us like in Blissworth Tunnel. it was all very tame. the other side of the hill was so different from Birmingham, seemingly peaceful and rustic, yet the Dudley canal was pronounced unsuitable for overnight mooring apart from Merryhill. I guess that's when all the Zombies come out to play.

At the bottom of Delph 8

We should have stopped there but carried on through the super deep Delph locks, speeded on our way by a local canal enthusiast called John. Thanks John, 8 locks in 80 minutes, that's flying for a crew of 2. We were not so lucky at the next flight of 16 locks a couple of miles further on. the locks took ages to fill and the gates were very heavy due to the deep locks. We dropped 145 feet in 1.3 miles and eventually moored up after 8.00 exhausted.