Birmingham and Fazeley Canal

On the 19th of April 1904, Edith was still on her Dartmoor holiday and her diary entry describes a visit to the pretty river Walkham. On that day in 2016, my stay in central Birmingham took me to a more urban waterway. I've previously visited the Gas Street Basin on the New Main Line.

The Malt House on the New Main Line.

This time I followed the New Main Line as far as the Malt House. Last year, I visited this pub on a cold winter's evening and enjoyed fish and chips and was warmed by an open fire while listening to a jazz ensemble. In Edith's time, this building was probably still used for its original purpose of malting grain for beer making. At this point, I crossed the New Main Line so I could follow the older Birmingham & Fazeley Canal. While I was crossing the bridge, a group of ducks glided past.



View along the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal.

The Canal and River Trust web site tells us that this canal opened in 1789. Once hemmed in by works and wharfs it now drops down between modern apartments and lively bars. 

Cambrian Wharf area.

The canal is well-kept by the Canal and River Trust (West Midlands) who are running the #sharethespace campaign in which canal and towpath users are asked to be considerate.

Be like the duck and not the goose - #sharethespace

Looking across the canal, I can see three large blocks of flats. Beyond that is the new library.  From the bridge, I was able to look down a flight of locks.

Flight of locks

A Canal and River Trust notice tells us:

The Farmers Bridge Lock Flight is one of the most unusual sights on Birmingham's canal network. The canal plunges down 81 feet (25 metres) through dramatically floodlit archways, office undercrofts, and claustrophobic tunnels.

There are numerous slopes and I puzzled over ridges of raised bricks - the bricks were clearly replacements for the originals but this feature had been retained in the restoration.. In the end, I figured out that these helped the horses that pulled the narrow boats grip the tow path in wet weather. 

Modern Bridge.

About 6 locks down the flight, I found an unusual bridge.

Stepping back.

Taking in a wider angled view, enabled me to see the BT Tower.

Dropping underground.

After this the walk became a little spookier. The canal dropped into the understory of a large building and came out between high walls. There was no longer the sense of safety provided by the people overlooking the canal from homes and bars. The walk ways became shabbier but more intriguing. More of the brickwork was original here and the ridges that I had noticed in the restored part were now smoothed down by thousands of feet and hooves.  After the 12th lock, I was sufficiently spooked to scurry up a flight of metal steps to the surface.

I was trying to figure out where I was when I spotted the library. A number of the Herring Gulls that haunt the city were wheeling round the "cliff faces" provided by the library and other large buildings nearby.

The Shakespeare, Summer Row.

As I walked towards the library, I found The Shakespeare pub. After seeing so many modern and often rowdy and intimidating bars, it was refreshing to find a traditional, friendly pub.  It was arranged with the bar in the centre, a lively area at the front, a quiet area behind the bar and a garden at the back. I had an excellent meal of Devonshire crab followed British beef pie for a remarkably modest price. The website tells us that this pub ...

"... is where the goldsmiths and silversmiths from the nearby Jewellery Quarter once quenched their thirsts. In the mid-19th century."

The Shakespeare, showing its fine arched windows.

By the time I had finished my meal, it was getting dark and I returned to the hotel - I cut across behind the library and made a surprising and delightful discovery but more of that next time.