APRIL - JUNE 2005
						WE WERE STRANDED AT THE TRAIN STATION
	We finished the Birmingham maze of canals with a visit to the Black Country Museum at Dudley. This is really worth a visit by anyone. We then went through Wolverhampton again and down the flight of 21 locks onto the Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal for the second time. This time we carried on south to Stourport on Severn and down the Severn to Tewkesbury and up the River Avon. The Avon is beautiful and we were sad we only had three days but we had to get onto the Stratford- on-Avon Canal to find a suitable place to leave the boat for about 10 days which was near enough for Zoe to pick us up. Coming back we took a train to a little station some two or three miles away from the boat and found some numbers for car hire. We eventually found a car which would pick us up (after Alan tried unsuccessfully to thumb a lift) but as the appointed time passed and there was no sign of the car and only an answer phone when we tried to find out what had happened, we were wondering what on earth we would do as the luggage was too heavy to walk up hill the miles back to the boat. Eventually a Range Rover stopped and gave us a lift - we were much relieved as we had been at the station for two hours! The Stratford Canal took us back up to Birmingham for the very last time and we only spent a day there and then left down the Worcester Birmingham Canal which took us down the longest flight of locks in Europe at Tardebigge - 30 locks in 2 miles followed by a further flight of 6. We had a boiling hot day for it at the MayDay Bank holiday. However whilst climbing back down on to the boat in a lock I missed by footing and banged the top of my right cheek bone on the top corner of the steel boat. You should have seen me the next morning - what a black eye - I had to wear sun glasses for about a week and Alan got some peculiar looks! As we neared Worcester, Alan realised the oil seal was not working so time was spent taking the flywheel off again and ordering new seals to be delivered to the lock keeper. Hopefully this time all will be well which is essential as we are travelling down the River Severn and the Sharpness Canal ready to go out on 18th June with 13 other boats down the tidal Severn and into Avon Mouth and up to Bristol. We have now reached Gloucester, having enjoyed the sights at Worcester and travelled down the Severn stopping at Upon upon Severn on route and visiting a local vinyard.
							I GOT A BLACK EYE
							THE OIL SEAL LEAKED AGAIN