A brief update today, as Internet connectivity is weak here. We bid a fond farewell to the Staffs and Worcester today and turned onto the Shropshire Union. This is a apparently a euphemism for mating shopping carts.

That’s where wire shopping baskets come from. I think we ran over a shopping cart in the canal in Kidderminster a couple of days ago. The boat won, but we had a scratchy, crunchy time of it for a few moments. All sorts of things end up in the canal. We went past a dredger working today. That’s a floating backhoe digging mud out of the canal into a separate barge. Paula asked the guy working it what sorts of interesting things he found in the cut, and he said he had fished out motorcycles and cars.

This is a Telford canal, so it is straighter, with fewer locks. Instead there are deep cuttings and embankments to keep the canal level. Here’s a cutting or “valley” as the old time canal workers used to call them.

With the trees growing up and filling the space between the sides of the embankment it seems like you are navigating a green slot in the land. Of course, it’s not very good for mobile reception, hence the bad Internet connectivity.

We are moored in the village of Brewood (pronounced Brood), sitting out more rain. The forecast is for rain tomorrow as well. Ah, well, at least the canals won’t run out of water. Don’t laugh, it does happen in dry summers for some canals, and they have to restrict the number of boats going through the locks. Not for this canal though. The Shropshire Union gets a good supply of water (suitable treated one hopes) from a sewage farm.

Brewood is notable for Speedwell Castle, an extravagant 18th Century house in the middle of town.

Legend has it that it was built by a local shopkeeper with the winnings he made by betting on a racehorse called Speedwell.

There’s also a traditional butcher’s shop.

I suggested we get some faggots for dinner, but Paula did not want anything to do with offal, so we are having steak instead.