It rained in the night and the last forecast I heard read said that it was supposed to be wet this morning. As it happened we woke up to a lovely sunny day. Once up and fed Helen went off to be some veg and salad whilst I did the usual jobs. The sun had largely gone when we set off but it was still and warm. There were plenty of people on the towpath, but not too many boats on the canal.
The canal follows the course of the River Stour as it wends it's way over it's flood plain close to the eastern side of it's flood plain where it butts up to the sandstone escarpment.
On the road from the church these houses appear to be built into the cutting of the sandstone. The bedding layers of the sand that was laid down in warm shallow seas are clear to see. There are layers that have more pebbles in them and some that are different colours etc.
The lovely gardens coming down to the canal at Whittington Horse Bridge.
The canal follows the course of the River Stour as it wends it's way over it's flood plain close to the eastern side of it's flood plain where it butts up to the sandstone escarpment.
Helen happy that she has managed to miss Austcliff Rock.
At Cookley the canal can no longer follow the cliffs so it dives through the 65 yard long Cookley Tunnel with the houses perched on top. I'm glad that the tunnel was dry as if the roof was dripping I would have thought about the plumbing above!
Just round the corner from the tunnel is Debdale Lock which is made very photogenic by the sandstone, oh and Helen too.
The greens are very green at the moment. I expect that in the autumn the colours will be fantastic too.
We stopped before Wolverley Lock. At the lock there was loads of people using the tea rooms and pub. After lunch we went to the tea room to have an ice cream, for pudding. We then had a walk around the village, via the Italianate St John The Baptist Church. We walked around the footpaths and saw some lovely houses.
On the road from the church these houses appear to be built into the cutting of the sandstone. The bedding layers of the sand that was laid down in warm shallow seas are clear to see. There are layers that have more pebbles in them and some that are different colours etc.
This is the Old Court House that is now a private house but was a school in 1629. It then was used as council offices as well as a court house.
We pooped in to the Queens Head in the centre of the village to find a limited range of beer. Mind, I still tried a pint of Banks's Bitter before going for a walk down by the river and back along the tow path. We thought we would try the Lock Inn. Again the choice of beer was limited so I settled for an Oxford Gold from Brakspear. I think we need to turn round and go back to the Black Country for a good pint.
St John the Baptist is built on a sandstone out laying rock so that you have to go uphill how ever you approach it. There was a lady cleaning when we go there but there are some some nice shields and plaques in the church with galleries on both sides. It certainly has a prominent position in the landscape.
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