Happy in Hawne.

We had only got about half way down the surviving length of Dudley No.2 canal from Windmill End to Hawne Basin

This widening of the canal on the tow path side and new concrete  path reveals where there was a double arm that was used by Haden hill Colliery. Opposite on the off side was a short arm that served Waterfall Lane pit and next to it a large basin that was at the foot of another inclined plane bringing coal from Black Heath Colliery. Later the basin was infilled and a sawmill built over it.

By Waterfall Lane Bridge are the remains of the walls of the Lion Iron Tube works, and judging by the windows and doors open to the tow path, (now bricked up) boats would have been loaded/discharged here.

This over bridge seems to have led to a basin that appears to have been a railway transhipment basin as the tracks ran right alongside.

To speed up the traffic and save the practice of legging through the tunnel the canal company provided a towing tug that would tow them through between 1913 and the 1930's. On the left is the remains of the little dock where it was kept there was a shed above it and there are a few remains of it on the tunnel brick abutments. 

The tunnel is in three parts with two ventilators. The west end is nice and high, if narrow. It then gets much lower, but still brick lined. You can see the white paint marking the change in level. The roof then lifts a little. I'm not sure why there are three levels, maybe there were collapses or subsidence in parts and they were rebuilt higher, and only the middle section is original. All three sections are extremely shallow and you just can't go at any speed. The guys at Hawne Basin were telling me that a couple got stuck for over twenty hours when they had a log jam them in like us the other day. They couldn't run their smoky engine or light their stove!

As you come out of the tunnel there is much evidence of the Coombeswood Works and clay pits. In the 1880's it was all on the off, northern, bank. By WWI there was also works on the south side connected by three bridges. By WWII there were seven bridges and the works on either side were about the same size. Some of the bridges were overhead cranes to carry products backwards and forwards. between the sites. The main product was tubing. In 1903 Lloyd and Lloyd who had the site amalgamated with A&J Stewart to become one of the largest producers of tubing. It its height they employed 3000 people. In both wars they produced millions of shell cases for the munitions industry. In WWII they also provided the main components for the PLUTO system. the Pipe Line Under The Ocean that supplied fuel across the Channel to the Normandy Beachhead. The pipeline was spooled out from giant reels towed across the sea.

It would be great to know what all the visible remains are. This looks like it may well have been a tippler or crane unloader of coal and ferrous ore.

Now industry has largely been replaced by Industrial estate and storage warehouse it is much quieter down here than in former times, and you could even think you were in the countryside as nature starts to reclaim it for itself.

At the southern end of the Stewarts and Lloyds works can be seen these wooden ramps that lead down into the water and this is where there was a an open dock where the company fleet of narrow boats and tugs was repaired. It is probably on the site of an old brickworks

Coombes Bridge is a fairly recent addition as the original was taken away in WWII for the scrap drive. At this point there was a small aqueduct that carried the canal over a mill pond that went down to Coombes Corn Mill. The land wasn't 'reclaimed' until the 1960's when an industrial estate was built over the area.

Just before you get to Hawne Basin there was a Brick and Tile works on the tow path side in the 1880's, but by WWI there was an arm that served Coombes Wood Colliery, but there is very little evidence of it now. On the opposite side to Hawne Basin was the Lion Brick, pipe and tile works along with clay pits and a furnace. It looks like Hawne Basin was in existence at this time so was probably to house traffic awaiting cargoes etc. By WWI a branch from the mainline railway had been built to the basin and at the west side was a transhipment shed, and at the southern end was a massive goods shed. By WWII the track that ran right alongside the basin, where the service wharf is now, had been taken up as well as the smaller transit shed.

It is a tight turn into the very narrow bridge hole and there isn't much room in the basin with all the boats. Despite the sudden arrival of a fair bit of wind we managed to get through and round onto the jetty where we were soon filling up with fuel, taking on 156 litres at 65p. They are always extremely friendly and helpful here and soon had us pointing at our berth for a few days. We still had time to pop down to Black Country stoves down Hereward Rise and close to Macro to get a few bits and pieces for out stove. If you are down this neck of the woods and are short of diesel it could well be worth coming down here to Coombeswood Canal Trust. It is an interesting trip on it's own, but the lure of cheap coal, gas and derv should attract you.

I am catching the bus into Birmingham later and catching the train to Hull and then come back with the car tomorrow as we have a wedding and various other things to attend to