BLACK COUNTRY MUSEUM AND RETURN FROM GAILEY

 

Route Info | Boats | Map overview of route | Cruising Notes | Maps & Guides | Links | Pub Guide

 

You can do this route from :
Gailey Wharf.

Gailey Wharf

Staffordshire

 

Cruise through the Staffordshire countryside to the Black Country Museum and Dudley Zoo and Castle

The Black Country Living Museum is an open-air museum of rebuilt historic buildings .It is close to Dudley Castle in the centre of the Black Country conurbation. The museum occupies 26 acres of former industrial land partly reclaimed from a former railway goods yard, disused lime kilns and former coal pits.

The museum preserves some important buildings from around the Metropolitan Boroughs of Dudley, Sandwell and Walsall and the City of Wolverhampton; mainly in a specially built village. Most buildings were relocated from their original sites to form a base from where demonstrators portray life in the period from the 1850s to the 1950s.

The museum is constantly changing as new exhibits, especially buildings, are being added.

Close by is Dudley Zoo and castle - a 40 acre zoo home to 200 species of animals and within its wall an 11th century castle

Route Info

Route Facts & Figures

Recommended Holiday
Duration : 4 nights.

Total Cruising Days : 5.00
(Partial or full days)

Total Cruising Time : 19.00 hours

Total Distance : 33.00 miles

Number of Locks : 42

Number of Tunnels : 4

Number of Aqueducts : 0

Read the Cruising Notes

Read our cruising notes to help you plan your canal boat holiday

Read our cruising notes.

 

 

 

 

 

Cruising Notes

Day 1

Leaving Gailey Wharf, (look out for the large round toll keepers watch tower), you will be heading towards The Fox and Anchor Public House, where you can moor for the night, and which can be found ⅔ of the way between Hatherton Junction and Coven Heath Bridge No. 69.

The canal is very winding, and curves in a wide arc to the left, towards the Hatherton Branch, over an aqueduct, then curves back to the right.

The twists and turns continue more or less until you reach the point where the M54 crosses the canal. Just prior to here is the pub, but to minimise noise from the motorway, it would be advisable to moor nearer to Bridge No. 71, Cross Green Bridge, and walk the short distance to the pub.

A nice meal and refreshing drink will probably be welcome now, ready for an early start tomorrow morning.

You have cruised 4 miles in around 2 hours.

Day 2


Once you leave your mooring, you will be heading towards Wolverhampton, on your left.

The canal is reasonably straight until you reach Autherley Junction, where the Shropshire Union Canal joins the Staffordshire and Worcester Canal. When the canal parts again, branch left onto the Birmingham Navigation at Aldersley Junction, where you will soon be met by the sight of the Wolverhampton 21 Locks, where you will have climbed 132 feet by the time you reach Wolverhampton Top Lock No. 1. A daunting prospect!

If you want to moor up now, you can take a look around Wolverhampton, and perhaps find a nice pub for a much-deserved drink and meal. There are many pubs and restaurants to choose from, offering a wide selection of meals.

Leaving here, stay on the main line canal, which twists and turns as it wends its way through places such as Ladymoor, and Coseley, where there is a tunnel that is 360 yards long. Once through the tunnel, you are not far from Tipton Junction, where you will bear right onto the Dudley Canal. The Black Country Museum is at the end of this arm.

It is 7.5 hours to here

Day 3

For information regarding opening times, admission prices, etc, to The Black Country Museum, please visit www.bclm.co.uk. There is plenty to do for everyone here, from a boat trip through Dudley Tunnel to and old-time school lesson, glass cutting to sweet making, and plenty of other activities.


Day 4
Day 5

Return to the marina by 9.30am. It is 9.5 hours back.


All of the above moorings and points of interest are suggestions only, and you are free to plan your own itinerary.

Enjoy your holiday!

 

NB: This route has been provided as a guide only. Information may become inaccurate or out of date. You should always check with the marina that the route is possible within your time frame, current weather conditions and canal stoppages etc.

Boats

The following boats operate on this route (subject to availability)
Bragi Canal Boat
Class : Nene
(Sleeps a maximum of 4 People).

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Common Kestrel Canal Boat
Class : Kestrel
(Sleeps a maximum of 4 People).

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House Wren Canal Boat
Class : Wren
(Sleeps a maximum of 4 People).

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Oscar Canal Boat
Class : Nene
(Sleeps a maximum of 4 People).

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Mottled Swift Canal Boat
Class : Swift
(Sleeps a maximum of 4 People).

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Wood Duck Canal Boat
Class : Dove2
(Sleeps a maximum of 6 People).

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Musk Duck Canal Boat
Class : Dove2
(Sleeps a maximum of 6 People).

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Freckled Duck Canal Boat
Class : Dove2
(Sleeps a maximum of 6 People).

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Common Gull Canal Boat
Class : Gull
(Sleeps a maximum of 6 People).

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Pacific Gull Canal Boat
Class : Gull
(Sleeps a maximum of 6 People).

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Upland Goose Canal Boat
Class : Goose
(Sleeps a maximum of 8 People).

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Wood Warbler Canal Boat
Class : Warbler
(Sleeps a maximum of 8 People).

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Savi's Warbler Canal Boat
Class : Warbler
(Sleeps a maximum of 8 People).

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Maps and Guides

Pub Guide

Sorry, we have no pub guide for this route currently.

 

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The information above is provided in good faith to assist you with planning your canal boat holiday. Information accuracy cannot be guaranteed, however, if you do see something that needs updating, please don't hesitate to contact us.