So much more than your average canal guide
OVER nearly 40 years Michael Pearson’s Canal Companion guides have become a tradition in their own right.
Enjoyable to read, informative and an attractive addition to every canal boat’s bookshelf, they do just what they say on the colourful covers created by Meg Gregory.
There are 10 guides in the series and I have been looking at the new generation of enlarged Canal Companions including the 8th edition of the Severn & Avon guide, incorporating the Mid-Worcestershire Ring and the 9th edition of the Stourport & Black Country Rings and the Birmingham Canal Navigations, published last year.
I have been visualising these journeys from my living room while dreaming of being on the water and reading each night of the joys and challenges of the following day’s cruising route.
But the guides are not just aimed at boaters – anyone walking or cycling the towpaths will get a flavour of what’s ahead.
The guides are an entertainment in their own right. Author Michael Pearson’s writing style is peppered with words I admit I didn’t know existed! One of these – vade mecum – sums them up perfectly: “A handbook or guide that is kept constantly at hand for consultation.”
I loved the description of a visit to Stratford-upon-Avon: “We witnessed a party of jocularly altruistic senior citizens, Last of the Summer Wine look-alikes and act-alikes, journeying up the flight on a diminutive outboard powered dingy, bagging litter as they went, merrily on their way.”
As well as the comprehensive map and ‘must-have’ information on each section regarding distance, number of locks and cruising time, there is a gazetteer of facilities including pubs and restaurants, shops and travel connections.
But it is the descriptions of what can be encountered, the personal recollections and a wealth of local history that set these guides apart and make you want to be there.
For instance: “Like a deferential waitress coming to clear the dishes, the River Teme makes little impact on the haughty Severn, but on its way down from the Welsh Marches, past Ludlow and through lush Herefordshire orchards and pastures, this lovely river hits heights of comeliness that the Severn seldom aspires to.”
Each of the 10 titles in the series covers around 200 miles of inland waterways from the Kennet & Avon in the south to the Leeds & Liverpool in the north.
The Severn & Avon Mid-Worcestershire Ring not only includes the rivers in its title but the Stratford-on-Avon, Worcester & Birmingham, Droitwich, Grand Union (Birmingham to Braunston) and Gloucester & Sharpness canals providing full coverage of the popular Avon and Mid-Worcestershire ‘rings’.
Also featured are the emerging Cotswold Canals, subject of an ongoing restoration programme.
The Stourport Ring features the Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal’s southern half, the main lines of the Birmingham Canal Navigations, the Worcester & Birmingham Canal and the upper navigable reaches of the River Severn.
The adjoining Black Country (aka Staffordshire) Ring includes the Birmingham & Fazeley Canal, parts of the Coventry and Trent & Mersey canals, the northern half of the Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal and the main lines of the BCN, again giving a lot of canal for your money.
Both these guides are published by Wayzgoose, priced £11.95. They are widely available from boatyards, hire bases, chandlers, craft and gift shops and by mail order from many outlets. Severn & Avon, Mid-Worcestershire Ring ISBN: 978-0-9928492-6-9
Stourport & Black Country Ring. Birmingham Canal Navigations
ISBN: 978-0-9928492-5-2