Mid-Worcestershire or Droitwich Ring
The shortest ring
THE restoration of the Droitwich Canal and its reopening in 2011 brought to life a new cruising ring for boaters – the Mid-Worcestershire or Droitwich Ring.
It is the shortest ring on the entire canal network; a 21-mile loop connecting the Droitwich with the River Severn and Worcester & Birmingham Canal.
Heading along the Worcester & Birmingham Canal from Hanbury Wharf, where the Droitwich Canal heads west, a lock-free section of canal dotted with characteristic bridges and lined with an abundance of reeds winds southwards. From Worcester to Birmingham, the Worcester & Birmingham Canal’s original purpose was to connect with the River Severn to carry coal, grain, tea, sugar, cocoa beans, timber and other general goods.
Through Dunhampstead, with its short tunnel (230yd/210m long), the canal ambles onwards through pretty Oddingley with the train line running close alongside. After the village of Tibberton, and just beyond the noisy
M5, Offerton Locks are the first of a series of locks that lead the canal down into Worcester.
In its industrial heyday, the Worcester & Birmingham Canal carried cargoes of porcelain from the world-famous factory here, and the Museum of Royal Worcester offers a fascinating insight. The Commandery, by Sidbury Lock, was used as the war rooms of Charles II in 1651 during the Civil War and is now a museum dedicated to the Civil War story including the Battle of Worcester, its final battle.
Diglis Basin, which provides mooring for many boats, is ringed by restored warehouses (many of which were originally part of the Royal Worcester porcelain factory) and new apartment blocks and is where the Worcester & Birmingham Canal meets the River Severn via its two wide locks.
The River Severn heads out of Worcester under the watchful eye of Worcester Cathedral opposite the county’s renowned cricket club. The leafy river keeps the chaos of the ‘real’ world blissfully out of sight.
Just beyond Bevere Lock, one of its manned river locks, lies the entrance to the restored Droitwich Canal. Strictly speaking, the Droitwich Canal is two canals. The Barge Canal, engineered by James Brindley, opened in 1771 to allow river barges (trows) to travel from the Severn as far as Droitwich. The narrower Junction Canal, built in 1854, connects Droitwich to the Worcester & Birmingham Canal at Hanbury.
When King Charles II was defeated in the Battle of Worcester in 1651, he escaped along a route now known as the Monarch’s Way, a footpath which follows part of the Droitwich Canal today. Droitwich Canal later faced its own battle for survival. Abandoned, forgotten and doomed to dereliction, the canal crumbled from neglect after its commercial carrying days were over.
Leisure-seeking Victorians later lavished their spa town and the arrival of canals helped Droitwich’s salt industry prosper with boats carrying salty cargoes until it officially closed in 1939. The water-route was lost, unnavigable for boats and overgrown for walkers – but not forever.
The now legendary enthusiasm of intrepid leisure boaters in the early 1970s meant a new movement was growing. The Droitwich Canal whispered for help and the triumph of its restoration came from the co-operation and collaboration of many voices, and the sweat and stalwart vision of ‘mere’ volunteers.
Once through the two Hawford Locks taking the canal up from the river, the Barge Canal squeezes under the A449 and follows the route of the River Salwarpe as it winds through delicious countryside. The reed-lined canal flows under Grade II-listed red-brick bridges, including Linacre Bridge designed by the great canal engineer James Brindley.
Porter’s Mill Lock follows Mildenham Lock, and then the four Ladywood Locks culminate in a quintessential canal scene with a lock cottage by the top lock.
The views open out and the canal is at its rural best with farmland scattered with ancient farm buildings, before the canal sharply bends towards Salwarpe Bridge, passing the village of Salwarpe and its medieval church. The Barge Canal now skirts the spa town, meeting the Junction Canal at Barge Lock in Vines Park, where information boards tell of the town’s salty history and the canal’s restoration.
Now on the Junction Canal, a canalised stretch of the River Salwarpe leads to a series of four new locks (including a rather deep staircase lock) and the very low M5 bridge to be negotiated. The final stretch passes Droitwich Marina before climbing three
Hanbury Locks to complete the ring back at Hanbury Junction.
The namesake of this ring, the Droitwich Canal, is more than a cog in a ring – it stands boldly in its own right as a glorious unspoilt picture of green England.
Where there were once dry armies of reeds, there is now a water trail to follow. New red bricks cobble with the old and a lost route has come back to life. New lock arms frame the welcome sight of wildlife on the water, with chirping reed warblers hidden along the water’s edge.