Waterways Walks: The Stourbridge Sixteen

Here we are with the very last knockings of 2019 and I need a canal stroll to help burn off the excesses of Christmas dietary indulgence. My plan therefore is to wend my way to Wordsley from whence I can tackle the sixteen lock flight on the Stourbridge Canal...

- The Locks Await -

Monday 30th December 2019 sees me setting out on the number 16 bus from Wolverhampton towards Stourbridge, a route that currently still serves Himley until January service changes take effect (the 15 will then cover Himley, the 16 Swindon and Hinksford). I alight at the Red House Cone, one of the Black Country's most definitive landmarks - this distinctive conical brick structure was historically used by the Stuart Crystal company to manufacture glasswares until 1936 and is now preserved as a museum. The cone provides the backdrop as I join the towpath at Glasshouse Bridge, bearing north east towards Brockmoor. 

- Nearing Leys Junction -

The Stourbridge Canal itself was integral to the glassmaking industry for conveying supplies and distributing finished products; coal, ironstone and limestone were also transported from local mines and collieries. There are sixteen locks between Wordsley Junction (Stourbridge Town Arm) and Leys Junction (Fens Branch) as the canal snakes its way to Black Delph. Initially I cover the upper twelve locks, passing Swan Lane Bridge, the Samson & Lion public house and Brierley Hill Road, enjoying cloudless blue skies on a crisp winter's morning. 

- Stourbridge Top Lock -

It doesn't take me too long to reach Stourbridge Top Lock which is positioned on the immediate approach to Leys Junction. A simple brick turnover bridge transfers me onto the opposite bank where I can keep on the main line as it burrows beneath Leys Bridge past corrugated warehouses and chemical chimneys. The back gardens of Leys Road have a certain scruffiness before I leave the canal at Farmers Bridge in the shadow of the Moor Street Fryer, a chip shop that used to be the Old Bush (an ex-Hanson's tied boozer).

- St Paul's Church, Hawbush -

Time for some estate exploration as Moor Street leads me into Brierley Hill for a peek at Marsh Park and a wander across Lawyers Field, a grassy open patch partially used as a community garden. Bull Street then grimly brings me from Silver End into Hawbush, a residential area I remember riding through on the 226 bus with Roger. Local features here include St Paul's Church, a primary school and a strangely high proportion of boarded-up bungalows. Swan Lane is where I find out what became of the Nags Head, now divided up between a hairdressing salon and a One Stop convenience store. 

- The Glassworks -

Venturing next via the terraces of Brook Street, I emerge onto Audnam ready for a pint. Given the pubby riches of Wordsley and Amblecote, it's a little surprising that I overlook these nearby classics in favour of the Glassworks, very much a corporate Marston's establishment with 'Generous George' stylings. In my defence, I'm curious to try somewhere I haven't done before and the Pedigree isn't too bad for £2.50 (Monday discount applied). Yes I would probably prefer the Swan, Starving Rascal or Maverick but a tick is a tick, plus it's my trip so I'm allowed to make up the rules as I go along where necessary. 

- Lock 13 -

Marine Crescent combines with Junction Road to return me to the canal towpath, this time for the brief Stourbridge Town Arm section from Chubbs Bridge to Wordsley Junction. I can now investigate the remainder of the locks I didn't do this morning, No. 16 being close at hand at the bottom of the flight. Numbers 15 and 14 are located either side of Henderson Bridge, whilst No. 13 is overlooked by the once-derelict Stuart Crystal factory which has spectacularly been brought back into use as apartments. Industrial heritage has been a key aspect of this trip and I've found the whole walk utterly fascinating.

- A Wombourne Nativity -

It isn't over yet either as Dadford's Wharf marks my latest exit point, the boatyard being notable for narrowboat repair services including painting and blacking. Intrigued by Holy Trinity Church perched high on the hill, I seek out Rectory Fields as an interesting footpath which bisects the churchyard and offers a different angle for viewing Wordsley's principal place of worship. Scratchings and some Downton Port Stout in the Queens Head then precede a return ride on the 16, a journey that gets interrupted at Wombourne so that I can admire the impressive nativity scene outside St Benedict Biscop's. That seems a suitably festive note on which to round off 2019 as a year of adventures - cheers!