What a close shave, that shopping trolley could have done some real damage. Boy would I like to catch the fools who dump it into the canal. Anyway guys thanks for interrupting your viewing of the England match to upload this vlog. All the best. Stephen

You four are my heros. All those locks in a single day. What fortitude. Thanks for the video.

It’s a great day when my favorite people post on my favorite channel!! Lots of love to you both!!

Always nice to see you two. Everything is so lush and i loved seeing the horses in the water. You got a real work out of this trip. Take care😊

Thanks for yet another great video. I’m glad there was no damage to the boat when had your conundrum. Safe journeys. Cheers

'what an adventure! Nice to share it with you. Thank you.

Hello again ☺. Oh I could feel your anxiety! ALWAYS go with your gut feeling and your intuition Rich, always. There's always somewhere else around the next bend ... Sending love, light & bright shiny blessings 🐶🐕🐾 xx

That spot was creepy in the middle of a sunny day--can only imagine what emerges in the dead of night. Definitely set off the spidey senses, even through the screen. And then alone with the snagged shopping cart. Nightmare scenarios seem particularly startling in contrast to the peace and beauty of the countryside. Like floating into a different reality, a parallel universe. Glad that was just a blip in your journey!

As always. You are the most lovely people to be accompagnied by 🙂 Love from Denmark

Hi guys! "Go with your gut feeling," is generally sound advice. Five years? Doesn't time fly? All the best.

Well, that was a long and eventful cruise. Big effort, well done!

Long day and lots of locks. Delph locks look quite spectacular with their 'waterfalls' down the side! We were advised to always trust our instincts if we don't feel comfortable at a place.

What a day!! Your final mooring looks good...I hope you slept well!!!❤❤

What an eventful journey you had beautiful scenery though but like you peace and quiet every time great to see you both again see you on the next video ❤😅😊xx

Ouch! That was a close call with that shopping trolley.

Two brave soles , keep enjoying life love you both.

Hello Rich and Fran. My stamping ground when my late wife and I lived on our Les Allen trad 62' Gardner 3LW engined narrow boat Galton (named after Galton Bridge on the Main Line to Brum, by the first owner a Soho Jweller from whom we bought the boat) at the Hyde near Kinver on The Staffs and Worcs Canal in the early nineties with a dog and two cats.After a stint at Les Allen and Sons in Oldbury and a year with Brummagem Boats at Sherbourne Street Wharf in the heart of Birmingham which was great then. I worked as a boat builder/fitter for ten years at Black Country Narrow Boats on the Stourbridge Canal at Stourton, a premier boat builder in the eighties/nineties, now ceased trading in 2007. We never had any vandal or other trouble apart from serious windups on the BCN, we loved the Stourbridge 16 and the view from the top of the delpf flight was lovely in the spring, but mooring at 'Merry Hell' the site of the Round Oak steel works was a no, no! Far too noisy and too many gongoozlers even then, but generally there were very few boats and I could not believe the congestion at The Bonded Warehouse on your visit, in our day only a handdful of boats and it was only busy once a year during the rally weekend. Boats now moored almost nose to tail on so many canals these days from watching your vidios, and so many floating cottages with all mod cons even Aga's, costing Iro 300k a time! How things have changed, and now so many restrictions to what on can do! Love you posts and the dogs, great but messy boating companions I recall. Stay safe and well and happy cruising.

Good job of saving the boat from damage

Looks like a nightmare day for the both of you , the canal full of rubbish ,I know the feeling when you don't feel comfortable mooring or staying in those places ...I know the trend that urban living is cool ....but give me green grass and peace anytime

Glad you Manage to stop the engine before doing any damage to the prop Or rudder. Yes , you must be both very tired after all , those locks in one day.well done 😊

Great video you two, and in the end found a nice place to stay. One day soon me and our wife will take the plunge and sell up and get our own narrow boat and do the same. A good inspiration for us to do it.😊

wow what a day. Really enjoyed the video guys.

Cool video, I enjoy watching your adventures, much appreciated here in the Pacific Northwest USA.

That's terrible how someone threw their shopping trolley into the canal! I'm glad you were able to dislodge it without damaging your engine. 24 locks in one day must be exhausting but you both did it. You deserve a cuppa, which I just bought you! Jenny

So glad the trolley was sorted with not too much damage. Gut feeling is the to go by and as the shopping trolley happened it backed up your concerns. Take care and hopefully a couple of well earned rest days were had. =-)

What a truly wonderful thoughtful gift! so sweet!

Last time i filled up water at Stewpony it took an hour.. slowest tap on the network! A lovely man let us moor overnight at the end of his garden just below the bottom of the Delph flight. Bumblehole is great if you moor on the side oposite the water point.. away from the oiks that come out at night. Another great vlog with usual good music selection. Safe trip.

I don't know if this has been mentioned but a "come along" tool might be nice to have on board. It isn't a very big tool but it can be attached to a bridge or a tree (with the aid of a rope) and will pull alot more weight than a person can. I've moved small buildings with mine. Love your channel.

Oh I will take some of that salad! Looks fantastic Fran!

Even though you got stemmed up with that trolley, that vlog was nice to watch. Hope you both slept well at Bumble Hole. x

I'm glad you reached a good spot at the end, what a day!

A pox upon the creeps who toss things into the canals, especially shopping carts. Glad you were able to get the prop off it and move on. I would imagine no one wants to have to get into the water and deal with something like that! Looking forward to your coming home, Rich. I also hear there's a little band called Black Sabbath that hails from there as well.😊 🎶 🎸

What an exciting and thrilling cruise. Never a dull moment. No time to get bored. That was bad about the shopping trolley. Hope you managed to get it out or made safer . Isn’t it awful how people just chuck anything in the canal.? No respect. Great video and filming. Thank you so much. Beautiful colours.

Absolutely beautiful scenery you two !!! I am very proud of your lock accomplishment for one day. And I cannot thank you enough for posting the music you play. LOVE IT.

Phew, that was alot of locks to do in one day but worth it to find a quiet and safe mooring spot. Loved all the gardens at the start of the video as well as the geese and their babies. Thanks for another lovely video.🌼🌸

These Canals need some of those Magnet Fishermen, to clear all that Rubbish out!

That sucks having that shopping cart in the canal like that. I wish people didn't do things like that. I can only imagine what's down there.

Fantastic soundtrack with the geese in the field! Great episode

Wow that place was packed. No peace or quiet there! Can’t imagine 24 locks in a day. Glad you avoided major damage with that shopping trolley.

Bogart , African Queen comes to mind , least you didn’t get covered in leeches

Well that was eventful,thanks for another lovely vid

Been there done that route as well. WE actually stayed at Merry Hill and it was very quiet in the evening. Not a lot of boat traffic when we were there. Had the place to ourselves. Enjoyed your adventure very much,,, thank you!!!

Well done

Beautiful video guys…love to follow your travels. Cheers from Socal.😊

I rich and fan a very busy day for you on that canal it look very quiet I hope all goes well for you all the best for now 😊

25 locks!!!!! WOW 🤩 and a shopping cart to boot. That was quite the adventure. Lovely shots of the different areas you went through. I liked those buildings that looked like converted factory buildings also. Loved the ponies in the water. So glad you didn’t fall on those lock gates. Get to Birmingham!!😂. Take care. 😊🤗 Kathy

Life's an adventure and you certainly had that. Good going with the locks. Might have to ease back on the choccy so you can fit across the walkways😂. Liked Stouport when there in April 2012 after sailing up from Worcester before heading down the Seven. Looking forward to your time in Birmingham, careful at Bournville.😂

Loved it. I live really close so enjoyed seeing it all from the boat. Bumble hole is a lovely place. Hope you enjoyed it. 😊

My wife and I and our kids moored at Bumble Hole for a couple of days very many years ago. Looking forward to the next video in this series!

Wow that was a mammoth journey and mark would be exactly like you going by gut feeling and moving on if feeling unsure. Xxxx

You two are so funny..! As if no one has ever heard about or from you..!?! Anyone, who is anyone, has heard of you two..! AND, we all still are waiting to know where Fran has hidden the booze for Christmas..!!

cheered me right up

Neat dock crane there at 7:46. For some undefined reason dock cranes are really appealing to me. Right up there with all the different styles of iron bridges crossing the canals.

Another adventure…I enjoy each of your vlogs.

Well done guys. We loved doing the Delph flight and found the private gardens on the canal beautifully maintained. A lot of boaters are wary of the canals around Birmingham but they are worth the time and you very easily get immersed into the history of the region. We watched two girls once on another canal wheel an empty shopping trolley down the towpath and then push it into the canal in front of our boat as we sat there having a cuppa. We asked them the purpose of their actions and the reply was because “we can”……Shopping trolleys are heavy and difficult to pull out of a canal but we did and returned it to its rightful owner. You just have to shake your head and bite your tongue😂

Great! Hope you got the trolley out of the water. I might come that way soon.😂

beautiful country

Hi Fran, Rich, Archie and Jess, I've spent the last few weeks watching a couple of your vlogs every day from the beginning and now I've caught up I don't know what to do with myself ☹️ My hubby is very grateful to you both as he's always wanted to live on the canal and I flatly refused, but now I think I want to more than him! Unfortunately, we've a few years left until we retire so we'll continue to watch and dream.... thank you for sharing 😊 Steph and Paul

I used to Moor at Stourton but must admit, myself & late partner never felt happy mooring anywhere till we reached Merry Hill or Bumble Hole.

I'm gonna live on Merry Hill and wander down to Bumble Hole in the morning.😊😊😊😊

Lovely episode thank you, despite the shopping trolley incident however. Clever you knew how to get free. Good tips I'm afraid come at an expense sometimes. Hope the rest of your week is pain free. 😊

Hi Rich & Fran,I've just come across you on my KZfaq feed,I've now watched 2 of your Videos & have really enjoyed them,I am fascinated by these narrow boats,nothing like this in Australia? The scenery has been gorgeous,love your little Doggies,so I will be binge watching you over the next weekend,it's very cold here now,perfect to do a catch up,I'm glad I found you,bye now,take care😊

Oh these shopping trolleys are awful if only Tesco's & Morrisons charged for them like Aldi & Lidl as it's always a free trolley I find , in Banbury last year there were 7 Morrisons trolleys in the river and 2 in the canal by the park so sad to see for Hire boaters too 🛒🛒🛒🛒🛒🛒 😏

Another Great Video Guys

I love seeing you guys. I would love one day, to contribute to you, and would definitely do that, Happy summer!

Nice 1 folks…

You two have put in the hours and the effort to get to where you want to be. Love the wedding present - it looks great. Don't know what to say about the trolley, how the other half lives ? I'll do a vid of our staircase locks from the river through to the canal. We have a lift bridge for motor boats 🛥. No cabal boats to speak of, except one or two electric boats, which have an orchestra occasionally. Yes... we could do with a few more liveaboards.

At 4:31... a stampede of Canada Geese goslings! Razor wire on top of the fence at 6:55... do they want to keep something in or something out?! An annoying day but you weathered it. I wonder if there is a specific place in hell reserved for people who chuck shopping trolleys (shopping carts here in Canada and the U.S.A.) into the canals...

good vid cranking it on cut

When you first introduce at the beginning I’m sure you was going to say “ I’m Rich” And “ Im poor” ( from Fran ) 👍

Five years of marriage, you said? That was a surprise to me! You both get along so well that I thought you were married forever. You either get along pretty well, or you really, really know how to fake it. I would say if the former! :) Cheers from sunny Puerto Rico!

Pretty scenery in the sunlight, but phew 25 locks, bet you slept well. Bit of a blow having a shopping trolley around the prop, bit scary. Take care 🙂🩷

You have inspired me to get a haircut.😊😊😊

People are strange? At 8:24 there is a touring boat with a lot of happy guests out to enjoy nature in the canal - and to avoid the soothing silence, they brought somme loud music???

A rough tough day apart from all the little goslings and the horse having a wash and cooling down her undercarriage. 😀

Bloody Hell... I hope you found a descent pint after all that!

I'd love to see more of Archie and Jess. They make my day.😊😊😊.

I enjoy your videos showing all the beauty of English canals but I am interested in the other side of narrow boating. Show us the more mundane like water filling, sewage dumping, trash disposal all of which are part of your everyday life and what difficulties each chore contain so you can travel the canals. Thanks

Wow, you guys really had a day of it. Glad you found a good place to stop

Gosh that was a long hard day, people who throw things in the canal without a single thought of the possible consequences are real morons. 😡 Beautiful English scenery, so enjoy watching your travels, and remember our fun with locks on the River Charente in France 😂 and we only did a week!! but 16 locks for novices 😂😂 xxx

Wow what a day! Pete’s now questioning his friendship as he is an avid marmite hater, and we have to say that Hamish beats Jess in the reluctance stakes any day 😂

A few words, Murphy's law comes to mind.

With the width of your boat, are there any canals you cannot travel? Also, how well are the canals mapped out for size, considering there are some larger boats?

they have put those stupid lamps in Australia last few years.. 5 g rubbish and sur/va/liance etc

those locks looked well looked after , why do they not remove old boats ? you should be so locky locky sorry about the pun...... I was brought up in Oldbury , it is very dense around Stourbridge black country land . thanks .