Cruise the Coventry Canal with Hotelboat Willow

COVENTRY CANAL:
The Coventry canal links the Trent & Mersey southwards to Coventry, but perhaps more importantly to Hawkesbury Junction where the North Oxford heads of south to Rugby and then on down to Braunston. This forms part of an important north\ south link and was built as part of 'Brindley's Great Cross' (it was part of the original canal route south to the Thames). Although there are the less pleasant parts, around the outskirts of Tamworth and Nuneaton, these are quickly passed by. Much of the rest of the canal, from Fradley south to Hawkesbury, is largely reed banked and forms a really quite attractive contour canal.


Fradley Junction - now seems quiet & remote (apart from the Swan pub) - but in Brindley's era, this was actual CENTRE & HUB of the canal system in England.	Pooley Hall in the background on this stretch just northwest of Polesworth.	Pleasant enough canalside town houses at Polesworth.	This derelict swing bridge just adds pleasant character to the rural atmosphere of the Coventry.

These ground paddles, on the largely rural Atherstone flight of locks, will soon have been in use for 100 years.	More rural stretches between Atherstone and Hartshill	Left turn at Marston Junction takes us onto the rural, lockless, Ashby canal.	Here at Hawkesbury Junction (or 'Sutton Stop' as the boatmen called it) we turn south east on to the North Oxford canal - straight on would be to Coventry.

So, yes, we do recommend the Coventry, particularly as a pleasant link from Fradley down onto the North Oxford canal at Hawkesbury - and we shouldn't forget the possibility of turning off north east onto the very rural Ashby canal at Marston Junction (see cruise map).