Gosty Hill Tunnel and a Silver Sword

摘要

In summer 1969, my late father Joe was determined to win an IWA Silver Sword, an award for extensive cruising with rules that encouraged visits to less-used waterways. He took a long journey in his Dawncraft cruiser Dudley Castle. A trip on the Dudley No 2 Canal terminal length from Windmill End to 'Coombes Wood' (as the booklet called it) would earn 10 bonus points, so we set out from Windmill End on the evening of 9th August with another boat. We encountered so much weed and rubbish that at Gosty Hill Tunnel the decision was made to transfer to a dinghy and rowing boat, both powered by outboard motors. No emergency arrangements had been made, and my mother just watched us head off into the tunnel before we returned about 7.30pm.