This is held on the BCN Old Line at Tipton West Midlands, very near to the Black Country Museum. It shows how such parochial festivals are growing in popularity….

It’s a 2 day event 18/19 September. It brings together the local community and canal enthusiasts with their vintage working boats. This is it’s third year and the attendance has grown each year, there being 23 narrow boats and 30 stalls. There are 5 canal related stalls – 2 of canal paintings, 1 of canal crafts (eg rug making), 1 of canal art items, and the BCN Society – and also Sandwell Model Club (boats). There was also the ubiquitous “Welsh Cheese Boat” and the “Glass Bead Boat”. The remaining stalls were the usual assortment seen at village fetes.

There was a good turnout of locals, of all ages, who spent most of their time studying the stalls but could also be seen talking to the crews of the many vintage working boats and clambering inside.

This type of event is encouraging for the future support of Inland Waterways and boats, and I will always visit ones local to me to support them. The Tipton area has a rich canal history.

Here is a slideshow of the event.

Geoff