IMAGES TAKEN NEAR TO
Shepherds Fold, STAFFORD, ST17 4SF

A holiday hire boat passes Stafford Boat Club, on the Staffs & Worcs Canal at Wildwood.

Located at Wildwood, on the banks of the Staffs & Worcs Canal, is Stafford Boat Club. It is a popular spot for both members and visitors, and is home to colourful boats of all shapes and sizes!

Over 80 boats attended the Bi-annual Rally at Stafford Boat Club. Somehow, all of them found a parking space!

The Hazlestrine Arm of the Staffs & Worcs Canal was built to serve a brickworks that first opened in the mid-19th century. The brickworks was no longer operational after the Second World War but the site continued to be used as a tip - it is not therefore clear when the last working boat used the arm. It has however been restored and is now used by the Stafford Boat Club for moorings. See Image taken in 2015; some of the same boats can be seen.

The Staffordshire Boat Club has its marina off to the right here, with its smart modern clubhouse and well landscaped and maintained grounds. It looks "exclusive" but does welcome visitors to its bar and clubhouse.

The well maintained grounds at Stafford Boat Club can be seen in all their glory from this viewpoint. The old locks from up the canal were made into a floodlit feature by the members of the club.

This is the marina of the Stafford Boat Club, seen from the new bridge over the marina entrance. Originally it was the short Hazlestrine Arm of the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal, which had been used to carry clay to, and bricks from the former Hazlestrine Brickworks. The boat club acquired the site in 1968, and have made a brilliant job of transforming the whole area as a private marina with beautifully landscaped grounds, and club house. Visiting crews are welcomed to the club (especially if supporting the bar!) but it is advisable to contact them first to check whether mooring is available by their field. There is no access from the towpath side.

This is the marina of the Stafford Boat Club. Originally it was the short Hazlestrine Arm of the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal, which had been used to carry clay to, and bricks from the former Hazlestrine Brickworks. The boat club acquired the site in 1968, and have made a brilliant job of transforming the whole area as a private marina with beautifully landscaped grounds, and club house. The bridge across the entrance is new, built in 2010. Visiting crews are welcomed to the club (especially if supporting the bar!) but it is advisable to contact them first to check whether mooring is available by their field. There is no access from the towpath side.

There are many sanitary stations placed along the canal system so that boat crews can dispose of toilet contents. During a "pumpout" (which can cost £15 or more each time) the waste is pumped into a holding tank (in the brick building here). At regular intervals this tank is pumped out into another tank on a waste disposal vehicle, then removed to authorised sewage facilities. This is what is about to happen here by Stafford Boat Club on the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal. Observant viewers will note the apposite registration plate on the vehicle.