There are wide beam and narrowbeam locks; there is idyllic open rolling countryside, and the grimness of industry, some of it removed, some of it improved, and some of it still there in all its awfulness.

Starting at Braunston Turn, the route heads west along the Grand Union Main Line for five miles to Napton Junction, through pleasant farm land.

At Royal Leamington Spa, the ornamental Jephson Gardens commemorate Dr. Jephson, who lived from 1798 to 1878, who worked hard to establish the medical reputation of the spa,[5] while tourist attractions at Warwick include the fourteenth century Warwick Castle, which is set in grounds laid out by the landscape architect Capability Brown.

For those intending to go to Gas Street and Birmingham city centre, the narrowbeam Stratford-on-Avon Canal offers more locks and a longer passage, but for boaters going straight round the ring, the main line route is shorter and quicker.

[10] The six Camp Hill locks are narrow beam and drop the canal down to Bordesley Junction, where the Warwickshire Ring turns to the right.

[12] At Salford Junction, boaters following the Warwickshire Ring turn to the right onto the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal, which is sandwiched between the backs of factories and the M6 motorway.

The route passes a major electricity high voltage distribution centre on the south bank, before reaching Erdington Hall, where a factory has been built over the canal, almost forming a tunnel, although one side remains open to the light.

[13] To the south is Minworth Sewage Treatment Works, one of the largest in Britain, capable of treating 220 million gallons (1000 Megalitres) per day.

[14] The canal continues through a cutting lined with trees, through the short Curdworth tunnel, which is 57 yards (52 m) long, to pass under the M6 Toll motorway.

The first of the eleven Curdworth locks is immediately after the bridge, and the canal continues through open countryside and flooded gravel pits, although the M42 motorway is never far away to the east.

[13] Some of the gravel pits have been landscaped to form Kingsbury Water Park, which covers 600 acres (240 ha) and contains 30 lakes and pools, providing activities including walking, nature trails, sailing, windsurfing, power boating and horse riding.

It passes through the centre of Polesworth, and is then surrounded by farmland, before it begins to ascend out of the valley to Atherstone, through a flight of eleven narrow locks.

Between Atherstone and Nuneaton, the canal water is rust coloured, caused by leaching of minerals from the soil, and there are the remains of large granite quarries, many now landscaped and acting as nature reserves.

The towpath has been cleaned up, resurfaced, lit, policed, and adorned with sculptures and other works of art, and is now a thoroughly pleasant place to walk or cruise.

Access to Coventry Basin is through a tiny bridge hole, which was designed so that it could be sealed off each evening by a large wooden beam.

Brinklow was once served by an arm of the canal, which is now disused, and an aqueduct on the main line near its start has been turned into an embankment by filling in the arches.

[23] At Newbold-on-Avon there is a 250-yard (230 m) tunnel, beyond which the scenery is much more urban, although the canal passes to the north-east of Rugby on an embankment, and is separated from it by a railway line.

The very distinctive spire of Braunston Church is another landmark on the final part of the journey back to the start of the Warwickshire Ring.