#184 The Admiral Codrington, Coventry : 2004 to 2015 (RIP)

My first ever canal trip was in 1980 and we went to Coventry where we moored up in the then quite derelict Canal Basin.

 This was from Thursday 19th April 1980, but we didn't visit The Admiral Codrington on that occasion.

We didn't venture back to Coventry Basin until Tuesday 30th May 2000 to find that a complete transformation of the basin had taken place.

Again, we didn't visit the Admiral Codrington which stood by one of the entrances to the canal basin.

We returned, again, on the evening of Friday 27th August 2004 and, this time, we did pop into The Admiral Codrington for a pint before we ventured into Coventry itself.

It was a typical 'back street' boozer that was common then, but a type that has suffered badly over the subsequent years.

We returned less than a year later for a lunchtime stop on Wednesday 1st June 2005. We were back so soon because we were taking Emma Jane to Nuneaton for roof repairs/replacement and we had a few hours to kill.

Although it was only 10 months, the pub had been completely redecorated on the outside with most of the signage renewed/replaced (even though, at first glance, it looks unchanged!).

My next visit was not by boat, but a special trip to take pictures of Coventry for my, then fledgling, Photo Digital Art project on the afternoon of Sunday 6th May 2012.

This is the sad sight that presented itself!

While in the canal basin I did manage to get a picture that most closely reproduces the shot of Emma Jane from 1980.

Our most recent boating visit to Coventry was on the evening of Tuesday 1st September 2015.

The final demise of The Admiral Codrington; transformation into the rather unimaginatively named, Canal View Court.

Meanwhile, the canal basin looked like this.

Quite a transformation in 35 years from a derelict, windswept canal terminus where we were the only boat to this seemingly thriving canal basin where there was only one mooring spot left. One final thing to note is that after 35 years, the block of flats that stand over the basin has finally got a refurb!