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Beating Blue Monday

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Canal & River Trust engagement manager Diana Fitzwilliam chats to boat trippers about why being by the water is great for well-being.

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IN A bid to beat the winter blues on ‘Blue Monday’ – known as the most depressing day of the year – the Canal & River Trust organised a Great Winter Canal Get Together on the Grand Union Canal at Southall, West London.

One of hundreds of events happening across the country in memory of the murdered MP Jo Cox, it was held on Monday, January 16 with the aim of helping tackle loneliness, isolation and poor mental and physical health – which can become even more common

during the short, dark days of winter.

The Labour politician was stabbed in 2016 in her Batley & Spen constituency where she was due to hold a routine surgery. Her London home was on a houseboat on the Thames in Wapping.

CRT communications and campaigns manager Alex Paterson said: “Jo Cox said in her maiden speech to Parliament ‘we have more in common than that which divides us’.

It was lovely to see so many local people from different

backgrounds come together with the canal as the focal point.

“Even in the dark and cold it’s clear the difference that being by or on the water can make to people’s well-being and we certainly blew away the January blues – for a day at least.”

More than 40 people took narrowboat trips throughout the day, while having a cup of tea and a cosy chat by the wood-burning stove.

Participants, including Ealing Southall MP Virendra Sharma, also enjoyed specially designed cupcakes promoting

the trust’s £1million Southall Wellbeing Way project which will transform a 6km stretch of the local canal network with upgraded towpath, green spaces and opportunities for exercise and community activities.

Alex added: “We have been working with the community and partners to develop exciting plans for the Southall Wellbeing Way and hope that more and more people locally will be able to visit and enjoy this fantastic asset on their doorstep.”

More images on page 2

To find out more about the Southall Wellbeing Way visit https://canalrivertrust. org.uk/about-us/ where-we-work/ london-and-south-east/ southall-wellbeing-waycanalside-improvements or tinyurl.com/yea4muh3

Doddie Aid

Bude dredging

Blue spaces

SCOTTISH Canals are supporting Doddie Aid 2023 by offering those taking part in the exercise event a free cuppa at either The Falkirk Wheel café or the Caledonian Canal Centre, Fort Augustus.

Participants just have to show their Doddie Aid snood or verify with the Doddie Aid app during the event which runs until February 12. The event raises money for My Name’5 Doddie Foundation for research into Motor Neurone Disease in memory of rugby legend Doddie Weir who died last year.

A MAJOR dredging programme is getting under way on the Bude Canal to reinstate a safe navigable depth for watercraft along the canal and restore the role of the canal in carrying flood waters as part of the flood defence strategy for Bude. Works were set to begin from January 23, depending on weather conditions, and are due to be completed before the summer. The canal will be closed during the dredging operation with restricted on sections of the towpath and cycleway.

CHARITY Bluetonic and Rachel Andrews, Everyday Athlete, have created a challenge called ‘Awaken your blue mind’ to encourage people to go to blue spaces. Activities to do by a waterway including walking, fishing, cycling and even writing a poem. The resources are all free, but the challenge itself is £5 to enter and you get a sew-on badge at the end. According to Bluetonic research shows being near water can lower stress and increase overall well-being – the ‘blue mind’.

Visit www.bluetonic.org.uk

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2 WELCOME/NEWS

February 2023

WELCOME IT’S that time of year when we all look for signs of spring and start planning our summer programme whether on the water or on land.

I have seen snowdrops and aconites coming into bloom and a few of the birds are starting to sing even though this morning, as I write, everywhere is glistening with frost.

February sees the return of events such as Boatlife Live and the Notts and Lincs boat jumble – see our what’s on guide starting on page 20 and Tim Coghlan looks forward to a new season for travelling theatre companies Mikron and Alarum, including visits to Braunston, on page 23.

If you’re planning a summer staycation, the Drifters consortium of independent hire boat companies highlights some of the new boats joining their fleets as well as news of this year’s national open day on Sunday, April 23 – St George’s Day – in our holidays & leisure section on pages 48-49.

We wrap up some of the events which took place late last year and over the festive season and, looking ahead to next winter’s stoppage season, start a new series with a look at how these are planned and prioritised – see page 10. Incidentally, we refer to planned stoppage open days at Gallows Inn Lock on the Erewash Canal over the last weekend of January.

I heard as we went to press that these may have to be delayed by a couple of weeks due to rising water levels caused by the recent spell of wet weather, so please check the events page on the Canal & River Trust website at www. canalrivertrust.org.uk before setting out.

On the heritage front, we have a feature by Sally Clifford about a former RAF seaplane tender that can be seen in West Yorkshire, Geoff Courtney brings us the latest news from the auction houses and Cicely Oliver features a rare canal boat found in a field near Inverurie which is now on display at the Garioch Heritage Centre, see pages 18-19.

Keep your spirits up.

Beating Blue Mondayy

Continued from page 1

LOCAL people in the Southall area made the most of a Great Winter Canal Get Together held by the Canal & River Trust on the Grand Union Canal.

It took place on January 16, dubbed Blue Monday as it is said to be the most depressing day of the year.

One of hundreds happening across the country in memory of the murdered MP Jo Cox, the event aimed to tackle loneliness, isolation and poor mental and physical health.

More than 40 people took narrowboat trips through the day, while having a cup of tea and a cosy chat by the woodburning stove.

Boarding the narrowboat for one of the trips along the Grand Union Canal at Southall.

Specially designed cupcakes. PHOTOS: CRT

TALK

Janet

TOWPATH

Editor Janet Richardson jrichardson@mortons.co.uk Publisher Tim Hartley Group advertising manager Sue Keily Advertising sales team leader Tania Shaw – 01507 529489 tshaw@mortons.co.uk Editorial design Chris Abrams Production editor Pauline Hawkins Publishing director Dan Savage Commercial director Nigel Hole Contact us Customer services 01507 529529 Telephone lines are open: MondayFriday 8.30am-5pm. help@classicmagazines.co.uk www.classicmagazines.co.uk News & editorial Tel: 01507 529466. Fax: 01507 529495 editorial@towpathtalk.co.uk Published by Mortons Media Group Ltd, Media Centre, Morton Way, Horncastle, Lincs, LN9 6JR Tel: 01507 523456. Fax: 01507 529301 Printed by Mortons Print Ltd. Tel. 01507 523456 Next issue – February 23, 2023

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Baljit Kaur from Let’s Go Southall and Diana Fitzwilliam, Canal & River Trust engagement manager.

Local resident Prabha Tailor from the Good Neighbour residents’ group on the Havelock Estate in Southall takes the tiller during one of the trips.

Ealing Southall MP Virendra Sharma chats to a local resident.

Energy Bills Support Scheme – NBTA advice for concerned boaters THE Energy Bills Support Scheme – Alternative Funding (EBSS-AF) system has gone live in the pilot areas of Wrexham, Chichester, Glasgow and West Sussex, with a full nationwide roll-out anticipated before mid-February.

At this stage, applications (which are made to the local authority) require a name, address and bank details, with the address needing to both match the bank account and be cross-referenced against a Meter Point Address Number (MPAN) which will be for a house, not an itinerant household. As a result, all applications by itinerants, including itinerant liveaboard boaters, will automatically fail.

However, following NBTA (National Bargee Travellers Association) negotiations with the deputy director general at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), a workaround has been agreed. Itinerant boaters currently moored in the relevant pilot areas are encouraged to make the application, then take a screenshot of the fail notice.

There is a BEIS helpline for those who cannot get online or otherwise have difficulties filling in the online form – both this number and the gov. uk application page were due to be made available in an update when the pilot scheme went live after this issue of Towpath Talk went to press.

Applicants must then send the fail notice screenshot on to the pilot scheme local authority where they are currently moored as an application for the Housing Support Grant identifying themselves as an ‘itinerant boat dweller’. Government guidance has been given to local authorities nationwide that the Housing Support Grant is to be paid to eligible EBSS-AF applicants who fail the current EBSS-AF application system.

In order to establish the workability of this proposed fix, the NBTA encourages boaters in the pilot scheme areas to go through this process, seeking further advice from secretariat@bargee-traveller. org.uk if required. The NBTA also requests that applicants take both screenshots and notes of the whole

process (including applying to the local authority) and return these to the NBTA using the above email address.

Itinerant boaters who use diesel, coal, bottled gas or wood for heating are alsoentitledto the AlternativeFuel Payment (AFP) – £200 in addition to the £400 from the EBSS-AF. Since the AFP payment is currently designed around an additional declaration on the EBSS-AF application, itinerant boater applicants in the pilot scheme areas are encouraged to request the AFP (if eligible) as a part of the Housing Support Grant, citing their use of relevant alternative fuels.

The NBTA is continuing to work with BEIS for a more direct solution to this ongoing problem, with the demand that changes be made to both the EBSS-AF and AFP by the time the system goes live nationwide.

It will share further information as and when it is established and will continue to fight to ensure that its rightly concerned community are offered the same support as those that live on land in the midst of this cost of living crisis.

Free open day at Anderton Boat Lift A SPECIAL free open day will take place at the Anderton Boat Lift near Northwich on Saturday, February 18 from 10am-3pm.

Visitors will be able to hear specialist talks from Canal & River Trust engineers and ecologists about the importance of the boat lift and the region’s canal network, as well as take part in a range of free activities, including angling taster sessions, canoeing, children’s engineering sessions and building bug hotels to support wildlife. Boat trips will also be available.

Engineers will shine a light on the challenge of securing the long-term future of the Anderton Boat Lift, which each year carries around 3000 boats between the Trent & Mersey Canal and the River Weaver. They will give an insight into the emergency £450,000 repair work which is taking place this winter at the Victorian Scheduled Monument, as well as proposals for a further major project to secure the long-term future of the lift and popular visitor centre.

For more information about the work, which it is hoped will enable the lift to reopen in time for Easter, turn to page 6.

NEWS 3

www.towpathtalk.co.uk February 2023

Prestigious awards for canal volunteers DELIGHTED volunteers have won two prestigious awards for their impressive efforts to restore a former waterway.

Melksham, Chippenham & Calne branch of the Wilts & Berks Canal Trust received both of the charity’s annual Tony Davy Awards.

Crystal accolades, named after the charity’s former chairman, are presented to the branch which submitted the most volunteer hours over the previous 12 months and the branch which saw the biggest increase in hours.

The Melksham, Chippenham & Calne team recorded 12,286 hours – more than double the previous year – with an estimated value of more than £168,000 when applying for ‘matched funding’.

Paying tribute to the hard work and commitment of local volunteers, branch chairman Dave Maloney said: “It’s a tremendous honour to receive these awards on behalf of our amazing teams.

We’ve always been a very active branch, but we saw a surge of interest during the pandemic when people were looking

for new opportunities to enjoy fresh air and exercise.

“Our work parties were in the open air in the countryside, with plenty of room for social distancing, so by following the rules in place at the time we were able to continue the restoration throughout much of that difficult period.

“Those new volunteers have stayed with us and got more involved, and helped to recruit even more supporters.”

Most of the hours have been focused on the rewatered stretch between Pewsham Locks and Double Bridge where the charity is rebuilding a waiting wall, dry dock and other structures, and at nearby Green Lane Farm where teams have been clearing another section of recently uncovered canal.

Volunteers also run popular tripboats at big occasions such as Chippenham Folk Festival, Chippenham River Festival and Melksham Food & River Festival, as well as on the Pewsham stretch during the summer, while others arrange fundraising events or give talks to local groups.

Work also continues on the

refurbishment of the charity’s own canalside pub, The Peterborough Arms at Dauntsey Lock.

There are still plenty of opportunities for new volunteers, with a particular need for bricklayers, civil engineers, quantity surveyors and project managers – although all offers of help are appreciated.

Dave added: “We have work party volunteers aged from their 20s to their 80s, including doctors, nurses, gardeners, taxi drivers, company directors and university lecturers. We’re sincerely grateful for every hour, and are always keen to welcome new supporters who want to bring the Wilts & Berks back to life.”

The charity’s ultimate ambition is to restore the entire waterway from the Kennet & Avon Canal near Melksham to the Thames & Severn Canal near Cricklade and the River Thames near Abingdon, connecting Chippenham, Calne, Royal Wootton Bassett and Swindon.

Visit www.wbct.org.uk for more information.

Work party organiser Basil Raddy and branch chairman Dave Maloney (front) share the awards with volunteers working on the restoration of the Wilts & Berks Canal near Pewsham. PHOTO:JUSTIN GUY

New chief executive at IWA THE Inland Waterways Association Jonathan added that he had has a new chief executive, Dave been amazed and humbled by Pearce. He will be working 17 hours the support he had received from a week for the IWA. across the association.

His appointment effectively completes Jonathan Smith’s work as interim CEO. Jonathan described the role as rewarding, hard work in putting the building blocks in place to allow the association to deal with its most significant issue – its finances – but also said it had been very enjoyable.

Dave has worked in the charity world for more than 20 years as a chief executive and before this, for 26 years in the commercial field.

He brings a broad range of skills, knowledge and experience to IWA, as well as being a boat owner. He is passionate about the waterways and everybody who IWA’s new chief executive Dave Pearce. uses them.

PHOTO: IWA

New volunteers sought in the North West THE Canal & River Trust has launched a major appeal for new volunteers for a range of roles from traditional lock keepers to leading walks on historic waterways across Cheshire and Merseyside.

Many of the roles, like towpath rangers, boat crew and wildlife conservationists, are in the great outdoors volunteering along the nation’s waterways, interacting with boaters and towpath visitors, and helping to tackle the biodiversity crisis in our

towns and cities.

Speaking in advance of a volunteer welcome session held as we went to press at the National Waterways Museum, Ellesmere Port, North West community engagement manager Steve Bergquist said: “We are hoping to recruit volunteers to help out at our amazing visitor attractions, the National Waterways Museum and Anderton Boat Lift, become lock keepers, join our monthly towpath taskforces or even go into schools to teach children about

our wonderful canal heritage and staying safe by water.

“No matter what your skill set or experience, we have something for everyone.

“Whether you are looking to boost your well-being, get fit and active, or just make a new year’s resolution to give something back, join the thousands of people already benefiting from volunteering by water and #ActNowForCanals.”

For details of forthcoming welcome sessions in the Yorkshire area, turn to page 21.

4 NEWS

February 2023

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Narrowboats moored alongside a snowy towpath along the Lee Navigation near Cheshunt. PHOTO: JOE

DUNNE AND TAMAR SAPHRA

A snowy scene at Berkhamsted on the Grand Union Canal. PHOTO: PHILLIPPA ALLOM, THE FLOATING WORKSHOP

A snowy Waltham Common Lock on the Lee Navigation.

A rainy Enslow Marina on the South Oxford Canal.

PHOTO: JOE DUNNE AND TAMAR SAPHRA

PHOTO: TIFFANY GALE-HAYNES, KINGSGROUND NARROWBOATS

The Floating Workshop and River Daughter in the ice. The Floating Workshop can be found on Instagram and Twitter. It offers a wide variety of jobs including metalwork, woodwork, electrical – especially solar installations. PHOTO: PHILLPPA ALLOM

In the deep midwinter

WHILE many boaters are looking forward to the arrival of spring and the chance to get out and about again on the cut, others have been enduring the winter with its alternate spells of bitterly cold and unseasonably mild weather.

We are grateful to everyone who has shared photos on our social media pages on Facebook and Twitter @towpathtalk and Instagram @towpathtalkofficial and bring you a selection here.

A Lancashire Canal Cruises trip boat frozen in the ice near the Slipway pub on Crabtree Lane, west of Burscough on the Leeds & Liverpool Canal. PHOTO: COLIN WAREING

An icy stretch of the Grand Union Cana l at Berkhamsted. PHOTO: PHILLIPPA ALLOM

A view from within.

PHOTO: PHILLIPPA ALLOM, THE FLOATING WORKSHOP

All frozen up at Braunston Marina.

PHOTO: TIM COGHLAN

Seagulls on ice at Berkhamsted on the Grand Union Canal. PHOTO: PHILLIPPA ALLOM

NEWS 5

www.towpathtalk.co.uk February 2023

Swarkestone towpath reopens after first phase

A SECTION of historic canal towpath in Swarkestone has reopened after the Canal & River Trust completed the first phase of improvements.

These will make it easier for people to access the canal and to link the canal path to other connecting trails.

Working in partnership with Sustrans, CRT has improved 2.5km of the Trent & Mersey Canal towpath at Swarkestone in South Derbyshire.

The towpath has been widened and is back open for people to use, although a final stone chip top surface will be laid in the spring as it requires warmer temperatures to bond with the base layer.

The canal is still used and navigated by boats hundreds of years after it was built. Its towpath also forms an important part of Route 6 of the National Cycle Network which connects London to the Peak District.

In addition, the towpath is a popular path locally, connecting the route north into Derby and south along the Cloud Trail into Worthington.

This £700,000 project is part of the Canal & River Trust’s ongoing work to protect and preserve the canal for boats and wildlife, and to make it easier for people to use all year round. Funding for the project

has come from the Department for Transport through Sustrans’ Paths For Everyone programme.

With research showing that time spent by water can help people feel happier and healthier, and with more people looking for a local escape on their doorstep, the works make it easier and more appealing for people to get out and explore the local canals and other routes on their doorstep.

Alan Leather, partnerships manager for the Canal & River Trust, said: “It’s great that we’re able to reopen the towpath and make it easier for people to enjoy this beautiful stretch of canal.

“The works have gone well and we’ll be back in the spring to apply the final stone chip layer which will give the path a more natural feel. In the meantime, we hope people enjoy getting back out on their local canal.

“We’re very grateful to Sustrans for making these improvements possible.

As a charity this kind of support is vital in our ongoing work to protect and preserve our historic waterways and avert the decline we saw last century.”

To find out about the work of the Canal & River Trust and how you can support the charity, either through volunteering or making a donation, visit www.canalrivertrust.org.uk

The completed stretch of towpath along the Trent & Mersey Canal at Swarkestone. PHOTO: CRT

Canalside art trail tackles tagging and antisocial behaviour A STRETCH of urban towpath on the Grand Union Canal has been transformed by a canalside art trail created by the Canal & River Trust.

The project in Alperton, North London, builds on research showing that community street art discourages antisocial behaviour and tagging and was made possible by support from players of People’s Postcode Lottery, awarded through Postcode Earth Trust.

A group of local schoolchildren from Harlesden Primary worked with street artists Manuela and Tara, and graffiti artist Gianpaolo Hank on designs for the murals

on the theme of finding their ‘Happy Place By Water’ in a workshop run by the trust.

Martha Michelson, CRT’s community roots co-ordinator for Brent, who led the project, said: “Working with the community here in Brent I know how proud local people are of their local waterway. Removing graffiti gives the towpath a more welcoming atmosphere. I’m delighted that we have been able to build on the success of the ‘living room’ artwork to give people another reason to visit this stretch of the Grand Union Canal. The children really responded to the theme and it was lovely to see their take on it.”

Through the promotion of street art CRT aims to encourage people to visit urban areas of the canal network and last year another area of towpath nearby was turned into an outdoor ‘living room’ by artists.

Graffiti and unsightly tagging can be a problem in hidden spots, particularly in urban areas such as along the Grand Union Canal in London. Jet washing or painting over the graffiti often simply results in a ‘blank canvas’ for new graffiti, but research commissioned by the trust has shown that communitysupported art is more likely to be left clear of tags.

STOPS OD

One e of the canalside mu urals. PHOTOS: CRT

The Alperton art trail.

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February 2023

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Heritage Lottery boost for Anderton project THE Canal & River Trust has been awarded a £574,000 grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund to support the development of a major repair project and community engagement plan at Anderton Boat Lift.

This funding, made possible

by National Lottery players, will enable the trust to carry out essential repairs to the Victorian boat lift at Northwich, Cheshire, to secure its long-term future, prepare a detailed plan to update facilities and interpretation at the popular visitor centre and extend a community outreach programme.

The Scheduled Historic

Monument, which each year carries around 3000 boats between the Trent & Mersey Canal and the River Weaver Navigation, needs a major upgrade to keep it operational.

The whole iron structure requires blast cleaning, repairing and repainting, the timber control cabin replacing and IT operating system updating.

Also included in the proposals are plans to replace the large marquee, which is used to host school groups and events, with an alternative flexible building, including new toilets, plus updates to the visitor centre and grounds to improve the visitor experience, as well as the

development of new learning, skills and outreach programmes.

This will enable more visitors to enjoy the unique attraction and delve deeper into the site’s fascinating history.

CRT North West director Daniel Greenhalgh said: “The essential repair and upgrade work is critically important to maintaining the lift as an operational structure.

Constructed in 1875, it holds a unique place in waterway history as the world’s first commercially operated boat lift and our mission is to ensure that it continues to delight and engage future generations.”

Over the next 14 months,

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the trust will be developing a comprehensive plan for ‘Engineering the Future’, with the intention of applying for a further grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund towards the entire £13.4 million project. If the bid is successful, the plan will be to start an 18-month programme of works at the end of the 2024 boating season.

As a foretaste of the urgent necessity for major repair work, the lift has been closed since early August due to the failure of a safety mechanism in one of the lift gates. An emergency £450,000 repair work package is now on course to be completed this winter to ensure Anderton Boat Lift reopens to boaters and the trust’s Edwin Clark public trip boat in time for Easter 2023.

The work features two key projects. Two giant hydraulic ram cylinders, which each

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COLIN WAREING Lancashire in January 2019. PHOTO:

eams for 2019 k’s TTop TTeams T k’s Towpath Talk a s, we bid farewell awn AS A new decade dawn t th to 2019 with the results of our Towpath Top Team award which has been k Top Talk r r. running throughout the year.

With four teams shortlisted for the final with vote it was a veryy close-run contest t volunteers ty the Grantham Canal Society head. short a by title the taking

Such was the support also for from Crusader Community Boating first Blisworth that we are awarding our a rd – something Community Boat awa f the we had alreadyy been planning for r r. coming year. of Commended are the Friends the River Nene and the Waterways Chaplaincy’s Martin and Fiona Buck.

Award presentations to our finalists

are revealed

r The r. will take place in the new year. off a winning team receives the hire day boat carrying up to 10 people, generously sponsored by ABC Leisure Group Ltd. The runner-up will receive a £100 voucher to spend at Midland four Chandlers at Braunston and all finalists will receive a £100 donation towards their volunteering organisation the from Mortons Media Group Ltd,

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Tal tth T publisher of Towpath Our thanks go to the readers who rose of to the challenge of finding a group a gone that extra ave unsung heroes who have f their local stretch off towpath, mile for a association or ays canal or river, waterways a our judging ave community boat – and gave the panel a difficult job of shortlisting four finalists.

2 page • Continued on

found on a boat moored Ouse bodies t achievemen f nd 100-dayCommunity of two men were fou probe Action Network (UCAN) THE bodies Boats gunshot were called UPPERMILL Y k city centre. Emergency services after starting in Yor investigating damage to narrowboats POLICE are Officers were after gunshots were fired in Cambridge. a December 5, at around 10.15pm, ay, called on Thursday, f m shots fro after nearbyy residents reported hearing near boats on the what was believed to be an air rifle the window of one River Cam. Photographs off holes in a since been published. One resident ave of the boats have the Chesterton told reporters thatt shots, coming from moored at Browns boats at fired were river, the of side on for about five Field, Fen Ditton, and this went no injuries were said Police Cambridgeshire minutes. reported and enquiries were continuing.

achieved its 100-day volunteering milestone 2300 hours of out in 2015. This included more than who, according voluntary work achieved by local people to, crafting to UCAN, “care about, and are committed environment”. and maintaining our beautiful local and for the positive Thanks were given to all supporters, work parties will feedback from the community. The next 8 and 20. The usual be on January 4 and 23, and February on Moorgate bridge canal the meeting point is 10am at Killan on 01457 Street but this can change. Contact Peter l.com 878361 or peterkillan@hotmai

at around 8pm to Lendal Bridge on the River Ouse said officers on December 4. North Yorkshire Police f two men for attended “after concerns were raised with their touch in their 60s who had been out of bodies. Fire .” Upon arrival officers found the family.”

The deaths and ambulance services both attended. although did were being treated as ‘unexplained’ a post-mortem not appear to be suspicious and The men had not examination was due to take place.

Talk went to press. tth Tal been identified when Towpath

11/12/2019 10:17:16

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A hydraulic ram supporting one of the caissons.

The official reopening by the then Prince of Wales in 2003 after the millennium restoration project. PHOTOS: CRT propel a caisson transporting boats up and down, are being given a much-needed overhaul.

The large metal tank caissons will be detached from the rams and propped up about two metres above ground level to allow the 20-year-old cylinder seals to be replaced, the ceramic rams repolished and reset, and 12,000 litres of hydraulic oil to be changed.

Each of the lift’s 10 sets of gates will also have two new ‘fall and arrest’ safety systems installed, which act like a giant seat belt in an emergency.

Following the identification of the safety issue in the summer, new designs have been engineered, approved by Historic

England and manufactured.

Once the repairs have been carried out, the lift will have a short recommissioning period of about two to four weeks before it is once again available to carry boats.

The Anderton Boat Lift Visitor Centre will continue to welcome visitors throughout the winter at weekends – Saturdays and Sundays, 9.30am-4.30pm.

For more information, check out the places to visit section at www. canalrivertrust.org.uk or call 01606 786777.

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The Edwin Clark trip boat entering the lift.

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Towpath works start in Loughborough The Llangynidr Lock Flight drained ready for the work.

The team of Glandwr Cymru staff and volunteers.

Winter works to protect the Mon & Brec GLANDWR Cymru, the Canal & River Trust in Wales, has started a fourmonth programme of improvements to protect and preserve the picturesque Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal.

The works on the 35-mile canal, which has a history dating back more than 220 years, will be completed in March and will see the trust’s team of staff and volunteers carry out repairs on bridges, lock walls and canal banks.

Hannah Booth, area operations manager for the Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal, said: “Our skilled team of staff and volunteers are working throughout the winter to carry out the important ongoing maintenance, repair and conservation work that will ensure we can keep the Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal open, safe and accessible for visitors and boaters.

“We are working to repair lock walls

Repointing one of the walls.

and bridges, fix leaks and repair the clay lining on culverts, and are undertaking other inspection work as part of our management of the canal. This is a vital part of the work we do to maintain this special waterway that carves through the heart of the Usk Valley and Brecon Beacons National Park, bringing together benefits for people, nature and heritage.”

For the improvements to be made, sections of the canal have been drained following fish rescues to safely move the fish to other sections of the canal.

The trust is investing £350,000 in the canal this winter as part of a wider £57 million essential investment to maintain the canal network across England and The programme includes: • Repairs to repoint and seal the lock walls on the Llangynidr Lock Flight • Works to stop leaks on the soft bank near Brynich • Repairs to concrete joints between bridges 106 and 109 that require sealing with resin and cement to stop leaks • Investigations into the

Wales. Go to canalrivertrust.org.uk for more information on the work of Glandwr Cymru and to find out how to support through volunteering or donating,

The Llangynidr Lock Flight in summer. PHOTOS: CRT waterproof liner in the canal at aqueduct 10 near Govilon to assess required repairs • Bridge repairs on Humphreys Bridge near Govilon and Squires Bridge and High Bridge near Pontypool • Bed and wall repairs to the canal above Culvert 31 near Llangynidr and Culvert 29 near Glanusk undertaken by contractors Kier

A PROJECT has started to revamp a section of canal towpath in Loughborough, Leicestershire.

The Canal & River Trust is working in partnership with Loughborough Town Deal to improve a 2km stretch of the River Soar towpath between Moor Lane Bridge and Belton Lane.

CRT East Midlands regional director Linny Beaumont said: “Local support, like the funding from Loughborough Town Deal, is crucial in helping us in our ongoing work to protect waterways and ensure that they can continue to be enjoyed both now and for future generations. It is great that Loughborough Town Deal Board has recognised the importance of Loughborough’s waterways for those living and working in the town.”

The project will transform the stretch of towpath and make it suitable for use all year round by people on foot or bike as well as those with wheelchairs or buggies and those accessing the water for boating.

It will bring significant benefits to people in the south of Loughborough, enabling them to travel into town on a traffic-free route.

As part of the works the towpath will be widened and a new all-weather surface laid. This involves laying a bitumen surface and then a stone chip layer to give it a more natural feel sympathetic to the canal surroundings.

As well as improving the towpath surface the works will

The stretch of towpath to be improved in Loughborough.

PHOTO: CRT

also see barriers removed, signage, wayfinding and access points improved and provision for boat moorings increased, enabling visiting boaters to visit town centre facilities and attractions more easily.

Research shows that time spent by water can help people feel happier and healthier and that the trust’s waterways bring £6.1 billion of welfare benefits annually by helping people keep healthy. With more people looking for a local escape on their doorstep, these works will make it easier and more appealing for people to get out to explore and enjoy the canal in Loughborough.

Works started in January and are due to finish in mid-May. The towpath will be closed for the duration of the works.

The project has been made possible thanks to an £885,000 grant from Loughborough Town Deal. It is one of 11 projects Loughborough Town Deal is supporting after securing £16.9 million of government funding.

In total, the projects are worth more than £40m of investment for the town.

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8 NEWS

February 2023

www.towpathtalk.co.uk

Suction dredging at Gloucester Docks

Clearing the channel.

The grab lorry in action.

Paving the way for next phase of Monty project SHROPSHIRE Union Canal volunteers devoted their work party in December to preparing a new compound site south of Crickheath Bridge for the new Montgomery Canal restoration project in 2023.

An electrical supply line was fitted to enable a sump pump to be fitted next to Crickheath Bridge to remove residual water entering the channel.

The coping stones and drystone wall of the old wharf were given a detailed assessment of work needed to be done there.

Trees were removed from further down the channel and a considerable amount of brash was burned to clear the path for the impending work.

Final items of equipment including pipes and bags of sand were transported from the old site by grab lorry and installed on the new compound.

The hospitality shelter was dismantled and stored, ready to be transported when the three steel equipment containers and the cement mixer are removed and reinstalled at Crickheath. Some serious remedial welding took place to replace sections of the roof of the welfare container.

A nostalgic afternoon tea break took place on the Sunday afternoon as the team was about to say farewell to its home since 2014 at Lloyd’s Animal Feeds .

Shropshire Union Canal Society is always looking to encourage new volunteers and members.

Anyone interested should visit: https://shropshireunion.org.uk for details of dates and contacts, also for news and information.

The suction dredger at work in Gloucester Docks. PHOTO: CRT

The last goodbye. PHOTOS: T FULDA

These improvements were made possible by funding from the Department for Transport (DfT) in response to the Paths For Everyone review of the National Cycle Network in 2019. The towpath forms part of the National Cycle Network which aims to deliver a trafficfree, accessible network for everyone, including walkers, cyclists, families and people with mobility requirements.

Just over £500,000 of investment has been delivered, adding to improvements made in 2015, and resulting in a 4.1km stretch of continuous high-quality towpath through Leighton Buzzard and surrounding areas.

MP Andrew Selous and Bedfordshire High Sheriff Lady Jane Clifford cut the cake. PHOTOS: CRT

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metre or less in some areas. That’s enough for a narrowboat but little else and is currently preventing deeperdrafted boats such as passenger craft, and the tall ships who visit in May and June, from using part of the docks.

“I am delighted to get the winter programme of dredging under way so that we can ensure the docks, which are such a key feature of the city, continue to be used by boats as they have been for hundreds of years.”

Silt in Gloucester Docks is made up of a mixture of sand and sediment carried and deposited by the river.

Over the next few months it will be ‘sucked up’ by the dredger, increasing water levels in the docks once more.

Normally the trust can monitor the level of silt in the river water and only allow water into the docks when levels are low. However, last year, intensified by the drought and the need to meet the water demands at Bristol, more water was required than usual regardless of silt levels.

The dredging programme in winter avoids impacting coarse fish such as roach, perch and pike who spawn in the spring and summer months.

Similarly, works to the River Severn are completed in winter to avoid impacting migratory fish such as sea lamprey, twaite shad, allis shad, salmon, sea trout and eels.

Wharf wall survey.

Ceremony marks official opening of upgraded towpath AN UPGRADED 2.9km length of the Grand Union Canal towpath in Leighton Buzzard was recently opened by the High Sheriff of Bedfordshire, Lady Jane Clifford, at a ceremony organised by the Canal & River Trust.

The event, which involved the cutting of a specially made cake and ended with a ride-through by South West Bedfordshire MP Andrew Selous, representatives from national walking and cycling charity and project partner Sustrans and from local cycling group, Buzzcycles, marks the completion of the project.

THE Canal & River Trust has started its biggest programme of dredging at Gloucester’s historic docks. The four-month dredging programme will remove 15,000 cubic metres of silt using a powerful suction dredger.

This excess silt entered the docks from the River Severn during the exceptionally dry summer while the trust ensured the vital daily water supply for residents and businesses in Bristol.

The completion of the £750,000 dredging project will once again allow boats, including tall ships, to freely navigate and moor in Gloucester Docks.

Rob Eaton, CRT regional operations manager, explained: “Water from the River Severn supplies up to half of the daily water supply for Bristol. It is pumped from the river into the docks at Gloucester, and then along the Gloucester & Sharpness Canal where Bristol Water treats it before supplying it to homes and businesses.

“Last summer Bristol Water took around 175 million litres of water per day from the canal and, exacerbated by the drought, it has meant that the water coming into Gloucester’s docks from the River Severn has been far siltier than usual.”

He continued: “This led to a rapid build-up of silt which has reduced depth of water in the docks from our target of around 3.5 metres to one

The ride-through at the opening of the upgraded towpath at Leighton Buzzard.

Joining forces to save rare Cheshire trees A CLUMP of rare native black poplar trees has been planted along the River Weaver Navigation near Northwich in Cheshire in a joint rescue mission by the Canal & River Trust and Chester Zoo to preserve the species.

Black poplar trees would once have been a familiar sight on riverside woodlands and floodplains, but now they are one of the rarest tree species in the country. Changes in land management, with more drainage for agriculture and a reduction in the need for traditional timber, have meant fewer have been planted.

Only around 370 true black poplar trees have been recorded growing in Cheshire since 1990 and they are mostly mature trees which are gradually being lost through old age. The threat of the species being hybridised by other poplar varieties

or d i s ap p e a r i n g completely inspired Chester Zoo to initiate a special conservation project to propagate true Cheshire black poplar cuttings to ensure the native tree’s survival.

The trust recently planted half a dozen male and female trees from the project by the River Weaver in Hartford to encourage future propagation.

CRT ecologist Sara Kirk explained: “True black poplars need very specific conditions to

reproduce naturally.

Their seeds are shortlived, and male and female trees need to be sited close to each other, with fertilised seeds falling on damp ground.

“The Weaver valley, with its mosaic of woodland and wetland habitats beside the river, is an ideal site to kickstart the regeneration of these wonderful native trees. They are great for biodiversity and provide a fantastic natural home for moths, bees, birds and butterflies.”

Ecologist Sara Kirk joins Mike Mitchell, Jack Hall and Oliver Bagnall in planting rare black poplar trees along the River Weaver Navigation. In the background is boat helmsman Brian Pimlott. PHOTO: CRT

NEWS 9

www.towpathtalk.co.uk February 2023

Characters of the Cut Join Dave Thompson as he savours the tranquillity of the towpath

By Alice Griffin

IN 2012 when Dave Thompson lost his wife of 25 years, Sue, to cancer he was left not just broken-hearted, but also broke.

“We had been living in Tenerife for the last year of Sue’s life and after she died I found myself struggling to survive as a bar entertainer,” Dave tells me. “After a lot of thought I made the decision to return to Having breakfast on the welldeck. the UK with nothing more than a suitcase, kayak and bicycle.” a simple and quiet way to live amidst However, life back in the UK also nature, that would help him find his proved difficult and Dave soon found way back to enjoying life. himself couch surfing, living from one Finding his boat, The Isness – a 2005 day to the next with little purpose, 57ft Liverpool semi-trad – was destiny until he eventually woke up in hospital in itself. “After work I would sometimes having taken an overdose. kayak along the canal filming Despite reaching this extreme low, kingfishers but it took me several Dave was able to recognise it as his days of exploring the same area to get wake-up call and propelled himself closer.” On this daily outing Dave would towards new opportunities. “I knew I always turn his kayak at the permanent had to lift myself up and at this time mooring of a specific boat, which a job came along with Canal & River turned out to be one he had been in Trust. They wanted a fundraiser and a contact with someone about online. “I friend persuaded me to go for it.” felt like I had manifested it!” Dave tells Having previously been a Butlins me and despite it only being the second Red Coat, Dave had the ability to talk a boat he looked at, it felt immediately good talk (!) and six years ago he took like home and the deal was done. on the position of signing people up The transition from filming for fun to the ‘Friends’ programme. “I loved to vlogging in a more professional it, particularly the tranquillity of the manner, took place during lockdown. towpath. I had always loved nature and “My job ended because of Covid and had an interest in cameras so after work I needed something to focus on. I I started filming.”

Dave met lots of boaters during his time exploring the towpath and most spoke of how much they loved the lifestyle. “I didn’t realise straight away, but the answer was right in front of me.” The answer being, that with a loan to buy a boat, he could embark on

had seen some blogs online and thought, why don’t I do a vlog.

I realised when I was doing the fundraising how beautiful it was on the canals and I wanted to capture that spirit.”

Dave purposely steers away from some of the more practical areas of boating, instead focusing on capturing the positive mindset that can be achieved when fully absorbing the tranquillity of the waterways. This makes for a gentle, thought-provoking channel.

The breathtaking landscape of the Macclesfield and Upper Peak Forest canals where Dave lives as a continuous cruiser provide ample opportunity to capture the beauty of this planet, while reminding us that we do not need to travel far for inspiration.

“I find that when I’m connecting with nature I’m living in the present, tuning in to all my senses. For instance, I can watch leaves dancing on the ice and be utterly mesmerised.”

Highlighting the scenes others do not have time to stop and notice is a pastime that has not only slowed Dave down, but is also proving to be a meditation for people all over the world; people drawn to the sense of calm offered by life on the water. Dave’s scenic videos have the added bonus of calming music, too, as his friend, PaoloC, composes the serene accompaniments. “People tell me it helps them relax and sleep, and it YouTube: @Narrowboatisness Facebook: @boatisness Instagram: @boat_isness Alice Griffin is a writer and yogi with a gypsy soul. She leads yoga classes and nature-inspired journalling e-courses all from her narrowboat, Melody.

Website: www.alicegriffin.co.uk YouTube: @wanderingalice

One of Dave’s robin photos.

PHOTOS SUPPLIED

Dave Thompson inside his narrowboat The Isness.

Enjoying a bit of gentle interaction with the wildlife.

Dave’s narrowboat on a winter’s day. brings home to them about life.”

There is no doubt that these collaborations send out a ripple of calm into the world and it’s so uplifting and inspirational knowing the background to Dave’s story. From falling to an incredible low he has been able to lift

himself back up and in the process lift others, too. “Coming back to nature you come back to your instincts and start trusting that everything will work out.”

It seems Dave is right where he needs to be and what a gift to the world his films are.

Canalway Cavalcade

IWA’s Canalway Cavalcade will return to London’s Little Venice for a 40th anniversary celebration between April 29 and May 1, 2023.

The event is held annually over the three days of the early May Day Bank Holiday and is a vibrant waterways celebration.

London’s Little Venice will be transformed with hundreds of colourful boats, live music, refreshment stands, craft stalls and family activities!

Boat bookings are now open for this unique festival and you can download an application form from the IWA website. The committee that organises the event is also seeking new members and volunteers so please do consider joining the fantastic team behind one of the most

The colourful spectacle returns to Little Venice. PHOTO: IWA successful and best attended inland waterways events in the country.

Current vacancies include: marketing and social media assistant; secretary; site and services assistant and treasurer.

All roles above require attendance at around eight committee meetings per year, and the need for general availability during the week to take on duties attributed to the role. You will of course also be required to attend the event.

For more information, or to register your interest, please contact Christine Smith – christine.smith@ waterways.org.uk

Canal camps THE 2023 programme will be available in early spring and the IWA will also be recruiting volunteers for key roles including: Canal camp leader – your main role is to make sure the canal camp is a fun, well planned and safe experience for all.

Assistant canal camp leader – you will support the leader in making sure the canal camp runs smoothly and safely.

Canal camp cook – your main role is to feed 12-18 canal camp volunteers. Canal restoration is hungry work after all!

Canal camp volunteers are being sought for key roles. PHOTO: IWA

GREEN REPOWER CALL TODAY 01908 686 796 Ask for Justin or email info@avalonmarine.co.uk

10 NEWS

February 2023

www.towpathtalk.co.uk

How winter stoppages are planned Tthe Canal & River Trust’s winter works are nearing completion but with a 200-yearold system to maintain, planning for next season’s programme is already under way.

Chief infrastructure and programmes officer Malcolm Horne explains.

THE Canal & River Trust’s ageing infrastructure needs significant care and investment to keep it safe and available for boaters to enjoy today and for generations to come. With thousands of assets, including over 1500 locks, a rigorous inspection programme

and careful planning is a necessity.

Our assets are inspected regularly and prioritised for investment depending on various criteria, like their condition.

Lock gates usually have a 25-year average lifespan. The condition of the lock gates when inspected is

determined by using a grading system from A-E; a lock gate in condition A means that the gates are ‘like new’ while condition D means that they are getting close to needing replacing. Condition E means that the gates need replacement straight away and therefore are highest priority.

Our dedicated lock gate inspectors and engineering teams collaborate with our operational teams around the country who operate and interact with the gates regularly because there are sometimes other lock gates that need working on that are causing issues for boaters or where there are water loss issues etc. Gates

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are often given a second check to ensure that the condition of the gate has been recorded accurately.

Where capacity allows, our teams will try to pair together top and bottom lock gate replacements where possible, if the other gate needs doing in the next few years. Often other works, such as brickwork, cills, fender and other repairs, are carried out while gate replacements are taking place. Our gates are made at our in-house workshops at Bradley and Stanley Ferry. The workshop teams work closely with the engineers to time the production of the gates ready for the proposed installation date.

During the winter stoppage season, other stoppages outside of gate replacements are included in the programme and we undertake brickwork repairs, piling, grouting, bridge repairs and many more. Our winter work is carried out by our own in-house construction teams and our approved supply chain contractors. We also have stoppages in place for third parties such as local councils, HS2 and Network Rail, where often they need access over the canal to carry out repairs to the railway bridges.

Many factors go into planning a stoppage. We identify which assets are the highest priority based on their condition, the length of time required to carry out the works, how much resource is required, planning how the work will be carried out and if any specialist components are required, such as complex crane lifts. Often, we also need approval from environmental and heritage bodies before ore

Lowering a new lock gate into place at Lock 29 on the Leicester Line of the Grand Union Canal. PHOTO: CRT

the work can commence.

When planning winter stoppages, we use something called a ‘through-route protocol’.

This protocol works by dividing the navigations into pre- and post-Christmas periods, where works are planned based on whether the section of canal falls into either the pre- or postChristmas period. Using this protocol helps us to keep through routes available for boaters so they can travel north to south and east to west. Our pre-Christmas period usually starts in early November and runs for about six or seven weeks up to Christmas.

The post-Christmas period runs from early January to mid-March and is around a 12-week period.

There are instances where a stoppage should be planned in the pre-Christmas period, but the scope of works required mean that a larger timeframe is needed.

Therefore, occasionally some stoppages have to be planned in against the protocol, but we consult thoroughly on these with our National Advisory Group and External Consultee Group (each made up of representatives from private and business boaters who are well placed to advise us and represent views of other boaters).

Our winter programme is published on our website for public consultation in early May for four weeks and again in July for a further four weeks. This gives our customers the opportunity to log comments on a particular stoppage or raise any questions or concerns. In mid-August, the winter programme is published and if any changes are required after this, we follow a changecontrol process. This means that any changes to a winter stoppage are consulted with via our External Consultee Group and our internal regional and business boating teams. All changes must be approved by our chief operating officer, Julie Sharman, and myself.

When the winter stoppage season is in full swing we hold several open days across the country to give people chance to have a closer look at our assets and the works being carried out.

Sometimes it is even possible for people to go down into an empty lock and see some of the issues that arise under the water’s surface. We would recommend attending a stoppage open day if you have one local to you as they are a rare opportunity to see parts of the canal most people don’t get to see, and to find out more from our experts about their history and the work that goes into protecting and preserving them.

Workshop supervisor Andrew Baylis explains lock gate manufacture to visitors at the recent open day at Stanley Ferry. PHOTO: JANET

Stoppage open days are taking place at the following locations: January 28-29 Erewash Canal: Gallows Inn Lock, Nottingham Road, Ilkeston, Derbyshire.

February 11 Kennet & Avon Canal: Greenham Lock Cottage, Ampere Road, Newbury, Berkshire.

March 4 Rochdale Canal: Lock 85, in the tunnel between Piccadilly and Dale Street, Manchester.

For further information visit www.canalrivertrust.org.uk

Work at King Road Lock on the Wakefield Branch of the Aire & Calder Navigation was completed just before Christmas.

PHOTO: JANET RICHARDSON

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NEWS 11

www.towpathtalk.co.uk February 2023

From the family album is Grace, granddaughter of John Guyler of the Friends of Cromford Canal, with Chelsea. PHOTOS SUPPLIED

PART OF MIDDLEWICH CANAL CENTRE

LD SO T A BO

Popular boat horse Chelsea hauling trip boat Birdswood on the Cromford Canal.

Cromford Canal Friends mourn loss of popular boat horse I AM very sad to report that our dear, delightful, docile boat horse Chelsea, has passed on to that great stable in the sky, writes Hugh Potter, archivist and editor for the Friends of Cromford Canal.

She enthusiastically pulled Birdswood for many years and fretted so much when her owners Arraslea Shires tried to retire her, that they had to bring her back to the canal for ‘light duties’ to keep her happy.

Chelsea was loved by everyone who met her – young and old – and she relished their attention and that of the photographers for whom she willingly posed. She was known for her calm nature, but she did not like the routine of pulling Birdswood being altered.

She was once observed at the winding hole at Leawood Pump, High Peak Junction, going to her

regular standing position while Birdswood was turned, only to find an empty pushchair had been placed where she normally stood. She stood on the towpath about six or eight feet back and was snorting and stamping one of her front hooves until the problem was removed; she then very calmly moved into her position to await her next trip. Fond memories.

Covid brought an end to the immensely popular horse-drawn trips and Arraslea is now concentrating on other aspects of its business, so if anyone knows of any willing horses (with willing owners) who might help us reinstate this historic mode of travel, please contact the Friends of Cromford Canal. When operating with Chelsea, Birdswood was one of fewer than half a dozen horse-drawn trip boats in the country.

Building society grant for Ironville garden THE lock keeper’s garden at Lock 4, Ironville, which the Friends of Cromford Canal work parties developed from scrub and a generally overgrown area on the top of the lock chamber, has been awarded a grant of £500 from the Mansfield Building Society.

It is to be spent on a water storage container, a new cold frame and tools for Shirley and

Carole, two of the work party regular volunteers who tend the garden. The Canal & River Trust, from whom the FCC has adopted this section, is going to provide an information board.

For several years now, all produce from the garden has been given to the local food bank and Age Concern to help families in need of extra help.

The FCC work parties cleared

the site over two winters (2015 and 2016) and put a 50m fence in along the edge of the chamber. From there it was developed into an impressive and productive garden.

The local school regularly uses the garden for lessons and to help young people learn about the importance of food, its production and the environment.

Above: The lock keeper’s garden at Ironville, Derbyshire.

Left: Work party volunteers clearing the site.

PHOTOS SUPPLIED

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12 IWA ROUND-UP

February 2023

www.towpathtalk.co.uk

AROUND THE COUNTRY WITH IWA’S AMY TILLSON

Water transfer schemes offer possibilities for waterway restoration and navigation Lincolnshire and WRE is working with the THE Environment Agency’s National Stamford Canal Society to understand the Framework for Water Resources consists of five regional groups, feasibility of restoring the Stamford Canal bringing together the water companies to help transfer water as part of the Boston to Peterborough wetland corridor. that operate in each of England’s regions with key water users and other Additionally WRE is working with the stakeholders.

Environment Agency and the Bedford and All of these five regions are currently Milton Keynes Waterway Park to explore the water and flood risk benefits of linking consulting on their Draft Regional Water Resources Plans. Many of the the Grand Union Canal and the River Great Ouse. water transfer schemes (to move water around the country and share Water Resources West and Water Resources South East are also developing resources more effectively) have implications for navigation and for plans for water transfers that would use restoration projects. existing assets such as canals to move water within and beyond regions.

Open water transfer has the In their consultations, they found these potential to be cheaper, improve were particularly favoured as they are biodiversity and wildlife corridors, sustainable and require less investment. as well as provide amenity value The Grand Union Canal transfer would in the form of boating links, and Welches Dam Lock, currently closed enhanced walking and cycling access to navigation. PHOTO: MIKE DAINES use the existing canal infrastructure to the countryside with associated to transfer water from the Midlands to health benefits. areas likely to experience water shortages in the South East.

It also opens up the possibility of using waterborne The scheme plans to use a treated wastewater discharge at freight to deliver materials and remove spoil from these Minworth as the resilient source of water to supply this canal large infrastructure projects. transfer via a pipeline.

Several of the regional water resource networks are The proposed Severn-Thames Transfer would convey exploring options which could benefit navigation. raw water from the River Severn into the River Thames via a Water Resources East (WRE) is planning two new pipeline or via the disused, derelict Cotswold Canals. reservoirs as part of its Water Resources Plan. The proposed IWA’s Navigation Committee will be engaging with these Fenland Reservoir would be built near the town of Chatteris consultations, emphasising the benefits of using canal in Cambridgeshire. If Anglian Water opts for open water restorations, new, navigable channels and existing waterways supply to this, it could provide a link to the Middle Level for open water transfer instead of pipelines. from the Great Ouse.

The historically important Welches Dam Lock, currently closed to navigation, could be reopened (or a new lock built parallel to it). IWA has been campaigning for the reopening of this lock since it closed.

Not only would the tidal crossing be made unnecessary, but a new cruising ring created.

The second proposed reservoir would be in South THE IWA Panel that manages the South West Inland Waterways Regeneration Fund (SWIWRF) has approved an application by the Grand Western Country Park (aka Devon County Council) for a grant of £8340 to purchase two new notice boards and produce updated information sheets for the entire canal, many of which are now 20 THE 2023 Waterway Restoration Conference, run years old and contain out-of-date information.

by IWA and the Canal & River Trust, will be held in Chesterfield in March.

Work to install the new notice boards and to replace the information sheets is now in hand and visitors to the This event will focus on the sustainability of Grand Western Canal should notice them appearing waterways restoration and explore your journey to in the months to come. SWIWRF was established as operation with keynote speakers from Derbyshire a separate restricted fund within IWA in March 2021 County Council and Chesterfield Canal Trust. IWA will also be running technical breakout sessions, selfand eligible corporate members within the branch guided tours as well as plenty of time for networking! are able to apply for grants, with deadlines for making applications of June 30 and December 31 each year.

The conference will take place on Saturday, Donations received to date, including gift aid, total March 18 from 10am-5pm at the Winding £55,000 and grants made to date total £27,000.

Wheel Theatre, Chesterfield S41 7SA. More details and how to book at https://waterways. org.uk/support/ways-to-get-involved/events/ waterway-restoration-conference-2023 Also please note that the Restoration Hub pages on the IWA website are now fully publicly accessible for all to explore, without needing to register, at https:// waterways.org.uk/restoration_hub/overview The Grand Western Canal in Devon.

They contain a wealth of information, advice and resources for anyone involved in waterways projects.

PHOTO: AMY TILLSON

Grant awarded to the Grand Western Canal

Restoration Hub Conference

Get involved – work party dates PLEASE contact the branch to register an interest if you would like to attend one of these work parties. It is advisable to wear stout shoes and old clothing, and take a waterproof. You may want to take a packed lunch and refreshments.

EAST February 5 and 21 IWA Northampton Branch: Work parties

are usually held one weekday and one Sunday a month, along the Arm, 10am2pm. The tasks usually include vegetation clearance, weeding, litter picking and painting at locks. Contact: Geoff Wood at geoff.wood@waterways.org.uk

Tuesdays IWA Milton Keynes Branch: Regular

pat.durham@waterways.org.uk

work party at Fenny Lock on the Grand Union Canal. 9.30am-1.30pm. Work can include vegetation clearance, gardening, litter picking and painting.

Work parties are dependent on weather being agreeable. Contact: Pat Durham on 07510 195918; email

WEST Tuesdays & Saturdays IWA West Country Branch (Taunton & Bridgwater): Work parties in the

Somerset area, 10am-1pm. Contact: Mike Slade at mike.slade@waterways. org.uk; 07977 263840.

The National Trailboat Festival held at Moira pre-pandemic.

PHOTO: PHIL SHARPE

National Trailboat Festivals set to return by 2025 DUE to cancellations during the Covid19 pandemic, there are no National Trailboat Festivals planned until 2025.

The IWA would therefore like to encourage waterway restoration trusts, societies or councils that are engaged in restoring a waterway to apply to host a trailboat festival in 2024/25.

Trailboat festivals are very useful for drawing attention locally and nationally to restoration or improvement projects.

In addition to a greater awareness of the project, these events can draw local political attention to successful restorations and also provide a source of additional income.

When people see others gathering and the tranquil movement of pleasure boats – illuminated at night and decorated with bunting and flags – on even a small part of their previously disused canal, it gives a lot of pleasure. It adds considerably to the quality and tone of the locality – urban or rural. It leaves people wanting to see further improvement and attracts more supporters for the restoration project.

There is no set design for a trailboat festival as its very nature will depend upon the waterway being promoted.

These events depend in part on the availability of volunteers, financial resources, and the extent of support from local politicians and the community. We have members and supporters in all parts of the country, and can certainly ask those who are local to you if they are willing to help with preparation.

A Waterway Recovery Group (WRG) team could be available if requested, depending on availability, to provide

manual assistance in constructing, running and dismantling as they have people who have been putting on events for many years and may be available to give advice in person, over the phone or by email. We may also be able to free loan a two-ton trailer full of the sort of gear necessary to stage an event, although a 4×4 vehicle with a towbar is required to collect it.

Some marketing for the event can be carried out centrally as part of our programme of events which is advertised each year, and our website can also be used. You can apply to our finance committee for help with your early organising costs.

The format for applications is to submit a written request but the first step is to check that you have the basic facilities available. Please email the trailboat officer for a list of required facilities. As each event tends to be unique to its waterway and to its organising committee, all we need at the outset is an outline proposal of your trailboat festival plan. We will send you advice on what this should cover and an example for guidance.

To secure the approval and support of IWA, it is necessary for us to feel sure the event is likely to take place and that the event is planned properly. We are continuously looking for applicants for trailboat festivals up to four-five years in advance to allow plenty of advertising time.

Organisers will need to plan several years ahead and have a suitable budget in place. For assistance with answering the questions in the application, just email iwa.trailboat. festivals@gmail.com

Revised Manchester Ship Canal guide released prepared for IWA by THE Manchester Ship Canal is a John Fletcher and published by IWA waterway which North West Region. links Manchester The 38-page route with the coast and ssection of the guide provides access to has recently been h the city for large ocean-going vessels. ccompletely reworked The canal is more

by John Fletcher b than 37 miles long (former national and has five locks cchairman) and the in total, but it is not preceding notes considered a leisure Th revised with input The M Manchest h er Ship Canal at waterway and the Salford from IWA Chester Quays. incompatibility and Merseyside PHOTO: WATERWAY IMAGES of large ships and Branch. A link to small boats means the guide will be that hired vessels are not proving that their boat included in new editions usually permitted. is seaworthy, insured of Nicholson’s No 4 and Boat owners must and has the required No 5 – however, it is also seek permission to safety equipment on available to download use the canal from board. A guide for small from the IWA website: the Manchester Ship craft planning to use w a t e r w a y s . o r g . u k / Ca n a l C o m p a n y , the canal was originally manchester-ship-canal

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14 FREIGHT

February 2023

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What goes around comes around Jonathan Mosse’s monthly look at freight developments on the inland waterways.

unproductive and many a hillside can be regarded as an outdoor laboratory, devoted to experiments in the production of saw logs.

Following the end of hostilities in 1918, the newly created Forestry Commission (as it was then known) was assigned the task of establishing the different species of milling timber that could be grown in a diverse range of locations. And, also, to delve into the finer points of how one might go about the job.

Little thought was given at the time to harvesting and extraction of the finished product, a detail that around 100 years down the line has become somewhat pertinent! So, what is now clearly apparent is that the suitability of the Scottish climate to producing good timber is in direct proportion to the unsuitability of the majority of the country’s roads in supporting its removal to market!

Enter JST Services (Scotland) Ltd: a company skilled in all aspects of timber extraction and one that leans heavily on water transport, shipping saw logs both locally and abroad. Based in Ayrshire,

APART from sheer economics, the elementary drivers behind freight by inland waterways can be pretty much boiled down to dramatically lowered emissions and reduced road congestion, in some cases combined with providing access to poorly served rural locations.

If, for the moment, we overlook the criminally underused River Clyde then the potential in Scotland, for the most part, largely embraces access… or rather a lack of it. A relatively small population (much of it centred on a few large towns and cities) means that whole swathes of countryside are comparatively inaccessible, as there is little need to build a trunk road network connecting a diversity of small, far-flung communities.

That doesn’t, however, necessarily mean that these vast, remote tracts of moor and mountain are totally

JST Services Ltd’s mobile floating pier at Ardcastle. PHOTO: CREEL MARITIME LTD

A trial load of plant heading up Neptune’s Staircase on the Caledonian Canal bound for Coire Glas.

PHOTO: SCOTTISH CANALS

the company has an extensive operation throughout the West Coast forests and also covers extraction from the considerable acreage of timber planted across the neighbouring islands.

Each operation presents its own challenges but common to all is the poor communication provided by the local road infrastructure, alongside what is also often a fragile natural environment.

Atapoliticallevel,JSThasworkedclosely with government, while on the ground the company has devised ingenious practical solutions, often funded by the Strategic Timber Transport Scheme which finances projects facilitating the sustainable transport of timber in rural areas. The fund typically contributes 50-70% of the costs of successful applications, with the remainder coming from local authority or forestry sector partners.

The key weapon in the company’s armoury is the floating pier system it has

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developed. A mobile pier can be set up in a 12-hour shift allowing deep-water access for sea-going vessels of up to 3000 tons carrying-capacity, enabling them to be loaded directly from timber lorries.

There are currently examples on the Morvern Peninsular, at Ardcastle near Adrishaig and on the Isle of Mull, outside Pennyghael.

These piers open up previously uneconomic forests, providing a means of combating diminishing returns and reduced viability due to their remoteness.

JST makes the valid point that the concept could easily be applied to other materials, such as aggregates and in other locations (on the Clyde for instance) where it is important to eliminate road miles.

On page 72 of this month’s Towpath Talk you’ll find coverage, in the Scottish News, of the first barge load for the proposed Coire Glas pumped hydro storage scheme, situated alongside the Caledonian Canal. Both this first cargo of plant and, indeed, the initial stages of the project itself, are representing a trial.

Before a degree of exploratory work is undertaken it’s impossible to determine whether the project – a grand form of renewable energy storage, on an epic scale, to tide the grid over those times when renewables are unavailable – is, in fact, viable.

What isn’t in doubt, however, is that the local roads are in no way capable of carrying the relatively light plant required for the investigative work, let alone the heavy-duty equipment and materials eventually required should the project get the green light.

JST makes the point that its floating pier system has many potential applications, presenting endless opportunities to get freight off the roads and on to the water, not necessarily limited to the remote Highlands of Scotland.

So maybe if – and when – the Coire Glas scheme comes to fruition, we will see an armada of these structures sailing towards Fort William and then up Neptune’s Staircase, on to the upper reaches of the Caledonian Canal!

Loading timber at Ardcastle. PHOTO: CREEL MARITIME LTD

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16 FAMILY HISTORY

February 2023

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Exploring your canal ancestry: going to school Nicola Lisle continues her family history series with a look at education records and what they can tell you about your ancestors.

DUE to the peripatetic nature of canal boat families’ lives, children’s education was largely non-existent for much of the 19th and early 20th centuries.

As well as the obvious logistical difficulties in attending school on a regular basis, parents saw little need for education and preferred to have their children helping out on the boats. It was not unusual for children to be working on the boats from as young as seven or eight, carrying out essential tasks such as steering the boat, opening locks or leading the horse.

Even the passing of various factory, education and canal boat acts during the 19th century had little effect.

Occasionally, if a boat was moored up in one place for several days children might briefly attend a local school, but otherwise boating families mostly slipped under the authorities’ radar.

What little education the children had came from boatmen’s missions, chapels and institutes, which emerged during the early 19th century and provided a rudimentary education as well as facilities for Christian worship and healthcare.

One of the earliest of these was the Boatmen’s Institute at Paddington Basin, which was built in 1827 to cater for the children of boating families working the Grand Union Canal. A much later example is the Boatmen’s Institute at Brentford, Greater London, which was

Upper Fisher Row in Oxford was once a thriving community of boat people. PHOTO: NICOLA LISLE

Finding school records

The former Boatmen’s Institute in Brentford. PHOTO: WIKIMEDIA COMMONS built in 1904 by the London City Mission and taught basic literacy and numeracy as well as religious instruction.

Meanwhile, floating chapels provided places of worship for boating families as well as education for the children.

A floating chapel at Jericho in Oxford, funded by local coal merchant Henry Ward, served as both chapel and schoolroom for nearly 30 years before it sank in 1868.

Some boating communities remained static enough for children to have a more settled existence and therefore a proper education. Upper Fisher Row in Oxford, for example, was once a thriving community of bargemen and fishermen, dominated by the Beesley and Bossom families, and children would have been

able to attend local schools. For the majority of boating families, though, education remained very low on the list of priorities.

Things began to change in the early 20th century with the passing of various acts that sought to ensure all children, including those living on boats, received a proper education. There was also growing concern about the use of child labour on the canals from trade unions and charities such as the NSPCC. By the 1960s the problem had more or less resolved itself; with the decline of commercial activity on the canals, many boating families had found alternative employment and a home on the land, enabling their children to benefit from a regular education.

Finding records for canal boat children is obviously somewhat tricky, and you may well have to consult several sources. If you know which canal(s) your ancestors worked, and which places they regularly stopped at, you might be able to find school registers, reports, correspondence and other material at the relevant local record office or the relevant school, if known.

If you are lucky enough to find a register mentioning your canal ancestor, you can expect to find their date of birth, the date they first attended the school, their boat or location of boat, and dates of attendance. Often the dates of attendance at one school will be as few as two or three days, and it is likely that they will have attended several schools. Note that some records will be restricted, sometimes up to 75 or 100 years, depending on the policy of each individual archive.

Some record offices also hold reports and correspondence about canal boat children’s education.

The National Archives at Kew has a wealth of potentially useful material, including school registers and log books

for 1870-1914 (via findmypast.com), inspection reports from the 19th century, school histories and more. Additionally, you can search for records available only at Kew, including elementary (referred to as ‘primary’ from 1944) school records for 1854-1984 and secondary school records for 1818-1946. The link www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/helpwith-your-research/research-guides/ schools/ is a good starting point.

Also useful is the guide to records held by other archives (www.nationalarchives. gov.uk/help-with-your-research/ research-guides/education-historyrecords-held-by-other-archives/). This includes major collections, such as those held by the Bodleian Library in Oxford and the Institute of Education at the University of London, as well as schools and colleges holding their own records and other useful resources.

Further reading

Wendy Freer & Gill Foster – Canal Boatmen’s Missions (2004)

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18 HERITAGE

February 2023

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A rare sight on the Calder & Hebble Navigation Brian Best is proud to be a custodian of a piece of the past, as Sally Clifford found out.

THE RAF flag ripples proudly in the breeze. Attracting attention to what lies beneath, it sparks the curiosity of pedestrians on the canal towpath – particularly those of a certain generation.

A decommissioned seaplane tender, moored in tranquillity – compared to the choppy waters it faced picking up pilots shot down during its military career, this is surely a rare sight?

According to its proud owner, Brian Best, many will stop and chat to find out the story of how a former RAF search and rescue boat came to be moored on the Calder & Hebble Navigation in West Yorkshire.

Occupying the Grade II-listed lock keeper’s cottage at Mirfield’s picturesque Shepley Bridge Locks, Brian is on hand to tend to the boat’s needs – although the application of one tonne of glass fibre in recent years means it isn’t as high maintenance these days to protect it from rot.

As you would expect, for a service boat of this kind, the superiority of the materials used at the time, the double diagonal planking framework of mahogany and oak, have also contributed to its preservation – this year it will be 80 years old.

Its past has always fascinated Brian, who has gathered plenty of information about it over the years in his research. Leafing through paperwork in the cosy stone cottage alongside which canal boats have passed since the waterway opened for business and latterly travelled for pleasure, Brian explained details of the boat’s service is limited as its RAF history card is unavailable.

Believed to be one of only three in its present condition in existence, Brian explains the ST 1623 was 41.5ft when it launched.

It is understood to have been one of many built by the British Power Boat Company at Hythe.

“Of that type about 75 were made and only a handful are left – only three are in this condition,” said Brian. ST 1623 was taken on charge by the RAF on October 23, 1943. In April 1944 she was transferred to Royal Navy control and based at Brightlingsea where she was allocated on loan to the Royal Navy for search and rescue (SAR) duties.

Referring to its role picking up pilots who had been shot down, he explained the boat would have been laid out with a stretcher on one side. “It’s a matter of getting them out of the water and taking them back to base.”

When the SAR service was no longer required, ST 1623 was transferred to Harwich in 1945 to carry out Trot Boat Service and later listed by the Admirality for disposal.

Affinity with water

Brian explained slight adjustments were made to its shape with the addition of a front and rear berth before coming into his ownership. For a boat of its age, its survival is testimony to the care and maintenance it has received over the years.

He bought it in 1989 after he spotted it for sale in a newspaper.

“I was looking for a boat at that time and as soon as I saw it I fell in love with it.”

The stern of ST 1623.

Brian Best.

From being a young boy growing up in Keighley, Brian enjoyed being by the canal. “I have always loved boats. I’ve had canoes and dinghies. I have always had an affinity with water and I was always on the canal as a kid.”

Originally Brian moored the boat at Sowerby Bridge.

He moved it to Shepley Bridge Marina in 1994. Now retired, Brian continues to live in the lock keeper’s cottage there and his expert knowledge often comes in handy for those navigating the locks.

But it’s keeping 1623 afloat for the foreseeable that has become a pleasurable pastime.

Travelling at a speed of around 24 knots (about 30mph),

Brian outside the lock keeper’s cottage at Shepley Bridge, Mirfield, where he lives with his wife Jackie.

PHOTOS: SALLY CLIFFORD

Brian with his former RAF Seaplane Tender ST 1623 moored in the background at Shepley Bridge Marina, Mirfield. the furthest Brian and his wife, Jackie, have taken the boat is The Wash. They also enjoyed holidays in Lincoln and York before Covid.

Although it’s currently used for storage, Brian’s ambition for the boat is to cruise around

the Scottish islands – if he gets chance! “I want to spend some time on it before October when it is 80 and get it all painted up.”

One thing is for sure, when it comes to celebrating the boat’s birthday, the bunting will be out

as it is to commemorate VE Day and D-Day. “It’s the history of it and, like people say about things like that, you never really own it, you are just looking after it for the next generation – you’re the custodian,” added Brian proudly.

Medway Queen project news MEDWAY Queen Preservation Society’s major the ship as an event venue to raise money project in recent weeks has been rebuilding the towards further restoration work, the provision Medway Queen’s starboard paddle box fascia, of onboard toilet facilities is long overdue and which was suffering from the effects of weather. is the main project for 2023. The project has Timber for the reconstruction was been planned in great detail by one of the purchased and preservation society volunteers and costed at £38,000 including a contingency allowance. volunteers produced a ‘lofted’ full-size drawing of the fascia in the workshop Two substantial grants have been and created the necessary parts promised towards this and other to produce the ‘fan’ around the work, but MQPS still has to find the central crest, which has also been rest and is appealing to members recreated. Templates and and the public to help address jigs were then prepared for the shortfall. All donations, no individual components which matter how large or small, will were then cut and shaped be gratefully received towards as required. work on Medway Queen.

A revised assembly method PS Medway Queen is has been devised to allow berthed on Gillingham Pier replacement of components (ME7 1RX) and will be open to in the future instead of visitors in 2023, on Saturdays always having to rebuild the from January 29. Guided complete assembly. A proper ship tours are available at a shop counter has also been reasonable cost from 11am built for the forward saloon, to 4pm with last admission at allowing volunteers to move 3pm. There may be additional the souvenir and book shop PS Medway Queen at special events etc from time on board. to time, announced on www.

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Rare canal boat goes on display

By Cicely Oliver

THE remnants of a rare Aberdeenshire Canal boat found in 2021 in undergrowth at Port Elphinstone, Inverurie, have now gone on display.

These skeletal iron remains were originally thought to be of an inspection vessel which had lain undisturbed for many years. Too small to have been used for cargo, industrial heritage professionals now believe that the find is the likely unique relic of an icebreaker, used to clear ice ahead of commercial and passenger boats and keep the canal operational between Aberdeen and Port Elphinstone during winter months.

Men would have stood along the centre of the boat, holding on to a sturdy frame, rocking it to and fro, thereby creating a channel through the ice.

A generous bequest engaged the

Lifting it into the upper gallery was a tricky operation managed by the conservation team.

professional consultancy services of Jim Mitchell, a leading specialist in industrial heritage and conservation engineering, together with eight months of careful conservation work by heritage and conservation experts, JPS Restoration in Alloa.

The boat was installed in the Garioch Heritage Centre, Inverurie, last summer.

The centre is in the renovated Carriage and Waggon Workshop of the former Inverurie Locomotive Works and tells the story of life in the Garioch area.

The installation itself was a challenge.

At 5m long and weighing in at 200kg, the boat was painstakingly moved into the heritage centre and then hoisted up on to the first-floor gallery by hand via a specially constructed scaffolding and block and tackle.

Why are these remains important?

The canal, while operational for just over 50 years and never a financial success did, however, bring immense benefit to local communities and was instrumental in opening up transport and commerce, including quarrying, whisky production and papermaking, all significant operations in the area.

The boat forms an important part of an exhibition telling the story of this industrial expansion, starting with the canal and ending with the Locomotive Works themselves, constructed at the start of the 20th century next to the Great North of Scotland Railway (GNSR) which was subsequently built on the line of the waterway. Joan Bruce, project co-ordinator, said: “Pulling it together was one of the most demanding, most interesting and most rewarding projects that I have ever been involved in, and it’s allowed me to make a small personal mark on our local heritage.”

The remains of the ice breaker, as originally discovered.

Lifting the boat from where it had lain in the undergrowth for around 30 years for transport to a new home in October 2021.

The boat successfully in situ. The background photo is of where it was found. PHOTOS: JOAN BRUCE

About the canal

Easing the conserved boat into Garioch Heritage Centre in July 2022.

Heritage under the hammer Geoff Courtney’s first auctions column of 2023 looks at a selection of canalia that sold for up to £1400 at three sales during the closing months of 2022.

THE star of the premium of 15% show, at least in (+ VAT).

Two other original financial terms, posters that attracted was Manchester interest went under Ship Canal Railway the hammer in an l o c o m o t i v e nameplate Montreal, Onslow’s auction which went for £1400 on November 25. at a GW Railwayana They advertised the live online auction annual car and boat on November 12. exhibitions held in London, the first This 0-6-0 was built from October 17-26,

by Hunslet Engine Co of Leeds in 1898, 1935, at Olympia and when Queen Victoria the second at Earls was 61 years into her Court from October long reign, entered 14-23, 1937, with service with the admission to each costing 2s 6d (12½p). railway as No. 13 The older of the and was withdrawn in 1957. two featured artwork At its peak the This canal Parliamentary Act by illustrator and canal’s standard dating back nearly 250 years political cartoonist gauge railway sold for £11 in a two-week email F Kenwood Giles had a fleet of 180 and postal auction that ended on (1900-72) and sold locomotives, and November 1. for £150, while that during the 36-mile PHOTO: PAPERCHASE promoting the 1937 canal’s construction exhibition fetched from 1887 to 1893 it supplied 10,000 tons £100. Both prices exclude buyer’s of coal and 8000 tons of cement every premium of 25% (inc VAT). month. The railway survived until the Transport collectables auction house latter half of the 20th century, carrying Paperchase often offers canalia items in commercial freight traffic until 1978. its quarterly email and postal sales, and The auction also included an that held from October 14 to November ‘enchanting River Dart’ poster issued 1 was no exception. jointly by the Western Region of BR and There were three such items in the River Dart Steamboat Co in 1961. the 800 lots on offer, and as usual the It was the work of Cecil King, and sold realisations were at the ‘bargain’ end of for £280. Both prices exclude buyer’s the scale.

The Aberdeenshire Canal was opened in 1805, two years after the construction of the Caledonian Canal was authorised by Act of Parliament and 17 years ahead of the Caley actually opening to navigation. John Rennie was consulting engineer, who was also the engineer responsible for the Crinan Canal which opened in 1801.

The navigation ran for just over 18 miles north-west from Aberdeen to Port Elphinstone near Inverurie, above the banks of the River Don. A sea lock between the waterway and Aberdeen Harbour was constructed in 1834 to aid the transfer of goods.

The canal company was perennially short of funds and faced local opposition – at one point a reward of £5 was offered to anyone supplying information leading to the conviction of people throwing rubbish and stones into the navigation, an offence which carried the threat of transportation for seven years.

Seventeen locks, five aqueducts and many road bridges and culverts were built along the canal’s length.

However, shortly after opening, 14 locks failed, with their reconstruction overseen by Thomas Telford.

Passengers, livestock, granite, slate, coal and whisky comprised some of the traffic carried on the waterway. Passenger journeys on board horse-drawn flyboats took around two-and-a-half hours, costing two shillings for the full journey or 2d per mile for shorter trips. The canal’s demise followed the familiar story. It closed in 1852 following its purchase by the Great North of Scotland Railway, which laid the tracks for the Aberdeen– Inverness railway line along much of the length of the navigation.

Although there is not much physical evidence of the canal today, there are still some remnants in Aberdeen and a section of water known as the Old Canal running alongside the River Don at Port Elphinstone – although it’s not known whether this water was in fact part of the original waterway, constructed after its closure, or a lade (watercourse) dug to serve a local mill. You can find out more about the Garioch Heritage Centre at gariochheritage.co.uk/ If you’re interested in John Rennie’s prodigious engineering output, much of it canal-related, visit rbt.org.uk/john-rennie

The colourful River Dart poster that sold at auction for £280.

PHOTO: GW RAILWAYANA

Two sold for £11 each, comprising 96-page Parliamentary Acts for making and keeping navigable the rivers Aire and Calder in Yorkshire, and the building of a canal – now the Stourbridge Canal – from Stourbridge to the Staffordshire & Worcester Canal at Stourton.

The former Act is dated 1768 and the latter 1774, both during the reign of King George III and each a fascinating piece of river and canal documentary history.

In the same auction, a bid of just £5 secured a 1925 GWR 300-page leather-bound publication titled Haunts and Hints for Anglers – Fresh Water Angling, River, Lake, Mere & Canal.

These three Paperchase prices exclude buyer’s premium of 12.5%.

The Old Canal at Port Elphinstone. PHOTO: TINA GORDON/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

The remains of an Aberdeenshire Canal bridge at Station Road, Woodside in Aberdeen. PHOTO: WATTY62/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

20 WHAT’S ON

February 2023

Midlands canals inspire textile hangings CAPTURED in Thread serve the collieries in is the title of the new the area. During these walks Bernice takes exhibition at the numerous photographs Museum of Cannock and these and the Chase by Eclectica memories of the walks Textile Artists, which form the inspiration includes five striking wall hangings made by for sketchbooks, mixed Bernice Hopper. media work and the Over the past few fabric hangings you years, Bernice and her see in the exhibition husband have been in the museum walking the towpaths in Hednesford.

Eclectica is a group of the canals in the Midlands. Their aim is of nine textile artists to walk the full distance working independently of each of the many Hangings suspended in the Midlands canals, a few miles at from bobbins. to create original contemporary art, using a time.

One of these many walks started at an eclectic mix of scale, technique, Chasewater. They walked along the materials and inspiration.

Wyrley & Essington Canal to Pelsall The exhibition is at the museum in Junction. Here they turned on to the Valley Road, Hednesford, Cannock Cannock Extension Canal which WS12 1TD and is open until February originally went to Hednesford to 25, Tuesday to Saturday, 11am to 4pm.

Three of Bernice’s canal-inspired wall hangings. PHOTOS SUPPLIED

www.towpathtalk.co.uk

Take a trip down the Thames tideway ST PANCRAS Cruising Club is organising another of its regular Thames tideway trips on the weekend of June 23-25, starting with a briefing session at Limehouse on the Friday evening.

As well as the core voyage from

Limehouse to Teddington or Brentford, the optional extras will include a voyage through the Thames barrier, and a downstream transit from Teddington to Limehouse. The club particularly welcomes those who have

not yet done a trip on the tideway.

To register your interest please email cruising@stpancrascc.co.uk as soon as possible, or contact Simon on 07939 238464, and the club will send you further details.

Pick up a bargain at boat jumble ONE of the first boat jumbles of the year will take place at the Lincolnshire Showground LN2 2NA on Sunday, February 5.

The Notts & Lincs Boat Jumble has a good mix of trade stands and car booters selling a huge variety of boats and equipment from small craft to fenders,

outboard engines, ropes, marine salvage, seating, nets, oars, paints, glues, and everything in between.

There are spaces available in a variety of sizes for both traders and members of the public looking to clear out their nautical goods or sell a boat.

For information ring 0208 469 4090; email info@rotaevents. co.uk or visit https://www. rotaevents.co.uk/

Ropes are among the variety of items sold at the Notts & Lincs Boat Jumble. PHOTO: JANET RICHARDSON

BOAT JUMBLES NOTTS AND LINCS BOAT JUMBLE

Exhibiting at Boat Life 2023 STAND E31

SUNDAY 5TH FEBRUARY Lincolnshire Showground, Grange-de-Lings, Lincoln, LN2 2NA

SUFFOLK BOAT JUMBLE SUNDAY 5TH MARCH

Trinity Park, Suffolk Showground, Felixstowe Road, Ipswich, IP3 8UH

KENT BOAT JUMBLE

SUNDAY 26TH MARCH Hop Farm, Paddock Wood, Tonbridge, TN12 6PY

NORFOLK BOAT JUMBLE SUNDAY 2ND APRIL

Norfolk Showground, Dereham Road, Norwich, NR5 0TT

Bookings: www.rotaevents.co.uk 0208 469 4090 / 07780 800 257

EVERY PERSON WHO VISITS OUR STAND AT BOATLIFE AND SHOWS US THEIR TICKET WILL RECEIVE:

1 Week Free Mooring 1 Free Slipway OR

*Terms and d Conditions C Apply.

Visit us on Stand E31 to speak to us about all of your narrowboat requirements. Located on the Shropshire Union Canal, we are the perfect place to visit for any of your boating needs from moorings, to blacking and brokerage.

Our show giveaways offer significant savings, something everyone is looking for during these difficult times. So why not plan your boating year and cruising routes and join the many boat owners who already moor at Aqueduct.

01270 525040 | www.aqueductmarina.co.uk | info@aqueductmarina.co.uk