Aegre November 2010

Aegre November 2010 Page 1

AEGRE

N o . 1 2 7


Aegre is published © 2010 by the East Midlands Region Committeeof the Inland Waterways Association for members of Leicestershire,

Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Branches.Northampton members receive their own publication.

The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the Inland Waterways Association or ofthe East Midlands Region. They are published as being of interest to our members and other readers.

Inland Waterways Association: Registered Office; Island House, Moor Road,Chesham HP5 1WA. Registered as a Charity No: 212342.

Tel: 0845 4501146 Website: http://www.waterways.org.uk

Editor for Aegre: Peter Hill, 7 Lock Keeper’s Way, Louth, Lincolnshire LN11 0GQTel: 01507 602713; email: [email protected]

Printing: This is the web pdf version, with low definition pictures and active links.Picture credits: See page 25. Front cover picture: Repairs at Mountsorrel.

Chairman John Pomfret, db Drijfhuis, Braunston Boats Ltd, Bottom Lock, Dark Lane, Braunston, Daventry NN11 7HJ Tel 01788 891027

Vice-Chairman Dave Carnell, Conifer Cottage, North End, Goxhill DN19 7JX Tel: 01469 530138

Leicestershire John Evans, Highfields Farm, Woodhouse Road,Branch Acting Quorn, Loughborough LE12 8AL Tel 01509 416647Chairman

Lincolnshire Dave Carnell (as above)Branch Chairman

Notts. & Derbys Vacant. Contact Mike Snaith, below.Branch Chairman

Northampton Bernard Morton, Yew Tree House, 14 Baker StreetBranch Chairman Gayton, Northants. NN7 3EZ Tel: 07785 375787

Region Planning Mike Snaith, Hawthorne Cottage, 70 Main St,Officer & Notts Gunthorpe, Nottingham NG14 7EU& Derbys Branch

Secretary & WRG John Baylis, 215 Clipstone Rd West, Forest Town, Mansfield NG19 0HJ Tel: 01623 621208

Member Ian MacDonald, 68 Leicester Road, Thurcaston, Leicester LE7 7JG Mobile: 07950 003383


AEGRENovember 2010 No. 127

Next issue probably to be publishedin mid-March 2011. Contributionsto the editor by the middle ofFebruary 2011 please.

The space on the right is for localcontact information.

ContentsCanal Societies and Trusts in the EM Region....................4The Editor’s Bow Button.....................................................5British Waterways - A National Trust?................................6Boston 200 Event................................................................7Nene 250th Anniversary.....................................................7The Editor’s Flotsam and Jetsam.......................................8Melton Mole Progress.........................................................8Chesterfield Canal Restoration Plans Revealed.................9The Battle for Bridge 16....................................................10Festival at Worksop..........................................................14Beale Park - Another View................................................15News from Lincolnshire Branch........................................18Couple’s Golden Gift to Canal..........................................21News from Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Branch........22Stoke Bruerne’s War Weekend Goes with a Bang...........23Cargo Carrying Returns to the Chesterfield Canal...........24Picture Credits...................................................................25Butterley Weed-away........................................................25Floating Pennywort from the Soar....................................26Journals Received............................................................27Success at IWA National Festival.....................................27Regional Diary Dates 2010/11..........................................28Notts & Derby Branch Programme...................................28Leicestershire Branch Programme..................................29Annual General Meetings.................................................31


Canal Societies and Trusts in the EM Region

Derby & Sandiacre Canal Society Chris Madge, c/o 62 Broadway, Duffield, DerbyDE56 4BU Tel: 07827 946444www.derbycanal.org.uk

Erewash Canal P & DAssociation

Howard Smith, 1 Millfield, Kimberley, NottinghamNG16 2LJ Tel: 0115 9384129

Foxton Inclined Plane TrustFoxton Canal Museum, Middle Lock, Gumley Road,Market Harborough LE16 7RA Tel: 0116 2792657www.fipt.org.uk

Friends of the Cromford Canal Patrick Morriss, The Shieling, Dukes Road, LowerHartshay, Ripley, Derby DE5 3RP Tel: 01773 742895www.cromfordcanal.org.uk

Mike Stone, 7, Crow Park Drive, Burton Joyce,Nottingham NG14 5AS; Tel: 0115 931 3375www.granthamcanal.com

Grantham Canal Society

Melton & OakhamWaterways Society

Richard Booth, Sysonby Knoll, Asfordby Road,Melton Mowbray LE13 0HP Tel: 01664 563563http://beehive.thisisleicestershire.co.uk/mows/

Old Union Canals Society 36 The Ridings, Desborough, Kettering NN14 2LPTel: 07010 705103.www.fipt.org.uk/localcanals.htmSteve Hayes, 10 Chelmer Close, N Hykeham,Lincoln LN6 8TH Tel: 01522 689460www.sleafordnavigation.co.uk

Trent and Mersey Canal Society 1 Pinfold Cottages, Back Lane, Little Haywood,Stafford ST18 0UL. Tel: 01889 882770www.tmc-mileposts.co.uk

Buckingham Canal Society Helen Preston, 16 Mallard Drive, BuckinghamMK18 1GJ Tel: 01280 821232www.buckinghamcanal.org.uk

C/o The Canal Museum, Stoke Bruerne,Towcester NN12 7SE Tel: 01604 861205www.friendsofcanalmuseum.org.uk

Friends of the Canal Museum

c/o Braunston Marina, Braunston, Daventry, NN11 7JHwww.thefriendsofraymond.org.uk

Friends of Raymond(and Nuffield)

John MacDonald, Navigation Warehouse, Riverhead,Louth LN11 0DA Tel: 01507 605496www.louthcanal.org.uk

Louth Navigation Trust

Sleaford Navigation Trust

www.erewashcanal.org.uk


The Editor’s Bow ButtonPottering about this season, we have seen many enter-taining things on the waterways. We were out during thatseason of football matches, and wondered about the sta-bility criteria of day hire boats when all the people onboard are on the roof of the vessel and, what shall we callit, merrily moving from one side to another. At the sameseason it was interesting to see the variety of flags on dis-play, not only on boats, but at many places along thebanks. When you move fairly slowly along a canal or riv-er, many things can be seen which flash by unseen withother modes of transport. There were interesting contrasts

in the various gardens or other plots of land bordering the water. Someare beautifully kept, with flowers and pots of various kinds; others areutilitarian, with neat but dull paving, while others give the appearance ofa scrap yard, even if not actually serving that useful purpose. So athought came to mind, triggered by the “on land” competition for villagegardens or “Britain in Bloom”. Why not a competition for the best look-ing plot of land or garden bordering a canal or river in our region? Therecould be a few classes - domestic; pub; industrial say, and the winnerscould have a fancy certificate at the end of a season.

Like many people, I try to keep up-to-date with canal closures of variouskinds, but sometimes I feel there must be a fascinating story behind thefacts, which we don’t get told. Maybe a stretch of tow-path is closedbecause of a “police incident”, or a lock gate is lifted off its hinges bysome unknown force. In this case I don’t believe vandals could manageit, so how did it happen?

This time in Aegre we have given a full background account of theGrantham Canal Bridge story, as it has been a matter of great concernover the past couple of years; we have tried to bring you the latest pro-grammes from the branches; and a report on the National Rally from thepoint of view of one of the workers, to try to avoid the impression youcould get from some national magazines that it all happens by magic.

Good luck to all for the remaining season; keep boating in any lateautumn sunshine. Peter.


British Waterways - A National Trust?

Just as we were about to send off this issue of Aegre to the printer (at 9.30 amon the 14th of October), the government announced their intention to changethe status of BW. There has been a lot of speculation on this topic, but to giveyou the real words, here are the texts of the basic announcement, and part ofthe BW reaction. Ed.

British WaterwaysNo longer a Public Corporation - Abolish as a public corporation in Englandand Wales and create a new waterways charity – similar to a National Trust forthe waterways

Environment AgencyRetain and substantially reform - Reform through structural, process andcultural change to become a more efficient and customer focusedorganisation; and clarify accountabilities. Further announcements after thespending review. The Environment Agency in Wales may move to form part ofa WAG Environmental Body.

Welcoming the announcement, British Waterways’ chairman Tony Hales said:“This is excellent news and something we have been urging all political partiesto support since last year. The waterways have been utterly transformed forthe better in the time since British Waterways was established in 1962 and arenow used in ways which their original builders could never have imagined.That transformation has owed much to the enthusiastic staff and stakeholderswho love the waterways passionately. Moving the waterways from publicownership into a charitable body recognises the need to build on that enthusi-asm and marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter in their 250-year his-tory.”

“In the 50 years since British Waterways was established, the waterways haveevolved from a moribund industrial transport system into a thriving environ-mental and leisure resource. British Waterways’ 2,200-mile network of his-toric canals, rivers and docks is visited by 13 million people a year and nowdelivers an annual £½ billion in benefits to the nation, from amenity, floodrelief and employment to green infrastructure, neighbourhood renewal andwildlife corridors.”


Boston 200 EventIn 1810 Boston suffered some of the most severe floods in the town’s history.These floods acted as a catalyst for the establishment of better flood defencesfor the town. Although there has been minor flooding in 1953 and 1978, thedefences put in place since 1810 have provided the town with a good level ofprotection.

The Boston 200 event will be in the Community Rooms and Room 52 Galleryin Strait Bargate between 10th and 13th November 2010, open daily between10 am and 4 pm. In The Gallery there will be displays on::

Agencies responsible for flood prevention will man stalls in the CommunityRooms where they can provide greater details of the work they undertake.

Nene 250th Anniversary

Next year is the 250th year of navigation on the Nene from Northampton toPeterborough and thence on to the North Sea . Northampton Branch is plan-ning special events to commemorate this notable anniversary, including IWA’sNational Campaign Festival, which will be held on the River Nene in North-ampton from 30th April to 2nd May 2011 .

The 91 mile River Nene has played a vital role in the area since the BronzeAge with significant finds being made, particularly at Flag Fen in 1982, wherea visitor centre and museum record the discovery of 3000 year old timberswhich had been perfectly preserved in the moist soil. However, the navigablesection up to Northampton from The Wash was only finished in 1761. Thefirst navigable link to the main canal system via the Grand Junction Canal(now the Grand Union), at Gayton Junction, was completed in 1815.

Northampton Branch were the winners of the 2010 IWA branch achievementaward, in particular for the branch’s many successful rallies on the Nene, anexcellent and well-attended series of public meetings, a first-class news-letterand good presence on the Association’s web site. The award was presented toLiz Payne, a former chairman. Bernard Morton


Melton Mole Progress

Melton and Oakham Waterways Society report excellent progress on their newwork boat Mole. The steel work and hydraulics have been done, and paintingis in progress. Now they are looking for volunteers to learn to drive and con-trol the vessel, which looks unusual but is thoroughly practical for the jobsthey plan. More information from Mick Clowes on 01509 414140.

Mole in the workshop at Bardon

The Editor’s Flotsam and Jetsam

From our industrial archaeologyarchive - this picture was taken

just last July 2010!


Chesterfield Canal Restoration Plans RevealedPlans for the full restoration of the Chesterfield Canal were revealed at anillustrated public lecture in Chesterfield on 20th October.

The Chesterfield Canal runs for 46 miles from the River Trent to Chesterfield.The 26 miles of the eastern end to Worksop have always been operational. 11miles and 36 locks of the western end have been restored since 1989. Five ofthese miles are isolated in Derbyshire. Dr. Geraint Coles, the DevelopmentManager for the canal, explained how to close the remaining nine mile gapbetween Staveley and Kiveton Park. This would enable boats from the RiverTrent to cruise into Chesterfield for the first time in over a century.

Work will include a new aqueduct across the Doe Lea Valley, navigatingthrough Killamarsh (where houses have been built on the original line of thecanal) and getting under the M1. Most interesting of all will be the solution tothe problem of the Norwood Tunnel – nearly 1¾ miles long - which collapsedin 1907. New targets include a £310 million Waterside development in Ches-terfield (below) to which the canal is key.


Probably nobody has ever investigated the full relationship between the man-hoursdevoted to the physical restoration of our canals and the man-hours devoted to thepaper-work and procedures involved. Exceptionally, and to bring everybody up-to-date, we are giving an extended report on the recent struggles by all concerned toachieve a sensible solution to the problems raised by the Highways Agency’s refusal to“bend” in the construction work around this bridge on the road to Stragglethorpefrom the A46. The text is due to Mike Snaith and Peter Stone, slightly edited to fit it allin, and with some direct quotation from the official reports to give a flavour of thearguments. In spite of the negative outcome, please read at least Peter’s positive viewon a way forward. Ed.

The Supplementary Planning Inquiry is now complete and the Inspector haswritten and submitted his report to the Secretary of State.

The Inspector writes in his report“The A46 scheme will not physically affect the Grantham Canal, other than toa minor degree. Even so, it is quite clear that the scheme would have an indi-rect and substantial impact upon the potential engineering options for futurebridging of the canal at Stragglethorpe Road. These effects would make futurebridging, and thereby complete canal restoration, significantly more difficultto deal with than the position that would have existed had no A46 schemecome forward. In coming to this opinion I have had regard to the relative posi-tion and level of the new roundabout relative to the canal, necessary servicediversions, earthworks and field accesses, the undisputed need for highwayvisibility standards to be achieved, the environment of the area and the gener-al confinement of the site.”

He goes on to say

“It follows that the A46 scheme would have a serious and costly effect on thefuture bridging of the canal and necessitate expensive lowering of it. In myopinion, and having regard to the competing evidence on this particular point,this additional expenditure, over and above that which would have been neces-sary should the A46 scheme not have been built, could amount to a total figurein the order of £0.75 million - £1 million.”

He then summarises

“In summary, I am of the firm view that the A46 scheme will not make restora-tion of the canal impossible from an engineering point of view, but the design

The Battle for Bridge 16


of the A46 scheme has clearly caused it to be appreciably more expensive andadministratively more complex. These are direct consequences of the trunkroad scheme. In these circumstances I can understand the view held by thePartnership and its supporters that the complications that would arise for thecanal restoration may not have been adequately fed into the earlier Inquiry bythe Partnership. Similarly, whilst the Highways Agency did respond to thewritten evidence of British Waterways, it appears that it did not go into thedepth needed to enable an appreciation of the real impact, which the schemewould have locally, to be formed.”

Before finally concluding:

“As none of the draft Supplementary Orders before this Inquiry affect the ca-nal it is not for me to carry forward any recommendation, which might havearisen from the above conclusions, into my Recommendations at Section 10 ofthis report, but I draw attention to the above conclusions, to the relative diffi-culties that the A46 scheme would now pose for the future canal restorationproject and what might still be done about it.

You can see therefore that the Inspector did not have the powers to make anyrecommendation (which was already made clear at the very outset of theInquiry) but did take the opportunity to clearly and concisely state his reason-ing and conclusion that the A46 scheme, although it does not preclude fullcanal restoration, will have an adverse impact and make it appreciably moreexpensive to accomplish.

This therefore meant that the new Secretary of State, thankfully, had theopportunity to read the Inspector’s Report, including all the quotes in italicsabove and accept (or otherwise) the conclusions. The eagerly awaited replywas then received from the Under Secretary of State (Rt. Hon. Mike PenningMP) outlining the Dept’s final position:

“…. as the Inspector considered it was in the public interest that thePartnership’s case should be heard at the inquiry, I have now looked at thematter. The key points for me are:

* A new bridge to take Stragglethorpe Road over the Grantham Canal is notpart of the A46 improvements scheme as the canal is beyond the boundaryof the scheme at this location


* The A46 scheme does not prevent restoration of the canal or the construc-tion of a new bridge in the future.

It would therefore be inappropriate for the Department for Transport to fundand construct a new canal bridge on the Stragglethorpe Road.”

These bullet points are exactly the position set out by the Highways Agencywhen this issue was first raised, almost 2 years before the Supplementary Plan-ning Inquiry hearing; it is almost as if the Inquiry did not take place. Regretta-bly, the above shows the Secretary of State has clearly decided to ignore theInspector’s conclusions and so the Battle for Bridge 16 is lost. However, Iwould ask that everyone sufficiently motivated by reading this article write abrief letter to their local MP expressing their feelings and chagrin over thisoutcome as firstly, when restoration is completed the funding from the overallPublic Purse will be significantly higher (to the tune of £0.75 million -£1.0 million, in today’s money) as a result of this ruling and secondly the ini-tial bullet point above is patently untrue as new asphalt has already been laidacross the canal track….so how can it be “beyond the boundary of thescheme”? Such a letter will at least point out the absurdity of the outcome andhopefully pave the way for a more logical and economically sensible result infuture cases.

However, following this negative outcome, and based on the inconsistencies inthe ruling, and the very constructive observations made about the case byInspector Bill Wadrup following the Cotgrave 2010 Public Inquiry, the Part-nership tried one final avenue.

Whilst the Minister's ruling was pretty clear, nonetheless in view of the signifi-cance for the Grantham Canal of the Highways Agency's action, a number ofthe Canal's supporters felt it worthwhile to seek legal advice as to whether theruling could realistically be challenged and/or whether some compensationcould be gained for the significant increase in Canal restoration costs that willresult directly from the HA's work. Having, to some extent, 'missed the boat' atthe 2007 Public Inquiry, we were determined not to let another 'now or never'opportunity slip by.

Counsel was briefed on behalf of the Partnership, and he has produced a veryclear appreciation of the situation and clear advice - which is that there is nopoint in pursuing the matter further using legal action. In this situation we feelthat the next steps should be:


* to communicate the outcome and thank our supporters for their greatsupport during 'The Battle for Mann's Bridge'

* to switch to the more positive impacts of the A46 improvements on theGrantham Canal - especially that a brand new £2.2 million bridge is now underconstruction (see photograph above), to carry the new dual-carriageway roadover the Canal. It's not everyday that we get a present like this and we need tomake the most of the opportunity and welcome its arrival!

* to prepare all parties for 'Plan B' - the fact that, as a direct result of whatthe HA has done, with the Minister's approval, we will now have to developplans for the new Bridge 16 to take a different form - most probably a modernelectrically powered hydraulic lifting bridge. As we have consistently demon-strated, a conventional Bridge 16 is now a virtual impossibility in the spaceavailable - at the very least also requiring the lowering of the Canal, by a newlock - but a modern lifting bridge could be accommodated without raising thesurrounding road surface, lowering the canal etc. The current situation atMann's Bridge needn't sever the easternmost 26 miles of the Canal from therest for evermore - we just need to develop 'Plan B' ... and propose to do so inthe coming months.


Festival at Worksop

The Chesterfield Canal Trust held itsFestival at Worksop on Saturday andSunday 17th and 18th July. Despiteunhelpful weather, there was a healthyturnout to see a very wide range ofattractions.

The entertainment marquee had a con-tinuous flow of entertainers includingthe Talegate Theatre Company, Carlothe Clown, Ryton Chorale and musicfrom John Berry. A Street DanceTroupe closed the Festival on the Sun-day afternoon with a superb perform-ance that merited an encore.

The Raptor Foundation’s owls andhawks were always busy. The Trust’strip boat, Seth Ellis, was fully booked.Many people had their first ever tryon a Segway or in a canoe.

There was a very wide range of stallsfrom Handley Rose Nursery to HomeBaking to Canal Ware. Many charitiesand societies had stalls and there wasan exhibition by the North Notts.Embroiderers’ Guild and a Schools’Art show organised by the HarleyGallery.

Besides a fun day out, the purpose ofthe Festival was to bring attention tothe glorious Chesterfield Canal andthe Trust’s campaign to restore thenine mile gap between Staveley andKiveton Park. There was a receptionon the Saturday morning for politi-cians and other decision makers atwhich the canal’s Development Man-ager, Dr. Geraint Coles, outlined NextNavigation – a thousand page docu-ment that gives every detail of the res-toration plans.

The Chesterfield Canal Trust wishesto thank Worksop Rugby Club, Bas-setlaw District Council, British Water-ways and the Chesterfield CanalPartnership and the staff of theseorganisations that have given invalua-ble help.

The event was sponsored by FabulousArts in Bassetlaw, whose Festival ranuntil the end of August.


Beale Park - Another View

The National Waterways Festival isover. By now you will have seen arti-cles and pictures of the event at BealePark. What makes this event cometogether? It is widely acknowledgedas the waterway event of the year, andwhat makes it remarkable is that it isall done by volunteers; around 300 areinvolved. Once a site is determined,management meetings start in Octoberof the preceding year. Two will havetaken place for 2011 by the time youread this. Our part starts three weeksbefore the event when the BODS(Build, Operate and Dismantle)Teams come to the site. Our part wasthe installation of temporary mooringsin the Beale Park Lake for exhibitors,The Barge Association and the “threeweek workers”. Plus drinking water,electricity for around 500 boats and400 campers, caravans and motorhomes, toilet blocks and showers.

This year we left Lincoln, accompa-nied by NB Apfelkorn 2 and drydocked on the Erewash for a week.Then to Sawley for gas and a pumpout and on to Shardlow where ourdaughter joined us for a few days ascrew. The journey via Fradley andFazeley was blessed with good weath-er. We met many friendly people, andfriends from the Slea NavigationTrust. There is always the odd boaterwho spoils things. Whilst preparing alock a boat appeared round a bend andremonstrated about the waste of water

- we should have waited for him. Itwas pointed out to `Basil the King`that he was not in sight when we pre-pared the lock and that section of thecanal was fed by water from the river.

At Rugby we provisioned and saidgoodbye to our extra crew. Arriving atBraunston Bottom Lock on a Saturdayis not a good idea, due to hire boatchange-over times. The congestionwas made worse by the presence ofthe Police “scenes of crime” people,three boats having being broken into.Once in the tunnel we were followingApfelkorn 2 when a boat coming theother way became disorientated andcollided with them; the same wasrepeated with us. Still, apart fromsome missing paint no damage wasdone.

Hilmorton Locks created some confu-sion for a hire boat crew. The hirershad explained the system and leftthem to it. Later that evening, havingmoored up, we heard extremely loudengine noise and this same boat camehurtling round a bend on the wrongside of the channel. Seeing hecouldn’t get round he killed the revs.And really lost steerage - strong stuffthese metal piles. Having sorted him-self out I advised him of the speedlimit. “Four mile an hour, that`s abso-lutely ridiculous” came the responseas he disappeared in a cloud of blackexhaust smoke.


The journey down the GU to Brent-ford was enjoyable and it was good tosee, despite the funding crisis, thatbank protection works were being car-ried out by contractors.

It was raining as we entered BrentfordBasin. All visitor moorings were fulland we opted to moor under the load-ing shed. We walked to the tide lockand saw the vast amounts of mud onthe tidal side. As we watched, a foxwas out on the mud looking for hissupper amongst the large boats. Onarriving at the lock at 11.0 am asrequested by BW the following day,there was no one there and little waterin the channel. Eventually at 12.45 thekeeper arrived and we entered theThames. It was quite choppy for awhile with the bow rising and falling

but after passing the Richmond half-tide barrier it was calm. We mooredfor the day above Teddington Lock, atthe YMCA activity centre. Later thatevening boaters returned to theirmoorings on the island opposite. See-ing our boats there was much pointingand discussion on our presence. Aswe prepared to depart the followingmorning a young man from the Coun-cil appeared enquiring how long weintended staying. The Island dwellershad complained. So much for theRoyal River.

All those booked in to the festival hadbeen given large notices indicatingtheir length. This was appreciated bythe lock keepers, who could indicatewhether there was room to enter or towait for the next locking .

“Day Break” on the lake


On August 15th westarted putting themoorings into theBeale Park Lake;another team weredoing similar workout on the River.44 moorings wererequired for the“three week work-ers” plus an extralarge one for theBarge Associationwith added “stand-offs” due to theirlength. Scaffoldingpoles up to 20`were piled into thebed of the lake using a heavy lengthof steel tube with handles welded oneach side. Cross braces and hand railswere fitted and four metre scaffoldingboards secured for walkways. All tothe IWA Safety manual and approvedby the site safety officer. Well donelads. It certainly sharpens the appetite,this manual work.

Two narrow boats with a floating pon-toon alongside carried all the materi-als and provided a working platformexcept in the case of the 20 foot polesand then it was standing on the boatroof. Wearing life jackets was manda-tory.

As the boats began to arrive I waspleased to see the Humber Keel “DayBreak”. She was built in 1934 atThorne and is now a house boat on theThames. During the festival severalheritage boats did a grand tour of the

lake and the owner of Day Breakgave demonstrations of sculling thebarge’s “coggy” boat.

After the event it took just three daysto remove all the moorings, assistedby a manual crane on a steel barge,sort all the scaffolding and board intodifferent hirers’ piles and the job wasdone.

For our return trip we completed thering via Oxford to Braunston, then viaFradley to the Trent and back to Lin-coln. Nine weeks away from ourmooring and 275 locks in the logbook. Will we do it again? Well nextyear it’s only at Burton on Trent, isn`tit? Remember 29 to 31 July next year.

Dave Carnell


News from Lincolnshire Branch

A formal notice is given later in thismagazine that the Branch AGM willtake place at 7.45pm on Monday 14th

February 2011 at St Mary-le-WigfordChurch Hall, Lincoln. This is adja-cent to the Rail Station. Five commit-tee members are due to stand down byrotation. Nominations are required forChristine Martin, David Pullen, Meland Sue Sowerby and Andy Martin.Any other members interested in join-ing the committee, which meets in theLincoln area, are welcome and canlearn more of the activities in promot-ing the waterways by contactingPenny or Dave Carnell; details insidethe front cover of Aegre. Followingthe AGM there will be a presentationon the future of the waterways,county and nationally.

With the change in government, thefuture funding and management of thewaterways remains unclear. WillBW’s wish tobecome an equiva-lent of theNational Trustoccur or, as seemslikely, be part of aCivil Society?Certainly muchwork is being car-ried out by BWand the EA onmutualisation oftheir navigations.Perhaps by the

time you read this the way forwardwill be clearer.

Work on improving facilities contin-ues apace, particularly in the WithamValley. New decking has been fittedto the Washingborough visitor moor-ings. At Boston new moorings, moresuited to narrow boats, are beinginstalled and boaters waiting for thetide at Torksey Lock can now refreshthemselves at the tea rooms created inthe former tool store. Fresh home-baked cakes and scones are provingpopular in attracting visitors to thisquiet historic spot.

Lincolnshire Waterways Partnershiphave added to the Water Rail Waywith a section running alongside theHorncastle Canal and the Viking Wayfrom Horncastle to near the village ofRoughton. This path, with an all-weather surface, includes artworks inwood, stone and metal that reflect

On the Horncastle Trail


local interests. They say “The originaltrail ends about a kilometre south ofHorncastle and we’re planning toextend the trail into the town centre.We’ve now addressed the nature con-servation issues and woven the con-struction timetable into those ofnursing badgers, foraging newts andnesting birds. The last hurdle is forthe Planning Inspectorate to hear thecase for diverting a public footpath,

which we anticipate they will do overthe coming winter. Once the Inspectorhas come to a decision we will be in aposition to start work pretty muchstraight away, if they consent to divertthe footpath. So, we’ll just have to bepatient for a little while yet.”

Heading west from Lincoln, on thenorth bank of the Fossdyke to thePyewipe public house, a multi-usersurface has been installed on thetrack. LWP say “The bridge over theriver Till is now installed and theroute uses the old A57 to the crossing

point at the cafe at Odder. This sec-tion has been cleared of overgrowthand some minor surfacing repairs car-ried out. The detailed design for theroad crossing is done and we havegone out to tender for the constructionof that and of the bank top section ofthe trail. Fittingly, the canal will comeinto use during construction becausematerials will be brought on and offsite by barge. The trail will join the

existing cycle path atthe Pyewipe Inn,which is just south ofthe A46 bypass andfrom there into Lin-coln via the BrayfordPool. Residents inSaxilby and BurtonWaters have beenlooking forward togetting this facilitycompleted and we arecertainly getting closenow. Hopefully, bynext spring...”

In Boston the EA is holding furtherconsultations on the positioning of thetidal barrier. Originally five sites werebeing considered. These have nowbeen reduced to three, with the twonearest the town, up-stream of thenew lock, being discounted for nu-merous practical and cost reasons.Further consultations are being held(see also our report on the “Boston200” event).and I will report furtheron this next time.

LWP team members inspect the cycle track


On November 27th and 28th the Lin-colnshire Food Fare is again beingheld at the Lincolnshire ShowGround. In past years our membershave assisted by manning a stand pro-moting the Waterways Partnership’swork and progress on their waterwayprojects. This year we hope to con-tinue this and look forward to meetingmembers in the county for a chat.

Events for 2011 are being planned.These include a Boaters’ Gatheringin South Kyme on the Slea on MayDay Bank Holiday with joint activi-ties of the village and visitors.

For the Late May Bank Holiday therewill be a campaign cruise and Boat-ers’ Gathering in the Boston Naviga-ble Drains. Visitors will be able to seethe works carried out by the Witham4th Internal Drainage Board toimprove passage along some of theirwaterways and use the new mooringrings installed at Cow Bridge Lockand the Packet Boat Steps in the cen-tre of Boston on the Maud FosterDrain. We are working on animproved and up-dated map of thesystem and preparing a set of notes tohelp boaters visiting for the first time.

While in Boston, use could be madeof the new moorings at the entrance tothe Drains at Anton`s Gowt and theWitham near the Grand Sluice. Thismay also be an ideal time, subject totide times, to visit the short tidal pas-sage to the new Black Sluice Lockand enter the Fenland Link section.The EA will be asked to continue the

concession charges for this re-openedsection to Donnington.

Facilities now available for visitorsinclude a toilet and shower block,waste disposal and a café bar at themoorings on the waterway in Boston.Tesco supermarket, about a mileupstream, has moorings convenientfor boaters to restock provisions, andthe pubs at Hubberts Bridge andSwineshead provide a warm wel-come.

A waterways strategy document hasbeen completed for Spalding, and adetailed study for the Donnington toSurfleet section should be completedin time for a second Fenland Linkworkshop in Spalding on November18th 2010. People interested in thisevent can obtain details by ringingDilys Britt on 01522 550615 or e-mail [email protected] suggestion that an event could beheld at Saxilby is being investigated.More on this in the next Aegre.

In the last edition of Waterways therewas an article “ IWA Works”; ourBranch has submitted a piece forinclusion in a future edition. The aimis to make people aware of the vastand varied amount of work that goeson behind the scenes and receives lit-tle or no publicity.

Pictures for this section are courtesyof Lincolnshire Waterways Partner-ship and Lincolnshire County Coun-cil.

Dave Carnell


Couple’s Golden Gift to Canal

Margaret and Brian Limb of Old Whittington, Chesterfield, wanted a specialway to mark their Golden Wedding Anniversary. Both are members of theChesterfield Canal Trust. They often walk down to Staveley to watch theTrust’s Volunteer Work Party in operation.

Instead of per-sonal gifts fortheir anniversa-ry, they askedall their friendsand family togive money.They thendonated it all togo towards thefurther restora-tion of the canal.

On Thursdaythey went to

Mill Green at Staveley where they met Terry Berridge, who organises theWork Party. They presented him with a cheque for £600.

Margaret said “After fifty years of marriage, there aren’t many things that youwant and we admire the work that these lads are doing and want to supportthem.”

Brian said “We were a bit reluctant to have our photograph taken, but we hopethat by making this gesture we will inspire others to do the same.”

Terry said “We are very grateful for this wonderful donation. It will help us toextend the canal from Mill Green to Staveley Town Basin.”

26 miles of the Chesterfield Canal from the River Trent to Worksop havealways been open. 6 miles in Nottinghamshire and Rotherham and 5 miles inDerbyshire have already been restored along with 36 locks and 11 bridges. TheChesterfield Canal Trust is campaigning to close the nine mile gap betweenthese two sections. The gift from Brian and Margaret demonstrates the tremen-dous local support for the project.


News from Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Branch

Since the last Aegre yet another summer has gone by with all the freneticactivity building up to and during the IWA National Festival. I hope every-one took full advantage of the holiday season by being out and about on ourwonderful waterways. As I write this the leaves are just beginning to fall andit’s the ideal time to take advantage of the quieter period of autumn and therun up to those photogenic early morning mists and snow scenes.

Over the intervening period our previous Social calendar was concluded withan extremely interesting walk around Attenborough Nature reserve withexpert guidance and narrative by the Rangers. It is truly amazing to see thearray of wildlife in front of you when an expert is on hand to point it out,describing what you see and why that behaviour occurs. Did you know thatSwifts live for up to 30 years with the males living the whole of that periodvirtually without touching ground, the females much the same but tending theyoung. They spend almost the whole of their life on the wing, eating, sleep-ing, migrating, all in flight……isn’t evolution an amazing phenomenon?

We also gave the branch exhibition stand an airing by attending the NorthMuskham Riverside Festival. A big thank you goes to Mavis White for allthe hard work running the WoW (Wild over Waterways) activities. Whilstshort handed on the main exhibition stand we sadly did not see many peoplebut the flow of children attending the WoW activities seemed endless, withgreat enjoyment had by all. Let’s hope we influenced some budding water-ways ambassadors of the future. Thank you Mavis for all the hard work mak-ing WoW happen and also to the small band of people helping set up andman the main stand.

On the Social front we have recommenced our monthly meetings at WestBridgford, Nottingham so put the evening of the third Friday in the monthback in your diaries and see the calendar of events at the back of this maga-zine. Do come and join us. The September meeting was all about the majes-tic mountain scenery of the Pyrenees so you missed a treat if you weren’tthere. On 19th November we have Mike Kelly of the Friends of CromfordCanal giving us an illustrated talk on the increasing pace of restoration on theCromford Canal. You are all most heartily welcome to come and join us, so Ilook forward to seeing you there.

Mike Snaith


Stoke Bruerne’s War Weekend Goes with a Bang

The canal village of StokeBruerne resounded to thesound of mortar and gunfireover the first week-end of Oc-tober for a repeat of the annualWorld War II re-enactmentstaged by The Friends of TheCanal Museum.

The colourful 40s event wasopened on Saturday morningby local MP Andrea Leadsom

accompanied by Churchill (aka canal personality Ken Roseblade) and FieldMarshal Montgomery (Alan Oliver).

This year’s event was bigger and better than ever, with a vintage fair completewith dodgems and a helter-skelter. Attractions also included a replica Spitfire,musical entertainers George Formby (aka Paul Casper) and Lola Lamour; anda special Land Army display featuring vintage tractors and a Dig for Victorygarden along with farm implements and static animals. Even the poor weatheron Sunday didn’t deter families from turning out to experience what it was liketo live in the austere 40s and learn how to do the “Lambeth Walk” at the popu-lar afternoon tea dances. There was plenty to do for the children too – withWild About Waterways running activities in the Canal Museum which was of-fering free admission on both days. And as usual, there was plenty of activityon the water with boat trips and vintage boats, as well as trading boats sellingblack market cheese and delicious fudge.

A £50 prize to the “best dressed house” in Stoke Bruerne judged by“Churchill”, who toured the village by jeep, was won by Rory O’Farrell andhis partner Kirsty at Rosebud Cottage who not only taped up their windows,but hung out bunting and played stirring wartime music to entertain the pass-ing crowds.

All surplus proceeds go to The Friends of The Canal Museum, in their worksupporting the Museum and the event also benefits local charities and organi-sations such as Greyhound Rescue, the Village School, RSPCA, Stoke BruerneParish Church and Scouts.


Cargo Carrying Returns to the Chesterfield Canal

Faced with the prospect of having to move a load of fencing panels from WestStockwith to Shireoaks, the Chesterfield Canal Trust looked round for a suita-ble form of transport and found it close to home.

Using the greenest option available, a volunteer crew took the Trust’s historicLearning Boat, Python, down to West Stockwith. The elderly vessel wasloaded up with the fencing panels and made the return trip to Shireoaks thefollowing week.

The fencing panels were loaned to the Trust by British Waterways. They willbe used to create a compound at Shireoaks Marina for the building of NewDawn. This is a project to build an exact replica of one of the old Cuckooboats that used to ply the canal. None of the original boats are left, so the Trustobtained the necessary materials a few years ago. Now that the wood has sea-soned they are ready to start. The intention is to use the original methods wher-ever possible.

The New Dawn and Learning Boat projects are just two of the ways in whichthe Trust is realising the aim of the full restoration of the Chesterfield Canal.


Butterley Weed-away

Butterley Reservoir on the Cromford Canal was built by the Nottingham CanalCompany to supply water for the Nottingham Canal below Langley Mill. Itwas later bisected by the Ironville to Ambergate railway line at what is nowthe main station of the Midland Railway Centre. The reservoir is fished by theButterley Anglers and in July was suffering from lack of oxygenation due toexcessive weed growth. In this case the offending weed was Canadian PondWeed.

British Waterways moved the weed cutting boat John Nuttall to the reservoirto cut the weed and Simon Gent, the volunteer organizer for East MidlandsNavigations at Newark, requested help from volunteers to drag the cut weedfrom the water. Simon said “the bulk of the volunteers came from the DerbyProbation Service. We could not have achieved anything like as much weedclearance without their help and from the Friends of the Cromford Canal, theGrantham Canal Society, anglers and members of the local community. Intotal nearly 800 hours of volunteer labour was given in August.” The volun-teers managed to clear about two thirds of the cut weed before the John Nuttallhad to go elsewhere. In total about 50 tonnes of weed was removed, most ofwhich has gone for composting on local allotments and probation serviceprojects. There is still some clearing up to do on the bank until the rest of theweed is taken for recycling. It makes very good compost.

John Baylis

Picture CreditsWe are most grateful to all of the following, who have contributed photo-graphs or other illustrations to enhance this or earlier editions of Aegre: PaulKing; Paul Birtles; Tony Pitman; John Lower; Peter Stone; Ian McDonald;Dave Carnell; Brian Dominic; Beryl McDowall; Nancy Johnson; NormanOsborne; David Pullen; Dave Scott; Mike Snaith; John Baylis; Bill Joyce,Lynda Payton; Roger Bunting; Colin Crofts; Rod Auton; Linda Hulme.


Floating Pennywort fromthe Soar

We were approached by Stuart Col-lins, Volunteer Leader for the BWCentral Shires, to see if I and/or anyfriends might be available in July tohelp with pennywort removal, alongwith some BW staff members. Wewould be working from a boat to clearthe area above Mountsorrel Lock.This day was organised for the BBCto come and film. They dropped out atthe last moment, but we continuedwith the day.

I approached David Hastie, and Patand Terry Hind, all members of theIWA Leicestershire Branch, and theywere all keen to help. We all met Stu-art at my moorings at Mountsorrel,where the BW flat, "Mr Potts", hadbeen left ready, and travelled on theboat up to the A6 bridge, to meet theother BW staff. Lifejackets, protec-tive gloves, waterproof gear, andhigh-vis. jackets were all put on, andwork began. Kebs (a rake like a gar-den fork, but with a longer handle,and the head set at 90 degrees to thehandle) and drags were used to pullthe pennywort towards the boat. Wesoon found that the most effectiveway of getting the weed into the boatwas to grab it in your arms and pullhard!

During the course of the day, the flathad to be taken back to the bridgetwice, and the pennywort emptied on-

to the back of the towpath, ready forcollection by road. Had we knownsooner, we might have been able toarrange for it to be composted on myland, but at least it was removed fromthe Soar. There is still much work tobe done, but we all felt that this was aworth-while exercise.

In September David Hastie and I at-tended another Volunteering Day withBW, EA and Leicester City Council,working on the stretch from Cossing-ton Lock to Junction Lock. IWAjoined BW on "Mr Potts", working onthe navigation, and the EA and LCCused LCC's recently acquired littlework-boat and a bell-boat on thebackwater.

Beryl McDowall

In the photo, Darren Green, RegionManager, Central Shires, is standingon the bow, and Branch members Ter-ry and Pat Hind and David Hastiehelp BW office staff with pennywortremoval. Photo: Beryl McDowall(also part of the work party)


Success at IWA National Festival

Members of the Leicestershire Branch were delighted to hear that membersAndrew and Rosemary Bimson of narrow boat "Isander" were joint winners ofthe Cressy Award for the best residential boat at the Festival. They tied with a130 ton Dutch Barge after a long day for the judges, with more entries thisyear than usual. Both boat owners were commended for the sustainability oftheir boats, and the many innovative design features which made their craftstand out above the rest.

Beryl McDowall

Journals ReceivedWe are very pleased to acknowledge copies of journals from various canal andriver societies and trusts. They include “Endeavour” from NorthamptonBranch; “The Portal” from Friends of the Cromford Canal; “The Cuckoo”,from the Chesterfield Canal Trust; “The Bridge”, from Grantham Canal Socie-ty; the “Melton and Oakham Newsletter”; “The Wharfinger”, from LouthNavigation Trust., and “Navigation” from West Midlands Region.

Anyone interested in receiving a copy of one of these journals should contactthe relevant address given in our page 4 directory.

For “The Cuckoo” contact the editor John Lower at 92a Tapton View Road,Chesterfield S41 7JY.


Notts & Derby Branch Programme

The Notts and Derby branch of the IWA organises a series of public meetings.We are hoping to attract lots of new faces to the meetings and have arranged avery interesting and varied group of speakers. Non IWA members will be verywelcome to attend. You will find us a friendly bunch! We meet on the thirdFriday of the month throughout most of the year.

Meetings are held at 7.30 pm at Rushcliffe Arena, Rugby Road, West Bridg-ford, Nottingham NG2 7HY. This is not far from the A60 (LoughboroughRoad) and the Arena entrance road is roughly opposite Greythorn Drive. Itwould take about 25 minutes from M1 Junction 24 up the A453. Don’t bealarmed by a barrier at the entrance - they will let you out again.For SatNav equipped vehicles try 52° 55.328’ N, 01° 08.673’ W, or SK 5761036424. Note that Rushcliffe Leisure Centre is a different place. Further infor-mation about meetings can be obtained from Mavis White on 01636 671726.

Friday, 19th November 2010

Illustrated talk by Mike Kelly of the Friends of Cromford Canal on the“Cromford Canal”.

Friday, 17st Dec 2010 Christmas Social meeting.

This is your chance to get to know people better, with a Mini presentation -“A continental boating holiday on the Canal du Midi” by John Wilkinson.Followed by Christmas refreshments.

Regional Diary Dates 2010/11All members of any branch, visitors, and non-members are all welcome to attend.

For more information on Northampton events contact Graham Treagus on01604 87051.


Friday, 21st January 2011

Illustrated talk by David Amos “Coal in the Leen Valley”. The coal miningindustry in the older concealed coalfields of the River Leen valley in Notting-hamshire. Find out more about the history of coal mining and communitiesfrom Annesley colliery in the north to Clifton colliery near Nottingham, in thesouth.

Friday, 18th February 2011

Annual General Meeting of the Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire branch fol-lowed by an illustrated talk by author and canal restorer John Lower, on thelatest restoration developments along the Chesterfield canal.

Friday, 18th March 2011

Illustrated talk by Bob Williams “Lichfield and Hatherton Canal Today”.

Friday, April 15th

The Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Specialist Team.

Leicestershire Branch Programme

Meetings will normally be held at 7.30 pm at The Wheatsheaf Pub, LeicesterRoad, Thurcaston, LE7 7JN, (at the junction with Mill Road) in the FunctionRoom/Skittle Alley, unless otherwise stated. The Wheatsheaf is on theAnstey to Birstall road. There is plenty of parking at the pub. For SatNavequipped vehicles try 52° 41.679’ N, 01° 09.715’ W, or SK 56738 11106.

Thursday, 11th November, 2010

John Pomfret, Regional Chairman and IWA Trustee, will give an illustratedtalk entitled “Waterways of the North East.”

Thursday, 9th December, 2010

Our Christmas Meal last year, at the Wheatsheaf, proved very popular, so wewill be eating there again this year. Pre-booking will be essential to guaranteea place. Booking forms with cheques must be returned by 14th November.Bookings will be taken on a “first come, first served” basis.


Thursday, 13th January, 2011

David Hastie, a member of the IWA Leicestershire Branch, will give a talkentitled "A visit to the Waimangu Valley, New Zealand." This illustrated talkshows the splendours of this unique area, formed since the catastrophic erup-tion of Mount Tarawera in 1886.

Thursday, 10th February, 2011

Branch Annual General Meeting, followed by a presentation by BerylMcDowall entitled “A Year in the Life of the IWA Leicestershire Branch:2010-2011.”

Thursday, 10th March, 2011

Mary Matts will give an illustrated talk entitled “Wild Flowers and Water-ways.” Although she is based at Foxton, Mary’s talk will include flowers froma wider area, as well as local specimens.

Thursday, 14th April, 2011

Skittles Night at The Wheatsheaf pub, Thurcaston. Prior booking desirable.

Saturday 30th April and Sunday 1st May, 2011

Loughborough Canal and Boat Festival.

Thursday, 12th May, 2011

Explore an area of Leicestershire by walking round a village to take part in ourTreasure Hunt, organised by Beryl McDowall. Further details nearer the time.

Saturday / Sunday 4th / 5th June, 2011

Riverside Festival and Boat Rally on the Mile Straight, in Leicester. Manyattractions, both on and off the water, with something for everyone.

Further details of meetings will be given in “Winding Ways” and will be onthe Branch web site. Alternatively, contact the Social Secretary, BerylMcDowall (phone 07710-029247) or email [email protected].

Note: If you are coming to hear a specific speaker, you are advised to ringBeryl nearer the time to confirm the details, as occasionally changes have tobe made.


Annual General Meetings

Notice is hereby given that the Annual General Meetings of the East MidlandsRegion of the Inland Waterways Association and its constituent Branches willbe held as follows:

Leicestershire Branch. At the Wheatsheaf Inn, Thurcaston. Leicester, on Thurs-day, February 10th. 2010 at 7.30 pm.

Lincolnshire Branch. At St. Mary-le-Wigford Church Hall, Lincoln, on Mon-day, February 14th 2011 at 7.45 pm.

Northampton Branch. At the Walnut Tree Inn, 21 Station Road, Blisworth,Northants, NN7 3DS, on Tuesday, 8th March 2011, at 8pm

Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Branch. At Rushcliffe Arena, Rugby Road,West Bridgford, Nottingham, on Friday, February 18th 2011 at 7.30 pm.

East Midlands Region. At the Walnut Tree Inn, 21 Station Road, Blisworth,Northants, NN7 3DS, on Tuesday, 8th March 2011 following completion of theNorthampton Branch AGM.

AGENDA

1. Apologies for absence

2. Minutes of the last Annual General Meeting

3. Matters arising.

4. Report of the Chairman.

5. Report of the Treasurer and presentation of accounts.

6. Statement of committee size

7. Election of Committee members.

8. Address by Member of Council.

9. Any other business.

Nominations for election to the committees must be in writing, signed by theproposer and the seconder and containing the consent of the nominee. Theyshould reach the relevant Branch Secretary or, in the case of East MidlandsRegion, the Region Chairman not less than 14 days before that meeting.

John Baylis, Secretary, East Midlands Region IWA.


Documents

Aegre November 2010