Huddersfield Narrow stays shut

Boaters waiting for the Huddersfield Narrow Canal to re-open between Slaithwaite and Marsden have even longer to wait.

This section of canal has been closed since 27th Aoril following a "severe leak" into a culvert under the canal near Sandhill Cottages and Cellars Clough Mill, between Locks 31e and 32e.

British Waterways staff had worked through the weekend hoping to complete the repairs by Sunday night. Unfortunately the repairs were not successful and the leak continues.

A further update will be issued on Friday 8th May. Boats travelling from Huddersfield may not proceed beyond Lock 23e in Slaithwaite.

Boaters intending to use this part of the canal or booked through Standedge Tunnel should contact the Tunnel Office on 01484 840629 for advice.

The Huddersfield Narrow Canal at Cellars Clough

There will be a stoppage on the western part of the canal on May 20th and 21st, when the canal and towpath will be closed between Locks 7e and 8e to allow contractors to work on the pylon which straddles the canal.

Upper Peak Forest Bridge Restriction

Carr Swing Bridge (no. 30) on the Upper Peak Forest Canal has been struck by a boat, sustaining "significant damage".

As a result, British Waterways Staff will be on site daily between the hours of 9.00 am and 5.00 pm to operate the bridge.

The bridge will be locked outside these hours.

For the latest information about this restriction, contact BW on 01942 405 700.

The bridge is a fairly new one, replacing an older swing bridge that was notoriously difficult to operate.

Ashton Canal stays shut

The Ashton Canal remains closed following an incident ten days ago in which heavy duty wire becoming entangled in a lock gate.

On 21st April a problem was reported after a length of heavy duty cable became wrapped around part of a tail gate, preventing the gate from being operated.

Following investigation it was discovered that "significant damage" had been caused to the tail gate and lower cill. Repairs required a full dewatering of the long pound between Locks 7 and 8. This meant BW had to obtain consent from the Environment Agency to carry out a fish rescue.

Once the pound was dewatered, it was apparent that "significant repairs" were required to the tail gate cills and lock floor. As this is a listed structure, consent had to be obtained from Manchester City Council's Conservation Officer.

Repairs to thetail gate cills and lock floor will now start early next week.

BW will issue a further update on Thursday 7th May.

This stoppage will affect boaters travelling around the Cheshire Ring and the South Pennine Ring.

Leeds and Liverpool Canal may run short of water

British Waterways has announced lock restrictions, warning that the Leeds and Liverpool Canal could run short of water later in the year.

BW reports that, following an exceptionally dry start to the year, they have needed to extract water from their reservoirs to feed some canals earlier in the season than normal. As a result, the reservoirs supplying the summit of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal all have holdings below their long term average for this time of year.

BW warns that there is a moderate to significant risk that the reservoirs supplying the Leeds and Liverpool Canal will not have sufficient water to supply the canal throughout the boating season.

In order to reduce this risk and keep the remaining water available for as long as possible, BW is introducing restrictions in opening times of locks on the central part of the canal.

These locks will only be open for navigation between 10.00 am and 6.00 pm until further notice.

The locks affected are Lock 30 (Holme Bridge) to Lock 51 (Barrowford). This includes all the locks of the Barrowford, Greenberfield, Bank Newton and Gargrave flights.

Holme Bridge Lock, Leeds and Liverpool Canal

Huddersfield Narrow should re-open Monday

Boaters waiting for the Huddersfield Narrow Canal to re-open between Slaithwaite and Marsden should be able to get moving again on Monday.

This section of canal has been closed following a "severe leak" into a culvert under the canal near Sandhill Cottages and Cellars Clough Mill, between Locks 31e and 32e.

British Waterways staff are to work through the weekend and the repairs are expected to be finished by Sunday night, with navigation re-opening on Monday morning.

Boaters intending to use this part of the canal are advised to contact the Tunnel Office on 01484 840629 to confirm whether the canal has re-opened.

The historic horsedrawn boat Maria has remained at Marsden this week, as it was not possible to proceed with the planned return journey to Huddersfield. On Sunday May 3rd, Maria will be legged back through Standedge Tunnel by members of the Horseboating Society, starting at 1.00 pm, on her way back to Ashton.

The Huddersfield Narrow Canal at Cellars Clough

Further thoughts on proposed Canal Street fence

Following on from the item about the proposed "safety fence" along Canal Street in Manchester, reported earlier today....

Another point to be considered, which will affect most boaters, is that the access to Lock 86 for people operating the lock is by climbing over the wall and using the steps carved into a stone back alongside the lock.

The proposed fence would make it nearly impossible and certainly dangerous to climb over at this point.

The council seems to be unaware that this is the means of access to the lock, as its "Design Statement" incorrectly states "There are no access points to any of these landing stages from Canal Street".

Canal to be fenced off

A 3 ft 6 in high "safety fence" is to be erected alongside Canal Street in Manchester, next to the stone wall between the street and the canal. The fence will have stainless steel posts alongside the wall, curving to support a stainless steel rail above the wall, with the space between wall and rail filled by reinforced glass panels.

This follows a recommendation for improved safety measures by a coroner after the death of a man who had climbed down from the wall to rescue his stepson who had fallen into the canal. His stepson eventually climbed out of the water by himself.

The proposals for the fence, which will cost more than £200,000 to build, will be put to the city's planning committee shortly.

If the plan is approved, the fence will change the appearance of the historic canalside location. Unusually for a canal, the street itself forms part of the towpath. The wall betwen the street and canal is around 2 ft 6 in high, so as not to obstruct towing ropes, although it is lower in some parts.

The fence would make it impossible for boats to be horse-drawn along this section of the Rochdale Canal. The photo below shows that horse-drawn boats do occasionally use the canal and also demonstrates why the wall needed to be that height.

Although the need for safety is understood, many canal users are unhappy with the proposed fence, fearing it will be detrimental to the important and unique heritage value of Canal Street.

The design of the proposed fence can be seen here. Other documents relating to the proposals can be viewed here. Comments can be submitted here on the council's planning website. The public consultation period ends on 15th May.


Boathorse preparing to tow a boat out of the lock on Canal Street, Manchester. Photo: Bob Jervis

Limited opening resumes at Salterhebble

Trouble-hit Salterhebble Guillotine Lock is to re-open to navigation on Friday 1st May, but with the same limited opening hours that were in operation before the attmepted repair.

From 1st May, the Guillotine Lock will be operated by BW staff during the following periods only:
• 9.00 am - 10.00 am daily
• 12.00 noon - 2.00 pm daily
• 4.00 pm - 6.00 pm daily

Electrical problems occurred with Salterhebble Lock in May 2008 and since then the guillotine has been manually operated by BW staff at certain times each day. The lock ahas been closed for the last week and, although it was hoped repairs would have been complete by 24th April, unforseen problems mean that the guillotine will still have to be operated by BW staff.

BW will issue a further update on Friday 8th May.

For enquiries about Salterhebble Guillotine Lock, contact British Waterways on 0113 281 6860.

British Waterways Proposes Re-structure

British Waterways has today launched its vision for its future, entitled "Twenty Twenty - a Vision for for the Future of our Canals and Rivers".

This is the result of a major strategic review that has taken place and follows the government's decision to allow BW to retain its successful property portfolio.

The plans include increasing efficiencies, opening up new funding and partnership opportunities, creating closer links with local communities and the start a move towards the waterways achieving a 'third sector' trust or charitable status similar to that of the National Trust.

As a first step towards greater efficiency, BW proposes a restructure of its own operations in England and Wales, by removing an entire layer of management and creating eleven new, smaller, 'hands-on' waterway units. The move would make around 100 office staff redundant, but the £10 million annual saving would be redirected towards waterway maintenance.

Under the new structure, BW would put a greater emphasis on working with volunteers and local communities.

BW Chief Executive, Robin Evans, said: "Our absolute priority must be to maintain investment in the waterways and this means reducing spending elsewhere. Our proposed new structure will both redirect important funding to essential maintenance work but also make us much more responsive to customers and partners."

In the longer term, BW calls for some fresh thinking about what the waterways mean to Britain and how their sustainable future might be secured. It proposes that, by 2020, it should become a third sector 'public interest company' or trust. BW believes that such a change could stimulate greater participation in the waterways by volunteers and other individuals, enhance openness and accountability for communities and waterway users, create opportunities for new sources of income such as grants and donations, and ensure the historic network is held in trust for the nation.

For the area covered by Pennine Waterways website, the proposed changes would result in smaller North West and Yorkshire units, based at the existing Wigan and Leeds offices, and a new Peak and Pennine unit, which could include the Huddersfield Narrow, Rochdale and Peak Forest Canals, based at Northwich.


Extract from BW map of proposed new units

Pennine Waterways comment:
While a Peak and Pennine unit sounds like a good idea, basing its offices at Northwich seems ludicrous! If the aim is for the unit to be more in touch and responsive, running it from the extreme western edge of the area will not achieve that. For example, Standedge Tunnel is closer to both Wigan and Leeds. It can certainly be argued that the present areas are too large - I was told by a boater who phoned Wigan to report a problem with a lock on the Ashton Canal that the person on the other end said "There's already somebody on their way - it's at Marple, isn't it?" An office at Northwich will not stop that sort of thing happening. Somewhere between Manchester and Marple would be more appropriate!

BW says that the exact boundaries of the new units are to be subject of consultation, so perhaps their office locations are, too?

More information about BW's proposals can be found on its website, here: www.britishwaterways.co.uk/twentytwenty.
The document "Twenty Twenty - a Vision for for the Future of our Canals and Rivers" can be downloaded here.

What do you think? Add your own comment below.

Ashton Stoppage Continues

It was reported last Thursday that there was a stoppage on the Ashton Canal after wire had become entangled around the tail gate of Lock 8 at Clayton.

The stoppage has now been extended until at least May 1st.

BW said: "Following on from the de-watering and fish rescue, significant repairs are required to the tail gate cills and lock floor. As this is a listed structure, consent will be required by Manchester City Council's Conservation Officer before any significant undertakings can be implemented."

BW will issue a further update on Friday 1st May.

Leaking Culvert Holds up Huddersfield

Boaters on the Huddersfield Narrow Canal face an unwelcome hold-up this week as British Waterways plug a leaking culvert.

There was what BW describe as "a severe leak" into a culvert that passes below the canal near Sandhill Cottages and Cellars Clough Mill, between Locks 31e and 32e. BW staff have put several loads of clay into the hole but the leak continues. They will probably need to de-water the pound to make an effective repair. It is hoped that boats can be moving again by the end of the week.

Because the winding hole at Booth is on the affected pound, BW are advising boaters thatthere is no passage beyond the winding hole below Lock 22e in Slaithewaite.

The Horseboating Society was intending to take a horsedrawn boat down from Marsden to Huddersfield and back this week, but this part of their journey has been called off and the historic horsedrawn boat Maria will stay at Marsden until Sunday, when she is scheduled to be legged back through Standedge Tunnel on her way back to Ashton.

Boaters hoping to travel along the Huddersfield Narrow Canal should contact BW on 0113 281 6860 for the latest information.


The Huddersfield Narrow Canal at Cellars Clough

It is understood that the western part of the Huddersfield Narrow is to be closed below Lock 8w on May 1st and May 20th to enable BW to erect and remove scaffolding, so that they can work on the pylon that straddles the canal. More details when a stoppage notice is received.

Salterhebble Repairs Hit Snag

Salterhebble Guillotine Lock, on the Calder and Hebble Navigation, should have been closed for a couple of days this week to enable the electrical mechanism to be repaired. However, unforeseen circumstances have delayed the completion of this repair and the lock will remain closed until at least Monday afternoon.

Electrical problems occurred with Salterhebble Lock in May 2008 and since then the guillotine has been manually operated by BW staff at certain times each day. It had been hoped that the repair would have been complete by today (24th April) but the stoppage will continue until at least Monday

BW will issue a further update on Monday 27th April.

For enquiries about Salterhebble Guillotine Lock, contact British Waterways on 0113 281 6860.

Wire causes Ashton Canal stoppage

The Ashton Canal is currently closed following heavy duty wire becoming entangled in a loack gate.

On Tuesday a problem was reported after a length of heavy duty cable became wrapped around part of a tail gate, preventing the gate from being operated.

Following investigation it has been discovered that "significant damage" has been caused to the tail gate and lower cill. Repairs will require a full dewatering of the pound between Locks 7 and 8 (a long pound, unfortunately).

BW is awaiting consent from the Environment Agency to carry out a fish rescue, so the canal is likely to remain closed for the next few days.

BW will issue an update on Tuesday 28th April.

This stoppage will affect boaters travelling around the Cheshire Ring and the South Pennine Ring.

Boathorses and Cuckoos at Standedge!

Standedge Tunnel and Visitor Centre will be hosting a variety of events and activities for visitors of all ages to enjoy as part of this year's Cuckoo Festival.

The Cuckoo Festival, held on Saturday 25th April this year, celebrates the first arrival of the Cuckoo and the beginning of Spring. It is a popular local festival and a major highlight in the Marsden event calendar. The cuckoo heralded the start of the warmer weather and legend has it that the people of Marsden built a huge wall to try to prolong the cuckoo's visit!

Activities on the day, starting at 10.00 am, include pond dipping, canal craft sessions, face painting, clog dancing and Morris dancing. There will be guided nature and heritage walks, organised by British Waterways and the Huddersfield Canal Society, starting from the Station car park at 11.00 am.

The day finishes with a fun and lively evening's entertainment at Marsden Mechanics Hall.

In addition, members of The Horseboating Society will be re-enacting the historic practice of legging through Standedge Tunnel. On board will be special guest Ronnie Barnes, aged 90, who is the last surviving Standedge Tunnel 'legger'. He will be travelling through the tunnel on the traditional horseboat Maria, built in 1854. The boat is expected to exit the tunnel at Tunnel End at around 4.00 pm.

Meanwhile Bilbo the Boathorse, having hauled the boat up from Ashton, will walk over the top, as did the boathorses of old. The crew will start legging Maria from the Diggle end at around 1.00 pm. Energetic members of the public are welcome to walk over the top with Bilbo, arriving at Tunnel End at around 3.00 pm.

Look out for Maria being horse-drawn down to Huddersfield and then back to Marsden in the following week. The boat will be legged back through Standedge Tunnel on Sunday May 3rd, starting at around 1.00 pm. Details of the journey are on www.horseboating.org.uk.