hmallett

It has been moored by the Vyrnwy Aqueduct on the Montgomery Canal for a while now. As for what it was used for, no idea!

To be fair, Heritage is the model name for that one! Have a look at the sixth photo.

The lots are now viewable at http://www.go-dove.com/event-14547/British-Waterways-Workboats/lots Interesting to see that the "Dumb Boat" Mantis is being auctioned off. It's been moored (as in tied up with frayed blue rope) on an isolated non-navigable section of the Motgomery Canal for over a year. Only a few months ago I reported it sunk in the middle of the Vyrnwy aqueduct. And to think when it appeared I thought BW might be doing some work on the canal...

For a slightly less up-to-date view of the canal it might be worth having a look at Priestley's Historical Account of the Navigable Rivers, Canals, and Railways, of Great Britain.

Working on the Montgomery eh? Wonder why they didn't suggest the Shrewsbury and Newport canal - they have a really big hole at Wappenshall that needs digging out!

On Sunday Lembit Opik told my girlfriend that it would be restored to Llanymynech by 2015! I would think that given that about half of it has been restored in the last 40 years, another 40 years to complete it isn't too optimistic If you would like to help speed the restoration, perhaps you would like to buy a barrow of boulders? http://www.shropshireunion.org.uk/BarrowBoulders.htm

To add a path simply use the menu: Add, Path. The path is independent of the pins - it won't link them together automatically or anything like that. I meant to mention that I put this in History * Heritage as it's the old, disused or missing canals that interest me. It's no challenge to follow a canal on Google Earth when it's all there on the ground still!

We moored at Wolverhampton top lock, and saw another boat moored there reversing back to the Broad Street mooring. We found out why when we awoke in the small hours to find our boat untied and nudging the top gate.

I'm sure that most of us have had a play with Google Earth, and ended up tracing bits of the UK waterways. I thought that whilst I was having a look at a couple of my local canals, I might share them with you. For each of these you need Google Earth (obviously), and then on each page you can click the link to the .kmz file, which should then open in Google Earth. I have loads more I want to do when I get the time, but for now: Weston Arm of the Montogmery/Ellesmere Canal The Woodhouse diversion of the Montgomery/Ellesmere Canal The Prees Branch of the Ellesmere/Shropshire Union/Llangollen Canal The Prees Branch of the Ellesmere/Shropshire Union/Llangollen Canal The Shrewsbury Canal The Newport Branch of the Birmingham Liverpool Junction Canal/Shropshire Union Canal/Shrewsbury and Newport Canal

Website Name: canalrestoration.org.uk Website URL: http://www.canalrestoration.org.uk Website Description: A forum for discussion of all canal restoration related topics. Any other comments: Across Britain, many canal societies are expending volunteers' time, effort, and public donations in order to restore sections of their canal. It seems a certainty that many societies are facing similar problems, and learning new skills independently of each other. canalrestoration.org.uk has been created so that canal societies and their members can discuss ideas, share information, or even just have a chat with like-minded individuals. The idea is that by collaborating, people can learn from others' mistakes, find the best way to recruit new volunteers, or concoct the perfect recipe for lime mortar! The site is completely free to use, and your user details will not be collected, shared or marketed to!

It would be nice to see it brought back to life. Currently it just appears empty and derelict. Filling the area with boats and industry would be wonderful.

Just to respond to my own post... I passed by here in the car yesterday, and there's a "To Let" sign outside Taylor's Boatyard. The agent's website (http://www.bacommercial.com) has it listed as: Address: Taylors Boatyard & Dry Dock, Upper Cambrian Road, CHESTER Description: On instruction of British Waterways. A unique opportunity to secure historic canalside business premsies, including various covered areas and workshop buildings, including dry dock facility. (TJC) Tenure: NL Price/Rent: Offers invited.

As Neil says, the bottom was regated relatively recently. They took their time doing it too, though there was hardly a reason to rush... It's a shame, as the dry dock, the old basin and the river link would be much brighter if they were tidied up and used regularly. I drive over the bottom lock twice every weekday, and have done for a few years. I've never seen a boat in the earl's port section. Interestingly there's no mention of any stoppages on waterscape for the river link, and the boaters guide simply says that they need 48 hours notice for using the lock. The other day I did see what looked like a BW person gazing at the lock from the road, with lifejacket on and a handheld computer...

Just to add to the above, the Navigation at Maesbury Marsh is supposed to be very good, and the POst Office has a limited menu, but what they do have is very nice. There are mooring rings outside too. I was on the Llangollen and Monty yesterday. The Llangollen was busy, and we didn't see any other boats on the Monty.

Others have already suggested the disconnected section of the Montgomery Canal. I haven't boated on it, but have walked much of it (Some of it at http://gallery.hmallett.co.uk/main.php?g2_itemId=661). There's enough distance to keep you entertained for 2 or 3 days, and it needs the traffic! You can walk the canal in both directions from the end of the navigable section too.

Spend a day doing the Montgomery too then.

Near the Montgomery Canal at Rednal is a go-karting and (IIRC) paintballing place.

I think we might be in danger of straying slightly off topic here Apparently 8,000,000 gallons a day flow in to Hurleston Reservoir. That's 92 gallons per second! The Monty's locks have similar by-weirs to the Llangollen's, but they have very little flow in comparison. That's the case for both the northern and southern sections, as far as I recall.

Is 2500 movements on to the Montgomery a real restriction at the moment? I didn't think that were THAT many movements through Frankton. Perhaps they will allow 7500 movements through Frankton, on the proviso that Hurleston is limited to 2500 movements! I don't think Hurleston has ever had sideponds - a map of 1882 shows the locks looking the same as today.

Just to add another "me too", we moored here in May last year, and it was surprisingly quiet, and I'd moor there again.

As Allan says, Frankton Junction to Gronwen Bridge is the navigable bit. There are the locks at Frankton (1 2-chamber staircase, 2 locks), Graham Palmer lock, which has a fall of about 6 inches, and 3 locks at Aston. So 7 or 8 locks, depneding upon whether you count the staircase as 1 or 2 locks. That's over just short of 7 miles. By May 2009 the limit of navigation will be the same, as the next half mile is in water, but it's (a) settling so vegetation can establish, and ( has no winding holes. If you moor near the end of navigation, then you can go for a walk. The towpath can be walked for the next 26 miles or so, so have a look and see what's needed for restoration. It's a couple of hours walk to Llanymynech, where there are a couple of nice pubs, but then you have to walk back! There's The Navigation at Maesbury, which is supposed to be good, though not the cheapest. The Queen's Head is nice for food too. It's quite nice to moor up a short distance north of Maesbury, in the area of Red bridge, for an overnight stop.

I agree - the Montgomery Canal is worth visiting, and you'll have plenty of time spare. (I am biased though, as I live right next to it!) A mile or so north of Maesbury Marsh, near bridge 77, is a nice place to moor up - very quiet. It might be better to book the locks at Frankton Junction, rather than Franklin Junction though...

That's a good spot! I drive right past it every day, and wouldn't have relaised that it's Chester! The lower half of that "sort of" staircase is currently in a state surrounded by orange netting rash, as it has been for about the last year.

Just to bring this topic back to the top, yesterday I went for a walk along part of the Montgomery Canal at Llanymynech. At Carreghofa Locks, there were two planning application notices (dating from July). One of the locks had a temporary "Kepp forward of the cill" notice on, so I assume the planning application is for permanent signs. Carreghofa Locks are on an isolated section of canal, less than 1 mile long. The section is not dredged, and is about 12" deep in some sections. One of the locks has railings around it, as if there is maintenance going on. These railings make the lock unusable, and have been there for more than a year. As the canal closed in 1936, I reckon no narrowboats have been through the locks in 70 years. It seems absolutely pointless to put signs on these locks...