Water resources between lock 54 and 57 on Trent and Mersey

[Steve Manc]

Moored above lock 56 on Trent and Mersey Canal. At 5:15 today, 22nd May, woken up by the sound of our narrowboat creaking and listing. I quickly releast the ropes. I then run down to locks 56 and 57 to find all the lock paddles fully open. After closing them a man appeared walking up from lock 55. He said he was moored further down and was going to set the locks so he could travel through. Told him what I had found. He said he would keep an eye on the locks below.

 

I now know it was him that had opened the lock gates because there wasn't enough water in the pond for him to move his boat. He has now traveled through lock 55 and is now happily on his way whilst the network ( other boaters ) behind him are not. 

 

Canal and River Trust put out a stoppage notice yesterday saying there was a water resource problem between lock 54 and 57 on the Trent and Mersey. I believe the problem is the pond  above lock 54 or it's the lock that are leaking. 

 

This morning I was informed  the long-term moorings boat owners in this pond above lock 54 are draining water from the ponds above because their boats are sitting on the bottom of the canal. 

 

I cannot carry on with my summer cruise and move my boat until Canal River Trust get their people to get water down. 

 

Question: Is it right a boater can drain two ponds above the one he is in so he can move his boat?

Is it vandalism to fully open all the lock paddles on two ponds and walk away? My thoughts are yes it is. 

 

 

[Tracy D'arth]

This is exactly what I was expecting. There is not enough water coming down from Bosley to feed the T&M. Toddbrook is not feeding any into the U Peak Forest. I have been grounded on the park at Kidsgrove by an idiot doing this on the Red Bull flight late one night.

[ditchcrawler]

40 minutes ago, Tracy D'arth said:

This is exactly what I was expecting. There is not enough water coming down from Bosley to feed the T&M. Toddbrook is not feeding any into the U Peak Forest. I have been grounded on the park at Kidsgrove by an idiot doing this on the Red Bull flight late one night.

I read that someone left paddles up the day before which started the problem

Edit to add
There was loads of water coming down the other week when we came up and that was well after Bosley was on 2 days a week. I expected it to be short.

Edited May 22, 2022 by ditchcrawler

[Arthur Marshall]

Those lock numbers aren't right, which makes it a bit confusing.

According to my Nicholson's, there's no room to moor above lock 56 anyway as it's the lower Pierpoint lock. I think you probably mean 57, on the rings just above Hassal Green locks.

57 & 58 are the two Hassall Green locks, 55 & 56 are Pierpoint, 53 & 54 are Rode Heath.

If he's going south and on the mud below Hassall Green (locks 57 & 58), then to get through he'd have to let a lock or two down to get moving. It's what we do, not vandalism. It's a short pound between Pierpoint and Hassal Green so shouldn't take long to refill.

If he's bringing water down from 55 &56, that'll help fill your pound, unless you're moored above 55, but that's a long pound to Rode Heath so I'd be surprised if that drained.

The bottom pounds by Wheelock are notorious for emptying overnight and I've often walked up two or three locks, opening all the paddles to run water down. What else can you do?

[Steve Manc]

Hi I  travelled off the Macclesfield Canal onto the Trent and Mersey Canal yesterday afternoon.  There was plenty of water below Bosley locks onto the Trent. I commentated to my better half that there was lots of water going down the Trent and Mersey and it was a pity they could pipe it up into the Macclesfield above Bosley Locks.  As we dropped into the pound below lock 52 we had to stay in the middle because it was down by around  450 mm / 18 inches or more. As we passed through Rode Heath there was plenty of boats moored on there sides. One boater said someone had drained a pound further down and CRT had taken water from this pound to enable stranded boats to move. We wanted to moor in Rode Heath but decided we would travel on to more water   We moored around 100 metres above lock 57. At 05:15 ish when I was woken up the canal looked like a river in flood.  The rest you know as above. 

 

 It was locks 56 & 57 that had all paddles left open.

 

Question: Is it right a boater can drain two pounds above the one he is in so he can move his boat?

 

Is it vandalism to fully open all the lock paddles on two pounds and walk away? My thoughts are yes it is. 

 

I have spoken to CRT and made them aware of the boat owner who needed to move there boat at 05:00. I also phoned the police and reported the mindless vandalism which could have damaged the canal and closed the network.

 

 

 

 

Edited May 22, 2022 by Steve Manc
Add correct lock numbers 56 & 57

[David Mack]

3 minutes ago, Steve Manc said:

 

I have spoken to CRT and made them aware of the boat owner who needed to move there boat at 05:00. I

There is absolutely nothing wrong about moving your boat at 5 am, providing you do so in a considerate manner. Running water to do that is more of a problem, with a particular obligation to make sure all gates and paddles are properly closed, given that other boats are unlikely to be on the move for some time.

[Arthur Marshall]

If the guy had gone all the way from Hassall Green to Pierpoint to open the paddles, that shows a bit of consideration in that he was bringing water down from Rode heath to fill the pound you were in as well as the one below Hassall Green. He could just have drained the two locks to get into the short pound and then walked up to Pierpoint to fill it.

It isn't much use waiting for CRT to manage low water if you can do it yourself.

I doubt he had left the Pierpoint paddles up, he would have emptied the locks into your pound, dropped those paddles and walked back to Hassal Green to close those. By that time enough should have gone down to refloat everyone and let him up. There are often dumped boats above lock 57 so he may not have realised anyone eas on yours.

[Steve Manc]

Re I doubt he had left the Pierpoint paddles up,

 

Arthur if this was the case he would have appeared with his windlass to close the paddles.  

[Stroudwater1]

I’m surprised anyone  should be opening both top and bottom paddles and walking away when boats are moored in that pound- especially at 5am. It’s surprising how quickly some pounds can fill, or empty. 
Couldn’t it have been dangerous with people  slipping out of their bed as the boat tips sideway if the canal bed slopes away from the side? 
 

[nicknorman]

7 minutes ago, Stroudwater1 said:

Couldn’t it have been dangerous with people  slipping out of their bed as the boat tips sideway if the canal bed slopes away from the side? 
 

Most people die in bed, therefore the statistics show that tipping people out of bed is likely to extend their lifespan.

 

On a slightly more serious note, letting down water in a controlled fashion is reasonable, doing so carelessly, to excess, wasting water and inconveniencing others, isn’t. But we should perhaps remember that the canal system is a transport network, not a linear housing estate/floating country cottage park, and so to some extent I would prioritise moving boats over unmoving boats. If your moored boat tips a bit, it is mildly inconvenient and a bit irritating but rarely a catastrophe.
 

The general rule of letting water through a lock is not to open all the paddles fully, because too much silt is dragged into the lock area (behind gates etc).  Either open one paddle at each end or all of them 1/2 way. And close everything as soon as you have just enough water.

[Tracy D'arth]

37 minutes ago, nicknorman said:

 

The general rule of letting water through a lock is not to open all the paddles fully, because too much silt is dragged into the lock area (behind gates etc).  Either open one paddle at each end or all of them 1/2 way. And close everything as soon as you have just enough water.

The advice years ago from a BW lengths man was to cycle the lock repeatedly to avoid flowing sediment into a lock.

[Arthur Marshall]

2 hours ago, Steve Manc said:

Re I doubt he had left the Pierpoint paddles up,

 

Arthur if this was the case he would have appeared with his windlass to close the paddles.  

If he didn't have a windlass how had he opened them? No-one leaves a windlass a mile from their boat, and if he didn't have a windlass how was he going to get his boat up the locks?

It would be interesting to hear the ither bloke's point of view as to his reasons for whatever it was he did. I can understand the OP being miffed at being tipped out of bed at 5am but I do think there's some confusion as to what was going on.

I like a 5am start myself, but I don't think I'd do it if there's significant water shortage and moored boats about. It certainly would have been a bit more thoughtful to wait an hour or two.

[Midnight]

4 hours ago, Steve Manc said:

................ I also phoned the police and reported the mindless vandalism which could have damaged the canal and closed the network.

 

 

 

 

 ?????

That should keep them busy for a few weeks

[Chris Lowe]

9 hours ago, Steve Manc said:

Question: Is it right a boater can drain two ponds above the one he is in so he can move his boat?

Is it vandalism to fully open all the lock paddles on two ponds and walk away? My thoughts are yes it is. 

On one of my holiday cruises up the Caldon canal, the local wags drove a car into railway lock at Stockton Brooke so a load of us were trapped above the locks, BW were quick on scene and drained the pounds and lock and brought in a crane to lift out the car.

I was sent by the lock keeper up the flight to open all the paddles and the bye wash weirs in order to refill the pound quickly which it did, unfortunatley it also washed down debree which jambed the lower paddles.

As the BW work crew had already departed it ended up down to me and another canal restoration idiot to get in the lock and clear it under the watch of the lock keeper it ended up just a branch had washed in, lock cleared and working everyone happy.

[nicknorman]

2 hours ago, Midnight said:

 ?????

That should keep them busy for a few weeks

Well now they have finished investigating some cake in Downing Street, they are looking for something to justify their existence.