Short Boat Kennet

[Pluto]

Kennet was 'relaunched' and the new displays opened to the public for the first time last weekend at the Burscough Heritage Weekend. We had 800 visitors over the two days, followed up by a school visit on Monday. Kennet then moved down the Rufford branch, see photo below, ready for moving on to Preston for the Riverside Festival, 21/22 July. After that, it is down to Liverpool, where Kennet will be open in Salthouse Dock on 11/12 August and then back to Burnley for the Canal Festival 7/8 September, and Clayton-le-Moors the following weekend. The L&LCS will also have our stall at Thwaite Mill, Leeds, on Saturday 30 June.

 

[CanalWalker]

Kennet looked very smart in Burscough, I look forward to see you all in Liverpool.

[bowten]

Absolutely brilliant photos.Seeing these working boats being kept up to standard is wonderful.

[Pluto]

Kennet is now working for the Campaign for Wool, carrying sample bales of Commonwealth wool, loaded yesterday, from Liverpool to Saltaire. A bale of British wool will be loaded at Skipton. The L&LC Soc, who owns Kennet, sees the association with wool as ideal from a heritage view, as wool was one of the canal's most important cargoes. It also provides us with good funding to ensure the boat's future. The CfW press release says:

 

Today the Kennet barge begins a re enactment of the journey from Liverpool to Saltaire, retracing the steps of the 200-year-old trade route for transporting wool. To celebrate the third year of HRH The Prince of Wales’ Campaign for Wool, The Kennet barge will be loaded with four bales of wool representing the Commonwealth countries that support the campaign. The Kennet barge, built in 1947 and refurbished in 2012, will leave Liverpool docks on Wednesday 15th August loaded with wool from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, later collecting British wool at Skipton on 2nd October. On its 27 day journey to Saltaire the barge will stop at Wigan, Burnley, Hyndburn, Gargave, Skipton, Bingley and finally Saltaire, where the bales of wool will be unloaded on 11th October. Saltaire was built entirely to accommodate the wool trade of the 18th century and marks the perfect docking point for The Kennet barge and the subsequent ceremonial handover of the four bales of wool. Once unloaded, the bales will be blended and scoured in Bradford then woven into Commonwealth tweed in West Yorkshire and made into a Commonwealth worsted jacketing in Bradford. The journey The Kennet barge will undertake was a popular and regular journey made by broad boats transporting wool until the demand for wool dwindled in the 20th century due to the introduction of man made fibres. The Kennet barge journey marks the first of many exciting nationwide activities taking place to celebrate The Campaign for Wool in the run up to Wool Week 2012 (15th – 21st October). HRH The Prince of Wales launched the Campaign for Wool in October 2010 to help, support and grow the wool industry by educating consumers about the benefits of wool whilst promoting wool-predominant products to a national audience.

 

The Commonwealth wool was loaded in Salthouse Dock yesterday.

 

 

 

 

On the use of the term boat or barge, the L&LC does present difficulties. In Lancashire, canal boatmen considered themselves more skilled than the bargemen working around the docks in Liverpool and Birkenhead, so they considered being called a bargeman an insult. In Yorkshire, however, bargemen included those who worked on the Humber and associated waterways, a proper skilled boating job, so L&LC men in Yorkshire were happy to be called bargemen working on barges.

[Pluto]

Kennet went up Wigan yesterday, stopping at the 6th lock for a Wildlife Trust community event. We were carrying the Campaign for Wool's wool samples loaded in Salthouse Dock for delivery to Saltaire.

 

 

There is also a bit of video of Kennet in the rain, the second part having a nice bit of sound for JP3 enthusiasts.

[Pluto]

Kennet was at Bingley today for a school visit. Afterwards she descended the five rise on the way to Saltaire to deliver sample wool bales on behalf of the Campaign for Wool. The Mayor of Bradford and other dignitaries will be at Saltaire at 10-30 to receive the wool.

 

Leaving the locks

 

Barry hard at work:

 

In the locks

[Derek R.]

Looks like someone is saying: "You jump - I'll catch you". Must be a Yorkshire woman.

[Pluto]

Looks like someone is saying: "You jump - I'll catch you". Must be a Yorkshire woman.

No, just amazed it's not raining.

[Pluto]

Unloading the sample wool bales for the Campaign for Wool at Saltaire on 11-10-2010.

 

 

 

Harry Belshaw and Cris Shave.