Middlewich Branch breach - Shropshire Union

[system 4-50]

I intend to leave all my money yes all of it to a criminal society dedicated to the elimination of the lesser spotted newt and all other species except humans that hold up building projects.

[Boater Sam]

Wonders will never cease, CRT have sent us a tug! So we can go up and down once we have got it started.

It arrived just now, on its own, no crew. Its tied up on our mooring.

Perhaps CRT do monitor this forum, though just letting the tug find its own way here is a bit risky. Now 2 miles 5 furlongs ( I did exaggerate somewhat ) backwards will be fun, and fuel saving! I wonder how many boats we can pull on one trip?

Thank you CRT, we will let you have it back when we don't need it anymore.

Sam.

[Wanderer Vagabond]

13 hours ago, Mike the Boilerman said:

 

I'd be mighty impressed by anyone reversing four miles in an hour and a half. Four miles going forwards takes me an hour and a half!

 

I suggest it would take more like a whole day. Possibly a good deal more.

You obviously didn't read the post about the distance being only 2.54 miles, or as the OP has now corrected 2 miles, 5 furlongs. On a canal with no traffic and no moored boats I would think it would be easy to travel at 1.7mph, even backwards! If that would take you a whole day perhaps you might need some more practice.

 

To make things even easier the OP now says that CRT have supplied a tug.

[Dyertribe]

6 minutes ago, Wanderer Vagabond said:

You obviously didn't read the post about the distance being only 2.54 miles, or as the OP has now corrected 2 miles, 5 furlongs. On a canal with no traffic and no moored boats I would think it would be easy to travel at 1.7mph, even backwards! If that would take you a whole day perhaps you might need some more practice.

 

To make things even easier the OP now says that CRT have supplied a tug.

It would take me that long to reverse my car 2.5 miles!! I hate reversing 

[Wanderer Vagabond]

1 minute ago, Dyertribe said:

It would take me that long to reverse my car 2.5 miles!! I hate reversing 

It's actually quite easy on a canal with no other boats to obstruct you. Take a rope from the bow, a rope from the stern, someone on board to operate the throttle and steer the boat from the bankside pulling one or the other rope to keep it in line, fairly easy to go backwards at just under walking speed.

[MtB]

7 minutes ago, Wanderer Vagabond said:

It's actually quite easy on a canal with no other boats to obstruct you. Take a rope from the bow, a rope from the stern, someone on board to operate the throttle and steer the boat from the bankside pulling one or the other rope to keep it in line, fairly easy to go backwards at just under walking speed.

 

You are assuming Boater Sam has crew. I was assuming he was single handed.

But who reads threads anyway before commenting? Reading threads is for WUSSIES

[Boater Sam]

Thank you for some constructive comments at last.

Yes 2 miles 5 furlongs, I did exaggerate somewhat but it seems to be a lot further. A fair way but we do the reverse from Pearsons farm to the services at Cropredy a few times a year on all sorts of boats. Springers are the most awkward. That length is stuffed with boats of course and the canal is busy till dark.

 

Ours is a good hull with long swims and a large rudder, once I get up the the best speed and throttle setting it steers well in reverse. The mud near bridge holes is the sticking point,  (pun intended) the branch has a very narrow channel and we are deep draughted. A lot of overhanging trees too.

 

When we have to reverse a long way, a short rope off the bow and a large tyre on the end as a drag makes easy work of steering, I believe the old boaters used a metal bucket, too many trolleys and bricks these days for that. No crew presently as the wife is waiting for a new hip.

 

I don't like using a bow thruster, always concerned that it will pick up someones rubbish, never felt the need for one personally.

.

Its just the monotony of reversing that is boring and the racket of stuff going through the blade is worrying. 

 

Sam.

[b0atman]

12 hours ago, Mike the Boilerman said:

 

You are assuming Boater Sam has crew. I was assuming he was single handed.

But who reads threads anyway before commenting? Reading threads is for WUSSIES

I single handed held stern and centre rope with prop at tick over in reverse I then walked it back, to use winding hole at Aynho.

[Boater Sam]

Boo Hoo, they have come and recovered our tug!

Spoilsports.

It was moored at Church Minshull, come a good way on its own,.

Quote " We wondered where it had gone" .   Did they assume it would swim up stream?

[Mike Todd]

20 hours ago, b0atman said:

I agree if this was a new structure but we are looking at repair of an existing structure here so why all the red tape the contractors should do a risk analysis and CRT should have in place the original scheme of embankment build and watertight bed etc. All this work has been done by engineers long dead so stop redesigning and get on with the job it is easier than when originally built with machinery now available

 

I'm sorry but that is not how it works! A repair, especially to a listed structure, has to go through all the preparatory stages before anything other than immediate safety work can be started. Even if you think that you are replacing like with like. (Which you rarely are - try finding cast iron gutters)

[TheBiscuits]

7 hours ago, Boater Sam said:

Yes 2 miles 5 furlongs, I did exaggerate somewhat but it seems to be a lot further.

...

Its just the monotony of reversing that is boring and the racket of stuff going through the blade is worrying. 

Is there not somebody else on the moorings that likes to moor facing the opposite way to you?

 

They could tow you (backwards) to the winding hole, and you could tow them (backwards) back to the moorings.

[Peter Thornton]

7 minutes ago, TheBiscuits said:

Is there not somebody else on the moorings that likes to moor facing the opposite way to you?

 

They could tow you (backwards) to the winding hole, and you could tow them (backwards) back to the moorings.

Err

Surely they would tow you to the winding hole then back again, after which you would be facing the right way - but they would now be facing the wrong way ............?

[Boater Sam]

Oh a pushme pullyou.  We could talk to one another on our rear deck, how jolly. 

Still damn annoying though.

There seems to be a idea that the longer it takes to fix the lower the cost will be, I have never seen the logic in that assumption. Nothing being done again today.

Still we will all be homeless soon if and when HS2 destroys the farm and all the moorings and the next hamlet. We will have 4 rail bridges straight through where we used to call home.

Not our time is it?

[TheBiscuits]

Just now, Peter Thornton said:

Err

Surely they would tow you to the winding hole then back again, after which you would be facing the right way - but they would now be facing the wrong way ............?

Nope.

 

Sam likes to moor facing away from the winding hole, which is why he would have to reverse to it.

 

If he does the tow back to the mooring, both boats are facing in their preferred direction.

[AndrewIC]

3 minutes ago, Peter Thornton said:

Surely they would tow you to the winding hole then back again, after which you would be facing the right way - but they would now be facing the wrong way ............?

So NEXT time....

[dor]

Update on 30/07/2018:

Since the last update, the haul road to the breach area, access across the embankment and access down to the bottom of the embankment has been completed.  The access has allowed us to complete essential reinstatement work resulting from the breach, including clearance of the River Wheelock and repairs to the wingwalls of the aqueduct.  A stone dam has been installed to the east of the breach which has allowed us to remove the temporary fabric dam.  

With the design work for the repairs issued to our contractors we are now starting the works to repair the embankment itself. 

We remains focussed on re-opening the navigation by Christmas and we will provide further updates as the project progresses.

[Philip]

Sounds encouraging!

[Wanderer Vagabond]

1 hour ago, TheBiscuits said:

Is there not somebody else on the moorings that likes to moor facing the opposite way to you?

 

They could tow you (backwards) to the winding hole, and you could tow them (backwards) back to the moorings.

Good idea, but I think the option would be to arrange with others on the mooring when you want to go out together.  There is the initial faff of having to reverse to the winding hole, but once that is done you then just arrange to meet back at the winding hole after the weekend/week cruise. One boat turns at the winding hole and the other then tows it back to the mooring (push-me-pull-you). The next time to go out the one who was pulled backwards to the moorings is facing in the right direction to pull the other boat backwards out again. It obviously needs some co-ordination as to when people are going out and returning, but co-operation is one of the joys of boating (as you would find out if you've ever had to assist the inside boat of a 5 deep raft of sailing boats to get out to sail on the early morning tide).

[David Mack]

2 hours ago, Mike Todd said:

I'm sorry but that is not how it works! A repair, especially to a listed structure, has to go through all the preparatory stages before anything other than immediate safety work can be started. Even if you think that you are replacing like with like. (Which you rarely are - try finding cast iron gutters)

 

A quick Google search brings up several suppliers of cast iron gutters. Amongst others, cast iron guttering is manufactured by Hargreaves of Halifax, whose foundry is alongside the former Halifax branch of the Calder and Hebble. They also manufactured much of the paddle gear used on the Rochdale restoration.

[canals are us?]

3 hours ago, David Mack said:

 

A quick Google search brings up several suppliers of cast iron gutters. Amongst others, cast iron guttering is manufactured by Hargreaves of Halifax, whose foundry is alongside the former Halifax branch of the Calder and Hebble. They also manufactured much of the paddle gear used on the Rochdale restoration.

Indeed. These supply period gutters.

 

https://www.rainwaterdirect.co.uk/cast-iron-overview/cast-iron-guttering-1

 

James.

[Philip]

Hopefully the 'open by Christmas' forecast is a conservative one! Am I getting a little carried away to ponder whether this might be brought forward to, say, the October half term?

[Dave123]

If anything bad weather once autumn arrives, and myriad other factors, is likely to delay it? I'd be really surprised if it opened by October. Although it would be clever PR to deliberately exaggerate the length of time needed so they can make themselves look good by getting it done sooner!? 

[Boater Sam]

The worrying omission  in the last update was WHICH Christmas? Sadly there has been so many delays already that my confidence of satisfactory repair this year is waning.

 I do hope that before they fill the csnal up again that they remove ALL that stone, not like the cock up at Minworth.

[The Ents]

There were two machines working this Monday.

[Mike Todd]

On 31/07/2018 at 17:55, The Ents said:

There were two machines working this Monday.

Any people?