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Marple Flight Re-Opens (with restricted times)


Alan de Enfield

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The Marple Flight has been re-opened but under strict conditions :

 

It is only available to boats 6' 10" beam (or less)

It is only available when C&RT staff are in attendance

C&RT staff will be in attendance between 9 and 10 in the mornings and between 3 and 4 in the afternoons

 

At all other times the lock will be chained-up &  padlocked.

 

These conditions will remain in place until 'Autumn' (no dates given) when they will be closed  for a 'permanent repair'.

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19 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

The Marple Flight has been re-opened but under strict conditions :

 

It is only available to boats 6' 10" beam (or less)

It is only available when C&RT staff are in attendance

C&RT staff will be in attendance between 9 and 10 in the mornings and between 3 and 4 in the afternoons

 

At all other times the lock will be chained-up &  padlocked.

 

These conditions will remain in place until 'Autumn' (no dates given) when they will be closed  for a 'permanent repair'.

No I think it was 9-10 today, and only 3-4 subsequent days. I’ll check as we want to transit in a few days. I did phone them to ask why it was only open for an hour a day - apparently that is the only manpower they can spare!

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4 minutes ago, nicknorman said:

No I think it was 9-10 today, and only 3-4 subsequent days. I’ll check as we want to transit in a few days. I did phone them to ask why it was only open for an hour a day - apparently that is the only manpower they can spare!

Yes - better to get it straight from the horses mouth than 3rd hand Chinese Whispers.

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21 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

Yes - better to get it straight from the horses mouth than 3rd hand Chinese Whispers.

I rechecked the stoppage notice. They have changed the wording from when I read it the first time and what you say is now correct. 1 hr in the morning and 1 in the afternoons.

 

Further monitoring of Marple Lock 11 has shown no significant further movement of the lock chamber, and it has been deemed safe to operate the lock for boats up to 6’10” wide under assisted passage from 12th July onwards. Canal and River Trust Staff will be available to assist boats through the lock in between the hours of 09:00 and 10:00 and 15:00 -16:00 each day.  Engineers will continue to monitor the lock to identify if any further movement does occur, although we hope that it does not.  It may become necessary to shut the lock again at short notice if further movement does occur, and boaters should take this possibility into account when making plans. 

 

That’s good because we are just about 2 days away so can make the morning slot.

Edited by nicknorman
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We came down Marple this morning. 

 

It's still tight, so the staff on the lock are working it very slowly and checking both sides for catching. 

 

Which way are you going Nick?  We are at Portland Basin currently and will be dropping down the Ashton tomorrow. 

 

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6 minutes ago, TheBiscuits said:

We came down Marple this morning. 

 

It's still tight, so the staff on the lock are working it very slowly and checking both sides for catching. 

 

Which way are you going Nick?  We are at Portland Basin currently and will be dropping down the Ashton tomorrow. 

 

We are bravely turning right at Portland (if all goes well) and heading over the Hudd narrow. Looking forward to lots of low pounds and dragging the bottom!

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1 minute ago, nicknorman said:

We are bravely turning right at Portland (if all goes well) and heading over the Hudd narrow. Looking forward to lots of low pounds and dragging the bottom!

You know it's shut again, don't you? 

 

Lock 9E until further notice. 

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4 minutes ago, TheBiscuits said:

You know it's shut again, don't you? 

 

Lock 9E until further notice. 

Yes but I’m hoping it isnt going to be a long stoppage, just some grouting / backfilling required. Update tomorrow so keeping an eye out! Our tunnel booking is 20th so there is some time for them to fix it. We are rushing a bit to get through Marple before they decide to close it again, after that we will have some breathing time! 

 

If its going to be a long stoppage I guess we can return through the tunnel because folk who have booked passage won’t be able to get there.

Edited by nicknorman
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We came down Marple this afternoon with no issues at all.  Staff really helpful (despite a lot of grief from some boat crews), all pounds fully recovered after earlier problems with levels.  Lock 11 is pretty tight - I doubt 6'11" would get through but our 6'10" transit was straightforward enough.  When you see the clearance available in all the other locks it really shows how much narrower 11 now is.  Quite a few of the paddles are hard work though - maybe they'll ease when they've seen a bit more use.  Otherwise it was a pleasant enough transit and rather like the controversial new railings on the Marple aqueduct.  You can certainly tell the lower Peak Forest hasn't had much traffic in a while, with a lot of tree debris in the water and some swallowing due to silt in patches.

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