Boat team antics.
by :Dave Irving
The boat team were out and about in 3 boats again today.
Weedie ventured up the cut and made more progress tackling the weed growth. We’re really pleased with her performance and feel she has really proved her worth. We’re planning to keep her active on the full length of the canal, and to cut more weed just as soon as we can repair the hydraulic leak that emerged today.
Jasper travelled back from Bowbridge, where she’s been helping the recent work on the spill weir. now back at Ebley awaiting her next task. It’s great that this long extension to the canal is available to navigate after so long out of use and so long in preparation.
Margaret and crew ventured first eastwards to Dudbridge Lower lock. Taking Aquila with her as a work platform, the crew raked, scraped and moved much accumulated silt from behind both the lower lock gates. Opening and closing the gates a few times (not an easy job at the best of times!) between raking and scraping eventually resulted in the gates fully opening again, for the first time in a while. This needed to be done to allow our wide-beam piling barge to come down the locks as planned next week. As well as shifting the silt, the crew also removed 2 children’s bikes and a shopping trolley from the canal under the road bridge! The gates were temporarily left open and the top paddles secured in an attempt to minimise the effect of any additional silt that may come down before Samson’ passage. Hopefully the lock will be dredged to clear out the accumulated silt as part of the next dredging program.
After a well-earned rest, the crew took Margaret to Boakes Drive before turning, clearing the prop and returning to Ebley. Margaret is deep enough to contact a lot of ‘stuff’ at the bottom of the canal and we’re really looking forward to the water levels rising as the autumn and winter rains increase the feed into the canal.