News

Work starts on Cromford Canal extension at Langley Mill

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September 18, 2023

THE much-anticipated start on the extension of the Cromford Canal at Beggarlee, Langley Mill, has begun with preparatory work to pipe two gullies. One of these will pass underneath and across the new canal extension which has been one of the principal objectives of the Friends of Cromford Canal which was established in 2002. Connecting…
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Shopping Trolleys in the cut

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September 15, 2023

Les Heath reports… SHOPPING trolleys in the cut have always been a problem for boaters but for members of the Birmingham Canal Navigations Society they have become an additional headache – especially those from Asda. Members of the society, whose admirable efforts to clear the canals of rubbish are well known, were recently upset after…
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Volunteers sought for society’s plant and projects

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September 14, 2023

GRANTHAM Canal Society is seeking volunteers to join its team which keeps its boats and plant in working order. The maintenance department is struggling to keep the society’s ever-increasing fleet in tiptop condition and any plant out of action impacts funds coming in as well as delaying restoration and repairs. Volunteers are also being sought…
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Canal trust shop first birthday

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September 13, 2023

THE Cotswold Canals Trust charity book and music shop celebrated its first year of trading in Stonehouse on August 5. Located in Queens Road, the shop spreads over three units and is laid out perfectly for shoppers to find their perfect book. There’s a children’s section and a sofa to sit and relax or snuggle…
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Community narrowboat receives grant

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September 12, 2023

The Worcester-Birmingham & Droitwich Canals Society, has been awarded a community grant of £500 from Alvechurch Parish Council towards the upkeep of its community narrowboat ‘Cecilia’. Alvechurch councillor Marc Worrall presented a cheque to the society on Monday 4th September in Alvechurch, on the Worcester & Birmingham Canal, by bridge 60 (Station Road, near the…
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Rt Hon Lord Stunell OBE joins VIP’s and Members in Commemorating Local Cruising Club’s Oak (80th) Anniversary

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September 8, 2023

On Saturday, 9th September, to propel into action the North Cheshire Cruising Club’s 80th Anniversary Celebrations, the Rt Hon Lord Stunell OBE will cut the red ribbon on a rare surviving exhibit that was recently dredged out of the High Lane Arm on the Macclesfield Canal. The historic relic, a significant section of tram rail that can…
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Characters of the Cut – Giles Williams!

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September 7, 2023

Alice Griffin caught up with Giles Williams – your helmsman! WHEN Giles Williams found himself recovering from illness in early 2016 and looking for work that would take him into the open air, he could not have foreseen that an initial job as towpath ranger for the Canal & River Trust would lead him on…
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Day in the life of a licence ranger

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September 5, 2023

llegally moored boats, boats without licences and even a boat sinking – it’s all in a day’s work for one of the Canal & River Trust’s licensing rangers, as author Andy Griffee discovered when he went out on towpath patrol with one of them. ONE of the first things I notice about Steve Broad’s ranger…
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Flower the budding boat horse!

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September 4, 2023

THE Shropshire Union Main Line near Norbury recently saw a Shropshire Union fly-boat hauled by a horse, perhaps the first time there for 100 years. This rare and wonderful sight was the well-known Saturn, hauled by Flower, an eight-year-old mare. David Ray of Norbury Wharf Ltd said: “Flower did really well. She is usually ridden…
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‘Towards Accessible Waterways’ event

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September 2, 2023

From organiser, Tim Clarke: The Accessible Waterways Association is celebrating the International Day of People with Disabilities by holding a conference and social event in Birmingham on Saturday 2 December 2023, in conjunction with the Canal & River Trust. This will be a special time for like-minded people to get together. There will be stands…
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Schoolhouse Bridge takes shape

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August 31, 2023

AFTER more than six years of planning and fundraising Schoolhouse Bridge is taking shape. Contractors recently craned the bridge sections into place and there is once more a Bridge 86 over the Montgomery Canal. Schoolhouse Bridge was the last highway blockage on the Shropshire section of the Montgomery Canal. It is believed that in the…
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Innovation at lock gate workshops

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August 30, 2023

THE Canal & River Trust’s lock gate workshops, at Bradley in the West Midlands and Stanley Ferry in Yorkshire, are bringing forward several small changes to lock gate production to increase speed and efficiency. With more than 1500 locks across the trust’s canal network, and a working life of typically 25 years, there is a…
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Paddle challenge along the Swansea Canal

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August 29, 2023

PEOPLE are being challenged to canoe or kayak a mile of the Swansea Canal as part of the year-long celebration of the canal’s 225th anniversary. Glandwr Cymru, the Canal & River Trust in Wales, is encouraging the local community to take to the water and participate in the one-mile paddle over a stretch of the…
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Greyhound Goodbye

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August 28, 2023

Greyhound Inn landlord Leigh Watts would like to tell his customers, many of whom are boaters, that he will be leaving on September 28 after 21 years at the canalside pub at Sutton Stop on the junction of the Oxford and Coventry canals. He will be holding a farewell party in the garden on Sunday…
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