Towpath Talk

FREIGHT DEVELOPMENTS on inland waterways

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December 10, 2024

Jonathan Mosse’s monthly look at freight development on the inland waterways. IT IS my unshakeable belief that the fact that we still have a functional commercial inland waterways system is largely down to individuals and not to the people who are entrusted with running them – the navigation authorities. Wood, Hall & Heward (WHH: a…
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EXPLORING your canal ancestry

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December 9, 2024

In the latest in her family history series, Nicola Lisle looks at how you can trace ancestors who fell foul of the law… IF YOU’VE hit a brick wall with any of your ancestors – such as names suddenly disappearing from census returns – it’s possible they had strayed from the straight and narrow. Crime…
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CANOE RIVER CLEANER Jim Elliot

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December 7, 2024

Lucy Wood reports… An environmental campaigner is on a one-man crusade to make his local waterways cleaner – and educate people in the process. NATURE lover James (Jim) Elliott regularly takes to his local waterways in a canoe to clear litter and fly-tipping, conduct wildlife surveys and more, all the while promoting the well-being benefits…
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CHARACTERS OF THE CUT: Paddy Screech

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December 6, 2024

Paddy Screech – Word on the Water, The London Bookbarge By Alice Elgie WHEN Paddy Screech and his friend, Jon Privett, were moored together in Springfield Park, Hackney back in 2010, they found themselves discussing ways to ensure they would never have to leave the canal again. “It’s not enough to just live on a…
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LICHFIELD BRANCH: Winter vegetation management

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December 5, 2024

Amy Tillson Reports… Recently, IWA Lichfield Branch’s intrepid team of volunteers began their seventh consecutive year of winter vegetation management. This year they have been given a variety of tasks in addition to the usual cutting back of the overgrown vegetation. Repainting bridge names and numbers, removing ivy and other such growth from bridges and…
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IWA: Acclaimed journalist as chairman

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December 4, 2024

Amy Tillson reports… IWA is delighted to announce the appointment of Hugh Pearman as the new chairman of its Heritage Advisory Panel. As an experienced and celebrated journalist, editor and author, he brings a background gained in a distinguished career and a deep commitment to preserving the architectural and engineering heritage of Britain’s inland waterways.…
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NEW BOSS: For underground attraction

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December 3, 2024

A MIDLANDS tourist attraction which takes visitors on a unique underground waterway tour has welcome a new boss. The Dudley Canal and Tunnel Trust, which hosts tours in a network of historic tunnels and caverns under the town, is now under the leadership of new CEO Paul Crofts. Mr Crofts said: “I am absolutely thrilled…
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HAUNTED TUNNEL: Safety check carried out

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December 2, 2024

ENGINEERS braved the spooks and spectres to inspect the Harecastle Tunnel in Staffordshire to ensure it is safe for thousands of waterway users to navigate. Officials from the Canal & River Trust inched along the Harecastle Tunnel, one of the longest canal tunnels on Britain’s historic canal network, to carry out a vital inspection of…
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NEW BRIDGE: Relinks canal trail after 30-year wait

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November 30, 2024

A NEW bridge has finally relinked the Trans Pennine Trail as part of £6 million works at the Chesterfield Canal in Derbyshire. The bridge replaced an old brick structure, which was knocked down 30 years ago, and is the first phase of the canal restoration programme. The new Trans Pennine Trail bridge, weighing 40 tonnes…
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RESTORING the Monty and closing the Shropshire Gap

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November 29, 2024

MORE than 40 people from 22 different groups saw recent work completed on the Montgomery Canal and were shown plans for future projects. They were attending the Northern Canals Association meeting at Llanymynech, on the Montgomery Canal, hosted by the Shropshire Union Canal Society (SUCS). The bulk of the day was taken up by visiting…
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AWARDS: Celebrate volunteer excellence on nation’s canals

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November 28, 2024

Lucy Wood reports… DEDICATED teams and individuals who give their time free to the Canal & River Trust have been honoured. Recognition has been given to those who work on the CRT’s 250-year-old navigable network in the charity’s annual volunteer awards, which reflect the diversity of achievements made to keep these waterways open and alive.…
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GET RID of plastics and shout about it!

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November 27, 2024

YOUNG volunteers did their bit to keep the waterways plastic-free with a massive half-term clean-up. Families were out and about across the canal and river network, picking up rubbish to keep the towpaths pristine – and sharing their work on social media. And the organisers are hoping families, and especially youngsters, will keep up the…
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MILLIONS: To be spent on West Yorks. reservoir upgrades

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November 26, 2024

THE 225-year-old Hill Top Reservoir (known locally as Slaithwaite Reservoir) in West Yorkshire is due for a multi-million-pound restoration in 2025 to ensure it can cope with the pressures of climate change and hold more water. The Canal & River Trust held a consultation into the works, which are yet to be finalised, to ensure…
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CRT: Faster response to repairs promised

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November 25, 2024

THE Canal and River Trust has promised to speed up its response to waterway repairs in 2025. The trust has set new targets for emergency repairs and maintenance on the UK’s canal and river network. In addition, it plans to recruit a new volunteer trustee to its board who can be the voice of waterway…
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