GRANTHAM Canal Society work parties are well into their busy season and have been making good progress on maintenance and restoration projects. Volunteers have attended chainsaw training to allow them to clear self-set trees along the canal bank, Lock 16 has had a fresh lick of paint and work on Lock 13 is well underway. A dam and bywash are being constructed so that the lock can be drained and inspected, ready for refurbishment.
The society has a small fleet of working boats on the navigable section of the canal and skilled volunteers keep them in working order. The Three Shires, the society’s trip boat, also had a freshen-up ahead of its Easter boat trips. This weekend was a huge success, with trips selling out on Good Friday and Easter Monday. The Three Shires generates crucial income for the society to continue its work. To find out more about the award-winning short trips and longer cruises, visit: www. granthamcanal.org/trip-boat24
Lots of post-winter tidying up and organising has been ongoing at the depot, making sure the society is ready to welcome visitors on open days. The events team has put together a calendar of Sunday events: Cream Teas on June 9, Activities Day on August 11 and a Produce Fair (as part of Lincolnshire Heritage Open Days) on September 15. All of these events are to be held at the Grantham Canal Society Depot, NG32 1NY, 10am-3pm. More information can be found on their Facebook and Instagram pages.
Sixth lock
The refurbishment of Lock 13 builds on the rebuilding and repair work carried out on Locks 14 and 15 over the last four years and will, when completed, be the sixth lock brought back into use in the Woolsthorpe flight of seven locks. Construction work is being carried out by the society’s volunteer labour force who devote their time and energy to bring back to life the working of a canal that was originally completed in 1797.
The Grantham Canal is 33 miles long and runs from the River Trent to Grantham and, in its time, transported goods (including coal) into the villages in the Vale of Belvoir, culminating at its ultimate destination in Grantham. The society has more than five miles of navigable waterway from Lock 14 at Stenwith/Woolsthorpe all the way to the A1 at Grantham. Getting under the A1 will be another target, as is getting a connection to the River Trent, which will open the waterway to canal boat navigation from the River Trent. General manager Tony Osbond said: “It will be a lot of work to achieve this aim, particularly with bridges to be reinstated and silt to be removed, but we have a vision that one day it will be achieved! We are currently restoring Lock 13, which will entail civil engineering work and water management, as well as looking after the ecology and biodiversity. Overall cost will be in the region of £250k phased over two years.”
The two locks which have been completed have given volunteers skills in building and civil engineering work and currently the work party is in the early stages of refurbishment. But it will be into expenditure with the introduction of a propping system to support the walls when working in the lock chamber (£25k), an anchor system to tie back the wall structure (£28k), and overall repairs to the masonry (£75k), before the lock gates are introduced towards the end of the project (£95k). Once this project is complete, it will only leave Lock 12 at Stenwith, which will then open up the canal at a level height all the way to Cropwell Bishop at Lock 11, about 20 miles away through the Vale of Belvoir.
