Magazine of the Huddersfield Canal Society

ennine Link PMagazine of the Huddersfield Canal Society Issue 207 Autumn 2019 Huddersfield Canal Society Ltd Registered in England No. 1498800 Registered Charity No. 510201 Registered Address: Progress House 396 Wilmslow Road Withington Manchester M20 3BN ennine Transhipment Warehouse, Wool Road, Dobcross, Oldham, Lancashire, OL3 5QR Link Office Hours: Monday - Thursday 08.30 -16.00 Friday 08.30 -13.00 P Issue 207 Telephone: 01457 871800 EMail: [email protected] Paul Leeman on the helm of the Shuttle passing Website: www.huddersfieldcanal.com the Visitor Centre on Sunday, 1st September. Patrons: Timothy West & Prunella Scales President: David Sumner MBE Council of Management Alan Stopher 101 Birkby Hall Road, Birkby, Huddersfield, Chairman West Yorkshire, HD2 2XE Tel: 01484 511499 Trevor Ellis 20 Batley Avenue, Marsh, Huddersfield, Vice-Chairman West Yorkshire, HD1 4NA Tel: 01484 534666 Mike McHugh The Old Chapel, Netherton Fold, Huddersfield, Treasurer & Co. Secretary West Yorkshire, HD4 7HB Tel: 01484 661799 Patricia Bayley 17 Greenroyd Croft, Birkby Hall Road, Huddersfield, Council Member West Yorkshire, HD2 2DQ Martin Clark HCS Ltd, Transhipment Warehouse, Wool Road, Dobcross, Council Member Oldham, Lancashire, OL3 5QR Tel: 01457 871800 Keith Noble The Dene, Triangle, Sowerby Bridge, Council Member West Yorkshire, HX6 3EA Tel: 01422 823562 Peter Rawson 45 Boulderstone Road, Stalybridge, Cheshire, SK15 1HJ Council Member Tel: 0161 303 8003 Keith Sykes BEM 1 Follingworth, Slaithwaite, West Yorkshire, HD7 5XD Council Member Tel: 01484 841519 Eric Woulds HCS Ltd, Transhipment Warehouse, Wool Road, Dobcross, Council Member Oldham, Lancashire, OL3 5QR Tel: 01457 871800 NON-COUNCIL POST Alan Stopher Bob Gough Administrator Editorial 4 Greenfield Volunteers (GGSS) 20 Chairman’s Report 7 Uppermill Volunteers (UCAN) 22 Stalybridge Festival Weekend 9 SVC Summer Fair 24 Not the Pennine Explorer 14 Marsden Goods Shed 26 Tunnel End Music Festival 16 Daisy Nook Canal Trail Guide 28 Jidoku Puzzle 45 19 220 Club - Twenty-second Draw 31 The views expressed in Pennine Link are not necessarily those of Huddersfield Canal Society Ltd Cover: nb Otter passing under the footbridge at Tunnel End, during this year’s Summer Fair. Photo: Alan Stopher 2 - Pennine Link Pennine Link - 3 that we would wish to promote. It Editorial presumably stems from the fact the We’re continuing knowing whether they have a future that the Manchester locks from Ancoats our practice of in the organisation. It is hoped that by northwards were made into cascades having Guest the time of the next issue we will have and the channel filled in with concrete Editors of your arranged our first meetings with the new to make the water ‘safe’ to prevent quarterly magazine managers and supervisors so we can drownings in a residential area. 17 years and it is my turn. reopen discussions on matters of priority on from reopening with the restored for the Society. canal spurring regeneration in the In my last Northern Quarter perhaps it is time to editorial, for Issue 202 I reflected on The new logo has now bedded in and change the message. waterway reorganisations following the become familiar to those of us who announcement in May 2018 of a new spend much time along our waterways. Whilst our efforts to obtain boaters’ regional structure for Canal & River It will take a few years for the new brand questionnaire responses have faltered of late we do get informal views from boat Trust. As I write 16 months later, the to be at every location. During my own Besides the outdated nature of most new management teams have yet to be canal travels I’ve spotted a number of crews we meet along the Huddersfield of the notices and a prominent British Narrow. Many are very positive about fully established. We have found it more examples of signage still in the black and Waterways heading, the Rochdale than a little frustrating how long it has white colours. Illustrated below are two the scenery, historic environment and noticeboards exhibited a careworn air. friendly people. From time to time taken for our new contacts across the adjacent signs on the Rochdale at West The Cheshire example may be an unfair two regions to be put in place but we Summit Lock and another (right) from we hear of visitors from southern or comparison as it is an adopted stretch midlands waterways commenting on the should spare a thought for the many CRT Cholmondseley Lock on the Middlewich of waterway but it looks like whoever staff who have faced uncertainty about branch of the Shropshire Union Canal. lack of moorings and difficulties getting manages the board wants it to be their craft near to the washwall. In part informative as well as tidy. this is a sign of differing standards on the recently restored northern waterways from the familiar more ‘manicured’ cruising rings of the midland and southern canals, most of which have been restored 50 years ago or were never closed. Your Society has pushed for improvements over the 18 years since reopening and CRT’s aims to increase traffic are aligned with ours so it is envisaged that the difference in standards should diminish in the future. A factor which is more difficult to take account of is that the Huddersfield Narrow was built on the cheap with a shallow dished profile with dry stone washwalls built precariously on puddle Whilst on the subject of notices, how clay ‘foundations’. Unless a stretch of about this one seen beside the Rochdale the towpath incorporated a wharf, the Canal in New Islington Manchester. depth at the side was shallow. Working As a Society proud of its restoration boats and their crews did not need the work I’m not sure this is the message ability to pull in anywhere and moor. 4 - Pennine Link Pennine Link - 5 Any lowering of water deliberately or Our last issue devoted much space to accidentally could induce sections of the Chelsea Garden Festival lock and the Chairman’s Report wall to tumble into the cut and there are involvement of HCS’s Marsden Shuttle in Writing this in between Locks 28E and 29E has recurred. many places where underwater stone the run up to the event. Another event the first week of How many times have I reported that! blocks reduce the draught still further. which was not on the horizon at the start September it already There have been at least three trees down of the year was the Tunnel End Music This suggests that in some aspects the feels autumnal. blocking the canal for short periods. An Festival on 21st July 2019 organised by Huddersfield Narrow is unlikely to meet We’ve had our fair issue which I don’t recall happening before members Paul Thompson, Kim Warren the high expectations of boaters who are share of sun wind was a failure of the communication system and Eric Woulds. Pictures of what was used to the Grand Union or Kennet & and rain in Summer in Standedge Tunnel which prevented any a most enjoyable family-oriented event Avon. There has been much discussion 2019. Warm, dry spells have been of the planned passages in the second appear in these pages. followed by torrential rain particularly in week of August. in the Society about the pinch points, the Pennines. The Canal & River Trust has those which preclude boats wider than Your Society also attended the Summer Although the West side has fared better, a been in the news for the wrong reasons 6ft 10in cruising the Narrow. Whilst it Fair at Standedge Visitor Centre over the gate became dislodged from its socket at as they dealt with the potential collapse st st Diggle flight Lock 26W in early August and is certainly desirable that more historic weekend of August 31 and September 1 . of the dam at Whaley Bridge after record the flight had to be closed for half a day, boats can cruise our favourite waterway, Coming so soon after the almost tropical localised rain. The Independent Review two weeks later, for a broken rod to be even a piecemeal approach will take bank holiday weekend it did not feel of the Toddbrook reservoir partial failure replaced on Lock 25W. commitment and funds. like summer at times. There are pictures will surely be read with interest by all to show the Marsden Shuttle busy with In the meantime perhaps ‘vive la organisations managing such structures. Intermittent unplanned stoppages can passengers in all conditions. difference’ should be our slogan. Let us According to the Environment Agency be annoying to boaters and must be an celebrate that the Huddersfield Narrow Martin Clark is actively involved with the there has been no loss of life from reservoir inefficient use of CRT resources but at is no ordinary canal but ‘a cut above the other HCS (Hollinwood Canal Society) failure for over 100 years. The legislative least the Narrow has been open for most rest’. After all it is the ‘Everest of Canals’ and produced a Canal Trail for Daisy Nook and supervisory mechanisms have clearly of the summer in contrast to the other two worked but the accelerating effects of Pennine crossings. and you should not expect all life’s which he describes in this Issue. climate change will concentrate minds as creature comforts when surmounting Planned winter stoppages have already This magazine could not be produced intense storms in the UK appear to getting such peaks. Any thoughts readers have been published for 2019/20. On the without the publishing skills of our more frequent. on this issue would be welcomed. Narrow Canal these include a tailgate Administrator, Dr Bob Gough. In this issue On our own canal there have been some at Lock 31W, several lock repairs Despite the cancellation of the Pennine he reports on some recent research he has minor unplanned stoppages.

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