navvies 242

Forty Years of Voluntary Work on the Inland Waterways

Navvies Notebook

August-September 2010

waterway recovery group 1970 - 2010

No. 242

Visit our web site www.wrg.org.uk for

NavviesProductionEditor: Martin Ludgate, 35 Silvester Road,East Dulwich London SE22 9PB020-8693 3266 [email protected]

Subscriptions: Sue Watts, 15 Eleanor Rd.,Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Manchester M21 9FZ

Printing and assembly: John & TessHawkins, 4 Links Way, Croxley Green,Rickmansworth, Herts WD3 3RQ01923 448559 [email protected]

Navvies is published by Waterway RecoveryGroup, Island House, Moor Rd., CheshamHP5 1WA and is available to all interested inpromoting the restoration and conservationof inland waterways by voluntary effort inGreat Britain. Articles may be reproduced inallied magazines provided that the source isacknowledged. WRG may not agree withopinions expressed in this magazine, butencourages publication as a matter of inter-est. Nothing printed may be construed aspolicy or an official announcement unless sostated - otherwise WRG and IWA accept noliability for any matter in this magazine.

Waterway Recovery Group is part of TheInland Waterways Association, (registeredoffice: Island House, Moor Road, CheshamHP5 1WA). The Inland Waterways Associa-tion is a non-profit distributing companylimited by guarantee, registered in Englandno 612245, and registered as a charity no212342. VAT registration no 342 0715 89.

Directors of WRG: Rick Barnes, JohnBaylis, Mick Beattie, James Butler, SpencerCollins, Christopher Davey, George Eycott,John Hawkins, Judith Palmer, MichaelPalmer, Jonathan Smith, Harry Watts.

ISSN: 0953-6655

© 2010 WRG

Mart

in L

udgate

SN

T

all the latest news of WRG's activities

Editor Martin explains about the cover 4Roger Jeffries an appreciation 5Coming soon autumn camps, reunion 6-7Camp reporst Cotswold Canals x 3 8-15WRG at 40John Baylis and Alison Smedley 16-22Then and now comparisons with 1970 23Diary canal camps and weekend digs 24-26Letters on BW, volunteers and unions 27Survey interviewees, bogs and boozers 28Progress restoration roundup 29-33History of the WRG NW sales stand 34-35Dig report BITM on the Basingstoke 36Training day in pictures 37Directory WRG and canal societies 38-40WRG BC news from our boat club 41Noticeboard now its Harry Arnold MBE! 42Infill including the Deirdre interview 43-45

Contributions...

...are always welcome, whether handwritten,typed, on CD-ROM, DVD or by email.

Photos also welcome: digital,slides, prints. Please state whether youwant your prints back. Digital pics arewelcome as email attachments, preferablyJPG format, but if you have a lot of largefiles it is best to send them on CD-ROM orDVD or to contact the editor first.

Contributions by post to the editorMartin Ludgate, 35, Silvester Road,London SE22 9PB, or by email [email protected].

Press date for issue 243: September 1st.

Subscriptions

A year's subscription (6 issues) is availablefor a minimum of £1.50 to Sue Watts, 15Eleanor Road, Chorlton-cum-Hardy,Manchester M21 9FZ. Cheques to "Wa-terway Recovery Group" please.

This is a minimum subscription, thateveryone can afford. Please add a donation.

ContentsIn this issue...

Above: Inglesham Lock (the one almost in NicBennett’s garden!) and some London WRG vol-unteers looking forward to restoring it with theaid of the IWA appeal just launched (see page44). Left: first boat through the new bridge inSleaford. Below: volunteers on the Mont camprebuilding Crickheath Wharf - report next time.Front cover: see page 4 for an explanation

Andy W

hittle

EditorialWhere has the colour cover gone?

Looking back to the

early days of

Navvies, and

forward to the

future of BW...

What’s with the strange cover this time?

Well it just so happens that this issue is the closest one to the actual 40th anniversary of thefounding of WRG at the IWA National Rally at Guildford in early August 1970, so wethought it appropriate to go back to our roots.

Those with very long memories will recall that in the early days of Navvies, it wascalled Navvies Notebook. And that in those distant days before decent reproduction of pho-tographs was a practical proposition to a low-budget publication, the front cover usuallycarried a sketch of a work site, a canal scene, or some working boats as per this issue. Whatwasn’t quite so widely known was that the artist was none other than the late GrahamPalmer, founder of WRG and Navvies editor for the first 80 issues. Fast forward to a fewmonths ago, and during her researches for the ‘40 interviews’ series Helen Gardner heardabout one of these sketches that had never been used. So the sketch, supplied by Mike Day,forms this issue’s cover - and to put it in character, we’ve renamed ourselves Navvies Note-book for one issue and gone back to 1970 style. Normal service will be resumed next time.

Carry on Camping!

Last time I appealed for folks on summer canal camps to write camp reports for Navvies andsend them in good time so that we could include a selection this time. Well my thanks tothose who did: we have three - all from Goughs Orchard Lock on the Cotswold Canals. Thatmeans as we go to press we’re anticipating another one from Goughs, three from Eisey, twofrom the Mont, Basingstoke and Mon & Brec, one apiece from the Chelmer and the Chester-field, and one from the National Festival. Looks like 243’s going to be a bumper issue!

Remember to send some photos in too, and if you put any photos online on Facebook,Flickr or any of the other picture sharing sites, do tell us.

British Waterways: another way forward?

Don’t worry, it isn’t another editorial whinge about BW this time. Just a small commentfollowing on from last issue’s moan, in which I argued that unless BW showed a bit moreinterest in working with our kind of volunteers instead of just seeing volunteers as a way ofkeeping costs down on the navigable network as part of its plans for the future, then itshouldn’t be too surprised if the restoration movement shows no great enthusiasm for itsproposals to move to the charitable Third Sector and the increased emphasis on volunteer-ing that BW claims this will bring.

Well perhaps there’s a third choice, besides the BW we know, and the way some mightsee a future Third Sector BW. When the new Waterways Minister Richard Benyon respondedto a Commons debate on the future of BW and the waterways, he not only paid tribute torestoration volunteers (he has the Kennet & Avon running through his constituency, so hemay know a thing or two about restoration), but he also assured MPs that it would have “acompletely new board or council that would shape its future” and “would not be BritishWaterways by another name, but a new structure in different hands altogether”.

Do we believe him? Well, he also said that as a first step he was considering puttingrepresentatives of user groups on the existing BW board. And a week later he appointedClive Henderson, Chairman of WRG’s parent body The Inland Waterways as an interim ob-server pending appointment of two volunteer board members. A step in the right direction?

Martin Ludgate

Roger Jeffries: an appreciation

I don’t actually remember with any certainty the first time I met Roger - poor memory forsuch things, somehow it feels as though I have always known him. I believe it was at thefarm when I was still at university and possibly a teenager, I went to help Tom buildingblock walls in the summer hols for a barn at the farm. I was keen, maybe too keen to ex-pand my construction experience! A very friendly, yet direct individual we got on well andwe shared tea and boating interests whilst sat on the old cushions from his narrowboat TitWillow in the office.

Roger was a keen boater from the late 1960’s, had travelled the majority of the Canals& Rivers on his boat and supporter of the IWA. His biggest contribution was as harbourmaster at the National Festival from Peterborough in 1993 right through to Wolverhamptonin 2008, his attendance with NB Tit Willow since 1985 is quite some feat given the demandsof his farming profession at that time of year. Unfortunately his health in 2009 was notconducive to being at Ratcliffe and after a significant fight with pneumonia, depression and astroke he died in May 2010 aged 74.

Roger was a great supporter of WRG and member of the WRG Boat Club. When WRGneeded to formalise the storage of WRG Logistics to a central location he offered space onhis farm and funded the road access works needed. The storage site continues and is alasting legacy of his willingness to help and get things done. I am sure many in the organi-zation will continue to be very grateful for a long time to come.

Ian Williamson

Roger Jeffries, boater, WRG

supporter, harbourmaster, WRG

Boat Club stalwart and farmer,

has died. Ian Williamson and

WRGBC share some memories.

ObituaryRoger Jeffries

Wrgbc tribute to a friend

We were very sorry to hear of the unexpecteddeath of Roger Jeffries. He will be very muchmissed. His support for WRG took many formsbut his membership of WRG Boat Club ap-peared to be something he undertook withenthusiasm from its inception. As he attended theNationals as harbourmaster he was always able toattend the WRGBC WRGs. His commentsdelivered with humour and his absence at last yearsNational was our first indication of his illness.

He was the unanimous choice as the firstrecipient of the WRGBC bowl, which isawarded for outstanding contribution to wrg. AtWorcester Festival he decided that his farmneeded a new generator and it should be testedin the illuminated boat parade where wrgbcformed their own mock horse race (three boatstaking part) aided and abetted by the commen-tary from Dave Dent. We didn’t win.

WRGBC wish to convey their condo-lences to Heather and family.

Sue Burchett

Coming soonAutumn Camps, Reunion

Looking forward to the

National Festival,

October Canal Camps,

the Reunion, Christmas

and (gulp!) New Year...

Coming very soon: WRG’s 40th birthday party, 21 August

We’re not quite sure whether this issue will come out in time, but if you do receive it before21 August and aren’t already planning to come to our 40th anniversary bash at the NationalFestival site at Beale Park near Reading, please do see if you can make it. We don’t want tospoil the surprise by telling you all the details here (and no, that doesn’t mean we haven’tdecided what to do yet!) but we do have a whole evening of entertainments planned, as wellas a chance to mingle with WRGies past and present. It should be a memorable night. Con-tact Jude Palmer on 07739 045326 for more information.

Coming almost as soon: the National Festival camp, 24 Aug - 2 Sep

Camp Leaders Mitch Gozna and Kirsty Wallace told us all about it last time and hopefullyshould have a good team of volunteers already booked in, but I’m sure they would alwayswelcome a few more. Don’t worry about attending at short notice, but do please contactthem first rather than turning up without warning: their details are Mitch 07768525469 [email protected], Kirsty 07790740925 or [email protected]

Coming just slightly less soon: October Canal Camps 23-30 October

We’ve got a choice of two different sites for you again for this autumn’s canal camps, bothrunning on the same week.

Firstly on the Grand Western Canal leaders Mark ‘Mk2’ Richardson and Kirsty Wallacewill be leading a major scrub-bash around the site of the fascinating Nynehead Boat Lift inSomerset, and will also be carrying out some maintenance work on the lift chamber itself.

Secondly, Rob Daffern will be leading a team on the Chelmer & Blackwater Navigation,our parent body IWA’s very own waterway. IWA subsidiary Essex Waterways is heavily reli-ant on contributions from volunteers such as ourselves as it tries to put things back onto aneven footing after rescuing the waterway from the bankrupt original canal company almostfive years ago. The tasks planned will include bank protection, towpath clearance, repaintingwaterways structures and general maintenance work.

Book for either of these camps via the WRG website, or using a canal camps bookingform. Contact head office on 01494 783453 or email [email protected] for details.

Coming a little less soon: the WRG Reunion, 6-7 November

That’s what we used to call the Bonfire Bash, and before that we called it the Reunion, andbefore that we called it a biggish dig. But really it doesn’t matter what it’s called, it’s ourannual major work-party and big get-together and everyone’s welcome - whether you’re anew recruit from this year’s canal camps, an old hand with many years’ experience with oneof the regional groups, or even if you’ve never been on a canal dig before. We need a goodturnout this time because we hope to completely finish the work we started at last year’sReunion on the Montgomery Canal, working to reduce one of the most picturesque lengthsof waterway on the Welsh border to a pile of smouldering cinders. No, seriously, our work isto clear the notorious ‘dry section’ of half a century of trees and vegetation, as a vital part ofthe preparation for finding out why it won’t hold water, making it watertight, rewatering itand bringing back the boats. So there’ll be lots of scrub-bashing with some big bonfires butquite possibly some other work on rebuilding the wharf wall too.

I would like to attend the WRG Reunion on November 6-7

Forename: Surname:

Address:

email:

Phone: Any special dietary requirements?

I require accommodation on Friday night / Saturday night / both nights

I enclose payment of £ (please make cheques payable to ‘WRG’) for food

(cost is £13 for the weekend based on £3 breakfast and evening meal, £2 lunch)

How will you be travelling to the Reunion?

Do you want to work with volunteers from one of this year’s Canal Camps or from one ofthe regional groups? If so, which camp or group?

Do you suffer from any illness, such as epilepsy or diabetes, about which we shouldknow, or are you receiving treatment or under medical supervision for any conditionYES/NO If yes, please attach details on a covering letter.

In the unlikely event that you should be injured, who should we contact?

Name: Phone:

Signed:

Please send this form to:

Reunion Bookings, WRG, Island House, Moor Road, Chesham HP5 1WA

waterway recovery groupMontgomery Reunion 2010

We hope to have the same accommodation as last time, in a school near Oswestry withshowers and plenty of room or lots of people. So don’t delay: fill in the booking form belowand send it off straight away.

Coming not terribly soon: London WRG/KESCRG Xmas dig, 4-5 Dec

This is the first seasonal event for the 2010-11 Christmas and New Year period, and, I hope,the first time we’ve mentioned Christmas 2010 in Navvies. Yes, it’s still a fair way off and wehope to have a lot more about it in the next issue - such as which canal it’s being held on!But in the meantime, make a note of it in your diary, and remember: you don’t have to be aregular with London WRG, KESCRG or any other group to come - everyone is welcome.

Coming even less soon: New Year Canal Camp 26 Dec - 1 Jan 2011

I’m afraid we know almost as little about the New Year Canal Camp at the moment, but aswe go to press we’re looking at a couple of possible sites including the Manchester Bolton &Bury Canal. More details in the next issue.

For details of forthcoming events see www.wrg.org.uk

Goughs Orchard week 126 June - 3 July

“It’s a camp of two halves”

Saturday

“We welcome you to the new, super-sized,Brimscombe stadium for what looks to be agreat match. On paper we have an interest-ing team with a good range of skills and,unusually, two team captains...”

My only description of the accommodationbefore I arrived was ‘an industrial unit’ sofinding out quite how big it was came as a bitof a shock – not only would most of our ac-commodations easily fit inside this one theycould do it with their associated worksites.

As the volunteers arrived and peoplegot to know one another we went for a lookat site - my first time there too. The previ-ous year’s camps had built up the towpathside wall and cleared some of the brickworkfrom the other side; our jobs would be tofinsh the brick clearance, start building upand start the coping stones on the towpathside. Back at the hall (we kept calling it thatdespite its size) we checked the kit, had thesafety talk and had a dinner of spaghetti andmeatballs. We then all headed to the pubacross the road (and next to site)

Sunday

“A steady opening with plenty of setupsmeans it looks like we’re in for a good game...”

First job of the day was to get the lock emptyof water so that the scaffolding could bechecked so there was shifting of pumps andclearing of scrub plus the traditional shiftingof bricks and building of walkways for wheel-barrow runs.

Once we could check the scaffolding weworked to raise the boards to work on thebrickwork and finish off the towpath side sothat we could work on the coping stones.

Anthony cut and fitted a small copingstone to the towpath side curved wall inpreparation for backfilling and Alan & Derekstarted uncovering a flight of steps at thelower end of the locks.

Martin led a group to the pub to watchthe England match, though a lot of them wereback to work sooner than they had hoped.

Chicken & veg was followed by watch-ing Mike construct an ingenious plate stack-ing system for the new kit crockery andgroup cryptic crosswording.

Monday

“Here we go, here we go, here we go...”

The last few bits of scaffolding were fitted sothat people could start cleaning off the walland cutting out the broken bricks while Martinfinished off the curve above the invert andAnthony worked to build up the lower end.

Ian and Ben used concrete to startbackfilling behind the stones Anthony had

Camp reportCotswold Canals

Goughs Orchard Lock near Stroud

has been a major focus for WRG’s

effort, with four camps this

summer. Richard Worthington

reports from week one...

The damaged brickwork is dismantled...

Photo

s by R

ichard

Wort

hin

gto

n

finished on Sunday and we fitted toe boardsto the towpath side scaffolding so that wecould start on the coping stones on Tuesday.

Back at the accommodation a groupwent off for a swim and Ben managed tocatch a fish in the stream that ran throughthe industrial estate, and under the building.

Mary helped Eli make Chilli for dinnerand then we had a game of ‘Death Swing’,Mike’s invention involving a tennis ball, a Mat-tock handle and a pair of funnels for wickets –fielding was optional, ducking essential.

Tuesday

“Martin and the girls are starting a strongattack on the left with a steady push on theright from the captain...”

Another day, another area for backfilling, withDebbie & Jamie on it this time. Alice, Mike,Ian, David, Peter & I started moving copingstones into their proper positions on the tow-path side using a selection of bars, rollers andcursing while the last of the wall was cleared.

After a teapotless tea break(!) Martinstarted to teach bricklaying to Fiona, Bekka,Mary & Maggie so that they could start fillingin all the areas that they had previouslycleared (a WRG tradition)

Jen arrived to see how we were gettingon and, purely coincidentally, Eli had madePimms Jelly.

After dinner we headed into Stroud forbowling – Girls v Boys. I’d like to say we letEli win because she was the cook but we werejust a bit outclassed. Back to the accommoda-tion and some of us headed to the pub toplot for WRG’s 40th birthday celebrations.

Wednesday

“Welcome back to what looks to be an excit-ing second half with a change of captain andfresh legs from subs Debbie, Jamie andSteve in off the bench...”

A mid-breakfast delivery brought us a loadmore scaffolding for the following camps anda load more sand, ballast and cement formortar and more backfilling behind thecoping stones.

Our newest brickies worked the top endof the wall while Martin worked around thestonework. Derek, Ben and Anthony continuedthe far end and started building a ladder recess.

We finished laying out the copingstones so that we could start mortaring themin on Thursday and then went onto land-scaping the previously concreted backfill.

After we finished on site we got a visitfrom Rick to see how we were getting onand Jamie had a serious go at repairing thebike from the lock.

After curry Jen led us in 5-a-side foot-ball in one of the warehouses, Boys v Girlsagain. Martin, David, Ben, ‘Safe hands’ Derekand I took on Jen, Debbie, Jamie, Alice &Mary. A tense first half left it as a draw butDerek in goal and David up front after thatgave the boys a decisive win.

Between the football and the generalWednesday weariness we had quite a lazyevening.

Thursday

“Hard work and hot weather are tiring theteam, but they’re giving 110% out there...”

The morning started with Mary, Maggie &Jen mixing mortar for Fiona, Bekka & Martinbuilding up the upper wall, Jamie & Janetpatching and Debbie, Steve & Anthony work-ing the far end.

Peter, David & Alice landscaped theconcrete backfill from the previous day whileIan put in a layer of bricks to raise the firstcoping stone to the correct level.

After lunch Jen & Peter went back to...to be replaced by new brickwork

uncovering the steps and we started to mor-tar in the first coping stones.

Lasagne for dinner was followed by atrip to the Village Inn brewery in Nailsworthorganised by Ian & Janet, with Derek,Maggie, Peter, David, Anthony and Alicebeing educated about all the local ales. Whilemost of us went out the rest set up their owncinema night using the projector and DVDsof Over the Hedge and Tropic Thunder.

Friday

“They think it’s all over – it is now (well,week 1 anyway...)”

We awoke to see rain for the first time in theweek, but it soon disappeared. The brickiesand mortar mixers continued on as they hadwhile Ian, Alice and I continued with thecoping stones.

Peter and Derek started on the last bitof backfilling with concrete and Derek fin-ished it off by landscaping it with more soilwhile Peter and Jen continued uncoveringthe steps at the lower end of the lock

After lunch Ian & Janet and Debbie andJanet had to leave so Alice moved on tofilling in the brickwork where Steve wasworking until she too had to leave.

Bricking continued while the rest of ustidied site and packed tools before weheaded back to the accommodation to checkthe tools and set up for the evening.

We shifted all the sofas and comfychairs to the carpark and set up the griddlefor Martin to cook BBQ food for dinner. Wewere joined by Rowena, the Palmers, Harry,MKII, Alan and Michelle, who were all therefor the training day on Saturday.

Saturday

The usual end of camp tidying, kit checkingand cleaning happened quickly while we alsowelcomed new arrivals for the next campand for the training day.

“At the end of the day it’s a funny old gameand the team played a blinder, new signingsand the many capped (T Shirted?) old handsalike. Fine leadership from the captains Mikeand Jen with support from team cook Eli, butman of the match has to be RAF Martin withskills training and fancy brickwork leading usto a definite win.”

Richard Worthington

Above: manoevring coping stones into place.Below: the amply-sized accommodation

Gough’s Orchard Week 23 - 10 July

“Life is a Bowl of Cherries at Gough’s Orchard”

“The accommodation will be at Unit 4Brimscombe Business Park, about250m from the work site adjacent toBrimscombe Port Mill GL5 2QN” doesnot sound like the perfect holiday destina-tion, but it was mine on that hot Saturdayafternoon at the beginning of July on myway to the 2nd 2010 Gough’s Orchard CanalCamp. The three most important thingsabout a place are location, location andlocation. Well, Brimscombe Business Park hasall three. It sits in the steep and woodedGolden valley and is indeed 250m from thework site but it is also only 100m from theShip Inn and 50m from an Off Licence. Thereis also a paper shop and a chippy nearby.

On the face of it Unit 4 is a large ware-house on an industrial estate a few miles outof the back end of Stroud. But appearancescan be deceptive and inside it boasts spa-cious, recently furnished accommodationwith fitted carpets and ample electric socketsthroughout. The large boot room, withkitchen and Ladies and Gents toilets off,leads to an open plan dining and sitting areawhich has stand alone Burco and traditionalWRG toaster to one end. A long refectorytable and chairs for more than 20, plusseveral comfy sofas surrounding it are in-cluded. This gives access to the adjoiningwarehouse and generous indoor parking.

We would have been happy enoughwith this – luxury, compared to many placesI’d read about (see previous issues of Nav-vies), but we also had an upstairs! Yes, up-stairs where there were four or five good sizebedrooms with fitted carpets, including a singlefor any incessant snorer or overly shy WRGie.

The adjacent Brimscombe Port Millturned out to be a handsomely restoredCotswold stone building sat astride the riverFrome which chuckled past a small frontlawn and dog ‘exercise’ area. The former

housed our only shower. This did lead toqueues each evening but these were allevi-ated by pre-dinner van trips to the StroudLeisure Centre showers complete with acharabanc singalong to such classics as Queen,ELO, and Aerosmith and a quick pit-stop atTesco’s to re-supply the drinks cabinet.

So, as the team arrived, we congre-gated by the front door, drinking tea in theafternoon sunshine and congratulating our-selves on our good fortune. Well-done WRGControl for this booking. With dinner cook-ing, first time leader Martyn ‘Boss’ Worsleyintroduced us to his faithful hound, Barnie,his Number 2, Sir Clive Knight (first timeassistant leader) and first time camp cook,Tania Connolly. Quite a challenge for allthree but we were in good hands. We soonlearned that beneath Martyn’s cool, laconicsurface, Clive was paddling furiously andTania was simply unflappable despitedinnertime being a very moveable feast aswe were often late back from the site or theshowers.

“Drinking tea in the afternoon

sunshine and congratulating

ourselves on our good

fortune” - Nick Farr takes up

the story for week two...


Building the lock ladder recess

Ala

n L

ines


A tale of scaffolding,

bricklaying, coping

stones, and the

Great Nailsworth

Brewery Disaster...

The Group was a good mix of 1 part‘old hands’: John Hawkins (left over from the1st week), Richard Thomas, RobertBrotherston (just passing through), SleepyDave and also Richard Tyler (and his faithlessmutt, Forknose) and Chris Patience (swelledthe ranks on Monday), + 1 part ‘some previ-ous experience’: Keith Hope, Steve Bayliss(with loyal bitch Millie), Ros Murray and NickFarr, + 1 part ‘fresh faces’: Michael Druce,Ronan Finnegan (all the way from Dublin),Nigel Gibson, Helena Stole, Scott DoE andAlex Davies - just add alcohol and mix thor-oughly. This we did on our way back fromthe site visit, as the pub is conveniently half

way between the accommodation andGough’s Orchard Lock.

The Ship is a smart, stone built pubsited next to the old canal bed, downstreamfrom Brimscombe Port and will soon be next toa unique and ingenious canal and river levelcrossing, both sharing the same bridge underthe road. Every wall is adorned with portraitsof seagoing sailing ships and seafaring me-mentoes, which perhaps reveals an overlyoptimistic view about the future trade passingtheir doors. This family-run pub sells a goodselection of real ales including the locals Gemand Bob, which stand up well to the Pedigreeand Doom Bar from further away.

Each morning the sun warmedour backs as we ambled down thedusty lane towards Gough’s Or-chard lock where we set to ourdaily tasks: there was mortar tomix, bricks to pile, scaffold tocheck, Burco to boil and a camp toestablish under the shade of a largeash tree. Once done we could geton with our mission which was tocontinue the previous week’s workof rebuilding the lock walls afterlast year’s camps tore them down.

A team of “Copers” levelledand set the huge coping stones onthe nearside lock wall that theprevious week’s camp had built.They then in-filled with stiff limemortar and rubble before backfilling with concrete, finally pointingwith very stiff mortar to produce atidy finish. Job done, they movedto the far side of the lock where thebrickies were nearly finished re-building the wall five bricks deepand untold courses high. Midweek,we’d had a game of The KryptonFactor and endeavoured to raise thescaffold level whilst still standing onit. By Friday we were standing onboxes rather than try our luckagain. The skilled mixer and barrowteam kept us continuously suppliedThe team of ‘copers’ at work

David

Mille

r

with cement, lime mortar (both stiff andsloppy) and bricks (both facers and fillers),cursing our constant and contrasting de-mands. Skilled craftsmen lined the ladderrecesses and did the curvy bits at the ends.

Meanwhile… the water level beneath usrose steadily up the scaffolding despite thehired water-pump, which seemed to be allnoise and no action (much like the Englandfootball team). By Tuesday the feet of thescaffold were lost to view as were an assort-ment of trowels and lump hammers. ByWednesday the first scaffold joints weresubmerged and something had to be done.After a mare of a day carting the thing backto the hire shop and searching for an alterna-tive, only to have to bring the same one backagain ’cos it needed water to test it, Martynhanded it over to John Hawkins who, bytaking it apart and rebuilding it, gave it newlife. It sucked for England and by Thursdayafternoon the bottom was revealed and Stevewas reunited with his precious pointing tool.It also appeared that all the mortar spoildumped in the drink had given the scaffoldconcrete over-shoes.

So, the summer days passed pleasantlyand the wall slowly rose under the apprecia-tive gaze of passing dog-walkers and jog-gers. Each afternoon Tanya and Richardwould bring us freshly filled rolls and oven-

baked cakes to sustain our labours and eachevening we found new ways to amuse our-selves. Notably a trip to Sapperton tunneland the very salubrious Tunnel House Inn ona warm summer evening; a game of indoorrounders in the vast warehouse; Sir Clive’sCamp Quiz; a boozy barbecue on the lastnight. On the Thursday evening, after anearly fish supper Martyn and Clive arranged avisit to the microbrewery at the Village Inn,Nailsworth. A most interesting and informa-tive tour was followed by a sampling sessionat the bar, which was made even more spe-cial when the locals produced various musi-cal instruments and gave us some im-promptu diddly-dee – a great craic.

Unfortunately, after such a well-runweek we had grown complacent. What couldgo wrong with entrusting our leaders toorganize a booze-up in a brewery? Surely,they would not forget the camp phone andbe unable to contact John to mobilise a lifthome, thus forcing the tired and emotionalWRGies to remain at the bar long past theirbedtime. It was a shame that their inexperi-ence had let them down, for it was verynearly a perfect Canal Camp: top location,fine food, great weather, jolly crew, andgood progress; if only it hadn’t been for thegreat Nailsworth Brewery disaster.

Nick Farr

David

Mille

r

Rebuilding the offside chamber wall

CANAL MATES

MATURE: 225 year old, slightly crum-bly around the edges but solid founda-tion seeks multiple partners for a goodold overhall and maybe long termmaintenance. Must bring protection.

SUPPORTME: Tall, slimand hard:seeking swiveljoints andputlock cou-ples for struc-tural time.Must be ableto deal withinverts andrecesses.

INSPECTOR:Dress in rub-ber, don ahammer and alevel andcheck myjoints.

Goughs Gazette

HEAVY: Amply proportioned but I have myplace. Good technique required to “cope”with me. Manhandle and mortar me intoposition and I’ll stay with you for years.

BLACK: smooth and wet. A GSOHrequired to reach my hidden depths.Paddle away through years of experi-ence and see what you can culvertivate.


Finally Helen

‘Bushbaby’ Gardner

reports from the third

week in her own

inimitable style...

No 4783 July 10th to 17th 2010 Price: 47p

FORWARD

WITH

BRIMSCOMBE!

CANAL CAMP

SPECIAL

EDITION

Uncr

edited p

ics

by M

art

in L

udgate

David

Mille

r

LOVABLE ROGUE: 18 months oldbaby faced. Needs life partner to enjoylongwalks inthe coun-try, shareballgames,lickingand toenjoygood anyfood anda bowl ofwater.

CHASEAWAY

my fearsand fill

my emptycracks.Seeks

stamina,stayingpower,GSOH

neededand mustbe a good

mixer.

STAFF WANTED: Unstable surfaceseeks levelling influence. Must have 3legs and one good eye. Friendship,maybe more.

BUBBLING spurting (capable of allorientations), enthusiastic with sturdyhose. Primed for action.

No apologies for the randomness ofour camp report but we did spend a littletime browsing the ‘Soul Mates’ section ofStroud Life and we were Camp 3 of 4. Wefinished what Camp 2 left and started whatCamp 4 finished and we had fun. It was alock – it was pulled down and we played ourpart in rebuilding it.

Thanks to Bernd for assisting and then lead-ing when I abandoned ship, Shantelle forassisting when I abandoned ship, Lizzie forbeautiful food all week until she abandonedship and finally the Ship Inn for not aban-doning ship or kicking us out.

Helen Gardner

GOOD LAYER REQUIRED – must beprepared to share bed with others. No ties.

WRG at 40Forty views for forty years

Continuing our series of

interviews with those involved in

WRG over the last four decades,

Helen Gardner talks to a

couple of Essex girls...

40 Views for 40 Years

The fourth in a series of articles to celebrate WRG’s 40th birthday by capturing the views ofvarious people who have been involved in various capacities.

This time it’s over to the East Midlands to meet John Baylis, WRG Director, rightthere in the beginning of WRG but still very active now. Let’s find out what goeson in that workshop in Langley Mill, and give him a chance to defend what oth-ers have said in previous interviews...

Q: How and when did you first get involved in canal restoration?A: I joined the IWA in 1969 my name and address went in the local IWAmagazine and at the same time another fellow who lived in Mansfield: MikeBriggs also joined. He rang me up to see if we wanted to go to the Sheffieldbranch meeting because that was the closest place that had branch meetings.So we agreed to go to Sheffield and the branch, in those days, was on its lastlegs, and we got several new committee members in and Mike Briggs becamethe working party organiser. So it got us doing different projects, a few locally,then we started going away for weekends and we went to the Derwent, PeakForest, Ashton. We went to Bath, the Avon (worked with Hutchins on the Avon)and did other jobs. We went, of course, to the big digs at Ashton where hesaid he’d try and get a hundred people from the Sheffield branch to go to the second Ashton. The committeesaid ‘you won’t get that – you’ll be lucky to get 50 there’. In the end he got his hundred over the 2 days.

In 1974 the old Sheffield branch became part of the new East Midlands region along with Lincoln-shire, Notts, Derby and Leicester branch and Mike became the first region chairman and on IWA council.From then on he started meeting Graham Palmer at council and they suggested that we ought to set up anEast Midlands WRG.

One of the jobs I’d sort of been looking at was the extension of the Chesterfield Canal through MorseLock so that we could get a winding hole in the Lady Lea Arm. We tried to persuade British Waterways thatit would be a relatively easy job to rebuild Morse Lock. I think if we’d done that we’d probably have goneaway. But they kept saying ‘no’ and we had a campaign. The IWA campaign rally was in Worksop in 1977and just before that I called a public meeting which formed the Chesterfield Canal Society. Since then thething has snowballed considerably. I decided not to be an officer, I thought “let them get on with it”. Aftermany years of struggling they’ve got as far as Norwood Tunnel. When we first started in 1976/77 thechances of getting up the Chesterfield Canal even as far as Shire Oaks (which is the first 7 locks) was unim-aginable. To get to the tunnel was completely out of the question.

When I sort of retired from the Chesterfield Canal Graham Palmer asked me if I’d look after the workparties at Frankton on the Mont until he could get someone local. In 1979 I started going over there regularlyto work on the Mont. Brian Haskins (the then British Waterways engineer) at Northwich (who we all calledRising Damp), he was quite keen on what we were doing. At that time Brian was the only BW engineer thatallowed volunteer work parties (I perhaps tell a lie – there were 2 of them – there was also John Freeman inWigan). North-West [WRG] had started taking lock 3 to pieces on the towpath side and we persuadedMick Golds (or Mick the Brick to give him his WRG name – Brian Haskins and Graham Palmer used to say‘his hands go like butterflies wings when he’s laying bricks’) and the Erewash gang to go and do the bricklay-ing because they were quite good at it. I think they’d taken half the length of the lock down and Mick wentto help rebuild it. When we got there we hadn’t got the right sand and there was not enough cement and thescaffolding was all nohow. Brian Haskins happened to come to a meeting that day, we were using the engi-neering bricks with 3 big holes in them and he says you don’t really want to use them underwater ‘cos they

get water in them – I want you to use solid bricks. I want you to improve the scaffolding as well. So I, as theorganiser, got to work; scaffolding was given to us by Mansfield and we needed to get it there. We loanedthe scaffolding contractors lorry to take it there one Sunday morning which was quite interesting because I gota speeding ticket on the A5 going from Shrewsbury to Oswestry. We got it there and we’d got enough toscaffold the whole length of a lock. We took the other half down and Mick started coming along and wecould do the whole run in one go. So we had 3 weekends to finish rebuilding lock 3, doing the brickwork.Then I got other groups like WRG North-West and an occasional canal camp to do some work on it.

After discussion with Brian Haskins we decided we could then have a go at the staircase lock 1. Theother chap who started helping me quite a bit was Dave Lee, who now lives in Worcester somewhere, and helived locally then and he was quite good at engineering bits and pieces and looking after the site. Me andDave often worked together, we carried on at the Mont and got lock 1 rebuilt. Lock 2 wasn’t so bad andBrian agreed that we just could do that by patching up – that was largely done by the Trent and Mersey[canal society] with Pat Osborne’s lot.

Brian Haskin decided there was a problem with leakage on the locks and he wanted it pressure grout-ing and he wanted it doing properly. So we organised a grouting contractor to come in and do the job and hedrilled and grouted on 2 and also lock 3 which was then going to be as far as we were going. The worst partof the locks was where the ground paddles were – where it was leaking through the stone work. Whenthey’d done the main contract – the 3 locks – Brian Haskins said ‘while they’re here they might as well dolock 4’ which is a lock we’d never touched. Lock 4 is an odd lock in that the bottom half is brick and thenit’s stone above low water level. The stone was basically all right. They drilled and found a cavity on bothsides behind the stone work about a foot deep and ran the whole length of the lock. So they put in quite afew tonnes of grout into both sides and were trying to do the ground paddle area and they said ‘you’ve beenhere quite a bit – you’ve seen what we’re doing – it’s daft paying us 30 quid an hour - you could do a lot ofit yourself – we’ll lend you a small grouting machine’. So I used to go over to Doncaster on a Friday nightand pick up the grouting machine and a mixing tank. We’d then drive over to the Mont – probably me, DaveTurner and anybody else that was around and we’d spend the weekend pressure grouting. Then on Mondaynight I’d take it back to Doncaster which was a round trip of about 70 miles. So we borrowed it for a whileand then they got a contract on the London Underground so we couldn’t borrow it. So I thought that we’vehad it to pieces so many times cleaning it that I know how it works; it’s a fairly simple device made out ofplumbing fittings and big ball bearings. So I made a grout pump and I’ve still got it, we still use it occasionally.Some of the ground paddles took half a tonne of cement grout on each side.

That was roughly where we left it – they put new gates in and we had an official opening in I think 1987and we were the first boat down. We actually put gates in lock 4 as well as getting it grouted, and we wentinto lock 4 and lowered the level and just opened the bottom gates and went up to the stop planks whichwere just below the tail gate. There’s a photograph somewhere of our boat with Ken Goodwin and myselflooking over the stop planks towards Queens Head. That was sort of it and we went away.

I then started with Graham doing Aston Locks and I think we started on lock 2 [and then lock 3]. Wegot that one done and then I moved out of the Aston area as manager of the job and Mike Palmer took overfrom me with Graham Deamer. He was instrumental in taking lock 1 down though I have a feeling I wasinvolved in doing the floor in that one. We needed to theoretically lower the lock because we’d lowered thecanal level by 2 feet above Aston Top Lock [Lock 1] and put the Graham Palmer lock in. Roy Sutton andmyself took one or two bricks out in the bottom and low and behold there was running sand underneath thebricks. We decided it would be impossible to take the bricks out we would just have to concrete on top of it.There was so much water coming through the springs from underneath we had to put drainage pipes in the concreteto let the water out and when the concrete had set round the drainage pipes we cut them off at water level andthen grouted them full of concrete. Graham Deamer and Mike Palmer then reduced the height. About thesame time Alan Jervis was involved in doing the nature reserve there – I did a few more bits there.

[Going back a bit] when we got to doing the scaffolding Brian Haskins was saying that you ought tohave some sort of safety booklet or guidelines. So along with Dave Carnell from Lincolnshire Branch of IWAwe wrote and printed the first WRG safety booklet which was in the early 1980s. Of course that went onfrom then. It was a 30 page A5 booklet with loads of cartoons in but it made a lot of sense and was a fairlystraightforward safety manual.

When I became involved with Graham Palmer in 74/75 Graham asked me if I’d go on the what wasthe WRG committee which was largely Graham’s cronies. There was Colin Butler who we called Boreham,John Felix, Mike Day, I think Roger Day was the treasurer, Harry Arnold and one or two more. We startedmeeting relatively regularly and we worked on the Stratford Blitz in the mid 70s. I spent a lot of time driving the oldSmalley 5 loading road stone for the dumpers to take up the track to build the road up the Wilmcote Flight.

After that I’ve worked largely with East Midlands with the ECP and DA (Erewash Canal) we’ve donequite a lot of work at Langley Mill. I originally got involved in the Erewash in 1972/73 when we came downas a visitors work party from Sheffield. When I moved up with the boat in 1974 I’ve been on their regularwork parties ever since. In those days we used to work once a month on a Sunday. The tail gates that werefitted [at Langley Mill Lock on the Erewash] were the original ones that had been recovered. We fitted themand they worked for a while but the Erewash Society had to put in a bond, about 1500 quid, to pay forrebuilding the gates should it be necessary and this bond was held by British Waterways or jointly.

Then one of the heel posts broke one day when a boat was coming up – we managed to get the topgates open and get the boat out and then when we came to pump it out we found that the pintle and thebottom joint on the [same tail] gate had disintegrated. So in those days we had a few welders around whoused to work at the pit for the National Coal Board and one of them said I could make you a steel shoe forthat. So we measured it all up on the Saturday and he went away with his disk cutter and he came back withthis steel shoe made in 10 mm steel and a metre long and half a metre wide. We bolted it on and fitted ittogether. The lock worked perfectly and it lasted like that for another two or three years by which time theErewash society had got a Shell Award to build a new set of gates.

In those days we just told BW we were going to close the lock and put stop planks in. They neverbothered us, they hardly ever came to see us and we leased the land off them. In about 87/88 we rebuilt theswing bridge which had suffered from terminal rot damage. Over the years we’ve done various other thingswith the work party.

We started doing the extension on the Cromford virtually ever since the lock [was reopened]. Whenthe lock was reopened it only went about 20 yards. British Waterways wouldn’t let volunteers do any moreso they formed themselves into the Langley Mill Boat Company and agreed with British Waterways that inorder for it to be a going concern there ought to have a dry dock. They then built the dry dock over the nextthree years and I helped with that. In ‘77 the dry dock was open. It then went very quiet because the nextbit was over the aqueduct over the Nethergreen Brook and they were concerned about how much cover wason the aqueduct. They kept saying no and eventually Mick Golds persuaded them to have a look and seehow much cover was on it. We started digging a hole over the aqueduct to try and find the top of the archand we got down 9 feet through coal silt and not found any sign of the aqueduct. So they [BW] came andhad a look at it. When we dug the canal out we dug it out 5 feet so they allowed us to do that.

At the same time alongside the canal they were doing some industrial development and they were doing quitea bit of concreting and one of the Erewash people said ‘what do you do with all your spare concrete?’ – ooh wedump it. So it suddenly became a good idea to dig the towpath side wall out and shutter it and any spare concretethey could tip in there. We got about 100 yards of wall out of that. The next bit was done by Langley Mill BoatClub themselves – they paid for it to be piled. I’ve got a feeling we did help with that. That was when the Casewas brand new – I drove the Case quite a bit levelling it all out and getting the Case stuck many times.

The Erewash Society wanted some coping stones and they were taking Portsmouth Station (which is nearHebden Bridge, Halifax) platform down and the edge copings were available. So the society by this time had got agrant, and bought £10,000 worth of stone copings which varied in size between 6 /7 feet long and approaching 3feet long. We got 3 artic lorries full of them – fortunately at the top end where we were working you could get in offthe industrial estate and you could Hiab them over the fence. We’ve used most of them now.

Wearing my WRG East Midlands hat I’ve been doing other things like making stuff for festivals – Imade some steel stillages for storing the timber on fromthe National Festival. We’ve been making some racksfor the tardis and other things and quite a lot of smallscale steel work. One of the jobs I’ve done this winteris mend the flag pole that somebody bent at Redhill –you’ll be seeing more of that. The other thing I’ve beendoing (partly Erewash and partly East Midlands WRG)is making new spring loaded paddle locks for theErewash Canal. In the late 70s British Waterways fittedthe handcuff type locks that took a long time to screw inand a long time to screw out – we suggested they oughtto use spring loaded locks.

The first National I ever went to was Birminghamin 1969. Then when it came to Nottingham in 1974 thatwas the first on we ever went to by boat. The ErewashCanal Society were doing the Lavender boat and I went Langley Mill, top of the Erewash Canal

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wearing my WRG hat and I was driving the old Ford pickup doing the dustbin emptying. Nottingham wasprobably the first rally where they’d had a major water pipe installation (because Steve Champion who wasthe son of the rally director was a plumber). After the rally we put the water pipe in the Erewash cottage atSandiacre to store it, where we stored most of the rally stuff and Steve let it out at various Nationals.

In 1978 they’d decided to have the rally at Titford; Waterway Recovery Group were involved in theinstallation of it – probably for the first time. Graham Palmer was involved in running it, Steve and myselfwent and fitted the water pipe the weekend before. I was there by boat and on the Thursday, the week beforethe rally I did the pipe work for the toilets which were in a little car park at the back of some houses and emptiedinto the main drains. Because I’d spent a couple of days piping up the toilets I was christened Bogs by GrahamPalmer and after that I’ve been known as Bogs. After that Steve and myself carried on doing the pipework atvarious places: Northwich, Tottenham, Wigan, several times at Hawksbury , Milton Keynes, Brentford. I can’tremember when we finally packed up doing it. It was eventually taken over by the WRG work camp and othersand then the original tardis came on the track and the water pipe was then stored in there.

So for a number of years we just went to the occasional national without doing much and then when itcame to Huddersfield [2002] they were looking for somebody who was going to be around for most of therally who could drive a tractor. I came on as a three week worker and started tractor driving; Mick Beattiewas the work camp leader. I also used to answer the phone as tractor 1, and at the party after the do Mickmade the comment that although I’d only got one tractor I always made it sound as if I was the first of several. I occasionally now at rallies get known as tractor rather than anything else.

Then at Runcorn [2005] it was decided that they were going to replace tardis with tardis mark 3 andBill Sinclair was packing up looking after tardis after 11 years. So I agreed to fit out the new tardis and lookafter it at subsequent rallies. I appear to have acquired a certain reputation for being mean – which I think iscompletely justified.

I still am a board member now though I don’t go to many meetings. I’ve been involved for nearly 40 years.I’ve enjoyed the work, I was an organic chemist by trade but I’ve always enjoyed mechanical work. It keeps youout of mischief and it’s somewhere to go on a Friday [Erewash work parties are held on a Friday].

Post interview note: John spoke at length about the manufacturing of the paddle locks andthe old Rushton, unfortunately I’ve had to cut that out to keep the size of the article down.We are still looking to get the interviews online (in sound format) so that you can go andlisten for yourself if you are interested.

Next, Alison Smedley MBE takes time out of Middlewich Folk and Boat Festivalto be interviewed and explain what she’s been doing on the waterways over theyears and what it was like to meet the Queen.

Q: How and when did you first get involved with canal restoration?A: My involvement in waterways goes back a lot longer than my involvement inWaterway Recovery Group. I went on my first canal holiday when I was about 3months old and later in my childhood spent 5 years living on a Humber keel on theRiver Thames. Around this time my dad had been involved a bit with WRG andhad been at the 1970 Guildford National when WRG was first formed.

We moved back to a house and carried on going on occasional canalholidays. When I was 18 I left home and decided instead of buying a flat I boughta narrow boat and lived on that for several years. I used to go to IWA NationalFestivals – 1989 Waltham Abbey would have been the first one. I used to sit and look at all these WRGpeople in their red t-shirts and thought I’d really like to join them but I never quite plucked up the courageuntil December 1992. I was living on the boat in Uxbridge and I went along to an IWA social meeting wherethe speaker was supposed to have been Martin Ludgate, but in fact it was Tim Lewis standing in for MartinLudgate, talking about WRG. That one evening changed my entire life because I decided to get involved withIWA on the committee; it was then the Middlesex section of the London branch. I became secretary andlater became London region secretary. The first dig of 1993 – I was on London WRG’s dig. That year Iwent on almost every dig that London WRG did. I threw myself into it very enthusiastically with Martin,Lesley, Tim and co. That was the start of my involvement with WRG.

Q: What made you come back then?A: I went on my first dig; it was cold – we were working at Boxwell Springs Lock and were staying in

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Siddington. I remember working really really hard to try and impress everybody. We were physically diggingsilt out of the top of the bywash. I was absolutely aching by the time I got back home but I really enjoyed itand so I came back. We went all over the place that year.

Q: Since then what’s been the nature of your involvement?A: I carried on. Later that year I started going out with Rupert who was also digging with London WRG.He has an historic narrowboat so that involved doing quite a lot of boating. So as well as a bit of boating onmy own boat, which I was living on still, we were travelling across the country quite a lot and going off boat-ing. By 1994 we spent time gallivanting around the Midlands so that didn’t allow quite so much time forgoing on digs but we were still on quite a few of them right up to the time where we left London in 2000. Wehad got married in 1996 and by 1999 had found a house to move to on the Caldon Canal with moorings atthe bottom of the garden.

In the meantime I’d been pretty involved with IWA in London. So when we moved up to the CaldonCanal near Leek we got quite involved straight away with the local canal society. Since then we’ve carriedon going on occasional London WRG digs especially if they’re further north. We got involved with the localIWA branch, (me as secretary) and Rupert and I both got involved with the Caldon Canal Society and Ibecame work party organiser.

Eventually we got some work going on on the top lock of the Uttoxeter Canal at Froghall so that meantthat rather than being a volunteer on a weekend dig I was actually hosting the digs as a work party organiser.Although we only lived a few miles down the road from where the accommodation usually was, Rupert and Iwould both go and stay in the accommodation.

Q: Tell me a bit more about the Caldon CanalA: By the time we arrived the Caldon Canal Society were a bit worried about people overstaying on long-term moorings and hadn’t done very much active restoration since the Caldon Canal had been reopened in1974. There were murmurings about doing things down at Froghall and at the end of the Leek Arm. After afew years funding became available though the EDF (European Development Fund) and British Waterwayswere involved with the project. What we put into the project was £45,000 worth of volunteer work asmatched funding. It’s opened up the first lock of the Uttoxeter Canal and the Caldon and Uttoxeter CanalsTrust (as it’s now [known]). The basin was completely overgrown, most people didn’t know it was there.If you have visited Froghall, which is the terminus of the Caldon Canal, there’s a pretty wharf, a little carpark,ice cream shop; people wouldn’t know that the basin was there. You could see where the canal went off it ifyou knew what you were looking for – the top endof the lock had been filled in and you could walkdown the lock chamber.

Q: What work did WRG do?A: The tree felling – WRG forestry were veryinvolved: Tenko, Sparky, Alison, and Clive. Theywould come up – there were several weekendswhen we had WRG-NW or London WRG comingup for the weekend – they would come up the daybefore and fell some trees so that we had somethingto get started on. We had 3 canal camps: the firstwas led by Mike Palmer, the second by HelenGardner and I think there was another one . Whathappened was: towards the end of the project Idiscovered I was expecting a baby so I handed overmy role to John Ryder. I think there was anothercamp just before the reopening – that Easter. I wasn’t involved then because I had a tiny baby to look after.July 2005 was the reopening and that was quite an occasion; we had the first boats come down the lock intothe basin. So that was quite an achievement and it was really good to have been involved with that project.

Hopefully we’ll have some work coming up further down the canal later this year [2010]. Recently I’ve justbecome work party organiser again. We had a feasibility study completed last year which says it is feasible, evenwhere a lot of people might think that’s a bit of a dead duck because you’ve got some quite tight confines in thevalley with the [derelict] railway. There are odd bits of canal that remain but most of it is now the line of the railwaywhich is now a popular footpath. Basically it’s feasible and it’ll cost about 90 million.

“Quite an occasion” - Froghall reopening

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Q: What’s the appeal of the Caldon and Uttoxeter Canals?A: I first went along the Caldon Canal in 1990 when I was still living on my boat. I gave up my job andspent 6 months travelling round most of the canal system. The Caldon Canal was my favourite canal, Ihappened to be going along it in May when the bluebells were out and it left an impression on me. I neverdreamt I would be living on it. Then when Rupert and I were looking for somewhere to live out of Londonwe were fortunate enough to come by the cottage that we live in now. 1998 we were heading north to theSalford National Festival and we’d allowed a few extra days in the schedule to do the Caldon Canal, be-cause Rupert hadn’t done it. We went along the canal and went round the bend by what is now our house,and went aground as you tend to do in Ben and deep draughted working boats in general. The people in thegarden passed the time of day with us and it turned out that they knew Rupert vaguely and they knew theboat particularly. Then the following year we were at the Braunston Boat Show (before it moved to Crick)and we were chatting to these people and Rupert said ‘that’s a nice place you’ve got there on the Caldon’and he (Mike Dobson) said ‘it is, isn’t it – do you want to buy it?’. It turned out they were looking to moveand they were very keen to sell the house to someone who was going to carry on being involved.

It’s quite an interesting house from that point of view because the people who bought it in the 1960swere some of the original founders of the Caldon Canal Society (Ben Fradley – he was secretary for quite along time). Then Mike and Shirley Dobson had been involved as secretary and treasurer. If you go backbefore that in the 1930s,40s and 50s the house was lived in by a family who ran a horse boat for BoltonCopper Works.

Q: What have you done within the IWA?A: When we moved to Staffordshire I had couple of months off and then about the 2nd newsletter we gotsaid they were desperate for a secretary so I thought ‘oh well – I suppose I’d better go back to it then’.I’ve been secretary more or less ever since – I had 2 years as chairman but one of those I was secretary andchairman. I’ve also been on the IWA region committee for most of those years. I also spent 6 years as anelected council member on IWA council. That was fascinating: I got quite involved in the navigation commit-tee – quite enjoyed being in working groups formulating policies on locks and movable bridges and towingpaths and things. I used to do the minutes for the navigation committee meetings. Then being on council wasquite an experience as well actually – just the responsibility of being a trustee of a national charity. The onlycouncil meeting I missed in those 6 years was the one about a week after I’d had Peter – I was back onboard 2 months later. By the time the 2nd term came to an end Peter was about 18 months old and I thoughtit was time to give it a break. Then about 2 years later I ended up doing about 18 months as WesternRegion Chairman just prior to the reorganisation of the IWA regions.

Q: You’ve recently been awarded an MBE – can you talk us through that?A: I opened this letter on a Saturday afternoon and I just didn’t believe it. I thought ‘no – they’ve made amistake’ so I had to phone the cabinet office on the Monday to say ‘are you sure?’. I was assured yesyou’ve been awarded an MBE – are you going to accept? I had to send the forms back and I ticked thebox that said I would be prepared for some publicity because I thought the canals would then benefit out ofit. But I then regretted it when I had to be interviewed on Radio Stoke at 8am in the morning of the day itwas announced, having lain awake all night worrying about what questions I was going to be asked.

I feel very much that I’m part of a team really especially locally. Stoke on Trent branch and the Caldonand Uttoxeter Canals Trust – the two organisations work quite closely together and we all work quite well asa team. So I don’t really feel like I deserve to be singled out in anyway. I’m very honoured but there’s lotsof people who deserve it just as much as me.

I’m also secretary of the Historic Narrow Boat Owners Club and we had the AGM on the Saturday, on theWednesday was the ceremony at Buckingham Palace, the Friday of the same week was the IWA branch AGM,quickly followed by region AGM, then a committee meeting and Mothering Sunday. So it was the worst possibleweek that the Queen could have invited me but it was good – it was quite an experience. We stayed down for acouple of nights and we met up with a few London WRG people in the pub afterwards.

Q: What did you say to the Queen?A: She asked me ‘what my involvement was with the waterways’ – because she’d been primed. Thiswas after I’d had to curtsey and walk forwards to this little stage she was standing on. I replied that I’d beeninvolved helping organise events, lots of administration and minutes. I’ve done 300 and something sets ofminutes in my 17 years. I think I mentioned canal restoration as well. She said that she understood thatcanals were very popular these days – to which I replied – yes they are but there’s still a lot of work to be

done because of the funding cuts. At the point she offered me her hand which was an indication that theinterview was at an end. So I shook her hand, stepped 3 or 4 steps backwards as instructed, curtsied againand went away. In the meantime she’d pinned the medal onto my dress.

Q: The BCN Marathon Challenges – tell us about that?A: The BCN Marathon Challenge was an event that was run by Helen and Chris Davey and Alan Jervis –it ran for about 10 years. We took part for about 8 of those 10 years mostly on Ben, one year we joinedpeople on Fulbourne. It was an amazing intense 24 hours of boating – mostly pulling on ropes, pushing withpoles and getting stuck in the mud, going aground, having to clear the propeller, having to go into the canal toclear the propeller. It was started because there was a perceived threat to navigation at night. So Helen,Chris and Alan decided to formulate an event that involved having to boat through the night to prove the point thatwe could boat through the night. The first event ran for 24 hours, subsequently they changed the rules so that youcould moor up for 6 hours. You had to boat for 24 hours out of 30 – we tended to have our 6 hours rest in thepub. We aimed to get 6 or 7 people on board for the weekend and have a bit of sleep in shifts. I remember wewent into Netherton Tunnel in the dark at 4 o’clock in the morning one year and as we went underneath each airshaft we looked up and it was getting lighter. It was quite light by the time we came out the other end.

We ended up in the first series of Water World. We had this cameraman on board for the best part ofthe day on the Sunday - Ed Walker nearly knocked him in the canal with one end of the pole. We had agood team on board that year.

Q: Have you done any canal camps?A: Only parts of camps - I did part of one at the London Canal Museum in the ice pits. That’s probablyabout it really! The National Festival I’m always there with my IWA hat on.

Q: What would you say WRG’s greatest achievement has been?A: Generally, the increased number of available miles to navigate – especially back in the last 10 years. 2001 -2002 there were a lot of waterways being reopened and although WRG haven’t done all that work, a lot of it’sdown to the canal societies, WRG are there to support the societies and provide the manpower when needed.

Q: What would you say WRG was good at?A: Encompassing everybody – everybody and anybody is welcome. That’s what I notice quite a lot. Onthe camps we had at Froghall the Duke of Edinburgh people were made to feel just as welcome, we hadsome from overseas. It’s quite laid back – there’s not that much bureaucracy – we obviously have to dohealth and safety paperwork. That’s changed a lot in the 18 years I’ve been involved – we used to go to thepub at lunchtimes with London WRG when I was first digging. It seems to work as an organisation.

Q: Who has inspired you?A: I suppose Tim Lewis must have inspired me on that first December social meeting. Since then – MartinLudgate – from the first London WRG drink that I went to – inspired me with his enthusiasm. And Neil Edwardshas inspired me particularly with the IWA side of things rather than WRG – he’s been my mentor I would say.

Q: What’s the most useful skill you’ve learnt and who did you learn it from?A: Early on I remember my dad being particularly proud of the fact that I’d spent the previous weekendbeing trained how to drive a dumper. I think that got mentioned in his speech at our wedding.

Q: What has changed for canal restoration?A: There’s definitely more health and safety related things – which is obviously good. Apart from that nota lot has changed about going on a dig: lots of fresh air, hard work, just getting on with it.

Q: Where do you see WRG’s future?A: Hopefully carrying on what we’re doing now – that would be good. With British Waterways looking tomove into the third sector it ought to become easier to work on a wider range of projects. Let’s hope it doesbecome easier. I think there’s more scope for getting more people involved although I think there’s a dangerthat British Waterways and WRG are going to be fighting for the same volunteers. British Waterways seemto be going down the lines of it’s not about working in partnership with existing volunteer organisations – it’sabout getting their own volunteers. There’s only a certain amount of people in this country who are going tovolunteer on the waterways. IWA and WRG might find it harder.

Then and Now

As WRG approaches its 40th birthday, it’s amazing to think how things havechanged since the beginning. In 1970, the waterways were run down and neglected bygovernment, funding was hard to come by and WRG was a rag tag bunch of poorly organ-ised eccentrics in C+A cagoules desperately trying to make a difference.

Fortunately things are very different now: we no longer have C+A.

Here are some other differences between then and now:

THEN NOW

Dingy scout hut with picturecommemorating the Queen’scoronation.

Dark smoky den with vio-lently patterned carpets and a‘family room’. Beer 2 shillings(10p) a pint.

Dusty old Bee Gees tapefound in glove compartment

Pie and a couple pints in thenearest pub. Marathon barfor treats.

Muttered warning about limemortar, box of stickingplasters

Bell bottomed trouserstucked into wellies, woollyjumper, C+A cagoule

Despairing of British Water-ways Board

To restore the canal networkfor the benefit of all, hope-fully with help from the newTory government

An ambitious and energeticPalmer

Theaccommodation

The pub

The music

Lunch

Health & safety

The gear

The politics

The motivation

The leadership

Spanking new village hall paid forwith Millennium Commissionfunds.

Dark, smoke-free den withviolently patterned carpets anda wide-screen TV. Beer £3.20a pint.

Dusty old Bee Gees CD found inglove compartment

Sandwich with wholemeal bread,baked-not-fried crisps and a pieceof fruit. Mr Kipling for treats.

90 minute H+S talk includingvideo, full first aid kit and we’resaving up for a defibrillator

Supermarket jeans tucked intosteellies, woolly jumper, Primarkcagoule

Despairing of British Waterways(formerly known as BW Board)

To restore the canal network forthe benefit of all, hopefully withhelp from the new mostly-Torygovernment

A different ambitious and energeticPalmer

Primark has replaced

C&A as main supplier of

WRGie fashions, but has

anything else changed in

four decades?

40 years onThen and now

Navvies diaryYour guide to all the forthcoming work partiesAug 21 Sat WRG 40th Birthday Party at the IWA National Festival site, Beale Park

Aug 22 Sun EAWA/NWDCT North Walsham & Dilham Canal: Bacton Wood area

Aug 23-Sep 2Camp 201020 National Festival at Beale Park: Site Services. Cost £80. Leaders: Mitch

Aug 28-30 KESCRG Bhaji stand at National, Beale Park

Sep 3-9 WAT Wendover Arm: Seven-day weekend. Stage 2 pipe capping and moorin

Sep 4/5 Essex WRG Lichfield & Hatherton Canals

Sep 4 Sat wrgNW ‘Paper Chase’ waste paper collection

Sep 5 Sun EAWA/NWDCT North Walsham & Dilham Canal: Bacton Wood area

Sep 11/12 KESCRG Cotswold Canals: Eisey Lock. Dig Deep project

Sep 11/12 London WRG Cotswold Canals: Goughs Orchard Lock. Joint with WRG SW, and includes

Sep 11/12 NWPG Wey & Arun Canal

Sep 11/12 wrgSW Cotswold Canals: Gough’s Orchard Lock. Joint dig with London WRG.

Sep 18/19 wrgNW Lichfield Canal: Joint dig with BITM.

Sep 18/19 wrgBITM Lichfield Canal: Joint dig with wrgNW.

Sep 19 Sun EAWA/NWDCT North Walsham & Dilham Canal: Honing Staithe Cut

Sep 19 Sun WRG Committee & Board Meetings

Oct 1-7 WAT Wendover Arm: Seven-day weekend. Stage 2 pipe capping and moorin

Oct 2/3 KESCRG Wey & Arun Canal

Oct 2/3 Essex WRG Foxton Inclined Plane: (Accommodation at Lubenham)

Oct 2/3 London WRG Chelmer & Blackwater Navigation

Oct 9 Sat wrgNW ‘Paper Chase’ waste paper collection

Oct 10 Sun EAWA/NWDCT North Walsham & Dilham Canal: Briggate

Oct 16/17 wrgNW Hollinwood Canal

Oct 16/17 wrgBITM Grantham Canal: Cropwell Bishop. Scrub bashing and stump pulling near Josh

Oct 16/17 London WRG To be arranged, maybe Ipswich

Oct 23/24 wrgSW Grand Western Canal: Start of week-long camp

Oct 23-30 Camp 201021 Grand Western Canal: Scrub bashing, tree felling, restoration work in th

Oct 23-30 Camp 201022 Chelmer & Blackwater Navigation: Bank protection, painting, towpath c

Oct 24 Sun EAWA/NWDCT North Walsham & Dilham Canal: Briggate

Nov 5-11 WAT Wendover Arm: Seven-day weekend. Stage 2 pipe capping and moorin

Nov 6/7 WRG Reunion Bonfire Bash: Montgomery Canal. Please book using form on

Nov 6/7 wrgNW WRG Reunion Bonfire Bash on the Montgomery Canal

Nov 6/7 KESCRG WRG Reunion Bonfire Bash on the Montgomery Canal

Nov 6/7 London WRG WRG Reunion Bonfire Bash on the Montgomery Canal

Canal Camps cost £56 per week unless otherwise stated. Bookings

for WRG Canal Camps (those identified by a camp number e.g.

'Camp 201020') should go to WRG Canal Camps, Island House,

Moor Road, Chesham HP5 1WA. Tel: 01494 783453.

Email: [email protected]

Jude Palmer 07739-045326 [email protected]

David Revill 01603-738648 [email protected]

Gozna and Kirsty Wallace 01494-783453 [email protected]

Eddie Jones 0845-226-8589 [email protected]

ng wall. Roger Leishman 01442-874536 [email protected]

John Gale 01376-334896 [email protected]

David McCarthy 0161-740-2179



s half-AGM Tim Lewis 07802-518094 [email protected]

Bill Nicholson 01844-343369 [email protected]

Harri Barnes 07745-752045 [email protected]

David McCarthy 0161-740-2179 [email protected]

Dave Wedd 01252-874437 [email protected]


Mike Palmer 01564-785293 [email protected]



John Gale 01376-334896 [email protected]

Tim Lewis 07802-518094 [email protected]

David McCarthy 0161-740-2179



hua Manns Bridge. Dave Wedd 01252-874437 [email protected]


Harri Barnes 07745-752045 [email protected]

he main chamber of Nynehead Lift 01494-783453 [email protected]

clearance and general repairs. 01494-783453 [email protected]



page 7 01494-783453 [email protected]




Once per month: pls check BCNS BCN waterways Mike Rolfe 07763-1717352nd Sunday & alternate Thurs BCS Buckingham area Athina Beckett 01908-661217Anytime inc. weekdays BCT Aqueduct section Gerald Fry 01288-353273Every Sunday ChCT Various sites Mick Hodgetts 01246-620695Every Tue & Wed C&BN Chelmer & Blackwater John Gale 01376-334896Every Saturday DCT Droitwich Canal Jon Axe 0121-608 02962nd & last Sunday of month EAWA N Walsham & Dilham David Revill 01603-7386484th Sunday of month ECPDA Langley Mill Michael Golds 0115-932-8042Second Sun of month FIPT Foxton Inclined Plane Mike Beech 0116-279-26572nd weekend of month GCRS Grantham Canal Colin Bryan 0115-989-22482nd Sat of month GWCT Nynehead Lift Denis Dodd 01823-661653Tuesdays H&GCT Oxenhall Brian Fox 01432 358628Weekends H&GCT Over Wharf House Maggie Jones 01452 618010Wednesdays H&GCT Over Wharf House Wilf Jones 01452 413888Weekends H&GCT Hereford Aylestone Martin Danks 01432 344488Every Sunday if required IWPS Bugsworth Basin Ian Edgar 01663-7324932nd Sunday of month LCT Lancaster N. Reaches Paul Shaw 01524-356851st, 2nd, 4th Sun + 3rd Sat LHCRT Lichfield Sue Williams 01543-6714273rd Sunday of month LHCRT Hatherton Denis Cooper 01543-374370Last weekend of month MBBCS Creams Paper Mill Steve Dent 07802-9732282nd & 4th Sundays NWDCT N Walsham Canal David Revill 01603-7386482nd & last Sundays PCAS Pocklington Canal Paul Waddington 01757-638027Every Wed and 1st Sat RGT Stowmarket Navigtn. Colin Turner 01473-7305862nd Sunday of month SCARS Sankey Canal Colin Greenall 01744-7317461st Sunday of month SCCS Combe Hay Locks Bob Parnell 01225-428055Most weekends SHCS Basingstoke Peter Redway 01483-721710Last weekend of month SCS Stover Canal George Whitehead 01626-7754982nd Sunday of month SNT Sleaford Navigation Mel Sowerby 01522-8568101st weekend of month SUCS Newhouse Lock Mike Friend 01948-880723Every Tuesday morning TMCA Thames & Medway C Brian Macnish 01732-823725Every Sunday & Thurs WACT varied construction Eric Walker 023-9246-3025Mondays (2 per month) WACT tidying road crossings John Empringham 01483-562657Wednesdays WACT Tickner's Heath Depot John Smith 01903-235790Wednesdays WACT maintenance work Peter Jackman 01483-772132Wednesdays WACT Loxwood Link Peter Wilding 01483-422519Thursdays WACT Winston Harwood Grp Tony Clear 01903-774301Various dates WACT Hedgelaying (Oct-Mar) Keith Nichols 01403-7538821st w/e (Fri-Tue or Fri-Wed) WAT Drayton Beauchamp Roger Leishman 01442-8745362nd Thursday of month WAT Drayton Beauchamp Pete Bowers 01255-504540Every weekend WBCT Wilts & Berks Canal Rachael Banyard 01249-892289

Abbreviations used in diaryBCNS Birmingham Canal Navigations Soc.BCS Buckingham Canal SocietyBCT Bude Canal TrustChCT Chesterfield Canal TrustCBN Chelmer & Blackwater NavigationCCT Cotswolds Canals TrustDCT Droitwich Canals TrustEAWA East Anglian Waterways AssociationECPDA Erewash Canal Pres. & Devt. Assoc.FIPT Foxton Inclined Plane TrustGCRS Grantham Canal Restoration SocietyGWCT Grand Western Canal TrustH&GCT Hereford & Gloucester Canal TrustIWPS Inland Waterways Protection SocietyK&ACT Kennet & Avon Canal TrustKESCRG Kent & E Sussex Canal Rest. Group

LCT Lancaster Canal TrustLHCRT Lichfield & Hatherton Canals Rest'n TrustMBBCS Manchester Bolton & Bury Canal SocietyNWPG Newbury Working Party GroupNWDCT North Walsham & Dilham Canal TrustPCAS Pocklington Canal Amenity SocietyRGT River Gipping TrustSCARS Sankey Canal Restoration SocietySCCS Somersetshire Coal Canal SocietySHCS Surrey & Hants Canal SocietySCS Stover Canal SocietySNT Sleaford Navigation TrustSUCS Shropshire Union Canal SocietyTMCA Thames & Medway Canal AssociationWACT Wey & Arun Canal TrustWAT Wendover Arm TrustWBCT Wilts & Berks Canal Trust

Mobile groups' socials(please phone to confirm)

London WRG: 7:30pm on Tues 11 days before dig. 'StarTavern', Belgrave Mews West, London. Tim Lewis 07802-518094NWPG: 9:00pm on 3rd Tue of month at the 'Hope Tap', Westend of Friar St. Reading. Graham Hawkes 0118 941 0586

Navvies diaryCanal societies’ regular working partiesAmendments to Dave Wedd (see previous page)

Lettersto the editor

Dear MartinRegarding your editorial comments about BritishWaterways, volunteers, trade unions etc:

My knowledge of British WaterwaysBoard/Volunteers issues from the distant pastseems to be bound up with the state of thecountry’s finances as well as the elephantinememories of the unionised labour force. It isnot surprising that when the existence ofjobs is not looking too reliable then the guysshould be worried about theirs. However,we found in early WRG days that “Volun-teers” to trade unions still meant strike-busters, as though the 1926 General Strikewas but yesterday. Students of that time willremember that “Volunteers” were peoplewho kept services going and thus were indirect opposition to unions.

It is vital that the waterway movementin general engage with the unions repre-sented on the canals and rivers to show thatwe have only ever been interested in doingwhat BWB had no intention of doing them-selves. Until 1968 the government had aduty to maintain the waterways (but did notdo so) and afterwards undertook to maintainthe “cruiseways”, albeit to a much reducedstandard. With only a couple of exceptionswe refused to do anything on the track thatBWB were supposed to maintain - and Iguess that is still so. The exceptions werewhere we undertook exercises to shame theBWB, and always, always to gain publicity forthe cause. We can restore very little our-selves, and have no chance of providingsensible maintenance so we must supportBWB in finding ways and means of fundingtheir work. Modern volunteers may well givea good deal of help in that, if the workers areshown on what basis people volunteer.

As to recent apparent BWB cock-ups:Do the men understand why they are beingasked to support volunteers? How good isthe management of the labour force? Cometo that, how good is the labour force? Exboatmen and long serving “canal company”men are a thing of the past; have they beenreplaced by people of quality? How dedi-cated to work are they, or are they simplyhacked off with crap management and lackof funding? Did the managers plan thesupport of our people in a timely manner, ordid they ask that stop planks be delivered ifand when they have time for it?

As we approach a tighter budget foreverything, yet wish to do things that mayquite easily be seen as threatening against a

long time background of very mixedprogress for BWB; the waterway movementtogether needs to build contacts at all levelswith the workforce. It needs to be the firstcall on IWA. I point out that the volunteermovement on the waterways, leading up tothe start of WRG, was because IWA wasdoing bugger all (with the notable exceptionof the Birmingham Branch). I am long re-tired from such struggles, but I do hope thatIWA has more gumption than then. I amheartened that WRG still seems to delight-fully active.

Mike DayDear MartinMy partner Linda and I have just finished ourfirst camp (Montgomery 3 – 10 July), andwhat a good experience it was. A fantasticgroup of people, a good mix of male andfemale, and age ranges from teens to thosein the autumn of our lives (or early winter inmy case). I think most of us enjoyed htework and after a few days had become ex-pert stone wall builders!

Happy to make mention of a few peo-ple who made the week go well. Firstly Claire(Dippy) and Any who worked tirelessly in thekitchen to produce fantastic meals all week.Also Steve Harmes and Chris Colborne thecamp leaders, who managed to organise usinto a reasonably efficient workforce. Theyalso had to drive us to site each day, thenagain several miles to the local swimmingpool for showers daily, not to mention nu-merous diversions to local supermarkets.Finally and probably the worst sacrifice,having to stay sober on evenings out to thelocal pub! Medals should be awarded.

Be nice to think that we shall all meetup again one day.

Yours sincerelyMike Bothwell

PS if you ever do another worst job survey,can I nominate counting equipment at end ofcamp, especially small items? I can onlyassume there must have been some historicevent in the past eg the Great Ear Plug andTeaspoon Robbery of 1998...

The SurveyBogs, pubs and interviewees...

7% of volunteers

might not know what

gender they are, but

they know what kind

of toilet they want!

40 interviews: who next?

We ran two surveys in the last issue, one serious and one perhaps slightly less so. First let’shear from Helen Gardner about the interviewees survey:

Possibly our most serious survey to date and the results are in: who would you like to seeinterviewed in the ‘40 views for 40 years’ series? And the winners are myself and Mr Mac.There have already been murmurings about interviewing me with several volunteers offeringto conduct the interview – I have caved in. The intention is to make me number 40 thusputting off the inevitable for ages.

Of course the series would not be complete without interviewing Mr Mac and the inter-view was started but delayed owing to technical difficulties; however it will recommencesoon. And yes we will address the concept of ‘valuable merchandise’ – it’s not tat.

Most of the other suggestions were already on my list of potential victims so good toknow we’re all thinking along the same lines apart from: (a) Graham Palmer on account thathe died many years ago and (b) I’m not interviewing a teddy bear. Forthcoming interviewswill include Bungle and Mick Beattie.

Finally to the person who suggested interviewing Martin Ludgate – I suggest you goback to the beginning of the series and read the first interview because we’ve already inter-viewed him – glad it was a riveting read – I can’t imagine it would get more interestingsecond time round...

Helen Gardner

Places to go...

We had an unusually large response rate for our Navvies loo survey. More than two thirds ofrespondants were men so perhaps it was no surprise that 80% of respondants were quitehappy behind a bush. Only 7% of respondants insisted on walking to the nearest properlavatory. And only 17% would actually walk more than 10 minutes for a proper indoor loo -and if you’ve visited Eisey you’ll know that it often isn’t worth the effort of getting there!

Of men: Only 10% would rather have a toilet tent, the vast majority being quitehappy behind a bush. Over 93% wouldn’t walk more than 10 minutes from site for aproper indoor loo.

Of women: Whilst 50% were quite happy behind a bush, 15% insisted on at least atoilet tent and over 30% preferred to walk to an indoor toilet. 30% were willling to walk upto 15 minutes to the nearest proper facilities.

Other: Around 7% of respondants considered their gender to be ‘other’. Although thissmall group claimed to be quite happy behind a bush, 50% would walk ‘a thousand miles’ touse a proper indoor lavatory. Go figure.

And the next survey: OK we’ve dealt with getting rid of bodily liquids, so now let’sconsider the other side of the equation. We want to know your favourite pubs where water-ways volunteers drink. Nominate your best one at http://tiny.cc/WRGpubs

Do you have a favourite WRGies’ pub?

Nominate it at http://tiny.cc/WRGpubs

Our regular roundup of

progress around the

system begins in the

south on the Wey &

Arun Canal...

ProgressWey & Arun Canal

Wey & Arun Canal

Following the opening of Devil’s Hole Lockattention has moved to the next lock in theRiver Wey direction, namely Southland. Thisis the one where a badger sett now occupiesthe site of the former lock bridge and isadding to the complications. WACT has to gothrough a planning application procedure,and although the local wildlife conservationexperts are happy with the restoration pro-posals, any other comments have to becarefully considered by Chichester DC beforepermission can be granted and work started.The proposal is to move the lock about 10mfurther ‘upstream’ – which won’t be as difficultas it sounds, as all of the original brick wallshave been ‘recycled’ so a complete rebuildwould be needed anyway. The training wallswill extend southwards past the badger sett,to prevent flooding of the tunnels.

Before tackingthe lock, Eric Walker’sworking group hasbeen rebuilding theculvert below the locksite.

A presentlyneglected area nearthe River Wey junctionis to benefit fromlandscaping workthanks to a generoussix-figure bequestfrom the Ed and DorisHunt Memorial Fund.The Hunts came fromLoxwood, so knew thecanal, and the plansfor improvements atShalford are just thesort of conservationproject of which theywould have approved.Although it is too soonfora return to naviga-tion here, the workwill open the area to

the public and demonstrate the ‘green corri-dor’ concept which establishes the restoredcanal as a universal amenity.

WACT is cooperating with the LoxwoodSociety and the local Parish Council in a fundraising exercise to provide new parapets forthe main road bridge, opened in 2009. Thecurrent metal railings were demanded by thehighway authority, and few people like theirappearance, so the plan is – again subject toplanning permission - to replace them withbrick-faced concrete walls topped with a lessobtrusive railing, which should satisfy bothaesthetic and safety standards.

As always, volunteer work continueswith new projects and maintenance of exist-ing sections along the length of the canal,with different working parties active almostevery day of the week. Details at the web site(as above)

Bill Thomson

Rebuilding under way on the culvert below Southland Lock

WA

CT

ProgressNorth Walsham & Dilham

...and continues with

news of some good

progress on a rather

obscure waterway in

deepest Norfolk...

North Walsham & Dilham Canal

Generally speaking, 2009-10 has been a yearof great progress for the North Walsham &Dilham Canal Trust. Mindful of the fact thatwork does not only mean wielding a shoveland saw, we have launched ourselves at the‘administration’ of the country. To this end,meetings have been held with Natural Eng-land (and they have no objections to therebuilding of the locks – in writing!), TheBroads Authority (albeit our work lies outsidetheir area of navigational jurisdiction), andNorth Norfolk District Council EnvironmentHealth Services, (re flooding in the NorthWalsham area and the lessening thereof byre-enabling the powers of the canal). Liaisonwith Mrs Harvey (owner of the formerWherry Inn); Mr A Paterson; the directors ofthe North Walsham Canal Co; the directors ofthe Old Canal Company (Mr & Mrs L Ashton)and speaking with Norfolk County Council(Footpaths, highways and bridges) and otherland owners adjacent to the canal and millponds at Ebridge and Briggate, with a meet-ing planned with the owner of land adjacentto Swafield Bridge (the most northerly pointof our canal area).

Through a contact made by Ivan Cane,we ‘assisted’ during a programmeon BBC Radio Norfolk called Treas-ure Quest in which I placed a ‘clue’on the paddle gear at EbridgeLock. This was duly found by thefield team and broadcast to theknown world (i.e. Norfolk!). Fol-lowing this I received a call fromthe producer of the programmewith an invitation to go to BBCRadio Norfolk’s studios in Norwichand to take place in about 20minutes of air time. Chris Black(my number one and vice-chair-man of the NW&DC Trust) accom-panied my there. Very good adver-tising!

We held a total of 21 workparties on the following seven sites:

Former Wherry Inn at RoystonBridge: This old pub lies beside the canalon the Bacton Road out of North Walsham.The canal here is dry and has not beenworked on by us at all. After contacting andmeeting the owner, Mrs Harvey (a lovely ladywho walked me for miles!) we had just onework party there to make a start in thatregion. The original breach in the canal issome 400 yards north of that bridge and it isplanned to continue clearing this stretch ofall trees and bushes in the coming year(2010-11).

Bacton Wood Lock: More progressmade here than could have been envisaged!Mr Laurie Ashton, using his Hymac clearedout the old gates and debris from the lockchamber and revealed the original timberbase. He cleared the paddle chambers ofdebris including barbed wire, bricks, metalbars and concrete. They are in remarkablygood condition and do not need any workcarrying out to them before re-use. Using hisown bricklayer, after our brick-removal an-tics, the re-construction has progressed verywell and now one can see the paddle gearre-installed to one side of the mouth with theother set of gear ready to go in. Some partsof the chamber walls have also been re-

Bacton Wood Lock

NW

&D

CT

bricked. A shed (enormous!) has been builtto permit the construction of lock gates in aprotected environment. Exciting times!

Ebridge area: Most of the work car-ried out here has been concentrated on theremoval of trees and debris from the canalbed and banks northwards from the lock inthe direction of Bacton Wood Lock. Someother work has been done to the trees inter-fering with the BT cables over the mill pondwall. A dredger has now been launched intothe mill pond in readiness for work in thatpond and upstream. There is still a landownership question to the east of the lock.

Briggate Mill Pond: This is an areawhere I do feel a little disappointed that wecould not have gone further – but then theBritish weather does have a lot to answer for!The Team has performed absolutely bril-liantly here and such a change has takenplace. The boundaries of the mill pond havebeen set (according to those taken from theold ordnance survey drawings) and part ofthe inlet from the canal dredged. The cham-ber island is slowly being rebuilt with thespoil, but so much needs to be done. How-ever, by the end of the coming season (alsointerfered with by the bird nesting period)we should have all of the brash and hope-fully all the requiredtrees out of the way,making this a place tosit and watch theworld go by.

Honing StaitheCut and walk: Thisarea has been workedon, not as a newproject any more, butas an improvementplan to that which wehave already achieved.There was a lot to do,and still is, butprogress has beenmade and the better-ment can be readilyseen. The walk, bothalong the sides of theCut and also along thebank of the canal andon its return throughthe wood towardsWeavers Way, is ex-ceptionally well usedand local people dotalk about it in a fa-

vourable way. The Canal Walk has also re-ceived a “Community Highly Commended”Environment Award 2009 from the NorthNorfolk District Council.

Honing Canal – Between the cutand Honing Lock: This is a difficult area!However, with co-operation once more fromMr A Paterson, we have made great progressalong the western bank that it only needs afurther couple of work parties to see usthrough to the lock. The banks will present aproblem owing to lack of access for plant,but I can see that being overcome in duetime.

Honing Lock: With only two workparties here in the year, it has been a case ofclearing up rather than progressing further.However, with plans now in place for portagepoints for the canoes, the future is not look-ing too disappointing in this area. Plantaccess to the lock, and canal water diversionfrom it, for when re-building can take placehas already been brought to the attention ofthe NWCCo for consideration.

David E RevillWork Party Organiser

[From the annual report of the North Walsham& Dilham Canal Trust to the East AnglianWaterways Association]

The North Walsham

and Dilham Canal

N

ProgressL&H and Sussex Ouse

Sussex Ouse

Good progress at Isfield Lock: Followinga very dry spring in the southeast the volun-teer groups working on the restoration ofIsfield Lock on the River Ouse were able tobegin work earlier in the season whilst en-joying good conditions on site.

The Trust has acquired a good condi-tion two tonne dumper, so vital given theamount of spoil and earth that will requiremoving about the site during the next phaseof the restoration.

After the restoration of the east cham-ber wall and the upper and lower east wingwalls, the next phase involves the restorationof the west wall. Prior to work beginning theTrust was anticipating that this task wouldoccupy at least five years work, restoringshort sections per year.

However hopes were raised somewhatonce digging out behind the first section ofthe wall began when it was soon apparentthat the wall, or certainly the first sectiontackled, was in better shape than anticipated.However the reinforcement of the first sec-tion still demanded the removal of a consid-erable amount of spoil and the new dumpercame into its own.

At the time of writing the digging outof that first section is complete and the rein-forced concrete structure designed to stabi-lise and support the wall is being built.Demolition of the inner lock wall down to thedepth of an identified fault line is alsounderway and this will be re-built prior towork progressing onto the next section.

So the progress made this year is al-ready very satisfying and the mood is up-beat. If work continues at this pace the pre-dicted time required to complete the entirelength of the west wall could be shorter thanfirst predicted. The once daunting task per-haps does not look quite so daunting afterall. But as everyone is no doubt aware, withrestoration work one never knows what isaround the corner?

Terry Owen

Lichfield & Hatherton Canals

Work at Tamworth Road on the LichfieldCanal has slowed with the bywash project atLock 25 approaching completion. The newsthat the Trust has been awarded £35,000Section 106 money is therefore very timely.Our engineers and project planners havebeen looking at ways of getting the maxi-mum benefit from this grant which will beused to progress the plans for wateringPound 26, using the flow located in the “BigPipe” (a land drain laid in the bed of thecanal after it closed). There are severalhighly technical drainage issues to be re-solved, especially a surface water drain whichwill “drown” if it remains in its current loca-tion. Contractors will be used for much ofthe scheme but there will also be plenty forthe volunteers to do.

On the Hatherton we are talking toBritish Waterways about the removal of theinfill from the Lord Hayes Branch from itsjunction with the Wyrley and Essington atPelsall to Fishley Lane Bridge. Progress herewill allow us to start Phase 1 of theHatherton restoration along the line con-firmed by Atkins (which will use a new cutfrom the original Hatherton route nearChurchbridge to the Lord Hayes Branch,rather than entering the W&E via theCannock Extension as the original route did)when they revised the Arup Report.

Isfield Lock: preparing to concrete behind the wall

SO

RT

Finally on the Wendover

Arm they’ve finished

reinstating the first

stage of the dry section

and started the second

ProgressWendover Arm

Wendover Arm

May Working Party: The last 80 metres ofbed lining of the Stage 1 length were com-pleted as well as the bulk of the temporarybund just leaving it to settle before placingthe Bentomat core and covering it at theJune working party. Progress was also madein clearing the banks ready for excavationand backfilling in Stage 2 (the next 350metres of lining and a 50 metre long moor-ing bay), KESCRG poured another base ofthe mooring wall at Bridge 4 and re-erectedthe formwork ready for another pour. Theyalso cleaned the steel formwork in prepara-tion for the first wall section. KESCRG alsostarted the excavations at Whitehouses toidentify what lies below ground level andwere very successful in finding a settlingtank. They dug a trench parallel to the wharfwall with the three outlets and found theywere directly above the wall of a settling tankthat is the other end of the three outlets.Further excavation exposed a baffle acrossthe tank.

June Working Party: On Friday 4th

June the Bentomat core was laid and sealedacross the face of the bund and covered withspoil from the Stage 2 excava-tions The burning question –was it watertight?

While the new bund wasbeing completed during themorning, Jenny Brice and BobBarry excavated a trenchthrough the existing bund atthe end of the 60 metre testlength, enabling the rest of thestage 1 length to be rewatered.

The water was deliber-ately let through slowly so thatthere was minimal reduction inthe flow of water from Wendoverinto the pipeline and it was notuntil Tuesday morning that thefull ‘Wendover’ water level wasreached and the bund found tobe watertight.

Once the bund was completed work onthe bulk excavation and pipe capping forStage 2 commenced in earnest. Pipe cappinghas now been completed to peg 40, the first100 metres out of the 350 metres of Stage 2.

Ken Graves led clearance of the towpathwhere the Stage 2 mooring bay is to beconstructed and, on Tuesday, he and RichardBerry manfully thumped in a row of postsready for chestnut fencing to protect themooring bay working area.

By the end of the working party RayOrth and his team had dismantled the chest-nut fencing from Stage 1 up to and includingthe mooring bay and erected the chestnutfencing at the Stage 2 mooring bay andextended the plastic fencing right through tothis mooring bay. The plastic fencing hasbeen left along the towpath bank of Stage 1,where both banks have been sown withgrass seed, until the new vegetation is estab-lished. The access steps have been relocatedat the Drayton Beauchamp end of the moor-ing bay site.

For more details of the Wendover resto-ration work see Wendover Arm Trust’swebsite http://wendovercanal.org.uk.

Roger Leishman

The Stage 1 length rewatered

WA

CT

Looking backThe WRG NW sales stand

Brian Lomas reflects on

canal society sales

stands, and in particular

the early days of the

WRG North West stand...

“Has Anyone Seen The Brackets?”

As I write these notes, the WaterwayRecovery Group (North West) van, completewith sales stand, will be returning from tileIWA National Trailboat Festival on theMonmouthshire and Brecon Canal. A journeythat is no doubt being replicated by othersocieties and organisations up and down thecountry.

The sales stand is now very much partof the rally scene and can be good for gener-ating income, recruiting new members,raising the profile of the body they represent,or simply seeing how many cups of tea canbe drunk in a day.

Here are some unreliable memoriesfrom the early days of the Rochdale CanalSociety and WRG NW...

My own involvement began with theembryonic RCS in the mid 1970s. Their salesstand was actually a caravan, in front ofwhich a table would be positioned, ontowhich an array of canal books and memora-bilia would be placed. These included badges

with slogans which implored you to “Restorethe Rochdale” or “Free the Rochdale Nine”and, rather bizarrely, bottles of RochdaleCanal water which carried the warning “NOTTO BE TAKEN”.

The one lasting memory I have of theRCS stand is being asked at short notice toman it at Leigh Boat Rally c. 1975.

As I was intending to visit the rally witha family friend, Jack Youngman, this didn’treally present a problem. The arrangementwas that Jack and myself would make ourway to Leigh and would look after the standuntil reinforcements arrived. They wouldthen see us through to the end of the daywhen Brian Holden, Secretary of the RCS,would give us a lift home.

That was the theory, but in practice,things did not go according to plan.Thedeparture from site was delayed when Briangot “talking to someone”. Eventually we allpiled into an old Commer van. It was verynoisy and slow. The noise made conversationdifficult, but this was possibly a blessing indisguise as, earlier in the day Jack, without

Still going strong: the WRG NW stand seen recently at the Welsh Waterways Festival

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realising who he was talking to, had toldBrian in no uncertain terms that he wouldnever restore the Rochdale.

The speed of the vehicle, on the otherhand, was a different matter. The East LancsRoad was a very long road and this was avery slow van. Brian Holden was due back inRochdale for 6pm in order to play the churchorgan and it was turned 5pm before we left.

A plan was therefore hatched to takethe van straight to the church, whereuponBrian’s brother would take over the wheeland drive Jack and myself back toPendlebury and Moston respectively.

Fortunately Brian, whether attending ameeting, a working party or a boat rally,would be attired as a church organist (Jackand myself were in old clothes covered indust and oil). So when we finally arrived atRochdale Methodist Church, well after 6 pm,at least he didn’t have the ignominy of hav-ing to play the organ dressed like FredDibnah.

It was not long after the Leigh Rallythat I came to meet David and NancyMcCarthy (Mr & Mrs Mac) whilst I was man-ning the RCS stand at Collac (the campingand outdoor leisure exhibition at Belle Vue).Mr & Mrs Mac were on the adjacent WRG NWstand selling copious amounts of Uncle Joe’sMint Balls, whilst I was trying forlornly to sellbottles of Rochdale Canal Water.

They looked on demurely, eyed up theirprey, waited patiently and then pounced. Bythe end of the day I had signed up to Nav-vies, been recruited to the ranks of the WRGNW working party and become hopelesslyaddicted to strong cups of tea and brokenbiscuits.

As WRG NW in the 70s or early 80s hada number of prime movers of a mechanicaland engineering bent, this influence wasreflected in the construction of their salesstand. I was introduced to its mysteries atthe Tameside Canals Festival c.1982.

To put it briefly the stand consisted ofmany parts, most of them very heavy andunwieldy. This presented two problems. In

“Fortunately he didn’t

have the ignominy of

having to play the

organ dressed like

Fred Dibnah”

Looking backThe WRG NW sales stand

the absence of a check list, key componentswere often left behind and, even if every-thing had been remembered, no-one couldquite recollect what went where.

This was more of a problem than itmight have seemed as it was easy to incor-rectly interlock the uprights and crossbarsBefore you realised it you had inadvertentlycreated, as someone pointed out, a 3-dimen-sional equivalent of an Escher drawing. Itthen took considerable effort and manpowerto de-construct the thing.

Once constructed the laying out of thewares on the stand was relatively straightfor-ward. Much of the stuff was pretty similar toother canal society stands. That was, withthe exception of an interesting collection ofodds and ends.

If I was to be polite, I would describe Itas bric-a-brac, but if I was to be honest, itwas tat. Nevertheless, as WRG NW sales staffexcelled at selling stuff that most peopledidn’t know they needed or wanted, this richcollection of junk didn’t stay on the stand toolong.

There was though one item whichproved to be the exception to this rule. A fulltea service, which, I believe, was an un-wanted wedding present, refused to budge.The service was a design classic of its time,but unfortunately looked as if it had beenglazed with oily canal water from Worsley.

In the absence of finding anyone re-motely interested in buying the service, itwas decided to raffle it off. A good numberof tickets were sold at 5p a go. The prizedraw was made and the winner announced.Much to everyone’s surprise the winner evencollected his prize, but returned it five min-utes later, saying his wife wouldn’t have it inthe house.

As to what happened to the tea service,I’m not too sure. I just hope I don’t hear MrMac utter those immortal words: “You’llnever guess what I found in the cellar...”

Brian LomasThis article has been reproduced from theHollinwood Canal Society newsletter.

Pre-Basingstoke Camps BITM Dig17 - 18 July 2010

Di and I arrived at the Deepcut accommoda-tion at breakfast time on Saturday - and foundit to be at least the four-star variety, as villagehalls go. The main hall was huge, of the sort ofsize that we’re always looking for to accommo-date the London WRG/KESCRG Christmas dig!It also had two carpeted “quiet” rooms, andshowers. The kitchen was a little small, buthad all the necessary equipment.

The purpose of the dig was to do thepreparatory work before two week-long campson Deepcut Lock No 17, where the objective isto rebuild both the upper wing walls.

The old walls obviously had to be de-molished first, and trenches dug behind eachfor a concrete pour on the camps. KESCRGhad already had one weekend dig, and theyhad rolled back the coping stones on theoffside wall, dug the trench behind andinstalled steel piling along the back of thetrench. This had since filled with water,which had to be pumped out, and wedrained the pound above the lock. As thewater went down, big piles of leaf litterappeared alongside the wall, which lookedreasonably firm to stand on - that is untilMina the dog scrambled down the bank toget a drink from the canal before the waterdisappeared, and sank in up to her oxters inthe leaf litter. As even the lightest BITMiteweighs four times as much as Mina, and therest a tad more, we were duly warned.

Bob, Ros and Di started in with ham-mers and bolsters to demolish the wall, mostof the bricks coming away reasonably easily.We had three ‘Big Boys’ Toys’ on site: a 3-tonne digger, a dumper and a jack-hammer.The last named was quite popular at firstwith our Big Boys, with Mark, Olly, Graham,David S. and Matt all having a go. Phill washappily installed in the Biggest Toy, thedigger, for the weekend, and he first rolledback the coping stones from the towpathwall, and then proceeded to dig the trenchbehind it. With the copers gone, Di started

after lunch to work on the towpath wall, onlyto find that the mortar was unbelievablyhard, and progress was pretty slow on thetop few courses. There wasn’t as much todemolish on that side, because half the wallhad been rebuilt more recently, at least withnewer bricks. The problem was that no efforthad been made to tie the new wall in withthe old, with all the bricks squared off, form-ing a vertical crack all the way down betweenold and new. Seeing Di’s struggles, Grahamarrived with long chisel and sledge hammer,and was astonished to find that even that didn’tbreak the mortar, and we came to the conclu-sion that the wall had been built with concreterather than mortar. There was no option but touse the jack-hammer to demolish the wholewall, which was three courses thick. This wasextremely hard work, with Graham and Marktaking it in turns all day, for shorter and shorterperiods each, and the hammer becoming lessand less popular, while Di collected the ensuingrubble into buckets and hoisted them uponto the bank for others to empty.

David S. managed to drop a chisel intothe water right by the lock gate on the firstday, and had to don waders to seek it out.Having recovered it, he found it was quitefun playing in the water, and he used a kebto rake up a lot of the leaf litter from roundthe gates. Dave W. continued with this on theSunday, and he and Stella dug a trench alongthe line of demolished wall to extend thelength. They then constructed a bund on thecanal side of where the new wall will be builtto keep the water out. By the end of theweekend both walls were demolished, thetrenches dug, the site tidied up, and PeteRedway was optimistic that the two weeks ofcamps will complete the objective.

Our regular cook, June, and David, oneof our stalwarts, were away on their honey-moon, so Chairman Simon stepped into thecatering breach. There was a children’s party inthe hall on Saturday attemoon, and we couldn’tget back in until 6pm, so Simon planned a coldmeal, with only chicken pieces and potatoes tocook, and served with pasta, savoury rice andsalad. Di made cold desserts and cakes, andOlly and Ian also contributed cookies andcakes, so we were well served.

A very physically taxing weekend, andeveryone worked extremely hard. We werelucky that the weather remained dry, and weall felt that we had achieved all that washoped for.

Rachael Banyard

WRG BITMon the Basingstoke

TrainingThe Training Day at Goughs Orchard

Training atGoughs Orchard

In place of the usualWRG Training Week-end, this year we helda training day on-siteon our major CanalCamps work site forthis summer atGoughs Orchard. Wereckoned it was gener-ally a success andhope to have some-thing broadly similarnext year.

Here are a fewphotos of what we gotup to. Above right:the bricklaying theory(including a lego set!)was followed (right)by the practical on site.Meanwhile on vansand trailers Harrylooked after the rearend (below) whileMK2 kept an eye on thefront (below right)

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Camp ReportWelsh Waterways Festival

Frank Wallder reports from

an ‘unofficial’ camp to help

set up, run and take down

the IWA Trailboat / Welsh

Waterways Festival

Mon & Brec Trailboat Festival

It was at the Skittles contest between the twoChristmas Camps that I innocently enquiredwhat was happening about “the Trailboat”.First Big mistake! To cut a long story short, Iended up “organising” it.

This year, it took advantage of thelocation and was combined with the WelshWaterways Festival at Kimberley Park,Malpas, Newport. We had a joint Essex/NWdig in early May and sterling work was donein preparation for the event, cleaning locksand removing graffiti, repairing towpathsand fenders and generally helping to preparea canal that hadn’t seen boats for years.

Run by our old friends from the Mon &Brec, WRG had been asked to assist, al-though it never seems to appear on theofficial camp list which meant very littlepublicity in WRG circles. This didn’t helprecruitment but with accommodation at ourold favourite Methodist Church Hall atCrosskeys I expected that we would attractsufficient numbers to cope - second mistake.However those we did manage to attractwere all Leaders, Assistants or MUPs, andthey rose magnificently to the challenge.

I picked up David from Reading on theway, then passing through the freshlypainted green gates, we met Rachael, BrickyMartin and Debbie at Kimberley Park on

Wednesday. Having checked on the site andnext mornings work with Chris (Morgan, o/cM&B), we retreated to Risca to unpack andprepare for the fray and enjoy the first ofDebbie’s excellent meals.

Hereford Martin, not having checked hisemails, missed out although it didn’t getwasted) by stopping off at a pub on the way.Nevertheless he still joined us at the Philan-thropic where we received our usual enthusi-astic welcome. Very late into the night RAFMartin joined the happy band - later due tothe M4 being closed from the first junctiononce over the Seven crossing - and without amap, a thought provoking drive cross coun-try from Chepstow to Newport, commenting“SatNav - pah who needs it!” concluded with“mid-night spag-bol never tasted so good!”

Thursday morning saw us back on site,setting up our little work and display cornerand then proceeded to erect fencing, fillholes in the field, help slip some early boatarrivals and start to put up some signs. Afterlunch we had to set up Marquees and puttogether some Market Stalls from the PESTtrailer. It was a rather tired group that re-turned “home” but leaving a site transformedand almost complete.

Friday found us finishing off the site,slipping the boats that were now arrivingthick and fast, and finalising our area withthe Trailer as the centrepiece of our WRG

publicity display. Meanwhile Bungleand Malcolm had broken the back ofthe electrics, having “poached” (albeitwillingly) RAF Big Martin for sometrench digging / cable burying.

We lost David on Friday evening toa previous commitment and also Debbie- however she left us well prepared tocope with the rest of the catering. Theirreplacements were Adrian and his bike -I am still not absolutely certain whichwas most useful - who joined us late inthe evening.

Saturday bought the officialopening, and the rain. The event stillbought in the crowds however and wePutting up marquees

Photo

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were kept busy at the slipway and operatingthe locks. Luckily James, Alan Lines andGordon were able to join us for the day tohelp control the boats and visitors. BITMregulars Bob & Ros Featherstone travelled allthe way from Reading to assist with litterpicking and providing cover for manning theWRG stand. Seeing how stretched we were,they even did the same next day. The dayfinished in the Festival Bar with a Hog Roastthat helped to warm us slightly.

There was a huge improvement in theweather on Sunday and consequent increasein visitor numbers. With the boys gone, andthe trip boat fully booked, this meant thatthe WRG contingent was fully occupied man-ning the first lock (and the back pumpingset!). The Bungle crew stepped into the breachmanning locks further up, with Amy and Melso prominent that Mel ended up on TV. Withso much work and so little cover, Adrian’sbike came into its own.

Our hosts were let down by the peoplewho had promised to sort the parking, so therewas even more work that we had to spreadthinly between us. Thanks to everyone whostayed at their posts without respite. I evenagreed to let Bungle distribute lunch whilst Iwas stuck car-parking - third mistake.

That evening RAF Martin and Adrian“boules-ed up” the Welsh Waterways FestivalPairs Boules Championship by successfullybeating all comers to take the title. “It’s all inthe wrist action and knowing where to put it”said a euphoric team member!!

We lost another couple of helpers onMonday, but not the good weather, the visi-tors, or the work. Despite everything, we got

through and even managed to breakdown most of the site by about eighto’clock, with everyone chipping in,including NW WRG.

We retired to Risca for the final timeto enjoy fish’n’chips from the local shop,too tired even to visit the Philanthropic.

Tuesday saw us clear the Hall andpack up, and then call down on site. Thelast few boats had left, the locals had thefinal clearing in hand and we were left toreturn the van for its next booking, thanksagain to Rachael. After collecting her, myfinal day’s 400 mile plus trip saw mestruggling through the roadworks onthe M25 at 8.30 in the evening. Had abig meeting next day - last mistake.

There are lots of lessons to belearned from this event , but the locals

were delighted with us, it was a great public-ity boost and it raised the profile of the Mon& Brec with both the public and the localauthorities. It may not strictly have beenrestoration but it certainly prepared the wayfor further restoration to take place.

A Trust of around 400 members man-aged to put it on with our help - next year it’sanother combined event at the Neath &Tennant. Are we up for it?

Frank Wallder

Launching a trailboat below Bettws Lane Lock

Boats and visitors at Bettws Lane Lock

DirectoryCanal societies and WRGASHBY CANAL ASSOCRod Smith4 Ashby Road, SinopeCoalville LE67 3AYTel: 01530 833307

BARNSLEY, DEARNE &DOVE CANAL TRUSTJune Backhouse, 39 Hill St,Elsecar, Barnsley S74 8EN01226 743383www.bddct.org.uk

BCN SOCIETYJeff Barley, 17 SunnysideWalsall Wood, W Midlands01543 373284www.bcn-society.org.uk

BUCKINGHAM CANAL SOCAthina Beckett2 Staters PoundPennylandMilton Keynes MK1 5AX01908 661217email: [email protected]

BUGSWORTH BASIN(IWPS)Ian EdgarTop Lock House, Lime KilnLane, Marple SK6 6BX.0161 427 [email protected]/iwps/index.htm

CALDON & UTTOXETERCANALS TRUSTJohn Rider1 Dainty Close, LeekST13 5PX01538 [email protected]

CHESTERFIELD CANALTRUSTMick Hodgetts31 Pottery LaChesterfield S41 9BH01246 620695chesterfield-canal-trust.org.uk

CHICHESTER SHIP CTLinda Wilkinson,1 Chidham LaChichester PO18 8TL01243 576701www.chichestercanal.co.uk

COTSWOLD CT4 Black Jack StCirencester GL7 2AA01285 [email protected]

FRIENDS OF THECROMFORD CANALTony Brookes07770 [email protected]

DERBY & SANDIACRE CSDoug Flack23 Thoresby Crescent,DraycottDerby DE72 3PH01332 576037www.derbycanal.org.uk

DIG DEEP INITIATIVEAlan Cavender53 Derwent Drive,Maidenhead,SL6 6LE01628 [email protected]

DORSET & SOMERSETCANAL SOCIETYDerrick Hunt43 Greenland MillsBradford on AvonBA15 1BL01225 [email protected]

DROITWICH CTVaughan Welch29 Dice Pleck, NorthfieldBirmingham B31 3XW0121 477 [email protected]/dctEAST ANGLIANWATERWAYS ASSOCDavid Revill, 43 Kings RoadColtishall, NorfolkNR12 7DX01603 [email protected]

EREWASH CANAL P&DAMick Golds73 Sudbury AvenueLarklands, IlkestonDerbys DE7 5EANotts (0115) 9328042

ESSEX WATERWAYS LTDColin EdmondPaper Mill Lock, North HillLittle BaddowEssex CM3 4BT01245 [email protected]

FOXTON INCLINED PLANETRUSTc/o Mike BeechFoxton Canal MuseumMiddle Lock,Gumley RoadFoxton,Market HarboroughLeicestershireLE16 7RA0116 279 [email protected]

ROLLE CANAL AND NTHDEVON WATERWAYS SOCAdrian & Hilary WillsVale Cottage, 7 Annery KilnWeare Giffard, BidefordEX39 5JETel: 01237 [email protected]

RIVER GIPPING TRUSTMartin Bird29 Melton Grange RoadMelton, WoodbridgeIP12 [email protected]

GRAND WESTERN CTDenis Dodd, Wharf CottageNynehead, WellingtonSomerset TA21 0BJ01823 661653

GRANTHAM CANAL SOCColin Bryan113 Hoe View RoadCropwell BishopNottingham NG12 3DJ01159 [email protected]

HEREFS & GLOUCS CTc/o The Wharf House, OverGloucester GL2 8DB01452 332900www.h-g-canal.org.uk

KESCRGEddie Jones‘Altamount’, Coventry RoadFillongley, Coventry CV7 8EQ0845 226 [email protected]

LANCASTER CTPaul Shaw, 12 Malham CloLancaster LA1 2SJ01524 [email protected]

LAPAL CANAL TRUST26 Loynells Road, RednalBirmingham B45 9NP01785 713862www.lapal.org

LICHFIELD & HATHERTONCANALS REST'N TRUSTSue Williams, Norfolk House29 Hall Lane, HammerwichBurntwood WS7 0JP01543 671427 [email protected]

NEATH & TENNANT CSIan Milne16 Gower Road, Sketty,Swansea SA2 9BY01792 547902

MANCHESTER BOLTON& BURY CANAL SOCIETYSteve Dent 07802-973228www.mbbcs.org.uk

MONMOUTHSHIRE BRECON& ABERGAVENNY CTPhil Hughes14 Locks Canal CentreCwm Lane, RogerstoneNewport NP10 9GN01633 [email protected]

NWPGGraham Hawkes27 Lawrence Rd., TilehurstReading RG30 6BH0118 941 [email protected]

POCKLINGTON C.A.SPaul WaddingtonChurch House, Main St.Hemingborough, SelbyN. Yorks YO8 7QE01757 638027 (eves)01405 763985 (days)www.pocklington.gov.uk/PCAS

SALTISFORD CTBudbrooke RoadWarwick CV34 5RJ01926 490 [email protected],www.saltisfordcanal.co.uk

SCARS (SANKEY CANAL)Colin Greenall16 Bleak Hill Rd,EcclestonSt. Helens WA10 4RW01744 [email protected]

SHREWSBURY & NEWP’TCANALS TRUSTTam [email protected]

SHROPSHIRE UNION CSRichard Hall, 35 Tyrley CottsMarket Drayton TF9 2AH01630 [email protected]

SLEAFORD NAV TRUSTSteve Hayes10 Chelmer CloseN Hykeham, Lincs LN8 8TH01522-689460email: [email protected]

SOMERSETSHIRE COALCANAL SOCIETYBob Parnell, 34Wedgewood RoadTwertonBath BA2 1NX01225-428055www.coalcanal.org

RIVER STOUR TRUSTJohn Morris2 Stockton Close, HadleighIpswich IP7 [email protected]

STOVER CANAL SOCIETYGeorge Whitehead26 Northumberland Place,Teignmouth TQ14 8BU.Tel: 01626 [email protected],www.stovercanal.co.uk

STRATFORD ON AVON CSRoger Hancock1 Tyler StreetStratford upon Avon CV37 6TY01789 [email protected]

SURREY & HANTSCANAL SOCPeter Redway, 1 RedwayCottagesSt. John's Lye, WokingGU21 1SL01483 [email protected]/society

SUSSEX OUSERESTORATION TRUSTPaul Morris, FarmcoteNettlesworth LaneOld HeathfieldHeathfieldTN21 9AP01453 [email protected]

SWANSEA CANAL SOCClive Reed17 Smithfield Road,Pontardawe, Swansea,West Glam.SA8 4LA01792 830782

THAMES & MEDWAYCANAL ASSOCIATIONJohn Epton 45 Vinson CLo OrpingtonBR6 0EQhomepage.ntlworld.com/john.epton/tmca

WENDOVER ARM TRUSTRoger Leishman7 Hall ParkBerkhamstedHP4 2NU01442 874536www.wendoverarmtrust.co.uk

WEY & ARUN CTThe GranaryFlitchfold FarmLoxwood, BillingshurstWest SussexRH14 ORH01403 [email protected]

WILTS & BERKS CTGeorge Eycott4 Lewendon RoadNewbury RG14 1SP07771 [email protected]

WOODEN CANAL BOATSOCIETY3 Beauchamp StAshton under Lyne OL6 [email protected]

WRG:GENERAL ENQUIRIES,CANAL CAMP BOOKINGS,DRIVER AUTHORISATIONJenny Black, IWAIsland HouseMoor RoadChesham HP5 1WA01494 [email protected]

WRG NORTH WESTMalcolm Bridge3 Heather BankLittleborough OL15 0JQ01706 [email protected]

DirectoryWRG NW - ENQUIRIES/PAPERCHASESDavid McCarthyWoodstock,14 Crumpsall LaneManchesterM8 5FB0161-740 2179www.wrgnw.org.uk

WRG BITM & 'NAVVIES'DIARYDavid Wedd7 Ringwood RoadBlackwaterCamberleySurreyGU17 0EY01252 [email protected]

LONDON WRGTim Lewis5 Herongate Road,WansteadLondon E12 5EJ07802 518094 [email protected]

WRG EAST MIDLANDSJohn Baylis215 Clipstone Rd. WestForest TownMansfieldNotts NG19 0HJ01623 633895

ESSEX WRGJohn Gale24 Longleaf DriveBraintree,EssexCM7 [email protected]

WRG SOUTH WESTGavin Moor, 54 Kiln CloseCalvert, BuckinghamMK18 2FD07970 [email protected]

IWA/WRG STAMP BANKSteve & Mandy Morley33 Hambleton GroveEmerson valleyMilton Keynes MK4 2JS01908 [email protected]

CANAL CAMPS MOBILES(A) 07850 422156(B) 07850 422157

'NAVVIES' EDITORMartin Ludgate35 Silvester Rd.London SE22 9PB020 8693 32660777 947 8629 (mobile)[email protected]

'WRGWEAR' CLOTHINGHelen Gardner33 Victoria RoadNorthwich CW9 5RE07989 [email protected]

WRG BOAT CLUBSadie Dean236 Station Rd. WhittleseyPeterborough PE7 2HA01733 20450507748 186867 (mobile)[email protected]

WRG DIRECTORSCHAIRMANMike Palmer3 Finwood Road RowingtonWarwickshire CV35 7DH01564 [email protected]

WRG PLANTGeorge Eycott4 Lewendon RoadNewbury RG14 1SP07771 [email protected]

SITES GROUPJudith Palmer3 Finwood Rd.RowingtonWarwickshire CV35 7DH01564 [email protected]

WRGPRINTJohn & Tess Hawkins4 Links WayCroxley GrnRickmansworthWD3 3RQ01923 [email protected]

IWA CHAIRMANClive Hendersonc/o IWA,Island House Moor Road,Chesham HP5 [email protected]

TRANSPORT MANAGERJonathan Smith23 Hardings ChalgroveOxford OX44 7TJ01865 891 [email protected]

OTHER DIRECTORS

Rick Barnes11 Lawns ParkNorth WoodchesterStroud GL5 5PP07976 [email protected]

Mick Beattie42 Eaton DriveRugeley WS15 2FS

Spencer CollinsThe Boatyard,5 Hammond WayTrowbridge BA14 8RS07790 [email protected]

Chris DaveyAngle HouseGreen TerraceSkipton BD23 [email protected]

John Baylis,215 Clipstone Rd. WestForest TownMansfieldNotts NG19 0HJ01623 633895

Harry Watts12 St John Road, SloughSL2 5EY07889 [email protected]

James Butler7 Hawthorne CloseWoodford Halse NN11 3NY07745 [email protected]

Helen Gardner (see above)

Help us keep this directory up to dateIf you spot any errors or omissions or know of any changes to any contact details inthis list please pass them on to the editor. The next full directory will appear in issue245, but any corrections received before then will also be included in the nextavailable ‘Navvies Noticeboard’. Thank you for your assistance.

WRG Boat Club news

I need to start this issue with the sad sadnews of the death of Roger Jeffries.

We missed him at the National last year,I worried then things were serious as, to myknowledge, he had never missed a Nationalbefore.

Sue has written about him for the club(see page 5). I don’t want to repeat what shehas said but need to say that I have veryfond memories of all the things we wereinvolved in. He was a tremendous supporterof the club from the early days and will begreatly missed. We send our love and sym-pathy to Heather, Tom, Rachel and Henry.

Nobody is surprised to hear that ‘TheDroitwich’ is not fully open, nor will it be thisyear, undaunted I will still make (or will havemade by the time you read this) a visit toboth ends. I will have a look and see wherewe can get to. We will take ‘Straw Bear’ as wemay need to turn in limited spaces, or possi-bly reverse!

I do hope that some other memberswill be visiting the area and will let me/usknow how they get on.

We have had a recent newsletter aboutthe canal; it tells us that the posts with thenames of contributors are being erected soyou should be able to find the club’s nameon one or more posts. I have also been toldthat we will be invited to the opening of theBarge Canal bit later this year.

It was very forward looking of mem-bers Judith and Mike Chessher to move toDroitwich to await the canals’ arrival!

There are lots of problems on the BCNat the moment. These include reservoir de-watering, a breach, various closures and timerestrictions on lock flights.

All of these are related to water short-age. We have both boats booked on Caggy’sdock during August. I tell you this to explainwhy I can’t commit to anything else duringthese times as we don’t know which route wewill be able to take to Tipton or how long thejourneys will take. Hence...

AGM problems - only one of the clubofficers will be at Beale Park for the IWAFestival. Hopefully the club house will arriveand a social gathering can be organised.Perhaps we should have a ‘virtual AGM’. I’msure it is not beyond our capabilities. Allsuggestions gratefully received!

Of course SUBS will be due then. Pleasefeel free to hand them over to any officeryou see about the system, or you could postthem to me.

The Club Officers are:. Lynne Cater – boat Grains in the Water. Ann Smart – boat Ace. David Howarth - boat Wild Otter. Sadie Dean – boat Straw Bear or ex

FMC LynxPost subs to - WRG BC, 236 Station

Road, Whittlesey, Peterborough PE7 2HAIf you are handing over money, please

include a note with your name and boatname on it.

If you would like to pay by direct debit/bankers order please ask for a form. If youDO pay by direct debit/bankers order pleasedon’t pay cash too! We get so confused.

Please Fly the Flag so we know whoyou are. Remember the club motto ‘Incom-petence at its Best’!

xxx Sadie Dean

The non-opening

of the Droitwich,

Beale Park and a

possible virtual

WRG BC AGM...

WRG BCNews from the WRG Boat Club

Waiting for boats: the Droitwich Canal

Tim

Lew

is

Contacting the chairman:

Mike Palmer3 Finwood Rd,

Rowington, WarwickshireCV35 7DH

Tel: 01564 785293

email: [email protected]

Online Navvies

subscriptionsYou can now take out or renew a Nav-vies subscription online via the IWAonline shop website. The address is:

https://www.iwashop.com/ecommerce/proddetail.asp?prod=nav1

Stamps

wantedSend used stamps,petrol coupons, phonecards, empty computerprinter ink cartridges toIWA/WRG Stamp Bank,33 Hambleton Grove,Milton Keynes MK42JS. All proceeds tocanal restoration.

Dial-a-camp

To contactany WRG

Canal Camp:07850 422156(Kit ‘A’ camps)07850 422157(Kit ‘B’ camps)

NOTICEBOARD

Thanks to Chris Griffiths of Stroudprintfor his continued help with printing

Congratulationsto

Viv Watson and Jason Dayon their marriage

and toDr Liz and Ian Williamson

on the arrival ofEllen Rose

on 8 June weighing 9lb 8ozand to

Brian ‘Ernie’ Hearne and Lin Flowerson their engagement

Congratulationsto

Harry Arnold MBE

on his appearance in theQueen’s Birthday Honours List

Happy 40th Birthday...

...to us! WRG is 40 years oldin early August, so to cel-ebrate we are planning a partyat the National Festival siteon Saturday 21 August. Formore details, and especially ifyou want to help with theevent, contact Jude Palmer [email protected]

IWA is appealing...

...for funds so that WRG volunteers canrestore Inglesham Lock on the Cotswold

Canals. (see photo, pages 2-3)If you want to help keep us out ofmischief next year by supporting

the Appeal, go towww.inglesham.org.uk

40 views for 40 years: extra

By way of a change, as a special addition to our series of interviews withWRGies past and present our interviewer hands the microphone to Deirdre,Navvies’ own agony aunt...

Q: Deirdre, you have contributed your experience and wisdom to waterway restoration formany years, most recently through your Navvies agony column. How did you first becomeinvolved with the waterways?Q: My involvement came about really just by chance. I remember my third husband Kenny mentioningsomething about a boat he owned shortly before I agreed to marry him. You can imagine my disappointmentwhen it turned out to be a pokey little narrowboat with a smoky stove rather than the gleaming yacht I’dimagined. But for the sake of marital harmony I decided to put the matter behind me and only raised it occa-sionally just as he dropped off to sleep or at family weddings. Sadly Kenny disappointed me in some othermore significant ways so the marriage didn’t last very long - but I did get to keep the boat! Incidentally, incase other women find themselves in a similar situation I can send you my pamphlet What if his longboat’sactually just a trailboat? A guide to marital satisfaction.

After the divorce, because of various factors I won’t bore you with my daughter Chastity needed to getaway from London rather urgently and so I ended up staying on Kenny’s horrible old boat for nearly twoyears whilst we travelled round the country. It was important to avoid inner city areas so we ended up cruis-ing some deserted stretches of the Norfolk Broads for long periods.

Q: And that’s how you were bitten with the boating bug?A: Good lord no, it was an absolutely dreadful time. Chastity was going through a difficult period whichmade her very emotional, especially when the methadone clinic tightened up her supply. Not very nice tochange the oil filters every day with the words “you’ve ruined my life you crazy old bitch” ringing in my ears!Fellow boaters were always very friendly when they came to complain about all the shouting and so I got toknow the community.

It soon became clear that although I might have my own cross to bear, the people around me had farbigger problems. For instance, I’ll never forget an elderly couple we moored alongside for several weeks.They’d been married for four decades and you could tell they were both bored stiff, they barely had a wordto say to each other and just used to sit quietly on their boat drinking tea and watching the swans. Ipopped a few pamphlets on spicing up their sex life under their hood and Chastity livened things up a bitby stripping their boat of anything she could sell for skag. I could tell they were attached to us becausethey couldn’t even bring themselves to say goodbye: they sailed off one night whilst we were asleep. Ioften wonder how they’re doing.

Q: What’s your favourite canal for cruising?A: They all look the same to me to be honest, and since I’ve got my Sky package on the flat screen in thesaloon I don’t really look out the window much. I do have a least favourite: I’ve terrible memories of theShropshire union canal as that’s where my fourth husband sadly lost his life in a freak accident.

Q: That must have been terrible. What happened?A: It was awful. We’d both been drinking and an argument broke out about Robert’s relationship with oneof the female members of KESCRG whose name I won’t mention. Around 2am Robert stood up and an-nounced he was leaving me “for someone less mentally unstable”. As he turned to leave the cabin he acciden-tally struck his head three times against a decorative iron fender we’d been using as a doorstop. His skull wascrushed in several places and he died before the ambulance could arrive. It was terribly traumatic and meant I

“I don’t like solo

handling, I think it’s

one of the reasons I’ve

been married so many

times...”

InfillThe Deirdre interview

InfillTHe Deirdre interview

“For the love of

god please don’t

tell Jude what

happened

between us...”

had to handle the locks alone for the rest of the cruise. I don’t like solo handling, I think it’s one of the rea-sons I’ve been married so many times.

Q: Have you led any camps?A: I did have one foray into leadership back in the late nineties: I felt it was a spectacular success and I goton really well with my team, especially the young D of E kids who I was determined to make sure enjoyedthemselves fully and found the experience eye opening and rewarding. Unfortunately the committee and somenarrow-minded sections of Wiltshire police and social services didn’t see things the same way, and althoughno prosecution ever arose the board and I agreed my talents could best serve WRG in other ways.

I’d just like to clarify that both boys were over 18 and so it wasn’t actually statutory rape, despite whatsome sordid tabloid stories claimed at the time.

Q: You’ve had an eventful life: what made you decide to become Navvies agony columnist?A: Well it was Mike Palmer who begged me to accept the post actually. I think his exact words were “youcan have any job you like, but for the love of god please don’t tell Jude what happened between us”. Iembraced the role gladly in the knowledge there are a lot of confused, loveless WRGies out there in need ofmy tenderness and advice. I like to think my wise counsel shines light into the darker areas of the WRG heart.It’s heart warming to know I’ve personally assisted WRGies at some of the more difficult periods in theirlives. Since I’ve started my column I’ve been named in at least 3 divorce cases, which I like to think showsthe impact my humble column has had.

Q: You’ve recently married for the fifth time, do you draw on your own romantic experi-ence in your column?A: Relentlessly. I don’t think there’s anyone in waterway restoration with the breadth and depth of rela-tionship experience as me. I’ve been married to a solicitor, a bishop and a ski instructor thirty years my junior.And, not in the same order, a pervert, a womaniser and a compulsive liar. It’s just a shame my husbands havenever listened to the jolly good advice I’ve given them or more of those marriages might have worked out. Asmy fourth husband Robert would say to me “you’re always bloody right aren’t you?”. I’d have to agree withhim. I’ve always been generous with my wisdom with those around me. Especially for my children, at leastthose I’m on speaking terms with.

Q: Do you feel that your current marriage will be your last?A: Absolutely. I’ve been 100% committed to every one of my marriages and I know that what I have withAhmed is for life, despite the huge age gap and the massive cultural and religious differences between us. It’sjust a shame that his family back in Egypt are being so difficult about the whole thing.

Q: You’ve recently converted to Islam, is it true that you’ll be changing your name?A: Ahmed insisted I convert before the wedding, which was a traditional Bedouin ceremony marred onlyby Chastity’s refusal to ceremonially slit the goat’s throat at the feast afterwards.

I feel very happy and fulfilled in my new faith, although there are some aspects I won’t be bother-ing with like all the prayers and fasting and stuff. Ahmed and I discussed me changing my name to thetraditional Islamic name ‘Daleela¡’, which means guide, as I felt that was appropriate for my Navviesrole. However I’d just had a new batch of my pamphlets printed, including Crewing for two: How tobuild a lasting marriage, and I didn’t want to have to pulp them all. ‘Dear Daleela¡’ does have quite aring to it though, doesn’t it!

Q: So what do you think the future holds for the waterways?A: Hopefully lots of bickering and heartache. Plenty for me to write about for years to come!

Introducing a new series...Scenes you seldom see on a dig

Deirdre writes: Looking back on myown experience as a leader, I recommendyou sort out plenty of designated drivers.A stiff drink or five of an evening is theonly way to cope with the pressure ofhaving all those lives in your hands. Youmight also want to find an assistantleader who’s teetotal. Best of luck.

Dear Deirdre I have just comeback from a brilliant week on theCotswold Canals but am now suffer-ing terribly from Post Canal CampDepression. Is there anything I cando about it, other than simply bookingon another camp as soon as possible?- Emma, from somewhere oop north

Deirdre writes: This is a commonproblem. I approached my friendSophie for answers on this as has agreat deal of camp experience. Shewrote: “Hi Deirdre, the only way tosolve this is by booking on anothercamp as soon as possible, for in-stance I’m running a great one 14-21August on the Mon and Brec. Tell hershe can come on that. Unless shedoesn’t have a digger or dumper li-cence, in which case she can sod off.Thanks for all the relationship adviceby the way. You were perfectly right:it was crabs and I’ve chucked himnow.”Hope that clears things up Emma.

Dear Deirdre There’s a camp atmy favourite site this summer, butit’s fully booked. I’ve tried speakingto the camp leader, who’s an oldfriend of mine, but he says he can’tdo anything. You’re in with WRG topbrass Deirdre, can’t you pull somestrings and get me on the list?- Mike, via email

Deirdre writes: Although in theorythere’s a limit to how many can bookon a camp, it’s always possible to findroom for a particularly useful or skilledperson. As your “old friend” the campleader won’t let you on, it’s time toface the harsh truth that you’re notany bloody use on site.Are you one of those people that can’tlift anything heavy, takes a lot ofbreaks to take photos and coughs somuch you can’t be trusted in thekitchen? I very much suspect it.The only remedy is to sign up for thenext training weekend and get someskills. Maybe if you have a dumperticket you’ll be a more appealing pros-pect, otherwise there’s no hopefor you.

Dear Deirdre Would you haveany advice for a novice leader aboutto lead their first camp?- Jane, via email

Have you got a question for Deirdre? Just email [email protected]

“Would you like to adjust your clothing?I’m about to take a photo”

“This mortar is perfect”

No 2:No 1:

navvies 242

Documents

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