Four days of East End Activities
Four days of East End Activities
by: Stuart H.
Eastern Depot – Tuesday 29 June
The Eastern Depot log production factory was ramped up to full swing today, a slick operation with 2 volunteers splitting the logs and 1 Multiple Omni-wheeled Load-carrying Logistics Operative, or ‘barrow boy’, as they were once called.
Some of the rounds had to be cut into handleable chunks for splitting, this prompted an idea for a premiere service; the sale and installation of Décor Logs, specifically selected by hand in random sizes to adorn any Aga Wood-burner fitted Cotswold sitting room.
Meanwhile, in between chain sawing the rounds John was ensconced in the container producing the strimmer head wires.
One of the batches of timber was too far gone with heart rot to be any use, the good bits were salvaged and the rest is destined for the waste pile.
By the end of the day the store was beginning to fill up, all that’s needed now is some customers to start buying the logs.
Eastern Depot – Thursday 1 July
Guess what, log production was back in operation today. However, that’s not all that happens at the depot as it’s also a centre for wood working. If you’ve ever had a rest on one of the canal side commemorative benches and wondered where they come from; the answer is Eastern Depot. The parts are manufactured from Greenheart, a sustainably sourced hardwood suited to marine and freshwater applications. It’s also used for the manufacture of lock Jack posts and parts for the paddle gear.
During the morning, a truck arrived from Western Depot with John, Ian, Chris and Michael to take the bench kits over for assembly and installation.
For details of how to create a lasting memorial in the form of a bench, contact the office on 01453 752568 or email: mail@cotswoldcanals.org.uk
Meanwhile, back at the ranch the logs production continued. A second range of Décor Logs is in the design stage, these will be the Matterhorn Massif, a must for the ideal country house.
You may have guessed by now that log production isn’t overly exciting to write about, but it’s a steady income for the CCT coffers with a low cost base.
Weymoor Bridge – Saturday 3 July
More excavation on the spill weir today east of the bridge. To get some perspective on what the weir should look like the some of the team decamped to the Spine Road at South Cerney to look at the weir rebuilt around 10 years ago and for John M to explain how the volunteers at the time went about rebuilding the structure.
The culvert under the towing path was cast in concrete on a former to create the arch. When the canal is back in operation the structure will be underwater for most of the time, the facing stone on the crown will just be visible.
The excavation at Weymoor is still following the archaeological principals of small is better for preserving what’s left of the structure so that it can be studied to steer the rebuild.
It was a very humid day, not the most ideal conditions for scraping and digging, that said progress was good.
Eastern Maintenance Gang – Monday 5 July
Eight volunteers out today starting with Northmoor Pound, progress was so quick that the team moved over to do next week’s strimming as well, bonus payments were discussed
The vegetation has shot up since the team were last here in April.
The section between Northmoor Lane and Bow Wow is just under 700m, and there’s no canal features that need clearing, hence the early finish.
There’s a section between Northmoor Lane and Claymeadow Cutting that has been infilled, it includes South Cerney locks.
It was decided that the Claymeadow Cutting to River Churn section could be fitted in, freeing up next Monday for something else.
There’s an example of the commemorative benches, as mentioned earlier, at the start of the cutting, it has been in place since 1995 and it’s still in great condition even after being exposed to the elements for around 25 years.
There’s an unusual canal feature along this stretch, it’s a set of stepping stones crossing the bed. There doesn’t seem to be any apparent reason for them, possibly just someone with time on their hands repurposing the stone from the towing path wall.
Even though 2 sections were cleared today, the gang still finished early. Perhaps there will be a major challenge in store for next week.
