The Caledonian Canal Ouse News - Autumn 2012 The Great Ouse Branch Newsletter covering the Great Ouse and tributaries Campaigning for the conservation, use, maintenance, restoration and development of the Inland Waterways. The Inland Waterways Association Photo: Carole Alderton The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the Inland Waterways Association or of the Great Ouse Branch. They are, however, published as being of interest to our members and readers. Contents: Branch Committee p3 Chairman’s Corner p4 Ely Riverside p5 Cam Punting RSPB p7 Cruising the Caley p9 Book Review p13 Paralympic Flame p14 Branch News p15 Return of the Otter p19 Christmas Cards p20 p6
Transcript
The Caledonian Canal
Ouse News - Autumn 2012The Great Ouse Branch Newslettercovering the Great Ouse and tributaries
Campaigning for the conservation,use, maintenance, restoration and
development of the InlandWaterways.
The InlandWaterwaysAssociation
Photo: Carole AldertonThe views expressed in this
publication are notnecessarily those of the
Inland WaterwaysAssociation or of the Great
Ouse Branch. They are,however, published asbeing of interest to ourmembers and readers.
The summer of 2012 will certainly not go down as being one of the best onrecord, with many boaters having to be content with snatching a few daysafloat during the brief periods of sunshine. Not to worry, all we can do is tohope for better luck next year!
One of the main issues being confronted by the IWA nationally at present isthe balance between income from membership fees and the Per Capita grantpaid out to branches. This is exacerbated by the decision to offer a 20%discount to members who opt for ‘electronic’ membership. Such membersreceive all communication by email, apart from Waterways magazine. Wecurrently receive 77p per member for each issue of Ouse News, which to-gether with the income from advertising barely covers the cost of printingand distribution to members; together with copies to hand out as publicitymaterial at local events. It is now proposed that the Per Capita grant bereduced to 70p next year and by a further 10% each subsequent year, pre-sumably until it disappears altogether. As a branch, we are committed toproviding a quality newsletter to our members and, therefore, have gravereservations regarding these developments. Please do not hesitate to let usknow your views regarding this situation.
Now that the initial euphoria over the successful launch of the Canal &River Trust is beginning to fade away, it is perhaps time to consider what thefuture role of the IWA should be. Historically, we have regarded ourselvesto be the custodians of the inland waterways, creating awareness among thegeneral public, campaigning to prevent canal closures and providing an armyof volunteers to carry out restoration projects. It would seem to me that theCRT shares many of the same objectives and, if we are not careful, ourinfluence will be diminished and our role will gradually become marginalised.
On a more positive note, we have come up with what we hope will be an-other varied and interesting programme of events for the coming months andlook forward to meeting you and guests at Milton.
Keith Alderton
Ouse News Page 5
Moorings NewsEly Riverside
Following a successful application to the Land Registry, East Cambridge-shire District Council has been granted ownership of two key areas alongEly Riverside where ownership had previously been in doubt. The areas inquestion are the bend in the river from the Cutter to Annesdale and thetriangle of land around the slipway by Quayside. The Council is seeking toinclude these two areas, together with the river frontage and parkland alongPegasus Walk in the zone covered by the existing Mooring Byelaw. Allthree areas would then be subject to the same 48-hour mooring restrictionsthat apply elsewhere along Ely Waterfront and would be policed accord-ingly. The Branch Committee fully endorse these proposals and have re-sponded to the Council’s consultation document accordingly.
Boat painting with a differenceBoat painting with a differenceBoat painting with a differenceBoat painting with a differenceBoat painting with a difference
Norfolk boat painter, Danny Hardiman, has a novel idea – which is to sharehis expertise with boaters whilst providing a month-long course, during whichparticipants can work on their own boat.
At the moment he offers a blacking and full coach painting service. Thenew course, however, would provide guidance, use of a dry dock, equip-ment, consumables and materials, including paint.
This would surely suit someone with time on their hands, a willingness tolearn, not afraid of hard work and insufficient money to pay for a ‘full paintjob’.
Hopefully, this idea could prove beneficial to boaters in the future.
Keith Alderton
Ouse News Page 6
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Google maps UK’s waterways
Google has started mapping Brit-ain’s rivers and canals in an at-tempt to get more people enjoy-ing the country’s rivers and ca-nals. They say that ‘canal tow-paths offer green routes throughour towns and cities, and by work-ing with the Canal and River Trustthey are encouraging people todiscover their local waterways’.Google Maps will be updated toallow users to plan trips which in-clude locks, bridges and towpathsalong the country’s 2,000 miles ofwaterways paths.
Punting on the River Cam
New registration procedures came into effect on 1st April 2012 forthe owners of commercial punts. The conservators of the River Camfelt that the punting industry should be better regulated for thesafety and enjoyment of all river users. Owners who hire out tomembers of the public must prove that they are operating fromone of the six recognised punting stations when they apply for theirannual registration. The industry has grown in recent years andthese measures have been taken to maintain the quality of the visi-tor experience. The recognised punting stations are: Granta MillPond, the Mill Pit (east and west banks), Trinity College, Quaysideand adjacent to Jesus Green and are all along the famous ‘CollegeBacks’.
Ouse News Page 7
A Season of Two Halves
If you asked me to sum up my feelings about this year’s breedingseason at RSPB Lakenheath Fen, I would probably say the following;“It’s a good job the reserve staff are so good at controlling the water!”
It’s easy to forget that we were in drought conditions back in March.It was so dry in fact, that we needed some extra assistance. Wehave a license to pump up to a million cubic metres of the waterfrom the river each winter. We haven’t had to use this for six yearsuntil this year, when we pumped 383,000 cubic metres out of theriver. Without this, we would have had a dry reedbed, which wouldhave been disastrous for many of our breeding birds.
Of course, as most of you will know the beginning of the breedingseason coincided with an utter deluge of rain. April was so wet infact, that we had 340% of the usual average rainfall. Despite this,due to the reserve staff’s intimate knowledge of how to control thewater the reserve wasn’t too badly affected and the wildlife got onwith it the best they could.
Although it has not been the best breeding season, it has not beenwithout its successes. This is the first year that both resident pairsof cranes have fledged young in the same year. The two youngstersboth took their first flights on July 11, which was fantastic to see.
Crane taking flightPhoto by Dave Rogers
Ouse News Page 8
Sadly, our bitterns have not had quite such a good year. Initial signswere looking good with six booming males in the spring. However,despite reserve staff spending many hours looking for nests, onlyfour were found (compared to seven last year.) To make mattersworse, only one was thought to be successful. Although it is difficultto say for certain why they had such a bad year, the cold and wetweather certainly wouldn’t have made things easy for them.
The local marsh harriers also didn’t do as well last year, when therewere 18 nests that produced 45 young. Although they broke an-other reserve record of 22 nests, only 11 were successful. A total of34 young fledged. One mustn’t grumble, back in 1971 there wasonly one marsh harrier nest in Britain. If you told somebody that 41years later, there would be 22 nests at one site alone; they definitelywouldn’t have believed you!
Although this has barely scratched the surface, I hope this has givenyou an impression of what the breeding season has been like herethis year. It shows that even in a miserable and wet year, the localwildlife has adapted and made the best of it. Now, that is anencouraging thought for whatever next year brings us!
David WhiteInformation Officer
RSPB Lakenheath Fen
News & ViewsNews & ViewsNews & ViewsNews & ViewsNews & ViewsDo you have an article, comment or photo youwould like to share? We would be very pleasedto receive it!
The gods looked kindly on us this year when we managed to pick the one hotsunny week in May to cruise the Caledonian Canal.
The canal was built by Thomas Telford in the early 1800s to provide a safepassage between Inverness in the north east to Fort William in the south west,thus avoiding the long dangerous sea passage around Scotland’s northern coast.The resulting 60 mile navigation effectively cuts Scotland in two, following thenatural fault line of the Great Glen and consists of four short lengths of man-made channel (22 miles in total) and four lochs (38 miles in total). The water-way was thoroughly modernised in the 1960s and is now kept in excellentworking order by British Waterways Scotland. The rocky nature of the terraindictates that mooring is mainly restricted to floating pontoons, many of whichare equipped with shower and toilet facilities, electrical hook-up and waterpoints, all of which are provided free of charge.
Fifteen friends from the Stort Boat Club (plus one dog) variously travelled byroad, rail and air to meet up at a B&B in Inverness on a bitterly cold, wet nightprior to picking up 5 assorted boats from Caley Cruisers the next day. Fortu-nately, the weather improved dramatically as the week progressed with thetemperature rising steadily from 4 to 28 degrees centigrade, until the GreatGlen eventually became the hottest place in the UK, hotter even than Mo-rocco!
As we were all seasoned ‘sardine tin’ owners, we were a little wary of be-coming ‘Tupperware’ sailors, but were pleasantly surprised at the high stand-ard of equipment and accommodation provided on our powerful GRP cruis-ers. Before being allowed out on our own we were given a very professionalbriefing, including an excellent safety video (described as being a cross be-tween Braveheart and Titanic), followed by practical boat handling tuition.After a late set-off (due to the previous hirer missing the timed opening of thelocal swing bridge the previous night) we were shepherded in convoy alongthe first short section of canal, before mooring for the night above Dochgarrochlock where we enjoyed a convivial meal at the Oakwood Restaurant.
Ouse News Page 10The next morning we were let loose on our own, crossing the diminutiveLoch Dochfour before entering the vast waters of Loch Ness. For us ‘ditchcrawlers’ this was a daunting prospect as the loch is 22 miles long, 2 mileswide and up to 1000 feet deep! The prevailing wind blows straight down theloch and can whip up some serious waves at times and so it was comfortingto know that our 39 foot cruiser had a 150 horsepower engine tucked awayunder the floor. You couldn’t help but remember the advice to let off anorange distress flare and wait to be rescued by helicopter if you got intoserious trouble in the middle of the loch! However, all was well on the dayand our flotilla made stately progress, line-abreast along the loch. Mind you,some of us could not resist doing a high speed twiddly or two so see how theboat performed at full power. It is amazing how the wash from passingboats leaves a series of seemingly black short waves long after the boat hasreceded into the distance and you can readily understand how, after a fewwee drams you could be forgiven for thinking that you had seen the monster.
Needless to say, the scenery is magnificent, with snow covered mountainsalways visible in the distance and a constantly changing shoreline covered inancient oak woodlands, pine forests and thickets of bright yellow broom.Finding the seemingly tiny entrance to the next canal section at the far end ofthe loch was not easy, but we followed the instructions to head for the towerof Fort Augustus Abbey and the entrance suddenly became apparent.
Ouse News Page 11
Fort Augustus is a pleasant small town that straddles the staircase of 5 locksand is the only stopping place along the canal that is adequately served withshops and restaurants. The staircase locks here raise the canal by 40 feetand, like all of the others on the navigation, are 150 feet in length, 35 feetwide and with an air draught of 110 feet! The ample height is essential asocean-going yachts use the canal as a shortcut between coasts and we sharedlocks with many such craft from all over Europe during our trip. Fortunately,all of the 12 locks and 6 swing bridges between Inverness and Fort Williamare operated by cheery BW staff. However you do have to manually bow-haul your boat through the staircase as there is a strict ‘engines must beturned off’ rule. Loch Ness and Loch Oich are connected by another shortlength of artificial channel with two isolated locks set in open countrysideoverlooked by the ever present mountains.
Loch Oich is the shallowest of the four along the route and was created byraising the water level to form the summit pound, joining up two smaller lochsas a cost-effective alternative to blasting a passage through solid rock. Boatsare restricted to a very narrow buoyed channel in order to avoid underwaterobstructions caused by the remains of drowned villages. We spent a verypleasant night with the boats clustered around the floating pontoon mooringsat the Great Glen Water Park, set in the surrounding forest at the far end ofthe loch.
Ouse News Page 12
The attractive 3-mile section of tree-lined canal called Laggan Avenue takesyou on to Loch Lochy, which at 11 miles long and 500 feet deep is the secondlargest on the navigation. It is also, in my opinion, the most scenic of all, withthe mountains on the western side rising to over 3000 feet. On our outwardleg there was still a plentiful covering of snow on the peaks, but it had re-ceded considerably by the time we made our return trip.
We then travelled the final 6-mile canal section, called Western Reach, greatlyenjoying magnificent views of the 4400 foot high Ben Nevis range. Thefurthest point of our journey was reached at the head of the famous Nep-tune’s Staircase locks at Banavie on the outskirts of Fort William. This flightof 8 locks drops the navigation by 64 feet to join the tidal Loch Linnhe a mileor so on. Regrettably, hire boats are not allowed to descend these locks andso we stopped for the night on the extensive pontoon moorings and had to becontented with a leisurely exploration by foot.
Our return journey provided the opportunity to relish the views from a differ-ent perspective; stopping once again at Fort Augustus where we enjoyed afirst class communal fish and chip supper on the back decks. This time westopped off half way along Loch Ness at Urquhart Bay Harbour, overlookedby the much photographed Urquhart Castle. Once again the entrance to thetiny harbour was very hard to spot from the open water of the loch, leadingto a degree of ‘discussion’ amongst the crew.
When peace was restored, we braved the heat to walk up the hill to the LochNess Exhibition at Drumnadrochit. This is worth a visit as it provides much,well-presented, information about the origins of the loch and of course thelegendary monster. By some strange coincidence, one of the earliest sightingsof the monster, that subsequently brought thousands of visitors to the area,happened to be made by the former lady owner of the local hotel which nowhouses the exhibition!
And so we reluctantly made our way back to base for our last night, with meproving that I had forgotten all I had been taught about how to handle apowerful single screw boat, ignoring all advice and making half a dozenaborted attempts before I managed to reverse it in to the wharf.
Ouse News Page 13
The Ups and Downs of a Lock-keeper by Jake Kavanagh
Whilst there aren’t as many lock-keepers around these days as there usedto be (hands up anyone who remembers the days of lock-keepers atBrownshill Staunch and St.Ives lock) they are still to be found in many places:on the Thames, on the canal system at the more difficult spots such asstaircase locks and at various locations elsewhere. Jake Kavanagh, the authorand illustrator of this hilarious little book was a lock-keeper on the Thames inthe Windsor area for several years. His book is a somewhat tongue-in-cheekcollection of anecdotes and recollections, which will strike a familiar (andsometimes embarrassing) chord with all of us who boat.
The content is arranged roughly by season, from spring, through summerand autumn to winter – but interspersed with recollections not related toseasons – including chapters titled ‘Falling In’, ‘Wier’d Happenings’, ‘Thingsthat go ‘bump’ in a lock’ and most ominously the chapter simply headed‘The Boaters’.
Not only is the written content highly amusing, but I especially liked thecartoons that are liberally dispersed throughout the book. Some of thesituations the characters find themselves in and the expressions on theirfaces had me laughing out loud. ‘The Ups and Downs of a Lock-keeper’ isa real tonic. And does contain lessons we can learn!
It is a tribute to the enduring quality of Jake Kavanagh’s book that thoughoriginally published in 1991 it has been reprinted many times. One effect ofthis is that there have been several different front covers for the bookdepending on when it was reissued, and several different ISBN numbers.My copy is a fairly early one, but the latest reprint was in 2009. Copies canbe purchased from the IWA bookshop for £7.99 (catalogue no. AC31), ElyBoat Chandlers, and examples of earlier editions can be found on e-bay.
Our journey along the Caledonian Canal proved to be an unforgettable expe-rience and I would thoroughly recommend the trip to anybody who enjoysquiet boating amongst fabulous, but remote, mountain scenery.
Keith Alderton
Book Review by Stephen Foote
Publisher: Adlard Coles Nautical - Latest ISBN: 978-1408114414
Ouse News Page 14
The North Walsham & Dilham Canal 1825-2025
This will be a look at the history of Norfolk’s only locked canal, from itsconstruction at the end of the canal era, through its trading and sleepingyears to today. Finally - the prospects of restoration.
Why not come along to our next meeting on Thursday 25thOctober? We have an illustrated talk by Ivan Cane on:
To Milton
A14 West
A14 East
A10 to Cambridge
A10 to Ely
Tesco
Tennis Courts
Entrance
Community Centre
The Paralympic Flame arrives in ElyOn 25th August 2012 the Paralympic Flame was brought along the RiverGreat Ouse amid a flotilla of boats and watched by hundreds of people.A number of sites throughout Cambridgeshire received parts of the flamein a new concept for the Paralympic Torch Relay, when Four Flameswere lit and shared throughout the nation.
During the afternoon free sport sessions, live music and dance perform-ances took place in Jubilee Gardens and at 4.30 pm the flotilla of boatsspanning the ages passed along Ely’s riverside. The flotilla then escortedthe flame to Jubilee Gardens where it was carried by nominated localresidents before receiving an Official Welcome by the Mayor of Ely, Coun-cillor Will Burton, and departing to Ely Museum where it was on publicdisplay until 8.00 pm.
Details of more meetings are on Page 15 and the map below should help youto find the exact location in Milton! (If you have a problem finding us pleasephone Stephen Foote on 07774 613557)
Ouse News Page 15
We welcome the followingnew members to the branch.We hope you will introduceyourselves to us when comingto an event or meeting:
Our November meeting will bean illustrated talk by Ian West,Chairman of the IWA FestivalsCommittee and will be held on:
THURSDAY 22ND NOVEMBER2012
Our October meeting will be anillustrated talk by Ivan Cane, onthe ‘North Walsham & DilhamCanal 1825-2025’ and will be heldon:
THURSDAY 25TH OCTOBER 2012
Our February meeting will bean illustrated talk by Mike Petty,Cambr idgesh i re Researcher,Lecturer & Historian on ‘TheGreat Flood of 1947’ and will beheld on:
THURSDAY 28TH FEBRUARY 2013
We are a small, friendly group andwould welcome another commit-tee member to help us organisemeetings and events. Please con-tact the editor.
are at 8 pm on Thursday eve-nings at the Cole’s RoadCommunity Centre, Milton(North Cambridge) CB24 6BL.
We had a good response from ourprevious edition - can you help now?
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This baby otter was spotted by a family last summer on the Great Ouse,near Bedford.
Otter numbers in England and Wales declined dramatically from the mid1950s to the late 1970s.
The return of the otter to most of England is one of the major conservationsuccess stories of the last 30 years. The main reason for this increase hasbeen the reduction in levels of toxic pesticides, but the improvements in wa-ter quality and consequent increase in fish stocks have probably played asignificant part.
Otters are inquisitive, mainly nocturnal, playful and intelligent, often appear-ing to take childlike enjoyment in sliding around on muddy banks or in snow.They are semi-aquatic mammals and live in holts around water edges. Theyare fast, agile swimmers. Bubbles of air trapped in their fur give them asilvery appearance underwater.
Photo by Liz & Fred Ray and family
Return of the Otter
Ouse News Page 20
The Inland Waterways Association is a non-profit distributing company limited byguarantee. Registered in England no 612245 Registered as a charity no 212342Registered Office: Island House, Moor Rd, Chesham, HP5 1WA. Phone 01494783453
IWA Christmas CardsIWA Christmas CardsIWA Christmas CardsIWA Christmas CardsIWA Christmas CardsChristmas is coming - oh not yet,I hear you say! But ...
You can now buy your IWAChristmas cards direct from thebranch at discounted prices! Aselection of attractive cards, some new this year andsome from previous years, will be available for sale atbranch meetings in October and November. If you pickup your cards at one of these meetings, you will not onlymake a saving on the advertised price, but also avoidpaying the normal £2.50 OR £4.50 postage and pack-ing charge from head office.
All proceeds go to support the running of the branch andto fund national IWA campaigns.
