West
Vale Branch |
Again I can report that we have been very busy at Steppingstone Lane Bridge on two weekends since I last wrote. The weather, considering the time of year, has been very kind when we have been working with the sun making a very welcome appearance on both occasions. This has enabled us to achieve a great deal and we expect the diversion to be “ready for inspection” by the end of March or in early April at the latest.
Between work parties however, there has been a lot of rain, filling the canal, but making the ground underfoot very soft indeed! In our efforts to minimise any damage to the green nature of Steppingstone Lane we have manhandled most of our stores along the temporary towpath from Station Road The downside to this is that the already softened path has cut up a bit and become very muddy in places (better known as “wellie-traps”). We have been considering ways to reduce the physical effort and damage that this manhandling takes and are now looking to put a punt on the canal to carry our stores between the two bridges.
Continuing with our support for the Shrivenham Circular Walk, we have installed a footbridge near to Steppingstone Lane Bridge where the farmer had dug a deep drainage ditch which was causing concern to some walkers. The design for this bridge was derived from what was available to us and is basically three steel “I” beams spanning the ditch with a deck of 2 inch by 6 inch timbers. The stores were donated by the branch and the installation was carried out during a brief lull between bigger jobs on the diversion.
For more information or to volunteer assistance please come along to one of our meetings held in the Shrivenham Bowls Club, Martens Road, on the second Wednesday of every month at 8 p.m. You will be made very welcome. For those with a computer and Internet access please visit our Branch Web Site at www.westvalecanal.fsnet.co.uk.Orph Mable - Branch Project Co-ordinator
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