Gravel run to Atherstone
THIS morning (Monday) seven Star Class historic working boats are loading up at Paddington Basin with 100 tons of gravel that needs to be transported up the Grand Union Canal to Atherstone just north of Birmingham, about 120 miles.
The classic boats are Archimedes with butty Ara, Arundel with butty Joe, and three motors Callisto, Themis and Victoria, writes Del Brenner.
The gravel is being dredged from the bed of Paddington Basin, that was tipped there by the contractors during the construction of the new Terry Farrell building. The 100 tons of gravel was piled up against the historic basin wall (1801) to reinforce it while a huge hole was being excavated and the multi storey building was constructed. In the photograph the gravel is to be dredged from the corner of the basin behind the waiting working boats (Left to right: Denham gravel boats Joe and Arundel, and coal boats Archimedes and Ara).
Blocked by the building
The only means of removing the gravel is by water as the access for lorries is now blocked by the building, otherwise the contractors would have put another 100 tons on large lorries through London's roads and up the M1.
During the construction of this huge development not one shovel-full of excavation material left the canalside site by water, nor a single brick or any building material was delivered by water. The construction carbon footprint of this development has been enormous, and could have been reduced by 75% if only someone had thought of using the waterway which is only a few feet away from the site.
Solve the mystery
It is a mystery why the waterway is only considered by the developers as a decorative backdrop for their building rather than being of any practical use. The initiative of the crews of the seven working boats, led by Tom Hill on Archimedes, clearly demonstrates that the use of the waterways is not a thing of the past, and that there are great opportunities, even for smaller craft, to bring the canals of Britain back to life. The canals have a worthwhile and important future that will provide great economic advantages for the country as well as immeasurable environmental benefits.
It is nice to see Paddington Basin again being used for what it was built for, and being of practical use rather than relegated as a decorative pond for property development.
Give them a wave
The seven narrowboats will be running up the Grand Union Canal in convoy, and it will be the largest fleet of working narrowboats carrying out a substantial contract that has been seen for many a year. It will be a sight to gladden the heart of the many people who want to encourage the canals to be put to good use again.
The itinerary of the journey is not certain. It is probable that the fleet may get as far as Uxbridge on Monday after loading up, through Watford on Tuesday, over the Tring summit on Wednesday and through Milton Keynes, past Northampton and heading for Rugby on Thursday, Coventry area on Friday, and arrive at Atherstone on Saturday.
If you want to see the narrowboats fully loaded down to the gunwales ploughing though the canal in your locality, phone Tom Hill on 0797 391 5146 for up-to-date details of the fleet's progress.