On 2 Jun 2009 as I do recall,
Adrian Stott wrote:
> BARRY HOLLAND <[email protected]>
> wrote:
>
> >Walking down to "The Fox'' @ Hanwell on Sunday last to enjoy a pint
> >of "Special FX" we noted that some of the pounds were low
>
> AIUI, it's because some of the gates leak. Sometimes that's not
> because the gates are damaged, but because rubbish gets moved up to
> the (usually upper gate) sill as a result of the passage of boats,
> thus preventing the gate from closing tightly against the sill.
>
> Dredging would probably help prevent this. However, I think it has
> been a long time since this flight was dredged.
>
We came down Hanwell at 7am on Monday morning (having been stuck at
Cowley Peachey for most of the Sunday when we needed to be passing those
locks) and were warned by the lock-keeper that one of the pounds was
four feet down on what it should have been the previous night, and still
about three feet down that morning, and we probably wouldn't get a pair
of 'traditional' boats through.
He wasn't joking.
When I got there I found great shoal-banks sticking out from both sides
of the pound; I didn't dare fill the lock ahead of the boats because
there was nothing to fill it with until a bit of water had run down
through the bypass weirs. We still went aground in the lock entrance
and had to wait another five minutes or so before we could get in....
'Dane' is currently moored just below the "Fox". Water quality pretty
awful (bubbles coming up from the bottom all the time!) but you can get
a fairly clean dipper-full by leaning out on the off-side of the
breasted pair... I assume the glutinous bottom at this point must be the
contribution of the River Brent.
[snip]
> >I can remember a back-pumping system [?] being installed @ Hanwell
> >about ten years ago to prevent the towpath being regularly flooded &
> >I #thought# to prevent the imbalance of water I saw on
> >Sunday---obviously not!
[snip]
> I suppose the back pumps could be used to adjust the in-flight water
> levels. But wouldn't it be just as easy to run water down from the
> top?
That's what the lock-keeper was busy doing when he cycled past me early
on Monday morning - hence the subsequent overflow down through the weirs
from above. Apparently it's a regular occurrence.
>
> Actually, come to think of it, were they installing back pumps or
> bywashes?
>
I've never actually seen any sign of pumps on this flight.
--
Harriet Bazley == Loyaulte me lie ==
Save energy: be apathetic.
