The Oriel Number Thirteen
Welcome to The Oriel Number 13.
I appreciate that it has been far too long since we sent out The Oriel Number 12. I hope that you can understand that, now that we have a project under way to restore a structure, and we’re attracting support from more volunteers and from the Waterway Recovery Group BITM travelling team, it’s taking more time to get things in place for the programme of work for the volunteers to do.
One item of good news, earlier in the year, was a decision for WBCT to take over the leadership of work on the towpath from the B4069 in Dauntsey Lock eastwards for about 1800 metres – this being a section that for many years Wessex Waterways volunteers have been mowing and strimming and trimming the towpath hedge but our understanding was that one of the landowners did not welcome public access. This has changed, and that landowner decided that WBCT should be the custodians. It was big weight off our shoulders not to be out with our mowers every two or three weeks during the spring and summer months. We’re just starting to learn about working alongside WBCT. There was an early meeting in a pub in Chippenham but only recently did we start to get an idea of what WBCT might be doing on that stretch of towpath. People who live locally and walk the towpath will know what’s not been happening – we’re very much hoping that things will move forward more strongly to keep that footpath open for the public to enjoy.
As the spring has progressed, we’ve been mowing and strimming the other sections we can access – at Waite Hill Farm extending westwards from Lock 1 at Seven Locks, and at Elm Farm and Park Farm at Foxham.
As announced in The Oriel number 12, we’ve made a start on Oriel Bridge at Foxham. Photos follow:
An early photo, the temporary bridge is in place, and the first few spanning beams have been removed. The cracks in the downhill abutment (right hand side of the picture) are the reason for the work we are doing.
Photo showing most of the spanning beams removed, the temporary bridge enabled us to cross the bridge but the cows wouldn’t use it to gain access to the fields uphill of the canal.
One of the challenges was the temporary bridge we had to put in place to enable Farmer Mike’s cattle to access the fields further up the hill above the canal. Attempts were made to encourage the livestock across the bridge in 2025, but something wasn’t to their liking. We removed much of the bridge deck and re-fitted the temporary bridge at a lower level, Farmer Mike put some ballast in place either side to make a firm ramp suitable for cattle hooves to walk on – and the happy day arrived when the cows found their way to the greener grass further up the hill. I won’t give details of any ‘tricks of the trade’ used by Cath, Mike and John Kinch. The important thing is that those tricks were the necessary and effective encouragement.
We’ve spent many Saturdays with electric concrete breakers removing the concrete placed by Mike and his late father, Bob, to form the flat deck bridge between the historic abutments of the 1790s arch bridge which was dismantled the quick way by the Home Guard in the Second World War. We understand that this was for practice purposes – and that the blast shook the windows in the village church some distance away.
This shows the next stage with the temporary bridge moved sideways and lowered, removing the step and making access easier for the cows.
Two photos to show the cows on the uphill side of the bridge. This was warmly welcomed by the Kinch family.
Mike used his telehandler to lift the spanning beams off the bridge abutments and carry them down to the farmyard where Larry used wire brush, scutch hammer, and air-powered needle gun to remove the rust. The beams will be re-used, but with a high-performance epoxy paint system designed for use for railway bridges, and with a predicted service life of several decades.
Three of the spanning beams ready for paint to be applied.
We’ve been able to borrow a road-tow compressor. It was previously used by Kennet & Avon Canal Trust volunteers who looked after the water-powered water wheel at Claverton. The compressor is now owned by Pete Dunn who previously worked for the company who built it. We’re grateful to him for allowing us the use of the machine to drive the needle guns to remove the rust from the beams
Elsewhere, work continued. One stormy night, last year, an ash tree was blown down, neatly crossing the canal:
A team of hard-working WRG BITM people applied hand-operated winches (tirfors) and serious human strength to drag the stump onto the towpath where a local friend of the canal (and friend of the landowners) brought his chainsaw (in our absence) to take the logs away for firewood.
Lock 1 of Seven Locks, within land owned by Phil Smith:
In the past, the chambers of two of the locks in the Seven Locks flight have been restored, and some work has been done to Lock Two which previously had a lift bridge carrying Bowds Lane. A solution was developed to re-align the road but that’s for further into the future. This photo is lock 1 where we keep the vegetation trimmed short – usually two cuts on each side of the lock – each year. This keeps the site safer for people walking along the towpath alongside and follows the advice given by our ecological adviser.
Another photo of the canal at Lock 1. The land ownership changes at this point – hence the signage. The towpath is open on a permissive basis through to the B4069 at Dauntsey Lock.
Early issues of The Oriel included photos of the ‘Toybox’ plant repair workshop facility that was established on the land at Dauntsey Lock by WBCT. When the time came for them to move away, the decision was taken to leave the old van body, but before long it became impossible to open the door. With very welcome and valuable help from Ian Frankham, who runs a motor business in Lyneham and Keith Simpkins of Dauntsey Lock, new door frames were welded together and hinges welded to the steel framework of the van body.
This photo was taken in the evening to record that the two replacement doors were in place. The previous door had to remain in place to protect the contents of the van body from the weather. Removing the previous door (inside the new doors) involved cutting the panels. This has now been done, and we’ve been able to gain access to the materials and tools stored inside the Toybox. A photo will appear in a future issue of The Oriel.
Two recent photos of the ash stump near Oriel Bridge at Foxham. Most of what appears in these photos has now gone, but it’s a record of what we’ve been doing.