Richard’s Wey December 2018

Published on: 5 Dec, 2018
Updated on: 5 Dec, 2018

The latest report from Richard Cant, the Stoke lengthman on the River Wey Navigations

The darker evenings, lower temperatures and wetter weather really lets me know that winter is on its way.

Every year this feeling of impending winter seems to spur me on to get more work done, which is strange because much of our conservation work is done throughout the winter months so I actually quite look forward to it.

Of course, there are certain jobs that I like to get done early before my time is primarily taken up by weir operation, such as the winter cutback of all the towpath vegetation.

This started at the beginning of November with a very wide cut of the towpath with our ride-on mower, although even then I found myself getting bogged down and struck in the ever-softer ground.

This was then followed by some long days strimming (they felt long even though I found myself working in the dark at only 4pm), which meant that I made a good start and I’m on track to finish by the end of December, if the river levels behave themselves!

Whereas strimming is a one man and a machine kind of job, the offside cutback of low and encroaching branches from the non-towpath side of the navigation is best done mob handed.

My volunteers moving the large work barge known as a deck striker (due to its flat deck) ready for cutting back low branches.

This has been the main task for my volunteers this month, starting by towing the non-powered 70ft long 12ft wide barge that we use as a work platform over a mile from Dapdune where its moored, down to Stoke Lock.

From here we’ve been able to move the boat one length at a time and will slowly work our way downstream to Bowers Lock, cutting back as we go to keep the navigable channel open.

As this is a slow job we try to do a section of my length each year to make it more manageable, but even so I expect it will take much of the winter to complete.

As I mentioned previously, I’m always trying to get tasks done before the weir keeping season kicks in and I’m tied to monitoring water levels day and night.

Even this month my relief weir keeper and I have carried out around 70 weir movements between us, altering levels after rainfall to maintain navigation and prevent flooding.

This has seen some late night and very early morning (4am-ish but who’s counting) trips to the weir.

This can have a real impact on the work we do as it can mean having to down tools and drive to the weirs in the middle of a job, trying to catch up on sleep during the day or even having to postpone work from boats as the river is flowing too fast to safely travel.

I may sound like I’m moaning but I often think what a strange role the job of a lengthsman would be without weirs, as we do become intrinsically linked to the river and the weather, getting a “feel” for what the river is doing as weir keeping is by no means an exact science.

As I write this having just opened my Advent calendar I realise that this will be my last diary of 2018! So a very merry Christmas to you all and a happy new year, I may even see you out on the river for your Boxing Day stroll.

Stoke Lengthsman

07786 703 832

richard.cant@nationaltrust.org.uk

www.facebook.com/RiverWey