Riff Raff Diary for September

Published on: 15 Oct, 2012
Updated on: 15 Oct, 2012

Riff Raff Cottage and Weir

Riverbank tales from our local St Catherine’s Lengthsman/Weirkeeper

by Robert Craig

The refurbished Riff Raff weir is nearing completion and [at the time of writing] will be operational by early October. Everyone concerned is relieved that we did not experience the same weather conditions as those in the north of England, which would have caused work to stop due to high water levels.

The rebuilt Riff Raff Weir

It has been a fascinating process witnessing the replacement of the old weir as it has played such a large part in my working life to date, although I’m looking forward to using the new structure particularly as the weir gates are motorised!

It was still possible during September to pull yet more of the Himalayan Balsam along the navigation as it has not yet reached the stage where the seed pods explode on contact, causing more harm than good.

We are starting to see the Swallows and House martins gathering by the river catching as much food as possible prior to their long flight back to Africa. It is wonderful to witness the skill of these birds in flight and a good place to watch them is in the meadows surrounding St.Catherine’s Lock.

In mid-September I cleared a large alder which had fallen into the river below the lock. Having removed as much of the tree as possible it was necessary to leave the root ball behind as it was too heavy and will have to be lifted out by machinery. With the vegetation still growing, I remain busy with the more routine strimming tasks along my length of the navigation.

See you by the river.