Grantham Canalathon
With just under a month to go until our newly renamed Canalathon (why did it take so long to come up with that!?) we thought we would share a little more information on how The Grantham Canal Society plan to use funds raised.
The Grantham Canal Society’s ultimate goal is to get the whole 33 mile stretch of canal rewatered and navigable. With numerous stretches along it’s length silted up, filled with well-established tress and undergrowth, as well as several roads blocking sections, this is a monumental challenge. However, over the past four years volunteers have laboured hard to rebuild and repair locks 14 and 15 giving over 5 miles of navigable waterway from Lock 14 at Stenwith / Woolsthorpe to the A1 in Grantham.
With these locks completed and open, attention has turned to restoring Lock 13. Thankfully through the previous restorations volunteers have gained numerous skills in building and civil engineering all of which will be needed to complete the project. It is also vital volunteers look after the ecology and bio-diversity of the area whilst work is going on.
The society is in the early stages of restoration but will need funds to introduce a propping system to support the walls whilst working in the lock chamber (£25K), for an anchor system to tie back the wall structure (£28K), for overall repairs to the masonry (£75K) and for the lock gate towards the end of the project (£95K). Overall the total cost is expected to reach £250K over the two years it will take to complete the project.
Once completed Lock 13 will be the 6th lock brought back to use in the Woolsthorpe flight of seven locks, the 7th being lock 12 at Stenwith. Once the flight of 7 is completed it will open up the canal at a level height all the way to Cropwell Bishop at Lock 11 some 20 miles away through the Vale of Belvoir.
Photos showing our local section of canal at Cropwell Bishop which highlights the extent of the challenge volunteers face, including well established trees and undergrowth.
