I’ve been wondering how long before C&RT would give us an update regarding the breach. Sometime this morning they have updated the website page with the following.
Update 23/04/2021
Our engineers have now completed detailed inspections and a design solution has been agreed. We are starting construction work on a permanent repair programme and expect repairs to the breach site to be completed by mid-August.
The Trust is planning to remove the stop planks in Goole Caisson next week. This is expected to be completed by 30th April to allow passage past this point. The Trust is continuing to maintain water levels downstream of the breach.
We’ve always known that we wouldn’t be able to escape in the direction of the New Junction Canal for sometime. But if we’re hoping to return to Goole at the back end of the year we now know we’ll be able to via an easier route than Trent Falls, which is a relief as weather factors and daylight hours may have more bearings on a passage by then. It also opens up the possibility of crossing the Pennines via the Huddersfield Narrow and Standedge Tunnel.
News regarding the caisson stop planks will be a great relief to those who’ve been stuck at Rawcliffe Bridge since before Christmas, some of them are chomping at the bit to move to new moorings. It does also mean that before we descend Ocean Lock we’ll be able to give Oleanna a run up the cut to check everything is working properly before heading onto tidal water.
Yesterday news came through from the Goole Escape group that C&RT would be updating their notice regarding passage through Ocean Lock in Goole.
Mick’s inbox was checked frequently yesterday, nothing. But this morning as we were having our cuppa in bed the following appeared.
Update on 16/04/2021:
We have been advised by Associated British Ports they are to open up limited penning for leisure craft from Monday 19th April.
Bookings will be controlled by the Duty Assistant Dock Master at Ocean lock on Tele: 01405 721128 on a first come / served basis and with a 24 hr confirmation call required.
ABP will offer a penn out at 1hr before HW and a penn in at 1hr after HW on daylight tides only and this will be managed around commercial traffic.
PLEASE NOTE: penning outside of these offered times is not available and that at no times should vessels anchor in the Goole reaches nor any part of the Ouse from the area of Skelton Railway Bridge to the Apex.
We won’t be one of the first boats to leave Goole. But we have been looking at the tide times to see when might be a possible tide to get us round Trent Falls to at least Keadby. Then the next tides to carry on upstream to Torksey and Cromwell. There is a date in mind and research to be done regarding Trent Falls.
The list of jobs at the house has gradually been getting shorter. Builders have been giving the roof and chimney stacks some tlc over the last couple of days and Frank has fitted us a new bath panel. The bathroom just needs to be decorated now.
New panel and a touch up on the plaster
Appointments for all three of us are in the diary. Sadly no news of our second jabs yet.
Press stud replaced, blind ready to go back up in the bedroom on Oleanna
The list of jobs on Oleanna remains long, but work will start on that list soon.
England on the Wold for panto
My panto model, which I’d been hoping to get finished by the end of the month, will have to sit on the back burner for a little while whilst things get sorted.
0 locks, 0 miles, 1 good update, 2 relieved boaters, 1 booking to be made, 2 many jobs to do, 1 press stud sorted, 1 chicken jointing lesson to be given (Frank), 1 quizzical cat, 1 garden catch up to fit in (Duncan), 2 busy but smiling boaters.
The first boats to cross between Sykehouse and Pollington Lock happened today. The passage is assisted and pre-bookable with C&RT.
Two Lock Keepers and a volunteer were on hand to see boats through. Apparently ten boats had booked passage, but only two headed northwards from Sykehouse and one southwards from Pollington.
The pound is being kept low, some say to help protect the cofferdam at the breach site. Others that there is another leak between the reservoir and Pollington Lock. But what ever the reason it looks like the low water level over the last three months has affected the banks of the canal in several places. With less water pressure in the pound the piling in places has fallen towards the water. At Christmas I posted photos of areas where this had happened on the Aire and Calder, there are now patches on the New Junction Canal.
Boxing Day 2020 Aire and Calder
Levels at Southfield Reservoir are obviously low too. The sailing club is looking elsewhere for it’s members to sail for the foreseeable future. Luckily the normal depth of the Aire and Calder is around three meters in the main channel so the passage between locks didn’t necessitate any boats scraping the bottom today.
One of the boaters moored at Rawcliffe Bridge visited the breach site today and had a chat with the engineer in charge. According to his post to the Goole Escape group it is looking like the breach will not be repaired until the late summer. C&RT are in talks with ABP regarding Leisure boats using Ocean Lock. Also they are looking at removing the stop planks at the caisson in the next couple of weeks, this will enable boats currently stranded at Rawcliffe Bridge to move to Goole should they want to.
Hopefully the stop planks will remain out which will mean that we’d be able to give Oleanna a bit of a blast up the cut to check everything is running smoothly before heading out onto the Tidal Ouse and Trent. It would also give boaters who don’t plan on escaping Goole the chance to at least get out from the marina for a short pootle.
Elsewhere on the network non liveaboards can now stay overnight on their boats. Some areas of the network will get very busy as they did last year when Lockdown 1 ended. But in other areas there are problems, another culvert is causing problems on the Llangollen. At the Figure of Three Locks on the Calder and Hebble, which has just reopened, a large plastic pedestrian barrier was drawn through the lower ground sluice paddle box this morning, damaging the paddle so the lock can no longer hold water. Hopefully this will be sorted soon.
Thankfully the weather hasn’t stopped Mark from visiting the breach site today, here in Scarborough it is doing it’s best to snow, I suspect drones and the fingers that control them are not too keen on the white stuff.
10/04/2021
The cofferdam is now fully drained.
10/4/2021 Looking westwards
You can see where people have been walking in the silt. Levels to the west of the cofferdam are still low.
10/04/2021
There is a large puddle (bottom left), for want of a better word, very close to where the big hole on the towpath is. My first thought was could this be where the piling or base of the canal has given way.
10/04/2021
But then Mick said , why is it full of water?
10/04/2021
Maybe this is where the breach is but the route out for the water is higher than the hole, so it has acted as a kind of U bend like you get on a toilet. Once the water level is higher than the route outwards the water drains away until it is level with the last thing blocking it’s route out. The footage below was taken on the 30th December.
Certainly when water was draining into the drain below it was rushing under the towpath, over the top of the drain and around the end of the bridge where there are now large boulders. The footage below was taken on the 29th December by Mark. Where the digger on the back of the boat has it’s bucket is where the hole in the towpath is. So the stern of the boat is right over where the big puddle is today.
Hopefully the engineers have been to site to have a look and see what the extent of the damage is.
10/04/2021 Looking down into the drain today
It may well be that most of what was once under the towpath over the drain has been washed away.
10/04/2021
Large blocks have been placed on the bank presumably to stop machinery and vehicles from missing the access ramp into the cofferdam.
The pumps keep going supplying the docks with water. Hopefully a sufficient amount to increase ABP’s confidence which hopefully will then lead to limited passages through the locks for leisure craft.
The Goole Escape group now has 45 members. Most boats are moored in Goole but there are a couple of boats who are stuck at Rawcliffe Bridge which is between the breach and Goole caisson. Currently stop planks block their way to access the docks.
David has called the Lock Keepers at Naburn, Selby, Keadby and Torksey in the last couple of days. All locks off the River Ouse and River Trent are operable. But unfortunately the swing bridge out of Selby Basin is currently unsafe to use, the main bearing on the bridge has weakened, possibly due to heavier than normal road traffic over it. Surveyors have advised C&RT not to use the bridge until the problem is rectified. Then at Tankards Bridge there is a 7ft height restriction. So currently there is no escape route through Selby. The Lockies at Selby are going to keep us updated as things progress.
So escape routes will be to York, Barmby, Keadby, Torksey. Some boats are talking about heading to Hull or even Grimsby.
Thank you Mark once again for letting me use your photos.
*This post was superseded by A Glimmer Of Hope yesterday*
Panto spiky trees
Whilst waiting for news regarding the breach and possible escape from Goole we’ve not been idle. Well I say we, but in regards to boaty things Mick has been the busy one whilst I’ve been working painting my panto model.
Town Square buildings
On our last visit to Oleanna we brought back the life jackets. These were in need of a service, in fact a year overdue. Last time we paid for them to be checked over to much consternation from readers. This time Mick followed instructions on Youtube.
He checked for any damage, wear and tear. Weighed the gas bottles. Checked the dates on the firing mechanisms. Blew the whistles. Inflated them and left them overnight (well a couple of days) to check they remained inflated.
New firing mechanisms
A couple of the firing mechanisms had a few months left on them and Mick had broken one of the clips that is used to indicate that a firing mechanism has been manually fired. The green clip obviously needed replacing so it was worth getting a couple of new mechanisms.
When they arrived the oldest dated mechanisms were swapped out for the newest and put into the jackets we use the most, these will last us till 2024. The middle aged ones were put in our two spare jackets, these will last till December 2022. The oldest ones we are keeping as spares and run out in February 2022.
All rolled and folded how it should be
The next job was to fold and roll the jackets back up into the covers. This is possibly the hardest part of the servicing. But they are all done and in the crate ready to be returned to Oleanna on our next visit.
Next was the VHF radio. We bought our hand held radio a few years ago and use it to listen in to the big ships around Goole and when we are on tidal waters. You should have your radio licenced and have completed a course to use it. Mick has been meaning to do the course for a number of years but had never got round to it, I suspect like many others. My sister-in-law had looked into it for his birthday last year, but it was going to cost too much.
With the only way out of Goole for the next few months being through the docks to Ocean Lock and down onto the tidal Ouse (when/if ABP allow leisure craft), we have decided the cost of the VHF course and test would be worth doing. ABP normally require leisure boats to have two crew, life jackets and a VHF radio. Should the chance arise to be able to pen down onto the Ouse we’d rather meet all the criteria.
Tilly assisting with panto
The RYA VHF/SRC (Short Range Certificate) Marine Radio Course can be done online for £75. Then the test costs £60 on top. Mick contacted Scarborough Yacht Club to see if they were running the courses and test. This was possible, although the test would have to wait until after April 12th and would be done on a one to one basis at the Yacht Club at Scarborough lighthouse.
Handbook included in the course
Once the course fee was paid a chap popped the handbook through our front door the following day and Mick was ready to do the course. The course takes around 10 hours and Mick has worked his way through doing all the modules in the last week. Before he books for the exam I’m going to look at the course too. Should we be in an emergency situation and Mick not be able to use the radio, I would at least know what to do.
Once the exam is passed Oleanna and her crew will meet all the criteria that ABP require, if this also means that we can cruise as a flotilla with other boats who haven’t got VHF all the better.
*Sadly later in the day Mick received an email saying that as Scarborough Yacht Club building would remain closed until 17th May, exams would not be possible until after that date.
A few days ago marked our 7th anniversary of being boat owners. Today marks our 4th anniversary of the three of us moving onboard Oleanna in Sheffield. So I’d best do a Where Were We
Where were we
2020 Lockdown Mooring 3, Calveley, Shropshire Union Canal. LINK
2019 Above Lemonroyd Lock, Aire and Calder Navigation. LINK
2018 Stourport, Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal and Beverley. LINK
2017 Victoria Basin, Sheffield and Tinsley Canal and Crick Marina, Leicester Line. LINK
2014 Bugbrooke, Grand Union Canal. Sorry no link, we were on too much of a mission to write a blog. But we did get Lillian off the River Nene where her EA licence had run out and up the Northampton Flight, her first narrow locks.
This morning we had an email from a chap, David, who is also trying to escape from Goole. He’d posted on Canal World Forum this morning after playing ping pong with C&RT and ABP with regards to being allowed out through Ocean Lock onto the Ouse.
C&RT sent him to ABP, they back to C&RT, and back and forth a few more times!
During the day we’ve exchanged emails ourselves and this afternoon a facebook group has been set up with the hope of trying to find other boaters also stuck in Goole who are wanting to make a bid for freedom out onto the tidal River Ouse.
I think I can see David’s boat.
It is hoped to be able to have a meeting with both C&RT and ABP to see if it would be possible to pen a lock full of leisure boats out through Ocean Lock.
If you are stuck boaters wanting to escape please join the facebook group. The Goole Escape Here
If you don’t do facebook, then please leave a comment at the bottom of this post or use Contact at the top of the page to send us a message so that we can keep you in the loop along with seeing how many boats would like to escape.
None of us will be holding our breath, but it’s worth a try. Maybe as a group we will have a bigger voice.
It’s not often you feel relieved to see a canal with a lack of water in it, but the fact that the cofferdam has drained itself whilst not refilling itself is great. I think it was about a month ago that it was this empty.
30/3/21
25/2/21 upside down for comparison
There are a few things to note from todays photos, other than it’s a lovely day to go boating!
The western end of the cofferdam seems to have improved water levels, so no overtopping.
30/3/21
The aggregate ramp into the cofferdam has been added to. The pile driving crane is no longer on the floating pontoon. In the photo above you can see what looks like a light with a red box standing on some new aggregate which I think will be used to illuminate the area and down into the drain.
The bags that were dropped in by helicopter are very visible now.
30/3/21
So is the big hole in the towpath by the blue tarpaulin.
30/3/21
What can also be seen in the above two photos is a yellow pump on the north bank by the drain.
30/3/21
There is now a small tarpaulin dam in the drain and the yellow pump appears to have two hoses one to either side of the dam.
30/3/21
Now that the water in the cofferdam has drained down into the drain below, as much as the breach will allow it, my theory is that the drain under the canal will now be pumped out. This will give them access under the canal.
30/3/21
The cofferdam seems to be holding its own now, hopefully things can progress. Will they need to do a fish rescue?
30/3/21
Then, at last, they will be able to pump out the remaining water to reveal the canal bed and the breach itself.
30/3/21
According to a local boater who has recently spoken to the control at Goole Docks, they are still not permitted to pen leisure craft through the locks onto the Ouse. He was told to contact C&RT for updates.
The tide at Goole this evening was going to be high 6.5m, 3 ships would be leaving the docks and 3 more coming in. Both locks in operation. Here’s hoping the high tide means the level doesn’t drop too much in the marina. I hope we left our ropes slack enough!
Other good news is that the Figure of Three Locks on the Calder and Hebble will be reopening on 12th April. This means that if we ever get to leave Goole this year then we might just be able to cross the Pennines via Standedge Tunnel.
Thank you to Mark again for the use of his photos.
We have experienced a few challenges with the coffer dams at the breach site during the weekend.
To help manage this we have had to drop levels between Ferrybridge and Pollington, therefore fluctuations in water levels may be experienced over the next few days as work continues at the breach site on the long term repair.
Skippers of all craft are advised to check their mooring lines to ensure their vessel is securely moored allowing for water fluctuation.
We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.
Levels had been overtopping the cofferdam at the western end over the weekend. The prevailing wind not helping. A video from Lisa shows the extent of this. Finger credit to Lisa.
The Aire and Calder appears to have no spillway between Ferrybridge and Goole unlike most canals. Spillways help to keep the level of a pound at a certain level or below, but the spillway to this pound is the docks in Goole which when ships are coming and going with the tides works pretty well. But now the cofferdam is in the way water needs to be pumped round it to supply the docks with sufficient water and to help keep the level above the cofferdam at a suitable height.
This all means that it is a bit of a balancing act to keep the levels at suitable heights for all. The levels in the docks for ships to come and go. The moorings in the docks. The moorings at Rawcliffe Bridge. Low enough not to overtop the cofferdam. Above the cofferdam the moorings below Pollington Lock.
Ferrybridge where there water can be let into the canal from the river
Levels seem to get dropped all the way to Ferrybridge, which suggests that this is the only place where they can control the amount of water coming into the canal. Tracking Google maps towards the breach there may be one sluice above Whitney Lock where the level could be dropped, but this goes into a drain rather than a river, so could end up flooding fields.
The height of the cofferdam seems to be an issue that comes and goes. They are planning on raising the level of the piling at the eastern end, handy as that is where the work pontoon is. But will they be able to do the same at the western side? Do they need to do this or will they be able to keep the levels upstream managed sufficiently to stop it overtopping? Or will another pontoon be required at that side to raise the piling?
Good news elsewhere is that the works on the breach near Hack Green on the Shroppie are nearing completion, the area was being filled with water yesterday. Well done C&RT, just wish they had been as successful on the Aire and Calder.
*Post update Mark has been out again with his drone today. Good news is that the cofferdam has emptied itself again.
30/3/2021
There are more photos, so I’ll write more in the morning as it’s time for food now.
Well Canal and River Trust have been busy with notices. On the website yesterday they posted the following
Update 24/03/21
The Trust and its contractors are in the final stages of making the cofferdam watertight, to enable the cofferdam to be dewatered. We anticipate that our engineers will be able to carry out the first detailed inspection at the breach site shortly after Easter. Water levels continue to be carefully monitored. While passage through Goole Caission is not possible at present, the Trust is working hard to ensure boaters can once again pass between Pollington and Sykehouse Lock. We intend to operate this on a booking only basis from 12 April (in line with the Government road map).
Certainly the levels in Goole were much better yesterday. But another ten days before engineers carry out a detailed inspection!
Then today notices regarding assisted passage have been coming through.
From the 12th of April access through Whitley Lock will be possible twice daily at 10am and 3pm.
From the 12th April, we shall be permitting a once a day access through Pollington Lock and Sykehouse Lock at 10am daily to allow boats to transit between Pollington Lock to Sykehouse Lock.
Mooring and overnight staying along sections between Pollington and Sykehouse Locks is not currently permitted.
Passage through these locks needs to be booked 48hrs in advance by calling 0303 0404040, Mon to Fri 9am – 5pm
Why assisted passage? Because they need to control the water levels in the pound where the breach is and should two locks full of water be let out at the same time, the wave created would likely overtop the cofferdam.
This is all very exciting. Except we still can’t get out from Goole!
A is Viking Marina B Ocean Lock onto the River Ouse
But should we be able to escape out onto the River Ouse we would be able to turn left and head up stream to Selby.
C Selby Lock
Turn in at Selby lock onto the Selby Canal.
D Tankards Bridge, E Beal Lock
You can only pass under Tankards Bridge, the last on the canal, if you are under 7ft high as currently scaffolding is being used to reinforce the parapet wall which suffered damage last September when a vehicle struck it. From there along the River Aire where a width restriction of 10ft 5″ is in place due to silt build up behind the lock gates. Thankfully neither of these would be a problem for us.
F Whitley Lock
Once up Bank Dole Lock we would re-join the Aire and Calder Navigation and turn left heading eastwards towards Goole. We’d be able to pass down Whitley Lock one morning.
G Pollington Lock, H Sykehouse Junction, I Sykehouse Lock. J The breach site
Then down Pollington Lock the following day, turn right onto the New Junction Canal and up Sykehouse Lock. Then and only then would we have successfully escaped!
According to Canal Plan if we did this route it would be 40 miles 1 furlong and 8 locks, normally taking 13hrs 45 minutes. But with current restrictions it would take us 3 days waiting for locks to open.
A Viking Marina, I Sykehouse Lock
Without the breach in our way Canal Plan has the more direct journey at 8 miles 3/4 furlong, 1 lock, taking us 2hrs 45 minutes.
Three Months ago today we learned of the breach on the Aire and Calder. The canal was doing a good job of emptying itself into fields, the flow of water heading for the villages of East and West Cowick. That all feels like a long time ago.
This morning my computer binged at me, a message from Mark Penn with new photos from the breach site. His initial comment was that there was no change. This was right in some respects, no progress on emptying out the cofferdam ready for inspection. But on the other hand there has been quite a bit happening.
20/3/21
Four days ago we received the notice from C&RT regarding a temporary fix to where the cofferdam meets the piling on the south eastern end. They would be implementing a more secure seal here, which is in progress and visible on Marks photos.
The first thing noticeable is that the floating pontoon is back on site. It had been stored through the other side of New Bridge. The pipes pumping water round the breach have been extended towards Goole, meaning that the pontoon and workers wouldn’t be drenched whilst working.
20-3-21
Water is actually being pumped into the cofferdam from the western end. This at first seems strange, pumping water in to where there is a breach, only for the water to flow out and into the drain below.
20-3-21
But thinking about it, it must be to help relieve pressure on the cofferdam whilst they make a more robust seal. We all know that lock gates open easily when the water level is equal at one end of the lock, yet the water pressure at the other end is immense. So keeping the water level between the cofferdam and the canal will mean less stress on what they are working on.
By the pontoon you can see a lot of new piling being put in along the bank where aggregate had been added last week. The void has been filled and now they are reinforcing the piling where it meets the cofferdam.
20-3-21
The above photo shows this better. A better fix than some blue tarpaulin and a roll of gaffa tape would do!
20-3-21
From above you can see the new piling lines up with the dam and the aggregate. Here’s hoping that this fix is nearing completion and that no more voids will hold up the cofferdam from being pumped out fully next week. Then the investigations can start and the engineers can get to work on a solution.
20-3-21 A boom has been positioned downstream near the bridge
A year ago we had arrived in Nantwich to stock up before continuing northwards. Little did we know we’d be there for months. The world was a different place, everyone getting used to what social distancing was, panic buying and hand sanitizer were new things. Supermarket shelves were empty and queues were long.
Tomorrow, Saturday, we’d have our first Geraghty Zoom.
21/3/2020
In all our minds back then we knew lockdown was coming, but only imagined it would last for a few months. Then life would return to some form of normality. Kath, Micks sister had left a plant on her office desk hoping it might survive, she’s not been back.
Theatres closed their doors on the 16th March 2020. A year later it was apt to have a panto meeting. Showing my white card model to the creative team and producers was a little strange on a Zoom meeting. Mick had enabled my phone to be an extra camera so that I could show people round my model whilst giving them motion sickness! A good meeting.
Muddy Cows
On Wednesday I caught a bus up to Scarborough Rugby Club where I joined the queue for the local vaccination centre. I’d last stepped foot in this building eight years ago when collecting old rugby shirts to be used in the premier production of John Godbers Muddy Cows at the SJT.
SRUFC Vaccination Centre
This time I left with my vaccination card and a sticker. My photo on social media has caused some unrest from those who didn’t receive one. Mick is miffed and so is Kath from Herbie along with numerous friends. Sorry!
This morning I have received my NHS vaccination letter, I’m glad my doctors had everything in hand as the nearest hub to us is Saltburn 31 miles away. The 3.5 miles on the old railway line is much better. Just a shame I’ve had a few side effects, hopefully todays vertigo will pass soon.
0 locks, 0 miles, 1 dam filling up, 1 reinforced joint, 2 boaters still with fingers crossed, 3 months, 53rd Geraghty zoom, 1:25 scale white card model, 18 rugby shirts, 1 jab, 3.5 miles home, 1 sticker controversy, 1 wild flower bed planted, 6 more houses to go, 2 thank you’s to Paul (Waterway Routes) and Dave Scouts for blog advice, 1 map from last year to check it still works, 1 window open all sunny day for Tilly, 1 Mrs Tilly stamp of approval.
