Why not start at the beginning?

Published: Thursday, 04 October 2018

WITH so many canals closed and under restrictions we took to the rivers for our long cruise this year, writes Helen Cripps.

So though I am no fan of rivers, especially tidal ones, we thought we would be fairly safe from stoppages as they keep flowing!

Boring

And so it proved, managing to get along the boring, boring Fossdyke to the equally boring Witham to Boston and back without a single hold-up over the five weeks.  But I shall not equally bore you with the details, only perhaps that I left the steering to 'he' whilst on the tidal Trent to Torksey.

But first, it was dropping on to the Trent at Trent Bridge in Nottingham and searching for the restored section of the Grantham Canal, which is my query.

Not restored

But the entrance to the Grantham off the Trent had not been restored, and it seems none of that part of the canal has been restored either, only the middle section. I accept that those in charge of this restoration should know what they are doing, but I would have thought that starting the restoration—like in the case of the Montgomery—with its connection to the system would have been the sensible thing to do, meaning that the canal could then be used and so create a great deal more interest and publicity.

Having taken some interest in the Grantham, having relations living at Cotgrave, I know the restoration has had its 'hiccups' as I remember the society forgot to give the height required for boat passage when a road bridge was being built that left just a couple of feet clearance for boats. And I understand there have been other problems holding up restoration.

Boating community interest

But restoring the canal in its middle means that there is no boater interest whosoever, but restoring where it connects to the system via the Trent would have given the boating community interest that surely would have been most helpful.