Race against time at Staveley Basin
Chesterfield Canal Trust’s volunteers have been praised this week for their efforts to complete Staveley Basin ahead of the National Trailboat Festival in May.
Managed by Derbyshire County Council, the Staveley Basin project is designed to restore and improve Chesterfield Canal; making more of the waterway navigable.
Working under the direction of council engineers, and with occasional help from the volunteers of the Waterway Recovery Group, the Chesterfield Canal Trust’s Volunteer Work Party has now almost completed the lock. Only the coping stones and lock gates are still to be fitted, despite encountering lots of bad weather and mechanical issues along the way.
The team has also been striving to build an additional 300 metres of canal below the lock – known as Hartington Harbour – ready for boats to turn around. This has proven the biggest challenge, as since November, the section has been at best ankle deep in mud and at worst totally flooded.
Chesterfield Canal Trust’s aging excavator, known as Denis, has also developed frequent problems, however much breakdown support has been received from JCB/TCHarrison.
Trustee in charge of the volunteers, David Kiddy, said: “I am very proud of our volunteers. Many have come to work on four or five days a week throughout the winter, frequently working in atrocious conditions.”
A major project, the Chesterfield Canal Trust has already invested around £100,000, with nearly half of the money coming from donations, and the rest coming from activities such as tripboat rides and membership fees. Part of the Markham Vale development, Derbyshire County Council has committed £89,000 for contractors and a grant has also been received for the lock gates from Veolia.
Chesterfield Canal Trust will host the National Trailboat Festival on behalf of the Inland Waterways Association on May 28th and 29th. The event will run from 10am to 5.00pm on both days and will include boat rides, canoeing, children’s rides, plenty of entertainment, dozens of stalls plus food and drink including a Real Ale bar run by Brampton Brewery.
