The Bedwyns on the Kennet and Avon Canal

Thursday, 09 June 2011 11:09

Everything appeared normal water level-wise when we woke. The proximity of the railway line did not bother us - we hardly heard the trains.

Freight train on line at Crofton

These heavy trains make a little more noise than the others though .....

The railway line stays with the canal from now on and we caught occasional glimpses of it as we carried on down the locks. Crofton Crossing Lock (61) is aptly named as there is a pedestrian railway crossing here - walkers beware and keep open ears and eyes, as the trains appear very quickly around the corner from the pumping station.

Lock 62 has a "classic" gap in the bottom gates

There is a discussion to be had, perhaps, about narrowboats only using one gate on these wide locks. Some say it is bad practice as it results in these gaps allowing water leakage. However the gates only wear away if they do not have a metal strip here. If they do, "one gaters" have to weigh up the possibility of scraping the side of the boat. So what are rubbing strakes for? Single handers are very unlikely to want to open both gates, unless they open of their own accord, which many of the gates on the K and A do!

Oh look - Great Bedwyn Lock has the same problem!

We stopped at Great Bedwyn Wharf to use the services - it was a good job that The Bruce Trust wide boats were not there as we could moor in their spot to wait for a wide boat to finish.

Great Bedwyn Church hiding behind trees

Potters Lock is very isolated - the countryside around it looked so green and rises to a hill fort at Chisbury about a mile away. The area has prehistoric links but the fort was built in the Iron Age, possibly in the 1st century AD.

I don't think this is the same freight train!

So we arrived at Great Bedwyn's little brother - Little Bedwyn. The village is divided by the River Dun and the Kennet and Avon Canal and the lock is attractive with a beautifully kept house and garden beside it - the White House - no, not that one! To the north is the C19th estate village, once part of the Middle Ages' Bedwyn Estate held by the Kings of Wessex and England. To the south is the older farming village.

The notice at the lock reminds boaters to conserve water - advising a 20 minute wait for another boat before proceeding alone - hmm, I think that it might be more like 20 hours in the so called "off season"! Even today we would have had to wait 2 hours for another boat to arrive and that was a wide one

It looks as if BW themselves need to do something else to conserve water from the amount coming through the top gates.

Little Bedwyn Lock top gates

The village looked interesting so we found a rough mooring not far away and John (yes, this time I was too tired) went into the village with the camera.

Moored below Little Bedwyn Lock

I will put up a few of his photos in the next blog ....

Kennet and Avon Canal, Crofton, Lock 61 to Little Bedwyn
4 hours, 3.07 miles, 7 locks