Our first public Open Day at our flagship Malswick East and West Projects
Starting at 2.00pm and continuing until 5.00pm
at Canalside at Malswick
B4215 at Malswick East of Newent GL18 1HE
Herefordshire and Gloucestershire Canal Trust / information@h-g-canal.org,uk
Open Day at Malswick
The Herefordshire & Gloucestershire Canal Trust have been reinstating a 600m stretch of canal at Malswick (off the B4215 near Newent) for a few years now and this section is within sight of completion. The main site was acquired in 2017, following which a 32 ton capacity farm bridge was built, two culverts repaired and at that stage the Trust was able to start work on the canal.
For that (apart from extensive preparatory works) two quite large culverts have been installed, the canal channel has been cut and in some cases embankments built. The volunteers are now in the process of preparing to install a solar pump which will be used to top up the canal to replenish evaporation losses.
A further section towards Gloucester has been acquired, this time it’s about 400m, and plans are advanced to dig that as well.
The Open Day is being held so that any member of the public can visit the site and see what has been done. Some people may recall that over the past winter large heaps of clay were visible from the road and there was speculation as to their purpose. Those heaps have been moved to their final destination, at the north-west end of the site, infilling the ground over a large culvert and creating an embankment to carry the restored canal. It’s surprising how these large heaps have been blended into the landscape!
For the Open Day on 29 September the site will be open between 2 and 5pm. There will be a guided walking route featuring the main features of the site - stop and look at as much as you like. To see the entire site there is a walk of about 2 kilometres. There are sections of canal in water (and some not yet in water), some trees and hedges have been planted, there is a large swing bridge on site waiting to be installed on the next section and a quiet track waiting for development in the new part. For the younger visitors, there will be a short fun quiz to help maintain their interest.
Please do come along and have a look. There will be teas and coffees available and other refreshments along with more information on the canal and its aims. The site can be found off the B4215, between Gloucester and Newent, on the right coming from Gloucester and it will be signed.
The Trust is always looking for interested people to become involved. We can make use of a wide range of skills and would welcome an opportunity to speak to any potential Trustees wiling to assist us progress this exciting project.
