It’s increasingly easy to criticise CRT these days, but in this little post I’d like to say a well done and a thankyou.
We said our goodbyes to NB Kingsley Vale and set off down the Gailey locks
It’s a picturesque gem with its highly unusual lock keepers cottage. Why build a round tower next to a lock? The canal passes under the old roman road, Watling Street and the heavy bridge obscured the view north. So if you cant see under it or around it, think logically and look over it. Hence the watch tower, so the lock keepers could look north to see what was coming. The next lock in this rise is Brick Kiln lock, and I’d hazard a guess that its where the bricks came from to build the Gailey Round house. When we travelled south on our way to Wolverhampton a few weeks ago, I took a photo of this lock out of sheer amazement that it was still considered safe to operate.
But it was on the schedule for winter repair work. I guess someone like me, was also dubious. And guess what….
Sitting by the side were 3 pieces of rotting oak. And a very newly constructed beam.
I know logically that there will always be a day before and a day after a repair, but it was just such a good thing to see a repair done earlier than scheduled. So I’m saying thankyou CRT.
Now what about Rodbaston lock with it’s this self filling system, I think those leaky gates need some attention, as we’re trying to empty it.
