Tag: Chasewater

December 16th – I went back to Chasewater in the daylight to investigate how the water levels were behaving, and to seed what was going on with the balancing culverts between the main lake, Nine-Foot pool and the spillway. It seems the sluice that was open from the Nine Foot to the spillway has now been closed, and looking at the output side it seeks very well indeed. Water should now continue to rise until it reaches the top of the breakwater on the left. This means there’s about a metre to a metre and a half to go before the lake is full.

Last time I checked the level, it stood at 6cm from the top of the lower metre scale on the pier. That was on November 25th. Today, on December 16th – a mere 21 days later – it stood at just shy of 58cm on the upper metre scale. That’s an increase of 48cm or about 19 inches in 21 days. This is astonishing, and is largely due to the heavy rains on already saturated grounds, causing runoff to fill the reservoir. I don’t think anybody ever thought such a rate of fill was remotely possible.

I noticed while I was mooching around the Nine Foot that the red deer had been and had a look before me…

December 15th – I went to Chasewater for the first time in a couple of weeks, but sadly, at dusk. I’d been up on the Chase (more on the main blog later) and returned over the dam. The water level must now be getting close to full. I had concerns that the balancing pipe system between the Nine Foot pool, main lake and spillway would dictate the overall final level, but the sluice between the Nine Foot and spillway seems now to be closed. I guess this indicates the final full level of Chasewater will be the top of the new breakwater overflow. The level therefore is now climbing up over the sluices, and I’m fascinated to see the lake bed reclaimed. This is like watching the recovery of a good friend from a grievous illness, and fills me with joy. The convalescens of a reservoir.

On the way back to Brownhills, I passed a row of narrowboats moored by the Anchor Pub. I have vague recollections of this at this time every year. Wonder if it’s a christmas party? Fascinating, and lovely to see.

November 25th – Chasewater’s water level was higher today than even the night before. Remarkably, the level is now to the bottom of the balancing culvert between the main lake and the Nine Foot pool. A long, careful shot in the dusk showed the scale was at 6cm from top, whereas 3 weeks ago, it was at 54cm from top. That’s a rise of 48cm or 480mm in three weeks, an utterly astounding figure. This means the reservoir isn’t far from full.

Since the water is now lapping at the bottom of the balancing culvert, I’m interested to see what happens. There is a second such culvert at the same level out from the Nine Foot to the spillway, which seems to be sluice controlled. at the moment, that one is empty so any overflow will pass straight through, and the lake will not get higher. I’m wondering if this is the final intended level, or if the second balancing culvert will be shut off and the water level between the Nine-Foot and the main pool be allowed to rise. 

I hope so, otherwise the shoreline will be a shadow of it’s former self. 

At least the sailing club now have enough water. If anyone had told me Chasewater would refill this quickly, I’d have told them they were mad. Remember, back in May we were expecting a drought…

November 24th – Finding myself in the dark of Chasewater, the only real light was in the mist over the water caused by the heavy rain. Realising the wind was from the east, I decided to see what the camera could do on a long exposure. It was really very dark, but I set shutter priority and set exposure to the maximum 8 seconds, with the camera stood on the dam wall. I’m fascinated by the results. I don’t know anything at all about photography – I usually just let the camera do it’s thing, and have worked out how to get decent results by trial and error without really understanding the process. Of late, I’ve started to get more adventurous, and the little camera seems a lot more versatile than I thought.

As a side issue, I note the water level of the lake has shot up: looking at the level on the pier woodwork, it seems to have gained about 300mm – a whole foot – in November. With the land saturated, I guess all the runoff is now pouring it. I’m seriously wondering if the lake could be near full by New Year.

November 24th – Oh my word today was grim. It started early, with a dentist appointment, and by the time I or my mouth were feeling anything like going out, it was raining cats and dogs. I headed over to Burntwood to get some shopping in after dark. The wind was low, and I dressed for the rain, and the ride was really quite invigorating… but the photography, as you might expect, was lousy. Crossing the bridge over the M6 Toll at Pool Road, I stopped to watch the traffic. The road surface was swilling with water, and the spray was terrible. I was glad to be on my bike, in a deserted country park, in almost total darkness. Somewhere from the lowland below the dam, an owl was calling. There’s beauty anywhere, really, but sometimes it’s very hard to find.

November 18th – Today I made time to take a quick photograph of the concrete play sculpture at Chasewater, featured in a post on my main blog. It was created in 1962 by artist Bryan Blumer as a climbing object for kids, and originally stood in the play park. As Anne Bradbury says, it now somewhat ironically stands on a traffic island with notices requesting kids don’t play on it. Sad.

November 4th – With all the rotten tree stumps left in Chasewater’s dam after the felling operation as part of the restoration, there’s now an impressive crop of assorted fungi in evidence. The rusula and glistening ink caps pictured here are amongst several species evidently thriving there. I haven’t seen much fungi about this year, it doesn’t seem to have been a very good season. 

November 4th – I was at Chasewater for the Vintage Event at the railway, but took in a loop of the rapidly refilling lake when I left. I noted that the water level had now reached 5.4 on the scale, whereas on October 19th, it was at 6.5. Since the scale is graduated in decimetres, that tells us the waterline has risen 11cm. That’s 110m in 16 days, making the height of the water now around 148.71m AOD. There’s now about a metre to go until Chasewater is full – however, there’s and awful lot of surface area to cover in that short height gain. At dusk, the gull roost was massive, and with little sunset, the night came on in shades of blue.

October 20th – That something good was one of the most remarkable sunsets I’ve seen for a while. It happened as I crossed Chasewater Dam on my way to Burntwood. Taking just twenty minutes in total, it was fleeting, ever changing and magical. I walked the length of the dam path, stopping to take photos every couple of minutes. I was very lucky to see this.
There are more images on my main blog. I feel the need to point out again that these images are not enhanced – it really was this beautiful. 

October 19th – The refilling of Chasewater has been very swift and remarkable. Saved by a very, very wet season, it occurred to me today looking at the new outfall arrangement that there’s only a shade over a metre to go until the reservoir is full and flowing into the Nine-Foot. Of course, there’s a huge increase in area to cover in that metre, so it won’t be quick. On the 30th of September the level was just off the 148.35m AOD start level of the scale, maked ‘9’. Today, it’s at 6.5. Since the scale is marked in decimetres, that’s a 250mm rise in 19 days to approximately 148.6m AOD. That’s incredible.

It’s nice to see healthy birdlife return, too. Long time since I’ve seen a heron loafing on the waterski jetty.