Tag: Crane Brook

#365daysofbiking Going with the flow

Tuesday December 15th 2020 – For the most of the last year or so, Chasewater has been full to overflowing, or very near it. I guess with the pandemic there haven’t been the boat movements on the canal, and not as much demand for water. But it also seems the authorities prefer to keep it full these days.

For most of my youth the lake oscillated between full and very low, but since the dam work a decade ago, it’s been maintained much higher.

It’s been flowing over the weir and into the spillway, and ultimately into the Crane Brook for months now, which I’m sure is contributing to flooding near Hilton, but I can’t be certain.

It’s fascinating to watch though, and good for the wetland on the spillway.

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#365daysofbiking Level pegging

November 24th – At some point between last week and this, Chasewater’s level increased and it overtopped the spillway weir, but now is sits a couple of inches below this, yet the canal valve remains closed off. How could it be so?

I remembered there is a small valve-controlled weir bypass sluice in the back of the 9-Foot embankment, and for the first time ever, it was open. I’m not altogether clear why.

Releasing water into the full canal would mean loading the Ford Brook/Tame waterway through Walsall and Birmingham via the overflow system, so releasing to the spillway would mean the water goes via the crane brook to meet the Tame near Tamworth, which would be better. I suppose using the sluice allows the dropping of the level of the main reservoir in a much more controlled fashion and creates buffer space if necessary.

It’s very unusual and I don’t think I’ve seen this approach in the seven years since Chasewater was refilled.

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January 24th – Chasewater is still in overflow. This fascinates me – there has clearly been a deliberate decision to let the lake overtop the spillway rather than open the valve and let it flow into the canal. This is interesting, as had the water gone into the canal, the canal would have overflowed into the same culvert system, which feeds the Crane Brook. I must take a look at the crane brook when I can to see how it’s affected.

The flow from the breakwater is moving along the floor of the spillway, and into the new culvert system under the Victorian outfall. I guess that’s helping to irrigate the marsh there (as if it needed it, but you never know).

Exactly the same happened this time last year. Perhaps it’s some kind of stress test. It does mean however, that the two narrowboats moored in Anglesey Basin remain quiet on the relatively still canal…