Today you found me in map Corner quite important for today's video I'm also
going to need this which is Bradshaw's canals and navigable Rivers who knew that
Bradshaw did canals as well as Railways I certainly didn't today's video is also
sponsored by the good people it really more on that in a bit but first of all two things
two things number one a man called Terry number two a canal first of all show you
something quite quirky so this is Cosgrove and just here is a little underpass under the
canal the Grand Union Canal look at these it's wonderful don't be sure I'll go the wrong way
yeah I'm not going the right way but let's just take a moment to enjoy the
uh very classic Canal type construction of this underpass with a big facing wall right
where are we what are we doing and why should you carry on watching this video
up these steps and we found the Grand Union Canal part one yeah that's not going to cut
it but I think we need to delve a bit deeper into where we are so if I haven't already told you well
today we're going to need Maps got the exact map of where I am for Australia but I have got a lot
of these printouts down here of the area and if you haven't already worked out or if I haven't
already told you I'm up here near Milton Keynes and I'm gonna be heading down the Buckingham arm
of the Grand Union Canal the old Stratford arm followed by the Buckingham arm is the same room
so Terry's going to be at lock 21 wherever that is and he's going to help tell us about
Buckingham Canal or the Buckingham arm of the Grand Union Canal which I'm gonna
attempt to walk along today it's abandoned which fits in with what we do [Music]
so a quick word from today's sponsor which Bessie and I are going to tell you all about us for good
reason we have too many pets and we also have too many kids and what that means is we have a
lack of space in this house now I've got a love of magazines of all different varieties I always
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too so this is Terry and Alan from the trust I'll let them tell you the technical bits as
we take the arm from the lock 21 of the Grand Union Canal from Cosgrove we've got 9.5 miles
to go and well here's the first bit which is part of what was called the old Stratford arm
so the so the section we'll walk along now how how um in water how far could you narrow that
along here uh as far as the bridge in the distance you can see because that's where the stop planks are
right okay [Music] so we're as far as we can go in terms of navigation but we're looking like a
nice head of water thereafter it is indeed it's all been dredged out and we water yeah
200 meters to the final Crossing and that's where we're working on the next step thanks to go in
yeah as soon as next month Our intention is to restore the canal all the way to Buckingham yeah
but when we do that we will have created an 11 Mile Corridor down here for biodiversity and green
space and blue space yeah well-being right I'm going to leave Alan and Terry to it you're going
to hear more from them as I go on and I'm going to jump forward to halfway down this canal sounds a
bit like cheating but this is really the first good section you can walk from Thornton Wharf
now you'll also notice something else the weather has changed significantly oh yeah so let's tackle
now a real five mile walk from halfway down the Buckingham Canal all the way down to Buckingham
[Music]
Thornton Wharf coming up
this is brilliant so when you look at what I'm looking at now you just see a road iron
fence over the top looks very old but have a quick dig around here and there's a lot to
say I'm going to start with the slightly less attractive side first so to remember that this
um Road wouldn't have been there because there's a bridge the other side I'll show you that in a
minute but look at this now there's a there was an old Wharf here and I wonder if the Walling
there uh was that wharf pretty sure this would have been it because that's quite elaborate in terms of
canal Construction without there being a purpose so I'm going to label this Thournton wolf look at
that mix of masonry and brick that's that's great start to the day let's nip over the other side and
I'll show you just the most wonderful little uh occupation Bridge let's call it Bridge 18 I think
[Music] what an absolute treat Bridge 18 is we're now at a was a single bore single line
and narrow line whatever the canal phrase is from old Stratford through to Buckingham
yeah it was then narrow you know look at that look at the arch look at everything about that
Towpath on it it's got some drainage pipes coming through the middle huge amount of uh masonry
displaced on that side but it's still there wonderful I guess now is the time you really want
to try and uh I feel what it was like being one of the people that were in control of a vessel that
came down here at barge that came down here with Goods on and what their life would have been like
you just assume a relaxing slow pace just heading down the canal the nine or so miles from the arm
up there I can't help but romanticize it's probably not probably not like that probably
under sleep or something on the barge but I can't help but romanticize that life a little bit
alright onwards to an aqueduct can't remember the name of the aqueduct but I remember it's right by the road we're going to head out into the elements
over this stile and oh look at this just the most beautiful picture shame about the day
of an old canal and the Towpath and a line of trees that's gorgeous from the county boundary
which is adjacent to that site it goes between buckinghamshire and northamptonshire okay um the
footpath is fully accessible yeah cool part of the Ouse Valley walk all the way from Brackley to Kings Lynn
just a beautiful Serene picture I wish it was sunny and um here is a curious thing Danger
looks like a concrete block with the word danger in on it how DANGER is it onwards to the aqueduct
whatever remains of it I don't know for the the road took over it or if it's still there next
to the road it's only a small brook so the hope is with something like that it's still
there because it's sort of insignificant in a grander scheme of things [Music]
despite the weather this is sight to absolutely lovely walk along the towpath
of an abandoned canal and it's beautiful [Music] I've walked a long long way to see that
um and it looks like it's been completely repaired or completely
replaced I don't think any of that is original which is a real shame but I
guess needs must not much of a brook more like quite a fast-flowing river
[Music] I was about to say it stopped raining unfortunately it's back again left Castleford
Aqueduct uh lechford lick Hampton Wharf house behind us and now we start the big walk now we
start the about three miles into Buckingham where we've got quite a bit to see one thing
that continues to stagger me especially it's been we've been looking at the wilts and Berks Canal
lately and you think that's kind of a project that probably won't fully open in my lifetime
and here we are again another abandoned Canal nine miles long they've got a society and the
ambition is just crazy again even something this small I find it difficult to think that it would
be open in the next 20 30 years because there's so many obstacles but one thing I always wanted
to highlight is the absolute dedication of some of these societies and it's rare to see an abandoned
Canal without one where there's people who are just Resolute as as you can imagine about this
will be open it's really difficult for me to sort of convey that from what we do because you think
well that's not necessarily going to be something they're going to see in their lifetime and they
probably know that but the fact that they've given their time as part of that is really humbling
well done to all you and dedicate yourselves to this sort of this sort of project
oh
look wow here we are still also on top of a uh an overflow and I should imagine there's a lot
of Brooks along this section of the canal I should imagine that um they needed a lot
of these overflows or at least for the small aqueducts overflows would probably be easier
to build maintain the level of the canal as well so they don't ruin the banks and yeah here we are
Hyde Lock one set of uh lock Gates looking in reasonably good nick and one down the
other end but they look like they could be in good working order reasonably
forgive me one of the unwritten rules of being on YouTube these days is
you have to produce shorts It's the law, onwards now not quite sure what to expect
when I say I don't know what more there is to see I think there's another lock
according to the old uh old records and of course we can still try and Trace the canal
route itself and speaking of the canal route this is just gorgeous once again even the the
wooden planks they put to prop up the Towpath here covered in Moss algae it's just gorgeous
Buckingham Canal Society work is on going by volunteers to restore this
canal including the management of this part of our volunteers who maintain the natural
environment exactly what we're talking about just back there yeah really useful
[Music]
um so I'm just going to press on and stop waffling for a little bit
now make some time up because it's getting on I've got to get back [Music]
so what you're seeing now is a summation of about two miles walk felt probably like four because
of the heavy mud underfoot either way we've got one more lock to go and have a look at I didn't
know what to expect because I can't remember what the guy said back at Cosgrove [Music]
that looks like what we're aiming for there see that White House in the distance well
that's a site of bourton lock let's hope we can find some remains [Music]
sadly it looked like there was nothing left to see apart from the small retaining wall
which is probably the entrance to the lock ironically what this is is probably the old
lock house and it looks like the garden is now used of the site of where the lock was
on to the last little treat of the day yeah and we have half a mile at the Buckingham End
um half mile at the bottom end which we have rewatered yeah
um that was primarily to show the benefits from a biodiversity perspective yeah absolutely we've
planted it with locally prevalent plants and we have a local County La Wildlife recorder
so there is the end of the uh the navigable or say navigable the in water section of the uh
currently being restored Buckingham Canal the arm of the Grand Union big thanks to readly
today's sponsor of today's video without those sort of people we wouldn't be able to keep this
channel going in the way we do so big thanks to them hopefully we will give you some value by
signing up to them as well because if there's a benefit to us it might be a benefit to you
yeah thanks really we'll see you this time next week [Music]