What follows is a personal opinion, much as all these blogs are, and shouldn’t be taken as BNCT policy although where there is wide divergence I do point out the alternative views. The upper Bure is defined as such by the head of navigation at Horstead whereby lower is navigable and upper is no longer open to boat traffic. The lower part of the river is wholly in the cruising area and is managed by the Broads Authority as part of their statutory responsibility; for good or bad this does represent a one-stop shop for all matters pertaining to the Bure in that area. The upper river is divided again by history and location, immediately above the lock at Horstead lies what was the Aylsham Navigation; this is a much altered area designed to facilitate the passage of now long dead boats but is that part of the river that we are interested in from a conservation and historical perspective. Above Aylsham there is the tranquil and winding stream of the Bure which is the least affected by man although even this part of the river is constrained and dammed in places to allow for mills, culverts, drainage and bridges. The river therefore falls in to three distinct phases and our interest is with the middle one. Only the real headwaters are close to natural but man has been harnessing the whole river for power, food and navigation for centuries and probably millennia. Why am I stating the obvious and what does it matter? The answer is simply what happens in the headwaters affects the middle and lower sectors and likewise what happens in the middle sector can have a knock-on effect lower down. To complicate things there are different regulatory authorities, drainage boards and executive agencies all having their own agenda’s and responsibilities. To add to this mix are the landowners with riparian rights on the highest and middle reaches and the competing demands of leisure users in canoes or on foot, fisherman and holidaymakers in their cruisers. Frankly it’s a nightmare and a mess with some of the stakeholders having totally opposing views that are not easily reconciled.

Between Mayton Bridge and Coltishall – An un-seasonal view to show what is inevitably to come

A simple example is the spread and control of invasive non-indigenous species of flora and fauna. The presence of Himalayan Balsam or Giant Hogweed, to name but two, in the highest reaches means that by the very nature of a flowing river they will spread downstream. This affects the old Aylsham Navigation area and also the much higher reaches of the Bure from where it can spread to the wider Broads but if it isn’t dealt with along the river as a whole it will never be eradicated. Invasive fauna on the other hand tends to travel upstream and thankfully mostly affects the Broads area but in time examples of non-indigenous Shrimp and Crayfish (as examples) will get into the upper waters, in fact in small numbers they have already been carried, probably unknowingly, by walkers or canoeists or fisher folk. Each regulatory stakeholder  and executive agencies have their own agenda and they compete for resources, access and public support sometimes supporting contradictory schemes. In other cases the actions are finance limited which is becoming a much more common feature of state environmental intervention. Flood control is an example as austerity means that the EA does not dredge the river above Horstead any more and yet this was as seen an effective measure. New plans are being drafted which may change the nature of the river in places particularly between Horstead and Buxton. This is the very stretch that retains the most original part of the navigation which I would argue is a linear historical monument in the landscape and should not be messed with. The plans, over time, will alter the profile of the river whilst may be improving habitat but at a high cost to history and also, possibly, walkers and other leisure users. Also any changes to the upper river will have a knock-on to the lower one. In fairness there is the beginnings of a more holistic approach to identifying and controlling invasive species where agencies are starting to look at the entire catchment at least for species identification and hopefully this will lead to joined up plans for control and eradication.

Giant Hogweed – a totally obnoxious plant

I have been involved in this conservation movement for just over a year and I came to it from a desire to see the history retained but I have moved on from there and am only just beginning to get to grips with all the complexities thrown up by man around this river (although I believe it to be fairly typical). I have come to the personal view that there needs to be an over-arching body that takes a whole river spring to sea approach coordinating the efforts of all the agencies, landowners and user groups to make sure as far as possible that one does not affect the other. A Bure catchment committee if you like. That really shouldn’t be too difficult should it? This is blue sky personal thinking and I am sometimes accused of being overly optimistic but I do feel that a joined up approach is worth a try. One of the difficulties though would be where competing interests collide with totally opposite views. Such a committee would be a medium to allow for one group to understand the other and also to arrange public consultations. If this route fails to find a solution there probably wouldn’t be one to find.

Finally on our stretch I fear that we should not give up on the history. We are a conservation group and not a restoration one but who is to say that in 100 years, 200 years or even 20 years a need will not arise to use the water again for transportation. It wouldn’t be easy even now but we shouldn’t make it harder for those that follow other than to ensure the health and well being of the existing habitat. I am conservative about the river with a decidedly small “c” – probably the only thing I would accept that title about. That isn’t to say that all change is bad – we have already made a small difference at Oxnead where the trees planted for harvest are now being cut by  the landownerand we have made our views heard about restoring the environment to how it was at the time of the Navigation. A comparison of then and now photos of the river is always very revealing. We are also making our voices heard in respect of the appalling condition and route of the footpath but that story is for another day.

Buxton Lock during the navigation’s working life circa 1910

Items to be discussed include the finances of the charity, future plans, the footpath and its condition as well as early stage plans by the EA that might change the nature of our Navigation. I will resume normal service later in the week.

Buxton Lock during the navigation’s working life circa 1910

Albion under sail at Belaugh on Monday 27th August 2012 on her way back from Coltishall copyright Stu Wilson

The thing started with a nice buffet which left me with a question mark about whether any council tax payer money was being expended and I still don’t know the answer. I don’t like junketing at tax payers expense but this was a low-key affair and even if the buffet was provided by the council strangely for me I’m not objecting as I thought it was modest sums well spent. I may be doing the good lady chairman a dis-service and if I am I whole-heartedly apologise as her choice of charity was inspired and there was nothing over-stated or lavish about the evening taken as a whole.

There were a few words from the lady herself and then Henry Gowman from the Wherry Trust gave a speech about the Trust’s work which was uplifting and informative. Typically of Henry it was also well timed and just about right in terms of length and timing. Henry was kind in his speech to the Bure Navigation Conservation Trust as it was he that brought Albion to Coltishall for our event last August. He told the story of the return journey where he said his heart was in his mouth as he flooded Albion’s bilges to slightly sink her to allow passage under Wroxham Bridge. This was an old wherryman’s trick and as Henry said he had read about it but never had to do it before and actually doubted if it had happened to Albion since she was rescued in 1949. Henry was also kind to me personally and mentioned my early attempts to raise interest in a new project to build a Keel which I have spoken of from time to time and will get back to at some point possibly later this year.

Albion in her Sunday best at Coltishall

There was also entertainment provided by Alan Helsdon who also joined us at Coltishall and if you were there he was the man responsible for all the music with Albion as a backdrop to his stage. He plays a mixture of his own compositions and also Norfolk folk music. He has a particular interest in the wherries as his own family worked on the water. He actually does a lot with the Wherry Trust and entertains school children when they visit the Albion at home base. He is a charming man with an impish sense of humour and well worth listening to if you get the chance. I suspect he could also give a rather good after dinner speech. He certainly has a fund of stories some of which I could print but won’t as I’ll leave it to you to go and see/hear him.

Best of luck to the Wherry Trust, they do a good and, in my opinion, important job; long may it continue but remember they do need support to keep it all afloat.

Anyway onward and upward – in a previous blog I wrote about the plans of the EA for the stretch of the Navigation between Buxton Mill and Horstead. I am pleased to say that we are going to meet with them to hear about those plans first hand and to make representations. I’m having to walk a tightrope here as BNCT has yet to debate and arrive at a settled view but speaking personally if they can convince me of the need to do the work they should be able to convince anyone but I will have an open mind. If I can feel sorry at Maggie Thatcher’s death there’s hope for any miracle and certainly of my being persuaded of the need to undertake the works.

Yesterday my wife and I went out for a ride and passed Ebridge Mill and lock on the North Walsham and Dilham Canal. The work done above the lock is remarkable and one can see how things must have looked when the canal was in use as one hopes it will be again. The lock chamber looks much as it did when I last saw it and also when the following photo was taken (before the current works) although the second photo is from a different perspective and much more recent. I can hope that one day we will again see boats navigating this canal, the only truly canalised Navigation in Norfolk. The legal position between the North Walsham and Dilham and the Aylsam Navigation is very different. In the Aylsham case the Navigation was formally abandoned in 1928 but this never happened to the canal and there is therefore an existing right to use. It is interesting that even this miracle of rejuvenation faced obstacles from the EA who placed a stop order on the works at one point.

Ebridge Lock copyright Marcus de Figueiredo and licensed for reuse under a Creative Commons Licence – Geograph.com

Ebridge Mill taken from the restored path by the canal copyright John Wernham and licensed for reuse under a Creative Commons Licence – Geograph.com

I wish North Walsham and Dilham every success and if you ever feel suitably motivated they do hold regular working parties.

The Bure looks in good heart at the moment despite the late arrival of spring. Let’s hope that it has a good year and we can finally get the footpaths sorted and all the difficult issues put behind us.

Buxton in 1906 and one of the few pleasure wherries to venture this way – thought to be the Victory and if it is she was actually based in Buxton

The river has had to cope with some heavy flows this year and she has done so mostly very well but the condition of the footpath remains poor in places to the point where it is hardly passable but hopefully the brave legal actions being taken by two individuals to try and get the County Council to step up to the mark will succeed and we can go forward. One of grandmothers favourite expressions was  “a stitch in time saves nine” and that is just so true. Some precautionary work now including the enforcement of the planning inspectors order in relation to Brampton Island will save both legal costs and also much more expensive work later. The landowner at the Island has kindly posted a You Tube film to prove that the footpath is actually open and passable. You can see it here and I’ll let you make up your own minds.

During the Navigation’s working life this would also have been a time of annual transition with the wherries no longer having to carry as much coal and winter feed for the animals. Indeed loads may have been a bit thinner on the ground but there would still be call for Marl and building materials before the harvest came in a bit later in the year. It was also a time, or should have been, for post-winter maintainance both on the boats and the Navigation’s infrastructure. We know that in the case of the latter they did as little as they could reasonably get away with and this was a factor eventually in the destruction of the locks etc in 1912. There’s a lesson here for Norfolk County Council which takes me right back to Grannies stitch in time.

If the path was right and the water levels safe we could run a linear Easter Egg hunt along the river for all the local children – discuss ! ………. Bye for now. Happy Easter.

Brampton Common heading towards the Island

UEA request

My love for the Aylsham Navigation stems from the history and I see the surviving watercourse as a linear historical monument. I have to say that what follows is a personal view and not BNCT policy – if there is anyone out there with the contrary opinion I would be more than happy to give them an equal length blog to put the case.

We have been made aware that the EA are planning changes to the stretch of the Bure between Buxton and Horstead. Their plans, which are only in the early stages, have not yet been fully formulated (so it’s important to influence them now) as they plan to reintroduce some of the bends lost when Mr Biederman canalised the river in the 1790′s to “improve” the rivers habitat and help alleviate flood risk. Both very laudable but the fact is that this stretch is also the most unspoilt and original left of the Navigation. The flood risk argument is ludicrous; dredging would have the same effect but they are not prepared to do that as it involves ongoing costs. The river is a flood risk and would remain so after these works but there has never been a repeat of 1912 and the drainage boards do a good job these days. In very recent time the water levels have been extremely high but it coped with the excessive rainfall and with dredging I think that would continue.

Between Mayton Bridge and Coltishall – An un-seasonal view to show what is inevitably to come

There are things that could be done to improve water quality and habitat without destroying an historic monument. This is a stretch which is open with water meadows and is still much as it was when the wherries were sailing. There are few trees for most of it as they would have robbed the wind from the wherries and the canalisation has matured. It is also the stretch most likely to be redeemable as a restoration project if anybody ever wanted to attempt it. Horstead Lock could relatively easily be put back in to use and the navigable depth is mostly there. I have always said that we are a conservation movement and not a restoration one and I stand by that but now I would not object if restorationists came on the scene to bring “navigation” to Buxton.

Looking upstream from the lock chamber Sept 2011 copyright Stu Wilson

To add to the mix there is the footpath which is crucial to our vision of the Bure Navigation’s future. It currently runs alongside the Navigation but what would happen if the men from the Ministry started playing with the route. I would need to be very deeply assured about what they were doing and where – my gut reaction is leave well alone. Then there’s Mayton Bridge which Mr Biederman left high and dry building a new and navigable route just east of the original medieval bridge. I’m not sure if that could take being re-watered although, in fairness I do not know if that is part of the plan but a marker should be laid.

There is a deep irony here in that we have started to look at stretches of the Navigation that we could lobby for a conservation area status for.  After much search it is this self-same stretch that we have identified as a real possibility. The reasons are varied but the original nature of its environment much as it was when in use was the deciding factor. By introducing a conservation area funds could be found for individual projects to improve the habitat whilst retaining the linear route and the historical monument that is the Aylsham Navigation. This coupled with the EA stepping up to the mark and dredging once every 10 years and we would have an improved, intact and flood defended waterway. Well that’s my personal opinion anyway.

Sadly the stretch identified above is not the only one with problems at the moment. I have written before about Brampton Island and the land-owners unwillingness to open the path ordered by the planning inspector. I’m not going to dwell on this as the arguments are well rehearsed other than to call on him to comply before it is enforced. The continual disruption of the route is frustrating and I urge all walkers and users to exercise caution in their dealings and to allow the authorities to do their job. Having said that they should get on with it because if they don’t a more drastic measure might be called for and I don’t want that. I would much prefer to see peace and harmony – I respect the landowners rights but I also respect the law that says he has to allow access. The two respects are not mutually exclusive. Part of the problem, a large part if I’m honest, is that NCC have cut their footpath support as part of the austerity times in which we find ourselves. The fact is though that they have statutory duties that they are not undertaking and this is causing real problems on the ground. Sometimes I wish I had a magic wand …………

My involvement with the Bure between Aylsham and Coltishall started with the Aylsham Navigation and it always comes back to that eventually with me. I cannot get away from the thought of those great wherries carrying their cargoes through tranquil Norfolk countryside and the reminders that still exist of their presence in the landscape. It goes further than that though as the views and places they visited are, on the surface, little changed but are, in fact, very different. The Aylsham Navigation was essentially an industrial waterway in an agricultural setting if you allow that agriculture is in itself an industry. There were maltings, mills, marl pits and more including coal yards, brickworks and boat building. The clues to all this are still there in the records and the landscape if you know how to interpret them. The Bure Navigation Conservation Trust (BNCT) is about ensuring that this history is not lost and that it is accessible to all via footpaths etc. We have plans for interpretation boards to help those walking the navigation to be able to understand the history around them and we believe that this will enhance the pleasure the river brings. We don’t want these to be intrusive and they will only be at strategically important points.

BNCT also campaigns on behalf of the footpaths we currently have and just at the minute they really do need some TLC – we are holding Norfolk County Council to account as it is their responsibility to maintain the paths in a safe condition. We do not see that we should undertake their statutory duties for them as that is what people pay for through their council tax. If the path was properly maintained we would happily enhance it by providing the odd seat here and there as well as the interpretation boards. We give talks to organisations and generally act as a friend to the river and its environs. We have a meeting coming up on the 5^th March at Burgh Reading Rooms from 19:30 hours (7.30pm in old money) – why don’t you come along and see if we’re for you. You would be very welcome.

Finally we plan eventually to try and complete the path along the Navigation all the way to Aylsham. Currently it runs from Coltishall and finishes at Burgh. This would be a restoration project as the navigation had a path along its entire length. We see the developments taking place in Aylsham as an opportunity to enhance access at that end but the remaining mile or so will take longer but it will happen.

In the last paragraph I used the R word, restoration and I still see written by people that should know better that we are about returning the river to full navigation. Let me be quite clear – we are not and have no plans to restore the locks to allow this. We do however want to see the evidence of the existing locks maintained in the landscape for future generations some of whom may at some point take the view that they would like to restore. Personally I am a navigator at heart and would love to be able to lock in from the Broads but I am also a realist and I fully appreciate that there is no local appetite for the restoration of the Aylsham Navigation. Were it to be attempted there are some extensive and expensive obstacles; Buxton Lock, for example is completely erased from the landscape and built over. The main difficulty though is at the Aylsham end where the staithe is now a housing estate and the final canal cut has been completely filled in although the natural(ish) Bure obviously still flows.

Buxton Lock during the navigation’s working life circa 1910

At the start of this blog I alluded to the time challenges I have experienced in the last month or so. It looks as though some of them will continue for a period and after much thought I have decided that I can’t burn the candle at both ends and in the middle. Something has to give temporarily until I retire (or at least until the run-up) next year. That something is my interest (remaining un-dimmed) and involvement in a new project to see a phoenix like Norfolk Keel built as the next in class after the sad demise of the last surviving specimen in September 2012. I hope others will carry this forward in the interim but if not I will come back to it with renewed energy and enthusiasm as I approach retirement.

A Norfolk Keel from a David dane painting and used with his permission

Those time challenges also meant that I was unable to get out and photograph the Bure during the recent winter weather so if you were able to and have some shots you are prepared to share please let us know. Anyway for the minute – toodlepip !!

We have grown used to relatively mild winters apart from the last couple but what we currently have is really nothing more than the norm over the season when averaged out. There is a school of thought which says that global warming will lead to cooler winters and wetter summers, an interesting mix. In my life, if I am totally honest, I can only remember one really severe and extended winter and that was the one of 1962/63. I am too young to remember 1947 but I have heard the old-uns debating the relative merits of these two events. The weather records show that 62/3 was more severe but some wont have it. I can offer a thought on this and that is the snow level in 1947 was actually greater than in 1962/63 but the latter lasted longer, much longer and the minimum temperature was much lower. Weeks in early 1963 were below freezing and even the sea froze. This is without doubt the only time in my life that this happened and at the time I was living near the Thames which froze over and people even drove cars across it (they should have been certified for such folly in my opinion). In 1947 however there was so much snow that a train got stuck in the cutting at Brampton and the local men got paid by the railway to dig it out.

Even now the snow levels are not great compared to how they used to be. When did you last see a drift of more than a couple of feet in Norfolk? I remember in 1963 seeing drifts just to the west of London that would have buried a cow – and did, or so I am told! I confess this winter I have seen an A road (the A140) in the worst condition of any that I have ever known – it helped keep me away from Ipswich and one day it took me an hour and a quarter to travel from Aylsham to Norwich Airport!

In my last blog I wrote about the footpath and its condition. We have since issued a press release (see the news page) about it and I am a little disappointed that it hasn’t been picked up by the media as it does cover a rather important point about the funding of local services in general. Perhaps it is another victim of the winter weather which appears to be dominating our attention.

Between Mayton Bridge and Coltishall – An un-seasonal view to show what is inevitably to come