The Middle Level Commissioners are very pleased to be able to report that they have been working closely with Fenland District Council (FDC) to identify opportunities to maintain and enhance the navigation experience through March. As part of these ongoing discussions FDC have reaffirmed their commitment to maintain the pump out facilities in the centre of town. These are currently non-operational but this week confirmation has been received that a replacement pump has been ordered, allowing for planned installation and commissioning late summer or early autumn this year.
The MLC will be carrying out extensive refurbishment of the downstream lock entrance moorings.
Work will commence on 23rd May 2022 and is likely to take around a week to complete. As there will be no place to moor up a boat at this end of the lock during this time a temporary lock keeper will be on hand each day to assist from 8am to 5pm, until the moorings are reopened.
The Middle level Commissioners, as part of their plans to improve navigation facilities within the Middle Level system, have been informally collecting views of navigators on what they would most like to see us deliver in the next few years. This has been achieved by gathering information from many conversations the Navigation Officer has had with vessel owners. One request that has come through strongly is the provision of simple rural mooring sites where boaters can stop for a while during the day or overnight.
There are currently nine Designated Rural Moorings within the Middle Level System. These are 24 hour stay moorings where mooring is allowed without seeking prior permission. They each consist of 5 mooring posts approximately 32m in length located at the toe of watercourse. These moorings have signs adjacent to them, and consist of driven timber posts and mown bankside vegetation. They are designed to be simple and no other provision or facilities provided. You may choose to stay overnight or simply stop here for a short break before carrying on.
The new Ramsey moorings received an enthusiastic thumbs up from the crews of eight Middle Level Watermens Club narrowboats who moored there overnight during their 2022 Easter weekend cruise.
One encouraging fact emerged in that it was just about possible to swing a sixty foot boat in the winding hole! However this required some effort, removing and or lifting fenders and some volunteers on ropes who were able to pull the boat around. The feedback given was that with some vegetation removal and dredging around the edge of the winding hole, to remove silt and rubble that has fallen from the walls, a sixty foot boat would be able to tuck into the corners and make a successful swing. We will see what can be done.
Thanks are given to the MLWC for supplying the feedback and photographs.
120m of new permanent visitor moorings are nearing completion on Ramsey High Lode. These visitor moorings will be owned and maintained by the MLC and were made possible following the change in focus and funding arising from the 2018 Middle Level Act and the introduction of licencing.
Prior to the meeting, Members stood in silence as a mark of respect for Commissioner, Mr John Bliss, who died on the 10th July 2021.
Messrs Jonathan Brown and Hugh Whittome were re-appointed Chairman and Vice Chairman respectively of the Commissioners.
The Chief Executive reported that Mr Andrew Lensen of AgReserves had confirmed that he is willing to fill the vacancy in the membership of the Board.
Mr Christopher Hartley advised of his resignation from the Board with immediate effect.
Three Fenland Lock Keepers were finalists in the British Marine Inland Boating Lock Keeper of the year award 2020. The Award, also known as the Esme Dowling Award in memory of Esme Dowling, a Lock Keeper at Napton Locks on the Oxford Canal from 1957-1988, is presented annually by hotel boat and hire boat operators […]
A rate of 27.0p was set.
The eagerly awaited replacement moorings at Salters Lode have recently been completed, just in time for the start of the 2021 navigation season.
The new structure has been constructed using a bespoke design, and is the first to be constructed in the Middle Level Commissioners’ system featuring a simplified steel pile sub-frame topped with GRP decking material.
It is hoped the new design and use of steel piles will extend the anticipated lifespan of the structure, and minimise future maintenance at this frequently used facility.
The 24 metre long mooring has been part funded by a contribution from the Well Creek Trust, with the remainder being funded by the Middle Level Commissioners.
