The hidden Winchcombe stream

Saturday 28 September

More vegetation management today, this time at the opposite end of Winchcombe yard. The driver for this job is the take over of Churchward House and working out how the stream that runs along the down side of the yard gets under the end of what was the builders yard.

Winchcombe yard has a piped cess drain on the up side that runs to the River Isbourne, it's shown below as the top line on the picture. This carries the flow from Greet Tunnel and picks up a couple of field ditches on the way. On the down side, there's an open ditch running half way along into a pipe and then reappearing in the wooded area leading to the Isbourne. (bottom line on the picture).

Winchcombe Station to the Isbourne 

The ditch on the down side of the yard was cleared in January 2017, it should be an easy job to cut back a few brambles, blackthorns and elders someone said; If only things were that simple.

Winchcombe Yard down side stream, 13 January 2017 

Winchcombe Yard down side stream, 28 Sept 2019 

Trouble is, now the vegetation is over 12ft high in places, and it's thick!

Starting point, at the west end 

Stuart up on top of the bund
(Photo: Alastair) 

Michael working around the ash tree 

Alastair fighting with brambles 

After an easy start the going got harder

Michael down in the ditch 

More ditch operations
(Photo: Alastair) 

Once we'd uncovered the end of the pipe that runs down the what was the builder's yard we should have packed up, but when the going gets tough, fools carry on 😃

Pipe outlet into the ditch 

Pipe internal view 

The blue sections in the pipe beg more questions, if it's lining, why line just bits, if it's replaced concrete sections, why just odd ones? Who knows! The small pipe at the 11 o'clock position runs under the concrete platform in the new yard, Alastair rodded in for 20 yards and hit a blockage, that may be why it's dry. There's no sign of a gully to feed into the pipe, another puzzle to solve.

For the rest of the day, Michael worked eastwards down the ditch, while Stuart worked west along the top of the bund from the C&M building, eventually passing like jungle explorers.

Michael heading down the with the flow
(Photo: Alastair) 

Path along the top of the bund 

Stream opened to let the light in 

Michael and Alastair clearing out the brash 

Just in case anyone has forgotten the summer, here's a compilation of the Culvert 11A works. We may use this in a recruiting campaign 😉

Where's the River Isbourne

Thursday 26 September 

Our Lineside Clearance team spent most of April and May this year clearing the area along past Culvert 21A, the River Isbourne. When we arrived this morning we couldn't see the river on the up side, the weeds had taken back control. Contractors will be arriving sometime in the next month or so to install erosion control to prevent the river washing out behind the wing walls on the culvert. They will need to be able to see where they are going, that's why we are starting to clear paths down to the culvert ends. 

It was a 3 pronged attack in the morning, with Nigel and Michael making 2 paths on the down side, and Stuart cutting down tot he up side. 

River Isbourne, Culvert 21A down side

River Isbourne, Culvert 21A up side 

Winchcombe Yard up side, path to the culvert 

Culvert 21A up side, Stuart making a path
(Photo: Alastair) 

Culvert 21A up side, the path has closed in 

Culvert 21A down side, Michael reaches the bottom 

Culvert 21A down side, Nigel in the trees
(Photo: Alastair) 

Culvert 21A down side headwall 

We had a break mid morning to explore the drain in Churchward House yard, this is the building at Winchcombe Station which the Railway has bought as the new headquarters. We were looking to see where the surface water drains away to. It seems to run out under the fence and along under the yard towards the S&T carriage. 

Michael and Nigel uncovering the pipes
(Photo: Alastair) 

After lunch, it was all hands over to the up side to get a track cleared for the contractor to get machinery down to the culvert. 

Fitting the shredder blade kit to the new Stihl FS490C
(Photo: Alastair)

Making progress, with Nigel, Michael and Stuart in the distance
(Photo: Alastair) 

Looking back, Alastair in the distance  

Michael takes out the brambles 

Access route cleared along the top level, it's down the slope next time 

There's a length of old rail laid across the route, that may become a speed bump 😊

Au revoir Stanton, hello Gretton

Monday 24 September 

With a tear in the eye Dave and Stuart headed off to Stanton to clear out the welfare cabin and do some last bits of tidying the site. As it was Monday, they forgot the key, the diesel for topping up the generator and the mop for the floors. This wasn't such a disaster as team Roger had headed off to Culvert 24A behind the Royal Oak at Gretton and they hadn't taken enough cement and concreting ballast. This meant that the Stanton crew could bring more supplies to Gretton while looking superior and sneakingly grabbing the kit they had forgotten 😀 

Leaving Stanton with supplies 

Sand delivery, bag holding is a risky job if you upset the person with the shovel
(Photo: Alastair) 

New home for the mixer

New footing going in on the missing wall
(Photo: Alastair) 

More bricks coming off, stripping back to something solid 

Culvert 24A, Roger laying bricks on the back wall
(Photo: Alastair) 

Culvert 24A, End of the day
(Photo: Alastair) 

Andrew got to put his new brushcutter skills into use today, carrying on where Michael left off on Saturday clearing the ditch down to Culvert 24B. 

Andrew just beyond Culvert 24B
(Photo: Alastair) 

Some of the willow is too tough for brushcutting!
(Photo: Alastair) 

Eventually the Stanton cleanup got underway. 

Domestic chores done 

Dave cuts the up side north quarter 

The job has completed, it's been a long drag... 

11A down side in May 2019 

By September it looks like this... 

Down side cess outlet 

Culvert 11A down side inlet and cess outfall 

Culvert 11A inlet channel 

Bridge 11 gully drains 

Culvert 11A down side from the bridge 

Culvert 11A up side with repaired brick arch 

Culvert 11A outfall with gully pipe and
pipe for Culvert 11B connection 

Culvert 11B up side from the bridge 

The up side was like this... 

11A up side as it was being uncovered 

Well done team, you've all put a lot of effort into this one and it shows, you have been awarded ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐  

Tuesday 24 September 

Quick visit to Stanton to off-hire the welfare unit and it coincided with an overnight shower and more morning rain. It's not often we get to see the drains in action, usually staying at home when it rains 😉 

It'll be back soon, hopefully 

And did it rain... 

11A up side outlet with gully drain running well 

Bridge 11, this would have been flooded 3 weeks ago 

Water streaming in off the field 

11A inlet and cess drain outfall 

Down side cess ditch 

Down side cess headwall 

11A Up side from above 

11A down side from above 

This prompted a quick look along at Culvert 11B, to see the effect of one night of rain, it probably proves why we need to get the 11A-11B carrier drain installed. 

11B outlet under the hedge 

11B outlet backing up 

11B north inlet ditch 

Wet patch north of 11B 

Lastly while passing a check on Culvert 45A... 

Culvert 45A up side, deeper than last time 

45A downstream,  Wyman's Brook