The pond side path is open again at Forge Dam.
The torrential rainfall last week washed away the temporary bridge being used by the contractors to get machinery across the Brook to the pond, which has meant that frustratingly the last top tarmac surfacing will not now be completed until we
have a long enough stretch of dry weather to do so safely.
So, the path is not the finished surface, but is already a big improvement on what was there before and has allowed us to put the benches back in place. We will need to move the benches for a few days again whilst the final tarmacking is completed.
Although frustrating to have got so close, there is an advantage to delaying final surfacing as we have been advised to expect the dam to continue to “settle” following the de-silting works for several months. “Settling” could lead to cracks appearing in the fresh tarmac, so we if this does occur we will now have a chance to address it before the final tarmac surface is applied.
Other works to look out for this autumn are:
The new handrails from the café are at the manufacturers awaiting powder coating. As soon as they are ready, the handrails will be installed as this work can be done from the café side.
There will be new signage installed and an update to the notice board.
Further up the Clough, the leaky dams installed by the conservation volunteers have seen their first serious action with this month’s rain and have already demonstrated their potential for slowing the flow and taking energy out of the Brook when it is in spate.
Longer term project work are now to:
Design a new control for the penstock in the spillway, so that we can choose when to allow water through. We have moved away from initial thoughts of blocking it up, as it proved its usefulness over the long, dry summer in keeping Wire Mill supplied with water.
Establish a regular programme of emptying the silt trap. The first time we do this, we will also catch up any other “snagging works” for the de-silting project.