Retirement with No Problem

Bulbourne to Wendover Basin and Return, Wendover Arm GU Canal, 13.5 miles 0 locks

Well I have to log it!

I didn’t take No Problem with me on this occasion, leaving her at Bulbourne and setting off on foot with Ann from NB Moore 2 Life along this beautiful ‘canal’. I say canal, well it is…. and it isn’t!

The Wendover Arm was originally just a feeder for the main line Grand Union Canal, pumping up to 4 million litres of water up from the nearby reservoirs to keep the summit level full of water while boats passed over, and down the other side of the Chilterns taking water with them as they went.  Someone pretty clever person realised that by just widening it a bit, it could be made navigable to Wendover, and thus more trade to the picturesque village.

Dogged by problems…. leakage mainly….. it was in fact taking water from the main line to maintain its own levels… it was abandoned in the early 1900s.  Today though there is a vibrant group determined to see it once again taking narrowboats down to the basin.

Here, a flour mill still working, but now with modern machinery…  I saw a man just sitting at a computer screen monitoring the massive machines that could be seen through the windows… but the original building remains.

This is Little Tring Bridge, part of the recent restoration.. this has now been rebuilt and the canal looks here to be leak free!

   About half a mile further on, the end of the first restored section of this delightful canal

The dry bed about 3 miles in…… but it looks OK.. its all there, the banks are good, it sure does look a good restoration project…..

The Views along this canal are outstanding….. the scenery along the whole length of it is really lovely….

Rothchild’s Bridge…. he owned a large manor along the canal, and one of his gripes was that the canal was leaking into his dining room! …..

The terminus, Wendover Basin… the original walls and jetties are still there.. there is a feeder further on (on the right of the pic) which is sending water down this watered section….

And so to Wendover Village……….

A lovely walk… the day was not too cold, and a lot of history was taken in visually… I am a bit stiff now… hopefully Vic will be happy to do all 9 locks tomorrow as we say goodbye to this area and make our way towards Leighton Buzzard.