End of the first day's dig, October 2018
First explorations at the spill weir, October 2018
The culvert viewed from the canal side, January 2019
Cleared culvert at the Spill Weir, January 2019

Alton spill weir

Fri, 12/03/2021 - 17:05 / 0 Comments

In late 2017 volunteers from the Waterway Recovery Group started clearing this densely overgrown section of canal and towpath. The spill weir was almost completely buried and not even noticed until a second work party when one stone was spotted sticking slightly out of the ground while tidying up at the end of the day.

The spill weir would have been used to control water levels in this area. This section of canal was particularly prone to flooding due to run off from the Alton estate.

We have suspended excavations on this site whilst we seek advice from archaeologists. A fence has been installed to ensure that no-one accidentally falls into the excavation.