The Dam wall footbridges
Ken, Ian S, Jerry and Frank H with expert advice and practical input from James and Shaun, had the task of replacing two footbridges along the path that negotiates the dam walls.
The work is funded by HEC contractors, Cragg Vale Community Association, Hebden Royd Town Council, and a legacy from life-long rambler Gerald Hardwick. Many thanks.
The detail
The day was a 'rain sandwich' sort of a day. Heavy at first, then very light drizzle before the heavy stuff returned. Everything - tools, timber and workers - ended up being wet! Very wet!
Here's how the day went:
1. The downstream footbridge
This is the shorter of the footbridges and its ends rest on good, stone abutments . . . but with a long drop down to mud and water; careful attention and a sense of balance was essential! Some minor tweaking of the original footings and a positional adjustment of two handrail posts was needed before the relatively straightforward construction could get underway.
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| Before: The side rails are not angled gracefully, they are sagging alarmingly! |
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| During: Handrail posts being fixed to one of the stringers. |
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| During: More work on handrail posts. |
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| During: Stringers with pre-fixed handrail posts now in place. |
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| End product: Neat,secure and safe. |
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| End product: First footing? |
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| End product: View from across the mill pond . . . but look at that rain! |
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| Before: Decaying side-posts and a sag due to rotting stringers. |
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| During: Rotten stringers revealed. They broke in half when they were removed . . . but the new stringers are waiting in the wings! |
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| End of session: Upstream view of new footbridge and three wet workers! |
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| End of session: Downstream view. Drop on left of picture protected by handrail. Drop on right is not an issue. |
