Brunel's Other BridgeBrunel Swivel Bridge Project 2024
Volunteer Workdays
Workdays for 2024 as follows:
- February 24th
- March 16th
- April 20th
- May 18th
- June 15th
- July 13th
- August 17th
- September 21st
- October 26th
Sounds like fun? No experience needed, all equipment provided, and you'll get really involved in helping to save Brunel's Other Bridge. We need your help.
We start at 9.30am so do please join us if you can. We provide free tea and coffee, so why not bring a picnic lunch? There is plenty of parking space and basic toilets are available. Please wear stout footwear, and you might like to bring overalls, gloves and something to kneel on. We have gloves, high-vis vest and a helmet you can borrow, and we provide tea and coffee!Youngsters are welcome provided their guardians are with them full time please.
Contact Geoff Wallis (jandgwallis@gmail.com) if you wish to help. We need to have an idea of numbers.
Tasks for 2024
We plan to continue restoration of the Bridge and other heritage structures nearby, and maintain the 'Tongue' area.
March 2024
'I am amazed and delighted at the distance folk travel to help out on our workdays' said honorary project manager Geoff Wallis. Jeff Beckett regularly comes to Bristol from Cambridgeshire to support Bristol City and spends the morning volunteering with us, and Chris regularly drives from Warminster.
Today Nicki came from East Anglia to visit a friend and spent half the day working with local ace-photographer Rupert Martin cleaning down the 'dangerous' side of the Bridge beside the Dock. Wearing a safety harness and lifejacket they cleaned 5m of the side span using a mystery liquid to remove lichen. If you want to know what it is, come along on 20th April and find out!
Nicki and Rupert described their experience as 'strangely satisfying'. Not surprising because it does look very good! Thank you folks.
Geoff and Charlie removed the middle strip of felt, south side and fitted a new one which also looks good. Reece cleared vegetation from Jessop Lock wall, whilst Chris did amazing work power-sanding and repainting the turntable ring in a very tight space under the bridge, and then strimmed. Charlie lassoed & removed a scaffold board thrown by vandals into Brunel's Lock and then measured the slope of silt. He is doing some calculations to verify the feasibility of sluicing out the silt naturally.
See the photos March 2024
April 2024
Was it the warm sun, warm welcome, free beverages or getting to grips with Brunel that brought out our volunteers in force? Whatever it was, we achieved a lot. Reece, Richard and Andy cleared graffiti, and gardened, whilst Nicki and John scoured the discoloured south side of BOB clean ready for painting in May, weather-permitting.
Chris continued the tricky and tiring task of mechanically sanding the turntable ring under the deck, and repainting it. Geoff, Julian and Ian removed another old run of felt from the 'chicken shed' (protective roof) and fitted a replacement sheet. Getting these sheets properly aligned and glued down, and folding the corners neatly is not easy, but was achieved to a high standard, and we are halfway to completion now.
Charlie and Bob worked together surveying the many historic features around the Tongue to add to Bob's excellent drawings, and Charlie progressed his many projects, whilst also assisting Chris with his underground surveys using an amazing drain camera. Well done and thank you everyone, we are making a difference to the heritage of the Tongue,..... as well as enjoying ourselves.
See the photos April 2024
June 2024
Geoff writes
I have concluded that our volunteers turn out in increasing numbers for two main reasons:
1) Friendship.
We all get on really well together and value each other's friendship. Several of us cruised together on the PS Waverley, and a trip to Flat Holm is planned. At today's workday a visitor stopped to read our sign-board, and Nicki immediately engaged him in conversation. Before long I overheard him tell Nicki, 'Your kind welcome to Bristol has made the two hour train journey from Birmingham to all worthwhile, thank you !.
And when one of our Group is hurting we all hurt. Charlie was in hospital in Plymouth last week with appendicitis, and was very poorly. This week he was transferred to the BRI (without his appendix) and has just finished a course of antibiotics, so we were delighted to welcome him and his wonderfully supportive family to site this afternoon. Charlie must be feeling better as he spent a happy hour surveying silt-levels in Brunel's Lock. assisted and cared for by Nicki. Charlie, we wish you a fast and full recovery. and a great 21st birthday on 21st June !
2) Love of our heritage.
Everyone loves doing their bit to care for the historic features on and around the Tongue. Today Julian and Geoff installed the penultimate sheet of felt on the 'temporary' roof, which will be completed next month. Bob surveyed the Dock-Master's office for his drawings, Martin weeded Jessop's Lock walls, and Chris strimmed rampant weeds, so the area now looks tidy. Andy and Nicki continued to clean the north face of the Swivel Bridge, wearing safety-harness and life-jacket, so that is now beginning to look good too. John cleaned ironwork and worked with Geoff to swap the BOB signs on the sides of the Bridge, so that the one in best condition is now more visible. Ian did great work needle-gunning and painting the Brunel Lock capsta, ready for fitting new timber strakes.
Do come and join the fun on Saturday July 13th Geoff
See the photos June 2024
July 2024
Something different to report on this time. With holidays upon us numbers were down to six volunteers, but we completed re-felting the 'temporary' protective roof, continued capstan de-rusting, cleaning the Bridge and vanquishing weeds. Then, after a brief lunch-break we visited the MV Balmoral in Albion Dry Dock nearby, courtesy of the Dockyard Director and Ship Manager. The Ship should be floating again shortly, back at Princes Wharf, and the volunteers working to get her back to sea. MV Balmoral would welcome new volunteers, so visit them on a Tuesday or Friday outside M Shed.
See the photos July 2024
Alternatively, or additionally, come and join the next Brunel Swivel Bridge workday on Saturday 17th August.
August 2024
Charlie is studying maritime science at Plymouth University, but returns to Bristol for every volunteers' workday. This time he carried on the train two heavy boxes of equipment, a tripod and a very heavy rucksack with yet more equipment. The University generously lent us Real Time Kinematics GPS survey equipment capable of mapping points in three dimensions over a large area to an accuracy of less than a centimeter! Despite its amazing technical complexity it is relatively easy to use, so that Charlie and Bob were able to survey several points per minute, covering the whole of the Knuckle in a few hours. Charlie will process the data so that Bob can incorporate it into his drawings.
Meanwhile Geoff was using our specially-designed equipment to lift a jigger-pit plates. A large pulley and chain was found, once used to pull open one of the Howard Lock gates. Charlie will use numerous still photographs taken all round to create a 3D image using a special photogrammetry application. We plan to progress this through the autumn and eventually add data to our Heritage Assets in Western Harbour website. John W, Chris & GW cleaned out silt & rust, & refitted the covers.
Meanwhile John continued to clean paintwork, Richard cleared vegetation & moss from under BOB, Chris B strimmed generally, and Geoff fitted a refurbished Youngman's board to extend access along the jib-end of the Bridge.
See the photos August 2024