Two Tunnels Route: a work in progress ...

The excavation continues, and new for last week was the removal of some of the infill from the site. The contractors have laid a haul road right into the work site for this. About 40 lorry loads will go, leaving ... space to excavate some more stuff from the filled cutting. That 'Stuff' has turned out to be as indicated in the test borehole - clean subsoil, pretty heavy and 'Clayey'. Some of it, at a pinch, you could probably throw and fire to make small pots (The site's not a million miles from the location of Oldfield Park's Victoria brickworks too)

We've now heard from one of the people who filled the cutting here in the seventies. Apparently, the length between the tunnel and the entrance to the public open space was filled with earthy material from the embankments, the length down to Maple Grove bridge with rubbly stuff from the demolished bridges themselves - hence a largish panel of brickwork that can be seen, flat in the ground to one side of the Linear Park path, not far from the overbridge itself.

This stage of the excavation has lowered the ground level sufficiently that the tunnel portal is now visible to passers by from Linear Park itself.

This week may also have answered the important question of whether any part of the portal will be visible to someone standing on Maple Grove Bridge. The photo on the left is actually taken from the bridge, and shows that it appears that this will be the case. We're pleased at this: the bridge itself has survived to be a touchstone to the past - generations of people would stand there to watch trains climbing the bank before vanishing into the improbably small mouth of the tunnel itself - some can remember that sight to this day, so it's good to bring this old sightline back into being.

The weather's not been too unkind, the snows of mid-week stayed in mid-Wales, but there have been a few heavy downpours, and on Friday the excavation was somewhat running with water and had almost managed to accumulate a puddle in the bottom.

When viewed from above, there's an impression of the amount of material that has been removed in the current week. This is a good vantage point for an overview of the work, though it's quite difficult to judge the depth of the excavation. The plan calls for a slope down to the tunnel that's a maximum of one in twenty - any steeper, and it would not be so suitable for anyone who happens to be in a wheelchair - and the 'New' Linear Park will be rather more accessible than the present one - any access ramps following the same 'Ruling gradient' if at all possible.

One resident who has lived in the area for a good many years confirmed the fact that trains in the tunnel very much made their presence felt in the houses above the entire length of it - the ground seems to have been particularly good at carrying the vibration, with the passage of locos, night and day, announced by a low and half-felt rumble, while mantlepiece ornaments tended to need to be stuck down to avoid them walking off the edge and into the hearth.

You can see that the view along Linear Park itself has somewhat opened out. Research indicates that bats actually appreciate a certain amount of structure in the landscape, as it allows them to navigate more easily. Another need is of course insects, and it will be good if Linear Park continues to be managed to provide habitats that encourage insects (though not to the extent that it becomes a swamp!).

Maple Grove Bridge, in the distance, is actually a three arched structure, and is in good condition - it's well built and has received a waterproof deck and maintenance when needed from the local authority.

While this work goes on,  the other, now less-regarded portal, at the far end of Devonshire Tunnel awaits its own rather less intensive restoration. For various reasons the entrance is a bit of a swamp, but it's already seen a little activity, in that the contractors have been through from this end to place tell-tales at the northern end of the tunnel to check that the present work isn't causing unmonitored movement. And of course the tunnel itself has been the subject of regular inspections from its owners, the British Railways Board (Residuary). In the image, to the right of the tunnel, copious amounts of wild garlic. The Two Tunnels route is a vampire-free area - and from a historical perspective, there's a tradition that the wild garlic that grows profusely around Bath is a gift from the Romans ...

The entire length in Lyncombe Vale makes for a good explore, it's still showing the benefits of the Two Tunnels group's 'Litter pick and clearance' work party there one wet March day in 2008. For some years an overgrowth of saplings was threatening to forever close the deep summit cutting beneath Moger's bridge. Since the volunteer day, other smaller scale work (not by us) has ensured that the stretch has stayed reasonably clean and clear. Here's an image from the day that shows a great deal of small stuff on the deck (and if you happened to be there, thanks again!)