The Stafford Riverway Link (SRL) community group is holding a two-day fete at its Baswich site, on 28 and 29 May, to celebrate 25 years of its formation and 250 years since the opening of the Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal.
The double celebration event is open to all with free admission and parking, and visitors will be able to find out more about the work of the SRL, and that of its supporters, River Canal Rescue (RCR), who will be selling its environmentally-friendly Bilgeaway filter and offering discounts to renewing or new members.
Items for sale from narrowboats representing the ‘Roving Traders’, plus stalls, include: crystals, stained glass pieces, fair trade products, cakes, a specially-brewed and named ‘Link’ beer from the Titanic Brewery and fish and chips from the Weeping Cross Fish Bar, aka ‘the best chippy in Stafford’. There’s also a tombola and bric-a-brac stalls, plus free boat trips along the Canal. Described as ‘a great day out for all the family’, with no charge, donations are welcome. Land access is off Baswich Lane, Stafford, opposite RCR’s HQ.
The SRL community interest company is working to re-connect the one and a half mile waterway link between the River Sow and Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal, enabling boats to enter the centre of Stafford. Its volunteers have already uncovered the site of the old lock house and they’re planning to reconstruct an aqueduct and lock, to link the two waterways, and make the River Sow navigable.
With its head office close to the basin, RCR is a staunch supporter of the SRL, assisting with manpower, equipment supply and storage, administration, marketing, fund-raising and payment for a finger post, pointing out where the new Stafford Link will be.
To find out more about the event, contact John Potter, SRL site coordinator, on 01785 226662 or email srl2010@hotmail.co.uk.
Learn more about the SRL at www.stafford-riverway-link.co.uk on Facebook at https://m.facebook.com/StaffordRiverwayLink and Go Fund Me https://uk.gofundme.com/f/stafford-riverway-link-basin-amp-bridge-project