Thank you Michael! Glad you enjoyed it! Cheers, Paul.

It is lovely, isn't it, just a shame it is in such poor condition now. Hopefully it will be restored again at some future point. Thanks again, Paul.

Thank you so much! Glad you enjoyed it! Cheers, Paul.

Thank you Geoff! There should be another Stroudwater and T&S Canal update in about three months time, and other canal series videos in between. Cheers, Paul.

Thank you so much Claire. Glad you enjoyed the canal update video. I will try and cover as much as I can as restoration works continue to join the Stroudwater up to the network. Such an exciting time. Cheers, Paul.

Thank you Malcolm! That's good to know that my little CCT unofficial video updates help! I am not a volunteer, just a member, and I just glean the info from the website, and what I see on the ground. Yes, an exciting couple of years ahead. I will try and bring as much as I can of it to you in Kent from here in Gloucestershire. Take care, Paul.

Thank you Roy! Yes, lots of things happening on it at the moment to restore and reconnect it to the canal network. Take care, Paul.

Thank you so much for your kind words Ron! It was a fair bit of work, as you can imagine. It was three seperate days filming, a couple of days research, and another couple of days editing. But, I really enjoy it - I think I have said before that it is the only thing that I have ever really enjoyed doing before. I haven't done a video on the railway line from Stonehouse to Nailsworth - although a couple of my subscribers have. I pointed them in the direction of the excellent videos that you have made about it previously. I think the unrelenting noise of the traffic on the A419 and A46 puts me off a bit! Going to be an exciting couple of years of canal restoration ahead on the Stroudwater. Thanks so much, take care, and maybe we'll bump into each other soon! Paul

@@westcountrywanderings Hi Paul, I wonder if like me you smile when the credits roll at the end of a film and they list all the technicians, camera men, focus pullers, grips, sound recordist, various editors, producers, and seemingly the list goes on forever, the only one missing so far is the studio cat! When it comes to you and me, that's it, just us two. And when you produce broadcast quality like this, you have to ask what the hell do they need all those people for. (Rant over). Ron

@@ParkinsonsWalks Oh, yes, I know exactly what you mean! We don't even get a catering truck!! I am lucky if I have remembered my thermos flask! Those credit roll lists do seem to go on forever! Cheers, Paul.

Thank you! Glad to hear that you enjoyed the latest update - I think as the next few months go on, there will be a lot more updates on my channel, showing all of the restoration plans that are going ahead in the Whitminster area of Gloucestershire on the Stroudwater Canal. Cheers, Paul.

Thank you John, Yes, the Newcomen engine! Sadly, while I was living in Dartmouth during the pandemic lockdowns, the museum that houses Thomas's engine was closed throughout, so I was not able to film/photograph it when I was living there. I hope to return to put that right at some future point. Yes, I am concerned about this US Blackstone malarky - they are known asset strippers - the only thing profitable about St. Modwen (yes, I know I kept pronouncing their name incorrectly - I think it is Welsh) is the warehouse sheds that they own (online shopping) - like the huge ones outside of Evesham by the A46 and Jcts 9 & 12 of the M5. They may ditched the housing sector, which is crashing in the UK right now. Thanks for a great comment! Take care, Paul.

Thank you so much Faith! That's very kind of you. I really enjoyed the process of putting this one together. Take care, Paul.

Oh, wow! That's a great memory to keep. It is good seeing Westfield Lock restored beneath the bridge.

Thank you so much Troy! Cheers, Paul.

Thanks Grant! Yes, it is sad that The Tunnel Inn remains closed - such a terrific setting! I didn't notice the snowdrops there on my visit, but it may have been a little too early. The towpath, thankfully, is now clear all the way to Trewsbury Bridge. Yes an exciting couple of years ahead! Cheers, Paul.

Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it and thanks for stopping by and commenting. Cheers, Paul 👍

Thank you Mike & Theresa! Glad you enjoyed it. Take care, Paul.

Thank you Michael! Glad you enjoyed it. That's very kind of you. It was probably the most work that I have done on one single video - it was a weeks work (two days prep/research, two days editing, and three days filming/photography). I can't do that for every video though, but I thoroughly enjoy it! Thanks again for your kind words and support, take care, Paul

Thank you Cara! Glad you enjoyed it. Take care, Paul.

Thank you David - yes, I'll be heading East to Trewsbury next time, but, unfortunately there are hardly any rights of way after that point, and I don't have any special kind of pass to allow me access. You are right, restoring this section will be especially tricky. I have covered the 'new' Latton bridge on a previous update. Thanks for watching, take care, Paul 🙂 👍

Thank you Louise! That's a lovely comment! Yes, I think I will be making a fair few videos from that area showing the new section of the canal and how it will be going under the M5. I'll probably need to tent out in the field so I don't miss anything! Thanks for your kind words and support, take care, Paul.

Thank you Bernard! Glad you found it interesting. It is going to be a very exciting couple of years of canal restoration on the Stroudwater Canal. Cheers, Paul.

Yes, it is good that Westfield Bridge was saved, and the accompanying lock is now being excavated. So much canal work is about to start in that area. Thanks again, Paul 👍

Thank you Martyn! Yes, it is a bit sad to see Coates Roundhouse in such poor condition. Lets hope it does get restored at some future point. Such an important symbol of the T&S story. Thanks for watching and commenting, cheers, Paul.

Thank you Donna! Glad you enjoyed the latest update - much will be happening over the coming months and years. Yes, I do hope that an arrangement can happen soon, so work can start at Brimscombe Port. Thanks again, take care, Paul.

Thank you! Yes, I have now done 15 video updates on the progress of the restoration of the Cotswold Canals - the last one was last October. I will do another one as soon as more is known about the planning decision over the Missing Mile in Whitminster/Eastington area. Cheers, Paul

@@westcountrywanderings Thanks Paul, so much help to me trying to find out more about the local canals to us.

@@ashjenkins7591 You're most welcome! I really enjoy putting them together.

Just looking at the Bourton-on-the-water circular walk. We live in Gloucestershire so seeing all these is great. Also most are fairly local walks. I have only just found your channel so watch them all. Thanks again 😊👍

@@ashjenkins7591 Yes, I have done 17 videos on (mainly circular) walks in the Cotswolds; some are in Gloucestershire, but others are in Warwickshire, Worcestershire and Wiltshire. I have also done The Cotswold Way (20 separate videos). Cheers, Paul

Yes, Blackstone Property Inc snaffled up Welsh builder St. Modwen a little while ago. Sadly, since making this video there has been no progress at all on the Brimscombe Port site. It may be delayed, as the entire site is contaminated with asbestos waste from the nearby former Fibrecrete factory. As soon as I hear more, I will do it in another canal update video. Cheers, Paul

Thank you so much! That is very kind of you. Glad you enjoyed it. Yes, I do take care to check each piece of music matches the atmosphere and pace of each scene. I think that the soundtrack, be it speech, ambient sounds, or music, is more than 50% of the video's content. Cheers, Paul.

Thank you David! Another lovely comment from you. Yes, I have learnt that it is the Bathurst Estate that own the Coates Roundhouse. The design is based on a couple of others in the Cirencester & Stroud areas - there is one in Cirencester Park and another in Woodchester - they both predate the canal ones. It was just a whim of the architect as far as I can gather ,and nothing to do as a 'lookout'. After the canal goes under the M5, it will then swing right, diagonally away from the River Frome and head over to the new roundabout over the A38, where a new section of the canal was built under the A38 a couple of years ago. I will try and keep all of my subscribers up to date with all the developments as best as I can do. Thanks again for your support -- it is very much appreciated. Take care, Paul

Thanks Steve - and I whole heartedly agree with you regarding the cattle underpass! I suspect, and I stress that this is only my personal opinion, that it is to do with the development of the whole site, including the sports centres and the huge new football stadium, and associated hospitality space, rather than from a purely engineering and canal priority aspect. Yes, my apologises about the pronounciation of St. Modwen - you are absolutely correct. I think that when I was doing that piece to camera in Brimscombe Port that I was getting myself muddled up with another property developer based in Gloucester, called Mowden Homes (not sure if they are still going). St. Modwen were a Welsh based business, and now, of course, American based. Thanks for highlighting my mistake - I will issue a correction in Update 14. Thanks for watching and commenting - sorry if you did not get a notification from KZfaq. It might be worth checking that the bell notification logo is still active, to ensure that you get the notifications of my videos. Sometimes, I have hears ancedotally, that the notification request can become 'unchecked'. Thanks again, cheers, Paul.

Hi - and thanks for the question. The Stroudwater Canal was the third canal in the area (Kemmett Canal came before it, which used cranes instead of locks). The Stroudwater came about largely for the needs of the many cloth mills in the Stroud area - raw materials in and the cloth that was produced out to market. The addition later of the Thames and Severn Canal, and therefore the important link between The River Severn and The River Thames, meant that coal out of the coalfields in the Midlands, Staffordshire and Shropshire could export their coal to London via the River Severn, the Stroudwater, theT&S, and The Thames. Hope this helps! Cheers, Paul.

Hi Michael, Clearly both myself and 1,000s of others do not agree. Very many volunteers, at no cost to the public purse, have invested many hours over several decades, not only restoring the canal itself, but maintaining the towpaths and what remains of the T&S. Although full reopening the Cotswold Canals to Lechlade-on-Thames is a very long term aspiration, opening the restored section through the Stroud Valleys and connecting to the canal network at Saul Junction is a very realistic plan. Canals benefit people in many ways. Both physical and mental health, as well as improving quality of life in and around the waterways. There is also the benefit to nature and the wider environment. There is a also financial benefit to the local community as when canals are reopened, it brings in tourism and money - look at Bradford-on-Avon after the Kennett & Avon was restored in the 1990s. 'Leave it as it is', as happened after the canal closed earlier on in the 20th Century, gives situations such as happened at Brimscombe Port, where in the 1950s and 1960s the canal was filled in with concrete, and asbestos warehousing was built on top, ruining the environment for locals and nature alike. Thankfully, that is now being restored too. The canals routes are now protected, and, hopefully, horrors such as that will not happen in the future. I do appreciate your alternative viewpoint. Regards, Paul

@@westcountrywanderings hi Paul I appreciate your reply and reasoned approach. But I cannot agree with you regarding the environmental argument. The canal through the Golden Valley is a wonderful nature reserve that contains all kinds of wildlife including newts, frogs, roads, ducks. Mammals and so on. It is a delightful area. The thought of bringing in the kind of heavy machinery and earth moving equipment to “restore” the canal is simply horrendous. It would be a colossal act of environmental vandalism. You will not find many people in the Stroud to Cirencester area who would want to see it developed in any way. There are quite enough restored canals in this country for people to enjoy and good luck to them. The last thing we need is anyone trying to redevelop this wonderful area of undisturbed nature. It was never a good canal in the first place which is why it kept silting up. Nature is telling you something important. Leave it as it is please.