Tidal Section
Old Ford Lock marks the start of the Hackney Cut – an artificial channel built in the 18th century to cut off a large loop in the natural channel. The natural river rejoins the Navigation at this point – below the lock, having travelled 2 miles (3.2 km) from the Middlesex Filter Beds Weir, just below Lea Bridge; and passing to the east of the Navigation.
The Old River Lea (the natural channel), is joined by the River Lee Flood Relief Channel, and Dagenham Brook before connecting to the Bow Back Rivers, which join the tidal Bow Creek. Before the 1930s, there were tide gates installed on this channel to only permit boats to pass when the level in the (at that time) semi-tidal Lee Navigation and tidal Old River were the same. After the 1930s flood works on the Bow Back Rivers, and construction of the Carpenter's Road and Marshgate Lane locks, these – and the Pond Lane Flood Gates were redundant as this section was controlled by the new locks – and the (then) tidal lock at Bow Locks.
In 2000, Bow Locks were modified to keep the tide out; this reduced silting in this section of the canal – and made the water level completely controlled.
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Famous quotes containing the words tidal and/or section:
“And now it is once more the tidal wave
That when it was swept by, leaves summits stained.
Oh, blood will out. It cannot be contained.”
—Robert Frost (1874–1963)
“The demonstrations are always early in the morning, at six o’clock. It’s wonderful, because I’m not doing anything at six anyway, so why not demonstrate?... When you’ve written to your president, to your congressman, to your senator and nothing, nothing has come of it, you take to the streets.”
—Erica Bouza, U.S. jewelry designer and social activist. As quoted in The Great Divide, book 2, section 7, by Studs Terkel (1988)