Bridging the Dock
The photograph below was taken at an EFOG walk in 2014. Of the twelve people that attended I think that all but one or two are still members of the group, and most of those still reasonably participant in it. That's quite something, after 9 years.
EFOG members chatting to Simon Myers on 18th May 2014The walk was one that I led through a somewhat lesser-known area of London, walking from Stratford to the River Thames, mainly beside the River Lea. Apart from introducing people to an area which I was perhaps more familiar with than the others, my intention was to show just how frustratingly poor the footpath system could be, particularly after all of the hype of the Olympic Games when we were told how wonderful the aftermath of that would be. You can read about that walk by using the link here, or below the article, It may be noted that the barrier that prohibits complete access along the riverside to Canning Town is STILL in place in 2023.
I visited Cody Dock - the riverside community project that I became fully aware of on that day - on Monday 30th January (2023), on one of those January days that is bright and with enough warmth in the sunshine to be able to comfortably sit by the river and eat one of Nadia's Chilli con carne and Rice meals, with a cup of tea.
Cody Dock has changed significantly over those years. For the majority of them, the dock has been open to the public during daylight hours, enabling walkers and cyclist to travel to and from Bow Locks, and out into the area around Start Lane DLR station. As I said, that barrier is still in place, so to continue on to Canning Town and the Thames still necessitates the horrid walk along Stephenson Street - although I noted that at least some rubbish/fly-tip/abandoned car removal had been undertaken recently.
The dock itself has undergone all manner of improvements; like Copped Hall, each time you go there some improvement has been made. A useful improvement to the infrastructure has been the addition of proper toilet (and shower) facilities, which is a great relief. And a very major improvement to the dock more recently has been the installation of a substantial bridge over the entrance from the river to the dock itself. This is the 'Rolling Bridge', the first - and possibly the only - one of its kind in the world. Proposed in 2019, the bridge is operational, but not yet in use. What prompted me to write this article was seeing the promised engravings of people's names on the bridge - people who donated to the fund to get the bridge built. As you may be able to see from the photograph, although the names are in essentially alphabetical order, the first two are not. Those names will be familiar to all of those who came on that 2014 walk, and to most of our club members. They are Duncan Lowther and Ann Lowther. Duncan was known for not venturing into London, much preferring the countryside or quiet towns. But once he had been introduced to the Cody Dock project, he made numerous visits there, and indeed lent his strength, knowledge and abilities to the project. He particularly liked the 'gardening' aspect, and even on casual visits for a cup of tea and maybe a hot meal from Nadia's cafe, he would usually do a bit of weeding. And when the concept of the bridge was forming, he took a great interest in it's design, and donated a generous sum to the funding. If you look at the YouTube video - linked at the bottom of this article - you will see that the credits include Duncan's donation. (at 2:03)
It really is nice to see how much Duncan's contribution to the project has been appreciated. What an honour to be first on that list, together with his wife, Ann. It's a solid memorial.
Cody Dock's rolling bridge on 23rd January 2023
Duncan and Ann Lowther's names are at the beginning of the list
Paul Ferris, 31st January 2023