My Dam Project
Discussion
Nice sunny weekend so I got to spend an hour or so on my dam.
As you can see from the photos I have a long way to go - last year I closed the gap over the royal wedding weekend at the end of April and maintained the full span until mid October when the first winter floods made it too difficult to conduct repairs.
My plan for this year is to build 1/3rd of the way across from the near bank then cross the river and start construction from the other side. Last year I ran out of bigger stones for the middle reach and ended up scavenging from the elsewhere on the dam as the smaller stones were being washed away by the velocity of the current. This year I plan to create a store of larger stones mid river so I have plenty of stock when needed.
The photo below shows where I've already started to stockpile thrown stones at the head of the dam as the water was too cold for wading this weekend.
Learning from last year's mistake I may require the services of a banksman to describe the projected course of the dam across the river to prevent any misalignment. As you can see, I have a tendency to throw slightly upstream which contributes to this misalignment, and more importantly depletes the stock of construction materials.
This final picture "pre-construction" picture illustrates the width of the river when not in flood. In full flood the water level easily rises over 5ft causing severe disruption to the structure.
Last year I was able to raise the water level by around 18" flooding most of the exposed pebble beach and creating an ideal lagoon for paddling a rubber dinghy.
Note the agricultural debris in the mid foreground. Subject to further testing I may seek to incorporate this into the structure, perhaps creating a cantilevered platform. However I do have concerns that this may detract from the visual appearance of the dam.
I'm not able to visit the site for a couple of weeks but I will provide updates as the build progresses.
Sploosh
As you can see from the photos I have a long way to go - last year I closed the gap over the royal wedding weekend at the end of April and maintained the full span until mid October when the first winter floods made it too difficult to conduct repairs.
My plan for this year is to build 1/3rd of the way across from the near bank then cross the river and start construction from the other side. Last year I ran out of bigger stones for the middle reach and ended up scavenging from the elsewhere on the dam as the smaller stones were being washed away by the velocity of the current. This year I plan to create a store of larger stones mid river so I have plenty of stock when needed.
The photo below shows where I've already started to stockpile thrown stones at the head of the dam as the water was too cold for wading this weekend.
Learning from last year's mistake I may require the services of a banksman to describe the projected course of the dam across the river to prevent any misalignment. As you can see, I have a tendency to throw slightly upstream which contributes to this misalignment, and more importantly depletes the stock of construction materials.
This final picture "pre-construction" picture illustrates the width of the river when not in flood. In full flood the water level easily rises over 5ft causing severe disruption to the structure.
Last year I was able to raise the water level by around 18" flooding most of the exposed pebble beach and creating an ideal lagoon for paddling a rubber dinghy.
Note the agricultural debris in the mid foreground. Subject to further testing I may seek to incorporate this into the structure, perhaps creating a cantilevered platform. However I do have concerns that this may detract from the visual appearance of the dam.
I'm not able to visit the site for a couple of weeks but I will provide updates as the build progresses.
Sploosh
k are you doing it - or did I miss something
Dibble said:
Brilliant. Almost completely pointless yet utterly brilliant.
I remember damning streams/rivers as a boy just for the hell of it. Very satisfying. Good work OP. Not quite up there with Dave and his light on a stick, but impressive solo dedication.
Keep us posted on progress.
+1I remember damning streams/rivers as a boy just for the hell of it. Very satisfying. Good work OP. Not quite up there with Dave and his light on a stick, but impressive solo dedication.
Keep us posted on progress.
Bookmarked.
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