New "old" pylons near Cockermouth

[robin]

I drove past this pre-grid line last year on the next road down and knew I had to get back with my camera. Imagine my disappointment when I drove down the road to find a row of brand new pylons, felled old ones and the dreaded Balfour Beatty signs. But what's this? The new ones appear to be replicas of the old ones. Have they suddenly realised the old ones look better, or (more likely) are they getting round possible planning objections by replacing like with like? The old line looked like it had been out of use for some time, the pylons were really scabby considering how good the other old towers look round here. a google streetview of what used to be here-
s1286.photobucket.com/user/batman19711/media/deanscales%207_zpsltsiwys2.jpg.html?sort=3&o=1
Sorry it's a bit distant.

And what's there now-
s1286.photobucket.com/user/batman19711/media/016_zpsfgyd9oem.jpg.html?sort=3&o=9

The sad remains of the old tower-
s1286.photobucket.com/user/batman19711/media/018_zpsiqkbzudq.jpg.html?sort=3&o=8

And probably the next tower up which was an angle tower, also replaced with a new one the same style but I blurred the picture. Somewhere else I have to go back to!
s1286.photobucket.com/user/batman19711/media/021_zpsraqwnuuw.jpg.html?sort=3&o=7

The reason I came down here instead of the other road is because the map shows the line turning through a full 90 degrees. A hefty pylon for a pre-grid line still being wired up-
s1286.photobucket.com/user/batman19711/media/022_zpsvjuk9k4u.jpg.html?sort=3&o=6
but alas, that's not what was there before. Google streetview-
s1286.photobucket.com/user/batman19711/media/deanscales13_zpsxeanq2ee.jpg.html?sort=3&o=0
The landranger map on close inspection does indeed show two towers together. To the left of the picture the wires went to wooden poles and then seemed to be anchored to the ground. I would guess that the line continued in that direction originally and the other line tee'd off at the angle tower. On the O/S map the line goes north-east to a place south of Bothel, but there are no pylons there now so where the new ones go to I don't know.

[yv47r]

Hi Robin, wow not seen them replace towers like for like before using the same design especially with them being pre-grid ones too. They usually stick heavy-duty poles up instead. Nice photos.
Cheers Paul

[robin]

Thanks. I think there's been a bit of local opposition to additional overhead lines going up to carry the power from the wind turbines which are round the coast there. Maybe these circuits will be used for that purpose, I don't know. On the map the line goes from just outside Workington to a campsite near Bothel, but it must split down to wooden poles somewhere south-east of Cockermouth. I've looked for the Bothel end of the line two years in a row now and it would seem to be long gone. There's one row of wooden poles (33kv maybe) and they don't look particularly new so all the more surprising to see the new pylons going up.

[caldridge]

So are the new towers the exact same design as the old ones?

[robin]

As far as I can tell. I only have the google streetview images to go on for the old ones. They both have the PL16-ish cross in the middle of the top arms and the criss-cross latticework going all the way to the ground. When I took the photo of the old towers on their side, I thought the new ones looked like they were made of bigger angle iron but it may just be that they looked that way because they were bright and shiny. I managed to get a streetview pictue of an angle tower where the line crosses the main road near Workington. I'll go back there next year and compare the new one to it.

[yv47r]

I saw these from the train I think last Wednesday when I was staying in Carlisle for two nights and did a run down to Whitehaven and back on the locomotive-hauled (class 37/4s :-))train. Is this the line you see just north-east of Maryport? From the train I noted that just after crossing the railway the pre-grid changes to L4 and the PL4 running alongside the pre-grid also changes to L4. The L7 line runs a little further to the west.

Cheers Paul

[robin]

No, that's a different line. That one follows the PL4 line to the north of Carlisle where loads of the circuits seem to inter-connect a couple of miles before Harker. They come close to each other east of Workington but I don't think they meet. Having said that I've only looked at that bit on the map. Someone with better knowledge than me needs to go to Carlisle and have a proper look. I end up just wandering about taking random photos of the towers I like the best.

[robin]

PS- they revert back to pre-grid after they cross the main road out of Maryport. They must have been re-routed at some point.

[robin]

PPS- Class 37s? I love the noise the old diesel locos make!

[yv47r]

Seems to be a right tangle of lines that approach Carlisle from the south/west including the ones from Penrith and Workington/Maryport areas. If you want to see some Class 37s working then best head to that area as they are using them on passenger trains at the moment and well worth the trip to see them working.

Cheers Paul

[albell1970]

Around the Fylde coast in Lancashire, during 1992, all the pre-grid 66kV transmission lines were replaced with identical towers of the same design. This covered all the lines from Preston, Kirkham, Mereside and Fleetwood.

I noticed a similar replacement, albeit one tower, on the 132kV single circuit line between Kendal and Shap;

www.google.co.uk/maps/@54.4278277,-2.6915726,3a,75y,354.71h,83.84t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sp8dGecimRNfCsuD4lQvbWw!2e0!5s20110801T000000!7i13312!8i6656?hl=en

www.google.co.uk/maps/@54.4278231,-2.691574,3a,75y,354.71h,83.84t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sZKcOfbDCXdGLU8imAepnuQ!2e0!5s20150701T000000!7i13312!8i6656?hl=en

(Copy and paste into browser)

[yv47r]

I wonder why they replaced the D2 with the D10 PL1 tower? And even more significant given that the D10 tower appears to be brand-new and not a re-used tower or so it seems.

Cheers Paul

[albell1970]

In the past they probably would have built an L4 double circuit tower, or a PL16, if we go further back, but I was informed by one of my friends, who deals with the Lake District Planning board, that tower replacements must now match the tower they are replacing as close as possible, hence the brand new PL1D10. It may also be related to the plans to restring the conductors during the forthcoming Northwest Connections build. I believe the PL4 double circuit from Kendal south to Barrow is being dismantled, as well as the 132kV single circuit from Kendal south to Lancaster.

I also read the L66 275kV Harker to Stella is due for the chop too. I hope this isn't true!

[yv47r]

Surely they would have to replace the L66 line with a new L12 line then? I need to get my skates on and get some photos of the L66s as not many left apart from these ones plus the ones from Poppleton near York down to Monk Fryston and the odd few near Harrogate in amongst L3s.

[caldridge]

Feb 4, 2016 8:58:37 GMT -5 albell1970 said:

I also read the L66 275kV Harker to Stella is due for the chop too. I hope this isn't true!

Oh no! Good thing I photographed them when I did, hope I get to photograph the L66 pylons from Monk Fryston to Moor Monkton.