Optimus Prime, Manchester - Various Re-visits from 2011.

[crippletron 3000]

Optimus Prime, Manchester - Various Re-visits from 2011

Ojay/Stepping Lightly/Spungletrumpet/Mendo/Tweedy

(Pics from numerous visits here over the past 12 months)




The old ones are still the best, there isn't many places that you can re-visit and think WOW! (Certainly not in Manchester)

I was lucky enough for SL to show me in here 2 years ago, after him and Scott discovered it a couple of years prior

Back then there was no disabled access unlike today, which kinda takes the fun out of it, but that's progress


The River Irk, is culverted approx 1km underneath the city, from Redbank

It first passes under Scotland Bridge and emerges downstream (as seen in the pic above) ^^

Dropping down a 2m weir the Irk enters the culvert through a 20ft brick arch, passing underneath Victoria Station and emerging at Huntsbank, where it joins the Irwell




Once down the scale of the place is something else, no matter how many times you come here it's still a WOW!

Another example of the Victorians over engineering stuff






Spungletrumpet, lurking in the Irk




20ft below the Station can be found the original cattle bridge, which linked Long Millgate with Walkers Croft

It is now covered over and serves as a utility tunnel




It's not an illusion Mendo actually explores, [/picture it happened] !!




Other features include:

A couple of sewers/oveflows






'Helter Skelter' - Gone's favourite drain






Coal chute




Morgue chute

(For dead cattle)




A watercourse that dates back to 1792

The watercourse was known to run from Old Millgate (opposite Hanover Street) down to the Irk

We crawled up it before the building work started above, this time SL shot back up to reveal some very new RCP and a split lid that simply wouldn't budge!




Original bridge which dates back to 1826, this section of the Irk was culverted in 1845




Heading downstream, the river is much deeper, as Sneak once said, there is some "Serious badman flowage in here" which does make crossing a little tricky

The 4ft Albino Pike wasn't out to play, maybe next time opcorn




The levels were a lot lower than previous visits, thus we were able to get right upto the outfall that leads into the Irwell

To go any further would require a boat, as it's beyond chest deep as we found out a long time ago




Thanks for looking