# Holbeck Culvert - Leeds - August 08



## KingElvis (Sep 17, 2008)

Firstly, I am a total noob at drains and culverts but I though some people may want to see this. 

I had a wander down the Holbeck Culvert back in August but have only just got round to having a look at the photos.

The culvert is very long and I only did a small section from the bridge at Springwell Road up to where it empties into the River Aire.

It's an interesting place but I lack both the equipment and experience to go further along. I would like to see more drains and culverts as I find them interesting. I didn't have a good torch then either but that has now changed.

This is where I started from.

http://www.flashearth.com/?lat=53.790042&lon=-1.558774&z=17.3&r=0&src=msl

The tunnel heading back under Holbeck, water was about 4ft deep here







Water heading off towards the River Aire






There were several waterfalls along the route, this one made from old car tyres






Lots of nice Victorian engineering along here...







Looking back up from Firestone Falls....






You can walk most of the way without getting wet






What I assume are Victorian drains from the streets






These are holding the walls up at this point






Severall nice bridges and roads go over the water






Where the culvert reaches the river






Thanks for looking :thumb​


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## rikj (Sep 17, 2008)

It's a nice little walk that one. Let's hope it doesn't get tagged to buggery like the other culverts. It runs underground for a fair way, being called Low Beck, Wortley Beck and so on, named after the area it runs through.

Curiously, there used to be another beck not far to the south of here, one of the "lost" becks of Leeds. I've been able to find no trace of it, but I haven't looked all that hard yet! I guess that like the other lost becks it's now a main sewer.

Did you have a crawl into here?






And as a salutary warning regards draining and flash floods, here's what Hol Beck looks like in flood. The girders visible on the surface are the ones you were walking underneath. I reckon the flow has increased at least 30 fold.


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## ultrix (Sep 17, 2008)

I was at Granary wharf, last week, and took this photgraph of the outfall;





This section is very short and the outfall can be seen in your last photograph.
Several weeks ago, Awwrisp and I did a trip through the Holbeck culvert from where the Ringroad crosses Gelderd Road to the river. We noticed a very large side passage which we have been told leads to another infall. We have already made plans to go back very soon to explore the side passage.

Incidentally, the culvert seems to be known by 2 names. Some people call it the Holbeck culverts and some people know it as Duplo. When Awwrisp and I did it, we called it the Holbeck culverts, as we were unaware of the Duplo name, but now we always refer to it as Duplo.

To KingElvis, and anybody else, looking to get into drains, just get some waders and do it. Duplo is long and its modern shape is very boring, but the water level is low at the moment.


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## LittleMike (Sep 17, 2008)

rikj said:


> Curiously, there used to be another beck not far to the south of here, one of the "lost" becks of Leeds. I've been able to find no trace of it, but I haven't looked all that hard yet! I guess that like the other lost becks it's now a main sewer.



Would it run roughly this route by any chance? Looking at the landscape there would definitely be a beck there at some point in the past, and I can see one marked on an old map (apparently culverted for it's last 1/3 or so), but given how built up the catchment is there's a 99.99% chance of it being a sewer nowadays






If anybody fancies doing Duplo this weekend I'm considering going, and solo draining in a long concrete box tunnel is ultra boring! Gizza pm


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## phill.d (Sep 17, 2008)

I might be up for that Mike. I'll let you know mate


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## Foxylady (Sep 17, 2008)

Looks like an interesting explore. I like the red brick arches.


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## ThenewMendoza (Sep 17, 2008)

Looks like a very chilled out mooch around. Nice one.

This pic though is ace






M


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## rikj (Sep 17, 2008)

> LittleMike said:
> 
> Would it run roughly this route by any chance? Looking at the landscape there would definitely be a beck there at some point in the past, and I can see one marked on an old map (apparently culverted for it's last 1/3 or so), but given how built up the catchment is there's a 99.99% chance of it being a sewer nowadays



Hmm, no, the one I'm thinking of is right in Holbeck, only a hundred yards or so from Hol Beck. I know the one you mean that you've marked on the pic. I'd have put the course differently in some places though as there are still some surface features visible. As you say, it will be a sewer now. Of course, what would be nice would be to find the legendary Low Level Interceptor that ran UNDER the river! After all, the sewage from South Leeds had to get to Knostrop somehow!


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## Bunk3r (Sep 17, 2008)

rikj said:


> Hmm, no, the one I'm thinking of is right in Holbeck, only a hundred yards or so from Hol Beck.



Benyon Beck? i think this beame a sewer and ran under Great Wilson Street, Victoria Road, Meadow Lane etc -pictures of its construction and use as an open sewer on leodis.



rikj said:


> Of course, what would be nice would be to find the legendary Low Level Interceptor that ran UNDER the river! After all, the sewage from South Leeds had to get to Knostrop somehow!


sounds like your setting mike a challenge!


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## rikj (Sep 17, 2008)

Yes, that's the one Bunk3r, glad to see you're on the ball!

I think LittleMike is quite capable of setting challenges for himself without any suggestions from me! Anyhow, anything that old and deep would have flooded long ago.

Not to say that there aren't still some interesting things to be found in Leeds.


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## awwrisp (Sep 18, 2008)

rikj said:


>



Thats a crazy amount of water !


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## LittleMike (Sep 18, 2008)

It does this lol!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/d_d_t/314291849/


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## ultrix (Sep 18, 2008)

LittleMike said:


> Would it run roughly this route by any chance? Looking at the landscape there would definitely be a beck there at some point in the past, and I can see one marked on an old map (apparently culverted for it's last 1/3 or so), but given how built up the catchment is there's a 99.99% chance of it being a sewer nowadays
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Awwrisp and I were in Duplo last night. The outing had been planned since last weekend. We went to look at the upstream section. After a long boring walk, the passage splits. The right-hand passage becomes low (about 3 feet high), so we didn't push it. I believe the infall for this is near Elland Road at the end furthest away from the football ground. 
The left-hand passage continues some way at a good height until it ends at a gated infall. This infall has a 1.5m silt pit inside it, so beware of the deep water. At a rough estimate, if I stood in this, the water would be up to my shoulders. We had a quick on the surface for the infall, I think it may be near the Whiterose centre.

Good luck with your trip at the weekend. The water is low at the moment.


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## awwrisp (Sep 18, 2008)

ultrix said:


> The water is low at the moment.



Just watch out in the stream on the way in as there are some very deep bits.


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## Tm808 (Oct 9, 2022)

Under my house we have a wall placed but we went under the floor in the front room-A small door leads onto a deep hole with a ladder going down pretty deep at least 45ft. As yet we've not gone down...We also in holbeck-The drain runs above two other rooms and in the garden we have another entrance which at some point was hidden from view...We believe it's from around 1830s because of the stone and brickwork...Also I've been underneath the M621 down a long bunker which runs around 60metres...This is also accessable from another house...I'm sorry but cannot give these locations we don't want people knowing...


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## Hayman (Oct 10, 2022)

Tm808 said:


> Under my house we have a wall placed but we went under the floor in the front room-A small door leads onto a deep hole with a ladder going down pretty deep at least 45ft. As yet we've not gone down...We also in holbeck-The drain runs above two other rooms and in the garden we have another entrance which at some point was hidden from view...We believe it's from around 1830s because of the stone and brickwork...Also I've been underneath the M621 down a long bunker which runs around 60metres...This is also accessable from another house...I'm sorry but cannot give these locations we don't want people knowing...


I see today that someone digging through the floor of his house in Yorkshire found a hoard of gold coins valued at over £700.000. Keep looking.......


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