Earlswood Lakes Sailing Club members live for the chance to race around the waters in the great outdoors.
But with the area's three local pools currently being drained to enable a 200-year-old dam to be repaired next to Valley Road, members have warned of a new 'quicksand' danger for anyone tempted to treat the emerging landscape as a 'beach'.
With major engineering works by the Canal & River Trust imminent, they say soft clay underfoot could endanger anyone who walks on it.
Club commodore Perry Clarke told BirminghamLive: "When the water levels go down massive 'beaches' appear - last year we had about 75 ravers having a party.
"What they don't realise is that the mud is like quicksand and very dangerous.
"CCTV cameras are being put up this week so the police can watch the area.
"Last year, people (non-members) were on the pontoon which is also very dangerous - we insist that members have to wear a life jacket to go out there."
BirminghamLive understands one woman has already had to be rescued earlier this year after sinking thigh-deep into the mud next to the water of a draining pool where her dog had got stuck.
The Canal & River Trust has just begun to inform the wider population of Earlswood about the local road changes that will be needed to make sure a trench can be dug along Valley Road to reinforce the dam that was built by hand two centuries ago.
Meanwhile, local parish councillor Peter Oakley says some local businesses could struggle to emerge from lockdown if local traffic conditions hit visitor numbers to places like the Earlswood Lakes Crafts Centre (pictured above) which has about 30 employees across 20 businesses, including the Manor House Cafe run by Alastair Bowie.
Mr Oakley claimed road closures for the engineering works meant there was a risk of emergency services having to take a long detour to attend any resident or visitor taken ill across the 70-acre site.
Speaking as a resident, Mr Oakley said: "If you are going to close off road access to hundreds of local residents, there should be more consultation so that the fire, police and ambulance services could be better informed."
Talking about anti-social behaviour issues last year, he added: "There are so many (path) ways in and out of the lakes that it would take a military operation to secure the site at night."
What is happening?
All three of the 'Earlswood Lakes' - Engine Pool, Terry's Pool and Windmill Pool - are having their water levels significantly reduced so that the Canal & River Trust can repair the 200-year-old dam at Valley Road.
The road is expected to be closed from April 19 to August 20.
Based on the edge of Windmill Pool, the Earlside Lakes Sailing Club was due to celebrate its 60th anniversary in July but that event has now been postponed until September.
It has acted fast to enable members to sail at Shustoke, Redditch and Bartley once lockdown ends instead, but will continue to hold social events at its Malt House Lane clubhouse.
The programme of repairs will affect not just the club's sailors, but walkers, ramblers and anglers as well as a variety of local businesses, some of which are reportedly 'on the brink' financially because of the year-long Covid-19 crisis.
Residents living at some addresses might find they have to take long-way-round detours for months because of the closure of Valley Road and the nature of the area's geography around the three pools.
Others affected will include children trying to get to and from school.
For a full list of businesses that are having to close and those that are staying open click here
Sailing club plans
Earlwood Lakes Sailing Club's new commodore, Perry Clarke, has had a baptism of fire since taking on the role on March 1.
The club has 220 social members, around 50 of whom are active sailors who pay £175 for boat membership.
As well as being told the club's 60th anniversary July plans for Windmill Pool would suddenly have to be cancelled, he's had to find three alternative sites for members to go sailing.
On a personal level, he's even had to contend with friends from 30 years ago suddenly getting back in touch to rib him about the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games mascot having been named 'Perry'.
Mr Clarke said: "We are lucky that we own our site, have had grants to keep going in the past year and we also have a good relationship with the Canal & River Trust.
"We were looking forward to our 60th anniversary this year - with our original commodore Bob Lewis now in his 90s - and cannot hide that disappointment.
"Everyone is desperate to go sailing again after lockdown and it would have been great if the work could have been done last year.
"But there's a big safety issue here and you have to think of others in case the dam collapsed.
"I always look at things in a positive light and hope the fact that we are having to move to three new sites for the next few months will help us to get more new members in the long run.
"If it rains a lot during the summer, we hope to be able to go sailing again here by September.
"We can't sail at the moment because we are in lockdown anyway and I don't think one-month's notice is too bad - it's given us time to find alternative sites at Bartley, Redditch and Shustoke.
"The clubs there have been fantastic, because they know anything could happen to prevent them using their own sites.
"Sailing is a fantastic, low-cost hobby - sometimes you can get boats for free, others can be really good for racing but still cost less than £800."
Area can attract the 'wrong people'
As in all walks of life, different types of people are attracted to Earlswood's treasured environment.
Mr Clarke confirmed that drug use had been a problem in the area, with silver canisters often left dumped, but he said Earlswood in general was fantastic.
"We have all sorts of birds and mammals and it's a great place to chill and relax in," he said.
"It's a shame it just sometimes attracts the 'wrong' people."
Locals broadly welcome visitors as they have done for 200 years.
So many factory workers used to head the area it became known as the 'Scarborough of the Midlands'.
But there are no public toilets in the area because of vandalism in the past.
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Last May, officers from the Stratford District Safer Neighbourhood Team had to issue a temporary dispersal order under section 34 of the Anti-social Behaviour Crime and Policing Act 2014 to clear the area.
Dealing with groups reported to be up to 100 strong, Inspector Allison Wiggin from the Stratford District Safer Neighbourhood Team said: “My officers ended up cleaning up the awful mess left by people.
"These officers should be policing their local community, not picking up litter, but given the mess left behind we were left with no choice. We will not tolerate this."
Local resident Mrs Mary Flynn said: "There hasn't been much notice about the road closures. Some people I know are only just finding out now.
"I worry how the closures will affect the village post office opposite the Reservoir pub and how some people might now get to see their doctor if they use the Hollyoaks Medical Centre on Station Road but live on the post office side of Valley Road.
"Hopefully the one thing that will reduce is the apparent drug dealing going on between cars with blacked-out windows which the police are looking at with CCTV."
Another local, who asked not to be named, told BirminghamLive: "The trouble now is that some people just think they can park where they like and do what they want - the number of people in the area can increase from 5,000 to tens of thousands over a weekend.
"Last year was the worst for late disturbances that many of us can ever recall.
"Fires were being lit from wood from damaged trees and fireworks let off and Warwickshire police struggled to cope with what was effectively civil disobedience.
Another business owner trusting they were sufficiently well known and specialised to keep their customers told BirminghamLive: "The last time Valley Road was closed the diversion signs weren't very good.
"We are hoping the Canal & River Trust get that right this time."
Managing the project
John Ward, the Canal & River Trust's Head of Project Delivery said up to 25 people would be working on the scheme with heavy machinery.
"We did inspections two years ago and since then flood studies and it's absolutely essential the work is done under the Reservoirs Act," he said.
"We appreciate the timing is unfortunate but it's an earth dam with a clay core and our investigations show it doesn't extend full up to the top.
"So we have to dig a trench through the (Valley) road and fill the core with concrete to the full height barrier.
"For many years, all dams have to be inspected by an independent engineer every ten years and this is part of the normal cycle you go through under the Reservoir Act.
"This was all built by a small army of people by hand with shovels and it's hugely impressive what they did with the whole canal network and how that provided the engine for the Industrial Revolution."
