Soil washing into the canal created an ongoing problem as storms eroded upland fields and hillsides left treeless by farmers. Engineers usually built culverts under the canal to carry streams into the Cuyahoga River, but here the intermittent Galley Run flows directly into the canal. A mudcatcher held back the soil in a basin, and crews dug out the mud and debris during the dry season. With its basin full of muck, the mudcatcher no longer functions, and the National Park Service periodically needs to dredge this watered section.