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Narrow canal,
41 miles, 3 days,
21 locks, 2 tunnels. |
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The Llangollen Canal leaves
the Shropshire Union Canal just north of Nantwich in rural Cheshire and
climbs through deserted Shropshire farmlands to cross the border into
Wales near Chirk. It then cuts through increasingly hilly countryside to
finish alongside the River Dee tumbling out of Snowdonia, just above
Llangollen. It is 41 miles long and takes at least three days to cruise
(one-way).
The Llangollen Canal is probably the
most beautiful canal in Britain, certainly it's the most popular. The
scenery varies from isolated sheep pastures to ancient peat mosses, from
tree lined lakes to the foothills of Snowdonia.
Towns along the way include medieval Whitchurch with
its half timbered buildings, the interesting market town of Ellesmere
set in its own "Lake District", the fortified border town of Chirk and
Llangollen itself, sat astride the River Dee, an ancient gateway to
Wales beneath the ruins of Castel Dinas Bran.
The canal has three major engineering feats, two old,
one modern. The aqueducts at Chirk and Pontcysyllte were built by the
engineers Thomas Telford and
William Jessop and were among the
first to use cast iron troughs to contain the canal. At Chirk Aqueduct the trough is supported by
conventional masonry arches but at Pontcysyllte Aqueduct the trough is
exposed and sits atop 120 foot high slender masonry towers. When you cross it by boat there is an exhilarating sheer drop
on the non-towpath side! You should stay below decks if you don't have
much of a head for heights, but you will miss some amazing views!
The modern feat seems tame by comparison but
required considerable twentieth century engineering expertise. Constant
landslips on the stretch from Trevor to Llangollen meant closing the
section for two years to rebuild long stretches of the embankments above
the River Dee and encase the whole canal in a concrete trough. |
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Misty winter's day
near Wrenbury. Scotch Pine trees like these are common along the
Llangollen and Shropshire Union Canals, although most do stand
more upright! |
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Hire boats onthe Llangollen Canal ... |
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Chas
Hardern
Boats,
family run for over 30yrs offering a fleet of excellent value, well
equipped 2 to 6 berth boats for all year cruising. Ideal for
the Llangollen, Shropshire Union & adjoining canals. |
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A narrowboat
waits to enter the 459 yard long Chirk tunnel. The tunnel has a towpath. |
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Lake cruises
near the Llangollen Canal ... |
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The Shropshire Steamboat Company runs Lake Cruises on
beautiful Bigmere in Ellesmere, only five minutes walk from the
Llangollen Canal. Cruise in style on our brand new lake steamer
Lady Katherine. |
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Looking
across Pontcysyllte Aqueduct, known as one of the canal wonders
of the world. |
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