Canal boat hire and Narrowboat Timeshare Rentals in the U.K.

Features of the waterways

The canal system is a major feature of the British landscape. It links most of the major industrial centres and meanders quietly through the heart of our green and pleasant countryside. This legacy from the industrial revolution leaves us today with about 2000 miles of currently navigable waterways. With new restoration projects  always in   hand, gradually extending that figure. They were built in an age when shovels and wheelbarrows were the mainstay of civil engineering, together with massive work forces which These allowed projects to a proceed at a rate modern day project managers would be quite happy with - even envious of. Canal restoration began in the 1950's and as it has proceeded ( often thanks to the hard work of many local canal societies ) the value of the work in generating resources for leisure activities on both the water and towpaths has been increasingly realised. Today having a canal at the bottom of the garden is seen as an asset, while in the industrial past, it was probably something to be avoided. Times have changed.

These pages take a look at some of the larger more dramatic features of the canals, huge engineering projects that would and still do create a challenge for our architects and engineers and mark our landscape with dramatic memorials to past achievements.

Boat lifts

The function of boat lifts is to replace a flight of locks. Physically lifting a boat to a waterway at another level, while the boat floated in a trough of water. They were implemented where they might provide a cheaper or quicker solution than a flight of traditional pound locks, or where the local geography made them a more viable option. They might also have been used to relieve bottlenecks where the existing flight of locks was causing major delays. They also had the considerable advantage in terms of water economy, where supplies were scarce.

• Anderton Lift

• Falkirk Wheel

• Foxton Inclined Plane

Tunnels

Faced with a hill you had the prospect of going over, through or under it, the choice presumably largely a matter of cost, both of the project itself , the income that might be derived from it and the savings made by taking a more direct route. Tunnels themselves were massive engineering projects, again conducted with little more than picks and shovels and a competent team of "brickies" to construct the walls and arched ceilings. With the larger tunnels navigating underground to ensure the right level and direction  must have been a real headache and there are a few examples of excavations drifting out of true, but considering the limited technology available at the time the work seemed to have been incredibly accurate.

Pumping Stations

Pumping stations were a means of re-circulating water to keep the canals flowing when natural resources of water were insufficient to allow the proper working of locks or canals. Typically pumping water from the bottom lock back to the lop of the fight again, or maybe drawing water from another resource such as a river. The work was achieved by huge steam  beam engines, that were housed in huge machine halls, often of considerable architectural merit. These were major engineering achievements of the day, the best at least, to be shown off to good advantage as an advertisement for both owners and engineers.

Flights of Locks

All the major flights of locks are memorable and amazing engineering features in their own right.

Aquaducts