Horse-drawn to Huddersfield

Members of the Horseboating Society are going to re-create the past of the waterways in May when they take the horse-drawn narrowboat Maria across the Pennines from Ashton to Huddersfield and back.


In addition to the boat being towed all the way by horse, it will be legged through Standedge Tunnel in the traditional manner!

The boat sets off from the Ashton Canal on Thursday May 1st, through Stalybridge to Mossley. The following day it will continue along the Huddersfield Narrow Canal to Uppermill, where it will be on show during Saturday.

On Sunday the boat will ascend the Diggle lock flight to Standedge Tunnel, to co-incide with the Diggle Canal Festival, alongside the top lock, where there will be traditional rope skills demonstrated, games, stalls, etc. Saddleworth MP Phil Woolas will help the boat up the locks.

Ashton MP, David Heyes, a member of the Parliamentary Waterways Group, will help to leg the boat through Standedge Tunnel. Energetic members of the public will be able to join the boat horse on a guided walk "over the top", across the moors to Tunnel End, Marsden.

Standedge Tunnel is the UK's longest canal tunnel, at more than 3 miles. The legging will take around 3 hours and will be done by pairs of leggers taking turns. The tunnel was built without a towpath and "legging" was the traditional means of propelling boats through tunnels.


"Maria" will be on show at Tunnel End on Bank Holiday Monday. The boat will continue its horse-drawn journey to Slaithwaite on Tuesday and to Huddersfield on Wednesday.

The return from Huddersfield to Slaithwaite will be on Saturday 10th May. The boat will climb the Marsden lock flight on 13th May.

On Wednesday 14th May, "Maria" will return through Standedge Tunnel, this time as part of a normal convoy, before continuing to Uppermill. The following day the boat will carry on to Staybridge and Ashton.

"Maria" is the oldest surviving wooden narrow boat, built at Marple in 1854. The horse being used for this journey is Bilbo Baggins. "Maria" was previously legged through Standedge Tunnel in July 2006 - the first boat to have been legged through for around 60 years! [report here]

Towpath Improvements in Lancashire

Improvements are under way on the towpath of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal near Burnley.

Two-thirds of a mile of towpath between Hapton and Shuttleworth Hall are having the pathway widened and finished with a waterproof stoned surface. This will improve safety and appeal to walkers and cyclists.

The £27,000 work is being funded by Lancashire Environmental Fund and Lancashire County Council.

The towpath work will add the finishing touches to a major repair programme along this stretch that has included strengthened the embankment.

Boaters have not been left out, as the works have included vegetation clearance and new mooring bollards.


The photo is looking eastwards towards Hapton from Shuttleworth Hall.

Monster Fish on Rochdale Canal!

The Middleton Guardian reports that a monster fish has been striking terror on the Rochdale Canal to the east of Middleton. [Read article]

Fisherman saw a large pike grab a duck near Scowcroft Lock, under the railway bridge known locally as the Iron Donger.

They threw stones at the pike and rescued the duck, which was then taken care of by a local woman.

The fishermen are warning youngsters not to dip their toes into the water or to jump from the bridge, as the pike has "piranha-like teeth" and can be vicious.

The photo shows a boat near the "Iron Donger" bridge.

Development Manager for Rochdale Canal

The Waterways Trust is to appoint a Development Manager for the Rochdale Canal.

The trust is looking to appoint "a talented professional to re-establish the canal as a community resource and catalyst for social and economic regeneration".

They are looking for someone who will "deliver projects that encourage people to value, care for and use their local waterway". This may be a challenging goal in some areas along the canal.

The Development Manager will build partnerships with a range of local organisations and provide stakeholders with regular progress updates.


The Waterways Trust took over ownership of the canal from the Rochdale Canal Company following the completion of the canal's restoration in 2002.

Details of the position may be found at The Waterways Trust website.

Wall Collapse blocks HNC Towpath

A retaining wall collapsed onto the towpath of the Huddersfield Narrow Canal yesterday.

The towpath is closed between Locks 16w and 17w near Mossley until further notice. The canal remains open for navigation but crew operating locks will need to board their boats to pass the obstruction.

Walkers using the towpath will need to divert between Manchester Road Bridge and Division Bridge via Manchester Road and Calf Lane.

A wall collapse in March blocked the towpath of the Macclesfield Canal.

Yet Another Restriction at Plank Lane

Boaters face yet another restriction at trouble-hit Plank Lane Lift Bridge on the Leigh Branch of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal.

As a result of an electrical fault, the bridge will be operated manually by BW staff. There will be just 3 opening periods each day until further notice:
• 9.00 - 10.00 am
• 12.00 noon - 1.00 pm
• 3.00 - 4.00 pm


Boaters arriving at the bridge are required to moor up and notify the bridge keeper of their presence and await further instructions.

The restrictions will continue until the essential repairs can be carried out. A further update notice will be issued once the contractors have assessed the structure.

In March, the bridge was closed to boat traffic for around 24 hours after a barrier was damaged. In 2006, the bridge was closed for some time after the counterweight fell off. [see report and photos].

Enquiries about the current restrictions should be made to BW on 01942 405700.

Police Seek Burnley Blockage

Following a series of stone-throwing incidents at Burnley Embankment, police are asking for the canal across Yorkshire Street aqueduct to be "gated off".

Youngsters recently threw stones at traffic from the aqueduct which carries the Leeds and Liverpool Canal across this busy road midway along Burnley Embankment. A bus and a car had their windscreens smashed.

The Burnley Citizen reports that police are to meet with British Waterways "to try to get them to gate off the section of the canal where the viaduct goes over Yorkshire Street".

It would be a serious reduction in public access and an alarming precedent if the towpath across the aqueduct were to be blocked off.

The dangerous stone-throwing behaviour in the area is not limited to the aqueduct and there have been a number of similar incidents at the nearby Gannow motorway roundabout.

Boaters have commented that the police do not take the same interest when youths throw stones at boats from road bridges.

Rochdale Canal Re-opens

The Rochdale Canal has finally been re-opened between Locks 53 and 54 following vandalism to the bank in January.

Following the incident, local farmer Chris Jones was sent to prison for 3 months for breaching an earlier court injunction banning him from interfering further with the canal bank. [See earlier report]

The canal has remained closed since then until British Waterways engineers could arange access to the private land to inspect the damage and assess the safety of the canal.

Engineering assessments to inspect the canal have now been completed and the canal will re-open to navigation on Saturday 5th April 2008.


The photograph (above) of the location in January shows the repairs to the earlier breach and the disturbed bank to the right.

Boaters wishing to travel between Manchester and the Summit will need to phone BW on 01942 405700 to book passage through locks 83 to 65 and locks 37 to 36.

Another Problem at Plank Lane

There has been another incident at Plank Lane Lift Bridge on the Leigh Branch of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal.

Earlier this week a barrier at the bridge was damaged and was failing to open.

The bridge was closed to boat traffic for around 24 hours until the barrier was repaired. The bridge re-opened to navigation on 27th March.

In 2006 the bridge was closed for a time after the counterweight fell off. [see report and photos].

Rochdale Electrics Fixed

The electrical problems on the Rochdale Canal have now been fixed.

Vandalism at Grimshaw Lane Lift Bridge (Chadderton) and an electrical probolem at Library Lock (Todmorden Guillotine Lock) had meant boaters needed to call BW to come and operate these structures. [See earlier report.]

Fortunately BW has managed to get these problems sorted out in time for the long Easter weekend, so both structures are now boater-operable again.

Tameside Canals Festival Sunk

The annual Tameside Canals Festival will not take place this year as the voluntary organising committee has been disbanded.

The event, which has taken place around Portland Basin at the junction of the Ashton and Peak Forest Canals, has attracted tens of thousands of local families and many boaters over the years.

The event has been taking place since 1975, and some committee members have been involved from the beginning!

Vice Chair, Hazel Maskell said: "Our Committee was aging and several members had already decided to step down after last July's event and so, unfortunately, the remaining members have decided to call it a day."

The first canal festival at Portland Basin was organised by the Inland Waterways Association's Manchester branch, the North Cheshire Cruising Club and the Peak Forest Canal Society to highlight the restoration potential of the nearby Hudderfield Narrow Canal. In later years, the festival was organised by the Huddersfield Canal Society. Since 2001, the event has been run by volunteers supporting and raising funds for Willow Wood Hospice.

"Unfortunately, the weather was particularly poor for the Festival weekend last year," explained Hazel. "Willow Wood decided to withdraw from any involvement in future Festivals and without their charitable status, it made it difficult for us to continue."

If any other local community group wish to discuss taking over the organisation of future Festivals, they can contact Hazel on 01457 837826.

See pictures from past Tameside Canals Festivals.

Power Problems on Rochdale

Further problems lie in wait for boaters travelling on the Rochdale Canal.

The Grimshaw Lane Lift Bridge, between locks 75 and 76 in Chadderton, has suffered an act of vandalism in which the key barrel has been damaged.

Repairs have been ordered, but due to the damage, British Waterways assistance is required to operate the bridge (see below).

A similar problem awaits travellers at Library Lock 19, the guillotine lock, at Todmorden. In this instance, because of an electrical failure, BW has for safety reasons isolated the electrical mechanism to the key barrel.

Boaters requiring passage through either bridge should call BW for assistance.

In office hours between 9 am and 4 pm, please call the Wigan office on 01942 405700. Outside of these hours, please call Free Phone Canals on 0800 4799947.

(Please note the Wigan office will close for the Easter weekend at 5pm on Thursday 20 March and will re-open at 8:30am on Tuesday 25 March.)

Another Macclesfield Wall Collapse

Photo: Debby Francis

The force of gravity and the action of water penetration have once again combined to bring down a section of retaining wall onto the towpath of the Macclesfield Canal.

This week's collapse was between Bridges 40 and 41, less than half a mile south of Macclesfield Canal Centre and Hovis Mill.

It is only a few yards from the spot where another wall dropped onto the towpath several years ago.

The towpath is closed between Bridges 40 and 42. The canal is open for navigation but there may be restricted passage while engineers are on site.

An access track runs immediately above the 20 foot high retaining wall and several vehicles are believed to have been stranded by the collapse.

Photo: Roger Olver

New Proposals for Standedge Tunnel Passage

British Waterways is proposing major changes to the way that boats pass through Standedge Tunnel!

The present system (which will continue in operation during 2008) is a complex operation, requiring an electric tug and passenger module pulling customers' boats through in a convoy on just two days a week. A safety vehicle in the adjacent disused railway tunnel shadows the convoy. BW staff are positioned on each boat, fending it off the tunnel sides. The operation is very labour intensive and costly to run.

Tests carried out during 2007 have shown that it is feasible for diesel engines to be operated routinely within the canal tunnel, enabling British Waterways to rethink how boats can be taken through the tunnel.

BW's proposal is that from 2009 customers' boats would pass through the tunnel under their own power, piloted by a trained qualified British Waterways staff member.

Boaters would be able to remain on their boats and pets will also be allowed to remain on board.

To make this feasible, BW proposed some modifcations to the tunnel, including removing some hazardous rock projections and highlighting or fendering others, improving safety signage, adding distance indicators and installing more flexible communications systems within the tunnel.

The proposals, if approved, will result in a faster passage time of around 1.5 hours and improved welfare arrangements for British Waterways staff.

BW will continue talking with partners Network Rail and the Emergency Services regarding the safety issues as the proposals have implications for their operations.

The guided visitor trips from Tunnel End on the glass roofed boat using electric tugs will continue but BW will be keeping the operation under constant review because of concerns about the future reliability of the electric tugs.

BW's Laurence Morgan said:

"We carried out a number of trials this year with a diesel tug operation to establish definitive information about potential problems with noxious fumes, test welfare and emergency responses as well as our control of the tunnel operations.

"The tests showed that gas emissions inside the tunnel were not a cause for concern and it may be possible to reduce the time taken to go through the tunnel down to one and a half hours.

"Moving on from this we are now considering a piloted operation of customers' own boats by British Waterways trained qualified staff. This will be far better than the very complex operation we have at present.

"For 2008 we will be keeping the operation as is but a project team will be running some further low level trials to ensure that the business case is robust.

"Although it is early days yet, we are very enthusiastic about the proposed changes as we feel this will offer our customers a vastly improved level of service and enable them to enjoy the trip through the highest, longest and deepest tunnel in the country far more than is possible at present."

The proposed changes should result in a more flexible operation for boaters, which could include passages on more than the present two days a week.

The piloting of boats by BW staff should reduce concerns that Network Rail may have than adventurous boaters might stop off and investigate the adits through into the active rail tunnel. It would also mean that in the event of an emergency, the qualified BW operative on board would be in radio contact with the tunnel office to ensure that emergency procedures are followed.

The 2008 season at Standedge starts from Saturday 15th March with the first through trips scheduled for Wednesday 19th and Friday 21st March. Boaters wanting to book passage should contact BW on 0113 281 6860.