Crinan Canal

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The Crinan Canal is a Template:Convert navigable canal in Argyll and Bute, west of Scotland. It opened in 1801 and connects the village of Ardrishaig on Loch Gilp with Crinan on the Sound of Jura, providing a navigable route between the Firth of Clyde and the Inner Hebrides, without the need for a long diversion around the Kintyre Peninsula, and in particular the exposed Mull of Kintyre.Template:Sfn

Today the canal is operated by Scottish Canals and is a popular route for leisure craft, used by nearly 2,000 boats annually.<ref name="History"/> The towpath is part of National Cycle Route 78.<ref>Template:Citation</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

The canal is a two-part scheduled monument.<ref>Template:Historic Environment Scotland</ref><ref>Template:Historic Environment Scotland</ref> Loch a' Bharain, which serves as a feeder reservoir for the canal, is also a scheduled monument.<ref>Template:Historic Environment Scotland</ref>

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HistoryEdit

Template:Infobox UK legislation The canal was built to provide a shortcut for commercial sailing and fishing vessels and later Clyde puffers to travel between the industrialised region around Glasgow to the West Highland villages and islands. Authorised by the Template:Visible anchor (33 Geo. 3. c. 104), it was designed by civil engineer John Rennie and work started in 1794, but was not completed until 1801, two years later than planned. The canal's construction was beset with problems including finance and poor weather. Landowners demanded high prices for their land and navvies were reluctant to leave jobs in more accessible parts of England and Scotland. The construction cost £127,000<ref name=GH1860>Template:Cite news</ref> (Template:Inflation).Template:Inflation-fn

On Saturday 8 August 1801, the Carlisle Journal reported that:

On Monday, a boat laden with fish, arrived at the Broomielaw, Glasgow, from one of the Western Isles, being the first vessel that has passed through the Crinan Canal<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

The canal bank near Lochgilphead failed in 1805 and the canal's course was diverted to avoid the marshy ground. The canal's reservoirs were finished in 1809 but two years later a storm caused one to burst releasing its water and sending boulders and mud along the canal in both directions wrecking locks, the canal banks and the nearby roads.<ref name="History">Template:Citation</ref> Repairs cost £8,000<ref name=GH1860/> (Template:Inflation).Template:Inflation-fn

The canal company, headed by the Duke of Argyll, had to seek help from the government, who asked Thomas Telford to assess the problems. He suggested improvements to the locks, and some parts of the canal were redesigned including the swing bridges which were replaced in cast iron in 1816.Template:Sfn The government paid for the work but the canal company lost control and it was handed to the Caledonian Canal Commissioners.Template:Sfn

File:Passage of Her Majesty on the Crinan Canal.jpg

Passage of Her Majesty on the Crinan Canal from the Illustrated London News 28 August 1847

Queen Victoria travelled along the canal to Crinan during a holiday in the Scottish Highlands in 1847. She was greeted at Ardrishaig and her boat was towed by four horses, two of which were ridden by postilions in royal livery. At Crinan she boarded the royal yacht Victoria and Albert.Template:Sfn Her journey made the canal a tourist attraction and gave the canal an added purpose. Passenger steamer companies operating out of Glasgow advertised the canal as the "Royal route" and by the late 1850s more than 40,000 passengers passed through Ardrishaig each year and were met by steamers to Oban at Crinan.

A disaster occurred on 2 February 1859 when the Camloch reservoir supplying the canal burst, and the ensuing torrent of water and rock damaged the banks of the canal and seven of the gates forming the locks which were swept into the valley below.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The canal was closed for through navigation until 1 May 1860 although the wider repairs to paths and road had not been completed. Although Parliament had authorised £12,000 (Template:Inflation)Template:Inflation-fn for repairs the company reported that the expenditure had exceeded the budget by around £3,500 (Template:Inflation)Template:Inflation-fn as the damage included large boulders of rock which were found in the bed of the canal.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In 1866 a steam-powered passenger boat Linnet<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> replaced horse-drawn boats for tourists.<ref name="History"/>Template:Sfn Linnet remained in service until 1929.<ref name="History"/>

Between 1930 and 1932, new sea locks were built at either end, making the canal accessible at any state of tide.<ref name="History"/> The swing bridge at Ardrishaig was installed at this time.Template:Sfn The canal became the responsibility of British Waterways in 1962. It closed for nine-week period in October 1987 to allow some refurbishment.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On 2 July 2012 the British Waterways functions in Scotland became Scottish Canals.<ref>Template:Citation</ref>

FeaturesEdit

The Crinan Canal has 15 locks and is crossed by seven bridges: six swing bridges and a retractable bridge. Stone for the 15 locks was brought from Mull, the Isle of Arran and Morvern. From Ardrishaig, three locks raise the canal's Template:Convert east reach to Template:Convert above sea level. The Template:Convert summit reach, between Cairnbaan and Dunardry, is Template:Convert above sea level. The west reach between Dunardry and Crinan is Template:Convert above sea level.Template:Sfn The canal is Template:Cvt deep, although the declared maximum draught for a vessel is Template:Convert,<ref>Crinan Canal Restrictions: Update 10 October 'The Crinan Canal is now operating as normal... maximum draft is 2.5m fresh water.' 10 October 2018 www.scottishcanals.co.uk, accessed 29 April 2021</ref> and has essentially no height limit, but there are signs quoting 30m maximum due to the recent power lines that cross the canal.

The retractable bridge at Lock 11 replaced the original swing bridge in 1900. It is operated by a rotating handle and a cogged wheel which causes the bridge deck to roll forwards and backwards on rails and comes to rest across the lock chamber. It is no longer is use.Template:Sfn The canal has towpaths on both sides from Ardrishaig to Crinan Bridge (no longer) and horses assisted unpowered craft until 1959.Template:Sfn

Feature	Location	Type
Lock 1 (sea lock)	Ardrishaig	Lock
Ardrishaig Swing Bridge	Ardrishaig	Swing bridge
Ardrishaig Basin	Ardrishaig	Basin
Lock 2	Ardrishaig	Lock
Lock 3	Ardrishaig	Lock
Lock 4	Ardrishaig	Lock
Lock 4 Bridge	Ardrishaig	Swing bridge
Oakfield Bridge	Lochgilphead	Swing bridge
Lock 5	Cairnbaan	Lock
Cairnbaan Bridge	Cairnbaan	Swing bridge
Lock 6	Cairnbaan	Lock
Lock 7	Cairnbaan	Lock
Lock 8	Cairnbaan	Lock
Lock 9	Dunardry	Lock
Lock 10	Dunardry	Lock
Lock 11	Dunardry	Lock
Dunardry Bridge	Dunardry	Moveable bridge
Lock 12	Dunardry	Lock
Lock 13	Dunardry	Lock
Bellanoch Bridge	Bellanoch	Swing bridge
Bellanoch Marina	Bellanoch	Marina
Crinan Bridge	Crinan	Swing bridge
Lock 14	Crinan	Lock
Crinan Basin	Crinan	Basin
Lock 15 (sea lock)	Crinan	Lock

GalleryEdit

UK Scotland Ardrishaig Lighthouse.jpg

Ardrishaig lighthouse
Crinan Canal Basin - geograph.org.uk - 14263.jpg

Ardrishaig basin.
Dunardry Locks, Crinan Canal - geograph.org.uk - 15399.jpg

Dunardry locks
Bellanoch Bridge, Crinan Canal - geograph.org.uk - 930207.jpg

Bellanoch Bridge
Sea lock Crinan - geograph.org.uk - 563876.jpg

The sea lock and Crinan Lighthouse