Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
the middle of the Manchester Ship Canal and a tall brick tower at the west end, it has control
huts on the two ends of the Bridgewater Canal, which operate stop gates. The girder swing
aqueduct has a 72m x 5.8m x 2.1m deep tank that is swung full to save time draining. With
23m clearance over the Manchester Ship Canal, it weighs 1,600t and is opened half an hour
before a ship is due on the major waterway in order to give the ship time to stop in case of a
malfunction, any collision having potentially catastrophic consequences.
A pair of hotel boats cross the massive Barton swing aqueduct carrying the Bridgewater Canal over
the Manchester Ship Canal
.
Perhaps it is not surprising that the authorities do not rush to move this vast structure to let
a small boat across. However, the walking route is not easy: a visitor must pass down a steep
bank and through a narrow gate that leads directly on to the main road, then along the foot-
way of the adjacent swing road bridge where there is an inevitable crosswind. The route then
finally goes along a narrow footpath that is hemmed in between a fence and a hedge before
there is a significant drop from sandstone blocks with rounded edges. Passed on the walk is
the richly decorated Catholic church of 1867 by Pugin.
The character and setting of the canal now changes as it passes into the huge Trafford Park
industrial complex. Built on land that had been owned by the de Trafford family since the
time of Cnut, it was sold in 1896. Kelloggs' largest European factory was a major user of the
canal until 1974. New construction is still taking place on the site.
The branch arrives at Stretford Junction or Water's Meeting and the main line of the
Bridgewater Canal, part of the Cheshire Ring, with another Liverpool to Manchester railway
line crossing on the far side.
