Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Horton Lock gives the best view of the scarp slope of the Chilterns before they become
lost to the foreground scenery. To the east hot air balloons and gliders can be seen flying from
Dunstable. The 150m Whipsnade white lion was cut in 1935 in the chalk of the Dunstable
Downs to promote the zoo, and is the largest chalk carving in the country.
As the climb continues the locks get closer together and the route twists and turns more
frequently. The two Ivinghoe Locks are followed by three Seabrook Locks, the middle of
which has the best preserved of the back-pumping northern engine houses ('northern' mean-
ing those north of the Chilterns). To the east are Gallows Hill, with an array of aerials, and
Ivinghoe Beacon, the highest point on the Dunstable Downs and eastern England at 230m.
The beacon was prepared for Elizabeth I to summon men in the event of a Spanish invasion.
Ivinghoe probably gave Sir Walter Scott the title of his
Ivanhoe
. Beyond Pitstone is Britain's
oldest post windmill, the Pitstone mill of 1627. At one time it was owned by the canal com-
pany but they sold it in 1842 to the Ashridge estate. It was badly damaged in a squall in 1903,
was restored in 1962 and now belongs to the National Trust.
Solomon's Ornamental Bridge at the entrance to Cosgrove
.
