Hapton, Burnley, nr Bridge 118

We cruised for 4.5 hours today without a single lock or swingbridge. It was a pleasure to take in the varied scenery and Vicky had fun steering through the 511m long Gannow Tunnel. Our route included the Burnley Embankment, also called the Straight Mile and one of the seven wonders of the waterways. Earth, taken mostly from Gannow Tunnnel, lifts 1148m of the canal as high as 60ft, bridging the deep Calder and Brun valleys and avoiding the need for locks.

Sadly, near the end of our journey we saw fresh flowers heaped on the towpath. Calling up recent news articles for Burnley we discovered they marked the spot a 16 year old boy had drowned 3 weeks ago on the hottest day of the year.

The railway and the M65 ran close to the canal for much of our journey. Will had looked ahead and found a place where the water looped away from the other transport lines that it was possible to moor. After the urban environment of Nelson it was refreshing to have open views over grass and trees again. Especially as there were horses grazing in the adjacent field. On one of our few short walks during a break in the rain storms we spied a pair of kingfishers speeding along the water surface, their metallic colours shining brightly. Most birds were hunkered down due to the weather but we also spotted a Kestral perching atop a poplar tree amongst a band of mixed trees.Read more