Last year over ten million people visited the charity’s 2,000-mile network of canals and rivers to enjoy walking, cycling, running, boat trips, fishing, wildlife spotting, feeding ducks, watching boats go through locks, paddleboarding, visiting a museum, enjoying food and drink at a canalside café or pub, and marvelling at some of the world’s finest examples of working industrial heritage.
Linny Beaumont, Canal & River Trust’s director for East Midlands, says: “The Canal & River Trust cares for 295 miles of canals in the East Midlands, providing free to visit outdoor open spaces, and the chance to connect with nature and the region’s rich canal history. Every year, millions of people visit our waterways to be active, relax and to enjoy the scenic landscapes our canals offer.
“Our canals provide free and low-cost family-friendly days out by the water, and the chance to have some fabulous waterside experiences this Easter. Even in city centres, people can spot a variety of birds, animals, insects and plants along our canals and rivers. And from locks and bridges, to tunnels and aqueducts, there are hundreds of historic structures to marvel at.
“We want to encourage more people to visit our canals, rivers, reservoirs and docks so they can experience the physical and mental health and wellbeing benefits of spending time by water, and find out more about the work of our charity to care for the nation’s world-famous historic network.”
The Canal & River Trust’s Places to Visit in the East Midlands Guide provides information on the following locations:
Beeston Lock, Riverside Road, Beeston, Nottingham NG9 1NR
Beeston Lock on the Nottingham & Beeston Canal is a great place to visit to escape the city and get closer to nature. Visitors can watch boats gently making their way through the lock, walk up to the Turnover Bridge designed so horses could cross without being unhitched, find out more about the Nottingham & Beeston Canal at the Canalside Heritage Centre, pause for a coffee at the boathouse café overlooking Beeston Marina, explore Attenborough Nature reserve home to over 250 species of bird, and follow a 2-mile (3 kilometre) circular walk along the canal and River Trent.
Braunston, near Daventry, NN11 7JH
The historic canal village of Braunston is where the Oxford Canal joins the Grand Union Canal. Visitors can take a stroll along the towpath to Braunston Tunnel, watch colourful narrowboats make their way through the locks, find the Stop House where tolls were collected, enjoy a coffee at the café barge, admire the quirky canal bridges including the famous iron turnover bridge, and visit All Saints Church where many working boat people have been christened, married and buried.
Cosgrove & Wolverton, Lock Lane, Cosgrove MK1 7JR
The pretty village of Cosgrove on the Grand Union Canal was once a busy inland port. Visitors can see the attractive Ornamental Bridge, enjoy a walk along the towpath to explore the medieval village of Wolverton (0.6 miles/1 kilometre), and admire the magnificent Iron Trunk Aqueduct carrying the canal across the River Great Ouse.
Foxton Locks, Leicestershire LE16 7RA
The Grade II* listed Foxton Locks, nestled in 34 acres of natural green space, are the longest steepest staircase flight of locks in Britain. Visitors can walk along the Grand Union Canal Leicester Line towpath up the hill next to the ten-gate staircase lock system, see the remains of the disused boat lift and discover more about its fascinating story at the Canal Museum at the Boilerhouse, chat to one of the Trust’s friendly volunteer lock keepers, pick up a walking guide at the Trust’s welcome station and visit one of the canalside pubs and cafes.
Gunthorpe Lock, Trentside, Gunthorpe NG14 7FB
Gunthorpe Lock is one of the largest locks on the River Trent and was once a busy throughfare for boats carrying cargo across the country. Today visitors can watch boats make their way through the lock, enjoy a coffee or bite to eat at the canalside café, take a boat trip up the river into the centre of Nottingham, and take a walk to historic Gunthorpe Bridge.
Langley Mill, Derby Road, NG16 4AA
Langley Mill is on the Cromford Canal, a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and a peaceful place surrounded by nature. Visitors can take a look at the dry dock where narrowboats are repaired and the old lock cottages, stop by the Toll House and Pump House, watch boats pass into the Basin via the swing bridge, take a stroll around the Basin, and walk or cycle along the Cromford Canal.
Union Wharf, Leicester Road, Market Harborough LE16 7UW
Union Wharf is at the end of the Market Harborough Arm of the Grand Union Canal Leicester Line and is a great place to sit at the water’s edge and watch boats coming and going. Visitors can hire a day boat to explore the canal, take a look at ‘Frank the Plank’ sundial, enjoy a waterside drink, take a traffic-free cycle ride to Foxton Locks (5 miles/8 kilometres), and walk into Market Harborough to find many independent shops.
Newark Town Lock, Tolney Lane NG24 1BZ
Once an important inland port on the mighty River Trent, today Newark is a great place to enjoy waterside walks and explore old riverside buildings.Visitors can walk along the towpath to the locks, take a stroll around the Town Lock park and sensory garden, have a coffee in the café, follow the Historic Riverside Trail, and visit Newark Castle built nearly 1,000 years ago to defend the River Trent.
Nottingham Castle Wharf, Canal Street NG1 7HG
Overlooked by Nottingham Castle, Nottingham’s Castle Wharf offers relaxing waterside walks and alfresco dining. Visitors can enjoy a drink or bite to eat in one of the nearby pubs and restaurants, visit Nottingham Castle built in 1067 on the orders of William the Conqueror, follow the towpath to Meadow Lane Lock where the canal joins the River Trent, and continue south along the towpath to the beautiful Victoria Embankment.
Stoke Bruerne, near Towcester, Northamptonshire NN12 7SE
The ‘chocolate box’ pretty village of Stoke Bruerne has the Grand Union Canal running through it. Visitors can explore the free-to-visit Canal Museum full of interactive displays and collections that bring to life what it was like to live and work on Britain’s canals, enjoy a drink or meal at the canalside café at the museum or one of the canalside pubs, see the historic workboat moored outside the museum, take a boat trip into the Blisworth Tunnel, follow a woodland sculpture trail next to the Blisworth Tunnel, and walk to the nature reserve at the bottom of Stoke Bruerne Locks.
Stoke Lock & Woods, Riverside, Stoke Bardolph, Nottingham NG14 5HX
Stoke Lock on the River Trent is a peaceful place to get close to nature and enjoy a woodland walk. Visitors can enjoy a riverside picnic, watch the boats making their way through the lock, walk to Netherfields Lagoon Nature Reserve (1 mile/1.5 kilometres) and wander north along the riverside path to the Ferry Boat Inn.
Sutton Cheney Wharf, Wharf Lane, near Nuneaton CV13 0AL
This picturesque village on the Ashby Canal is the ideal spot to unwind and enjoy being by water. Visitors can relax in a waterside café and watch boats making their way along the canal, enjoy a traffic-free walk or cycle ride along the towpath to Shenton Station to see the steam engines on the Battlefield Line (1.5 miles/2.5 kilometres), walk through Ambion Woods to find King Richard’s Well, and enjoy a canalside picnic.
Torksey Lock, Lincolnshire LN1 2EH
Torksey Lock is on the Foss Dyke (or Fossdyke), believed to be the oldest canal in England still in use. Visitors can watch boats going through the lock which has six pairs of lock gates, enjoy a stroll along the towpath and go through the ingenious clapper gate, and stop for a picnic to listen to the different birds, including the peewits that enjoy the flat Lincolnshire farmlands.
Trent Lock, Long Eaton NG10 2FY
Four separate waterways converge at Trent Lock, making it a wonderful place to spend time watching wildlife and taking a traffic-free stroll. Visitors can watch boats go through the lock, enjoy a traffic-free bike ride by the Erewash Canal and walk to the Cranfleet Cut built so boats didn’t have to navigate a short stretch of the River Trent.
Welford Wharf, Northamptonshire NN6 6JQ
Once busy with barges transporting limestone to the nearby lime kilns, Welford Wharf on the Grand Union Canal is now the perfect place for a countryside walk. Visitors walk a stretch of the Jurassic Way that passes through Welford Village, try the three-mile circular walk around the Welford Arm, take a look at the remains of the lime kilns opposite the wharf, stroll along the towpath to the lock, head to Welford Reservoir to spot waterbirds and take a break in the historic canalside Wharf Inn or village tea room.
Woolsthorpe Locks, Duck Lane, Grantham NG32 1NY
Woolsthorpe Locks on the Grantham Canal Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) were designed by renowned canal engineer William Jessop. Visitors can join one of the Grantham Canal Society’s boat trips, walk along the towpath to see the locks, visit nearby Belvoir Castle and watch out for wildlife along the canal, including damselflies, swallows and buzzards.
Canal & River Trust’s new regional Places to Visit in the East Midlands Guide is available to download at www.canalrivertrust.org.uk/free-guide