2 Aqueducts Magnificent Engineering

Introduction:

These two magnificent aqueducts are situated on the Llangollen canal and are linked together by the canal. We follow quite a few You Tubers who live on canal boats and were intrigued by these aqueducts. During a recent visit to Chirk in Wrexham we managed to enjoy a walk to these truly magnificent feats of engineering. Introducing the Chirk aqueduct and the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct. Running next to the Chirk aqueduct stands the 16-arch viaduct of the Shrewsbury & Chester Railway, engineered by Henry Robertson.

Table of Contents

What are aqueducts?

An aqueduct looks like a big bridge but at the top it has a trough which carries water over a valley, road, railway or river. The aqueducts first built in the UK, were built from stone and brick, and the trough at the top which carried the canal was lined with puddling clay to make it waterproof. Quite a few aqueducts, such as the Vrynwy Aqueduct collapsed and had to be repaired.

Where are the Chirk and Pontcysyllte Aqueducts?

We went for a visit to North Wales and stayed at the Moreton Park Hotel in Chirk. Just down the road from the hotel is the Poachers Pocket Pub through it’s overflow car park you can get to the canal tow path. This path takes you through some wonderful scenery with interesting gardens and houses lining the sides. The trees are awesome, some so tall and straight you have to bend your neck to see the top. Chirk Basin, Chirk, Wrexham, LL14 5DA and Station Rd, Trevor, Llangollen LL20 7TY

**Map of Chirk Aqueduct from Poachers Pub**

Who built the aqueducts for the canal boats?

The Chirk aqueduct was finished in 1801 built by William Jessop and Thomas Telford.
It is 220 m long and has the canal 70 feet above the River Ceiriog.
There are 10 circular masonry arches spanning across.
At the end of the Chirk aqueduct is the Chirk tunnel which You Tube boaters describe as very dark.
The Pontcysyllte Aqueduct was completed in 1805 built by William Jessop and Thomas Telford.
The bridge is 307 m long, 3.7 m wide and 1.60 m deep and carries the Llangollen Canal across the River Dee..
There are 18 masonry arches spanning across.

Scenes from the Chirk Aqueduct

The Chirk canal is really pretty. There are houses with very interesting gardens, no doubt all laid out to entertain passers by and to give the owners some canal side sitting areas. There are nice stone bridges going across it, some would require canal boaters to duct their heads as they sail underneath them.

How to get to the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct

If you don’t fancy walking the approx. 3 miles along the canal from Chirk you can take your car. There is a car park, LL20 7TY, for blue badge holders and there is a larger general car park , LL14 3SG.
We park our car in the general car park and walk to see the aqueduct along a short section of canal.
It is all looked after by the Canal and River trust and Unesco World Heritage trust.
There is a lovely visitor center and a nice little cafe where you can enjoy information and refreshments.

Photographing the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct

There is a single narrow pathway next to the very narrow channel which the canal boats to sail on.
You can walk along this path to the other side. The scenic views are spectacular. It is fun to snap the odd canal boat going across.
The aqueduct structure itself is more difficult to capture. The light was streaming through the very tall arches.
There is a circular walk down to the River Dee and back past the base pillars. This walk is steep in places and has a lot of steps.
There are a view really good view points where you can see the engineering involved in building the magnificent aqueduct.
It is long and high and very cleverly engineered taking it was completed in 1805.
The light is very bright and my camera struggled to focus clearly.
It is not really possible to get the whole aqueduct in a picture as the lovely trees get in the way of any fantastic photographic shots.

Boat Hire and Boat trips

At the canal basin just before you get to the aqueduct itself, there are canal boats which take people down the canal. There are day canal boats which you can hire and sail across the aqueducts. It has lots of charm and heaps of interesting things to look at. There were two wonderful carvings as the canal basin and at the entrance to the aqueduct itself there was a large hand which has all sorts of memorabilia items in bedded in it.

How were these magnificent aqueducts engineered?

Chirk aqueduct looks like a block and stone structure.
There is an iron trough running along the top which contains the canal water.
Using the iron in this way was achieved with the help of master ironworker William Hazledine.

The Pontcysyllte aqueduct was built with in a trough made of cast iron plates alone, without supporting stone arches.
Telford’s design was to build 18 stone columns 38m high. He hollowed them out from about 21m high.
The trough was 3.7m wide and 1.7m deep.
The overall width at the top of the aqueduct was enough for a canal boat and a towpath for pedestrians.
Each of the 18 spans have 4 cast iron supporting arches designed in the same way as a typical stone arch. This made it strong.
After the work was completed, engineers filled the aqueduct with water and left it for six months to check the structure was watertight.

Scenes from the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct

All in all it was a fantastic day out. A great walk along the canal and looking at how these two magnificent aqueducts we build just makes one think how clever those engineers where as they built a huge structure with no modern technology.

Touring Caravan Park near the Chirk Canal

There is a very nice touring caravan park very close to the Poachers pub. It is called the Foxtail Holiday Park. A perfect place to camp and explore.

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