The Crinan Canal is a navigable canal in Argyll and Bute, west of Scotland. It opened in 1801 and connects the village of Ardrishaig on Loch Gilp with Crinan on the Sound of Jura, providing a navigable route between the Firth of Clyde and the Inner Hebrides, without the need for a long diversion around the Kintyre Peninsula, and in particular the exposed Mull of Kintyre.

Today the canal is operated by Scottish Canals and is a popular route for leisure craft, used by nearly 2,000 boats annually.

The canal is a two-part scheduled monument. Loch a' Bharain, which serves as a feeder reservoir for the canal, is also a scheduled monument.

History

The canal was built to provide a shortcut for commercial sailing and fishing vessels and later Clyde puffers to travel between the industrialised region around Glasgow to the West Highland villages and islands. Authorised by the (33 Geo. 3. c. 104), it was designed by civil engineer John Rennie and work started in 1794, but was not completed until 1801, two years later than planned. The canal's construction was beset with problems including finance and poor weather. Landowners demanded high prices for their land and navvies were reluctant to leave jobs in more accessible parts of England and Scotland. The construction cost £127,000 ().

On Saturday 8 August 1801, the Carlisle Journal reported that:

<blockquote>On Monday, a boat laden with fish, arrived at the Broomielaw, Glasgow, from one of the Western Isles, being the first vessel that has passed through the Crinan Canal</blockquote>

The canal bank near Lochgilphead failed in 1805 and the canal's course was diverted to avoid the marshy ground. The canal's reservoirs were finished in 1809 but two years later a storm caused one to burst releasing its water and sending boulders and mud along the canal in both directions wrecking locks, the canal banks and the nearby roads. Repairs cost £8,000 and were met by steamers to Oban at Crinan.

A disaster occurred on 2 February 1859 when the Camloch reservoir supplying the canal burst, and the ensuing torrent of water and rock damaged the banks of the canal and seven of the gates forming the locks which were swept into the valley below. The canal was closed for through navigation until 1 May 1860 although the wider repairs to paths and road had not been completed. Although Parliament had authorised £12,000 () for repairs the company reported that the expenditure had exceeded the budget by around £3,500 () as the damage included large boulders of rock which were found in the bed of the canal.

In 1866 a steam-powered passenger boat Linnet replaced horse-drawn boats for tourists. On 2 July 2012 the British Waterways functions in Scotland became Scottish Canals.

Features

The Crinan Canal has 15 locks and is crossed by seven bridges: six swing bridges and a retractable bridge. Stone for the 15 locks was brought from Mull, the Isle of Arran and Morvern. From Ardrishaig, three locks raise the canal's east reach to above sea level. The summit reach, between Cairnbaan and Dunardry, is above sea level. The west reach between Dunardry and Crinan is above sea level. The canal is deep, although the declared maximum draught for a vessel is , and power lines which cross the canal restrict the height limit to .

The retractable bridge at Lock 11 replaced the original swing bridge in 1900. It is operated by a rotating handle and a cogged wheel which causes the bridge deck to roll forwards and backwards on rails and comes to rest across the lock chamber. It is no longer is use. The canal has towpaths on both sides from Ardrishaig to Crinan Bridge (no longer) and horses assisted unpowered craft until 1959.

{| class="wikitable sortable"

|-

! Feature !! Location !! Type

|-

| Lock 1 (sea lock) || Ardrishaig || Lock

|-

| Ardrishaig Swing Bridge || Ardrishaig || Swing bridge

|-

| Ardrishaig Basin || Ardrishaig || Basin

|-

| Lock 2 || Ardrishaig || Lock

|-

| Lock 3 || Ardrishaig || Lock

|-

| Lock 4 || Ardrishaig || Lock

|-

| Lock 4 Bridge || Ardrishaig || Swing bridge

|-

| Oakfield Bridge || Lochgilphead || Swing bridge

|-

| Lock 5 || Cairnbaan || Lock

|-

| Cairnbaan Bridge || Cairnbaan || Swing bridge

|-

| Lock 6 || Cairnbaan || Lock

|-

| Lock 7 || Cairnbaan || Lock

|-

| Lock 8 || Cairnbaan || Lock

|-

| Lock 9 || Dunardry || Lock

|-

| Lock 10 || Dunardry || Lock

|-

| Lock 11 || Dunardry || Lock

|-

| Dunardry Bridge || Dunardry || Moveable bridge

|-

| Lock 12 || Dunardry || Lock

|-

| Lock 13 || Dunardry || Lock

|-

| Bellanoch Bridge || Bellanoch || Swing bridge

|-

| Bellanoch Marina || Bellanoch || Marina

|-

| Crinan Bridge || Crinan || Swing bridge

|-

| Lock 14 || Crinan || Lock

|-

| Crinan Basin || Crinan || Basin

|-

| Lock 15 (sea lock) || Crinan || Lock

|}

<gallery mode="packed" class="center">

File:UK Scotland Ardrishaig Lighthouse.jpg|Ardrishaig lighthouse

File:Crinan Canal Basin - geograph.org.uk - 14263.jpg|Ardrishaig basin.

File:Dunardry Locks, Crinan Canal - geograph.org.uk - 15399.jpg|Dunardry locks

File:Bellanoch Bridge, Crinan Canal - geograph.org.uk - 930207.jpg|Bellanoch Bridge

File:Sea lock Crinan - geograph.org.uk - 563876.jpg|The sea lock and Crinan Lighthouse

</gallery>

A song sung by Dan MacPhail in The Vital Spark:

See also

  • Canals of the United Kingdom
  • History of the British canal system
  • Clan MacTavish#Castle of Dunardry Ruins Discovered

Notes

References

Bibliography

Further reading

  • Lindsey, Jean (1968) The Canals of Scotland, The Canals of the British Isles 8, Newton Abbot : David & Charles,
  • Scottish Canals: Crinan Canal
  • Scottish Canals: Crinan Canal Licences and moorings
  • Photographs of the Crinan Canal
  • images & map of mile markers seen along the Crinan Canal