Drive & Stroll, with Ron Freethy: Leeds and Liverpool Canal

I HAVE walked almost the whole length of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal - 1271/4 miles of it - and I thought I knew all the walks.

I was wrong because British Waterways workmen have been restoring an almost derelict stretch of towpath.

Close by Riddlesden Golf Course and marked on the map Brunthwaite swing bridge (No 192) the towpath continues to Holden Bridge (193), Lodge Hill Bridge (194) and I completed my linear walk to Booth Bridge which is number (195).

This is obviously a straight walk and through idyllic countryside even though it runs almost parallel to the road linking Skipton to Bradford.

The summer stroll is surrounded by a tangle of vegetation with dog rose growing in such profusion that its very delicacy can be enjoyed. Just because plants are common does not stop them from being beautiful and this applies not only to the dog rose but also to the red campion which grows here in such numbers that it looks a bit like a small camp fire.

There are real camp fires in this area because on the bank opposite to Lodge Hill bridge and Booth bridge a substantial Scout camp has operated for many years.

The camp is fringed by a large expanse of rhododendron which looks absolutely wonderful when reflected in the water of the canal. It is even better when a bright painted pleasure boat cruises through. One of the features of the Leeds and Liverpool canal apart from the locks are the swing bridges. One of the best examples of a swing bridge is at Brunthwaite which Eddie Butler, one of the workmen on this stretch, told me was the heaviest on the canal. It is so well balanced that a single person, even one as ancient as me, can operate!

It is only when you have it pointed out to you that you realise how much maintenance has to be done to keep our canals free of leaks and to stop the banks eroding as the boats pass along the cut. Now I know it makes good sense to restrict the speed of pleasure craft. This reduces the wash as the vessels move along.

I was shown maintenance work going on with huge metal supports being hammered into the banks, weed was being cut to keep the channel clear and the towpath levelled to allow access for prams and wheelchairs. The next time you walk along a canal don't be afraid to talk to the British Waterways staff. They will always be pleased to tell you what is happening.

I have now found a new canal walk and I have been told of others along the Leeds and Liverpool. Canal walking, especially for the disabled, seems likely to be even more enjoyable over the next few years.

I started this walk in the early morning and by the middle of the afternoon I was sitting by the towpath listening to the call of the cuckoo and watching a weasel trying to persuade a family of young mallards to come close enough to the bank for the predator to risk a quick snatch. The mallard duck, however, had other ideas and charged the weasel with such force that it fled.

A family of boaters also saw this and they first applauded the duck and then fed her and her brood from the safety of the opposite bank.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.