A walk from Chirk along the Llangollen Canal.
A nifty shuffle through Chirk and along the canal
(Photos © urban75, November 2008)

With several hours to kill before our train back to London we elected to take a walk along the Llangollen Canal, hurtling along at such a pace that we managed to cover nearly nine miles in around two hours!


The impressive sight of Chirk Aqueduct, built by Thomas Telford in 1801.


The 70 foot high aqueduct has ten spans of 40 feet each and is part of a canal system connecting the area to Chester and the Mersey.


The railway rocked up in 1846, and as if to emphasise their superiority, built their viaduct some 30 feet higher.


The stone railway viaduct stands 100ft high and has ten spans with round arches.


Barges on the aqueduct.






Train and barge, Chirk aqueduct.


Delightful old canal worker's house.


We walked along the canal hoping to grab a pint in a nearby pub but discovered that it didn't open til 6pm. Doh!






The taller railway viaduct against the aqueduct.


Lovely!


Parish Church of St Mary, Chirk, part of the Church in Wales.

The first stone church was built in Chirk during the early 11th Century, and was known by the dedication of Saint Tysilio until the late 15th or early 16th century, when it was re-dedicated to Saint Mary.

In 1651 a Welsh bible was purchased for the church and in 1687 a Welsh book of Common Prayer was placed in the church.

The church of Saint Mary's remained part of the Church of England until the disestablishment of the Welsh Church in 1921. The Church in Wales remains a member of the world-wide Anglican Communion.


Sacred Heart church, Chirk.




Built in the late 1890s as a private house for local solicitor, Mr Sissions, this building eventually became the property of the local council before passing into ownership of Wrexham Council.

Derelict for some years, it is now in the process of being purchased by a local group whose intention is to develop it and have a cafe and tourist information point on site.


We walked back to the aqueduct and headed north.


Walking through the 460 yard long Chirk tunnel. It got very dark in the middle!


Reaching the northern end.




Heading north towards Pentre.






Barge detail.




Fungus.


It was a really lovely walk, full of autumnal colours.




Passing Chirk Marina.


Another, shorter tunnel ahead.






The Newbridge railway viaduct heads north across the Dee valley, carrying the railway from Chester to Shrewsbury. It was built by Henry Robinson, a Scottish engineer, around 1856.




We had hoped to make the massively impressive Pontcysyllte Aqueduct at Froncysyllte, but time was against us and we had to turn around.

Taking 10 years to build the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct was opened in 1805, with each stone pier rising to a height of 116ft. The tapered support piers start at 27ft in width at the bottom and 17ft at the top, with a total of 19 cast iron arches (each with a 45ft span supporting the bridgework).

BBC feature and panorama


Ever mindful of our train time, we thundered along the towpath back to Chirk station.


The Cadburys Chocolate factory at Chirk.


Waiting for the train at Chirk.



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