Leeds to Silsden
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Leeds to Silsden |
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Starting from Clarence dock in the centre of Leeds, home to the famous Armouries museum, this cruise finishes at the pretty Yorkshire town of Silsden. We set off on the Aire & Calder navigation passing through the centre of Leeds before joining the Leeds and Liverpool then canal. Surprisingly quickly we are then into countryside. On the way we will encounter the UNESCO site of Saltaire with its Hockney collection and very interesting town built by Sir Titus Salt for his workers, no pubs or pawn shops were allowed, it has pubs now. We will move up through one wonders of the UK canal network, the fabulous Bingley 5 rise of locks, and the less well known Bingley 3. The 5 rise staircase locks, the bottom gate of one is the top gate of the next, take the canal up through an incredible 90 feet. A feat of engineering at any time but these were built in 1774, two years before the USA won its independence from England. We finish on the edge of Silsden whose claim to fame is being the place where the biggest onion ever was grown by Vincent Throup ,at 10 lb 14 oz (4.9 kg) |
