A different view of the Dales by canal

Imagine digging Britain’s longest canal by hand. At 127.25 miles long, the Leeds Liverpool Canal took thousands of navvies 46 years to build, starting in 1770, using just picks and shovels.

It became an important trading route connecting the industrial towns to the port of Liverpool and the through-route for goods from America. So while it was primarily used to transport coal and limestone, the barges also carried everything from beans and brandy through to calico, clog soles and gunpowder.

No wonder then that industries like textiles in Yorkshire began to prosper, transforming the canal sides with mills and the wharfs for loading and unloading goods.

The first stretch of the canal to be built was between Skipton and Bingley. Nowadays it’s fascinating to travel along this lock-free 17 miles section either on foot along the towpath, or even more fun, by hiring a narrow boat from one of the companies around Skipton as you get a greater sense of how important the route would once have been for the transport of cargo and the enormity of the engineering feat.