5.24.2007

Wales | a canal you have to see to believe

One of the most impressive experiences on our walking tour of Wales was the bridge pictured to the left. What we saw was so improbable, it's almost impossible to express in words: a canal that crosses a valley. As we walked over the bridge to the east, kayakers were paddling across the chasm heading west.

Truly one of the engineering marvels of the world, the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct is 1,007 feet long, eleven feet wide, and 126 feet above the ground. Begun in 1793, it cost 45,000 pounds to construct and opened in 1805. It was nominated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2006.

The wonder of travel is that is opens our eyes to sights we cannot imagine. When we began our walk that day, we had no idea where the path would lead us. As it turned out, it led us to a river over a hundred feet above the ground.


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1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Now that is truly a cool site. That has to be a thrilling experience for both the pedestrian and the kayakers. So what is at either end of this canal. River obviously but what I mean is how is it fed into the canal?