Semington Aqueduct(s)

Semington Aqueduct(s)

Kennet and Avon Canal

You get two aqueducts for the price of one in this entry.

The historical part of me says I should display the old river aqueduct first, but instead I will show you the new one recently built to span the A350 between Semington and Melksham.

Yes, its in concrete but can you imagine anyone paying the sort of money this one cost in the 1960's, when the Kennet and Avon laid abandoned with little hope of getting the nearby Caen Hill flight restored.

www.wiltshire.gov.uk/.../bridges.htm

flickr.com/photos/paul-g/1413845148/

And then there is the old Semington Aqueduct, which has been quietly going about its business, carrying the Kennet and Avon over Semington Brook, for over 200 years. It was completed in 1807, is a mere 46 feet long and has a Grade 2 listed attached to it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semington_Aqueduct

Biss Aqueduct

Biss Aqueduct

Kennet and Avon canal

A moddest structure which carries the Kennet and Avon over the River Biss (a tributary of the Avon) between Hilperton and Trowbridge. It also spans the Westbury to Bath railway line.

www.envf.port.ac.uk/kacanal/html/KAC0185.HTM

Avoncliff Aqueduct

Avoncliff Aqueduct
Kennet and Avon Canal

Another of John Rennie's aqueducts, but not as well known as Dundas a couple of miles to the West or the Lune Aqueduct on the Lancaster Canal.

However, its another graceful edefice constructed out of warm Bath stone which looks its best in the evening light.

www.avoncliff.co.uk/.../source/aqueduct_01.htm

www.rowalicia.co.uk/Kennet-and-avon-canal.php

Dundas Aqueduct

Dundas Aqueduct

Kennet and Avon Canal

Belle often criticises me for waxing lyrical about so much on the waterways, but please indulge me on this one.

This is undoubtedly the most beautiful aqueduct in the UK, but not necessarily my favourite (see Engine Arm Aqueduct on the BCN). The structure was probably John Rennie's finest architectural achievement, built of same mellow Bath Stone which has played such a big part in Bath's enduring popularity over the last 2000 years.

Rennie went to town on this 150 yard structure, with its 64ft semicircular central span and two 20ft elliptical arches on each side. The end result is wonderfully balanced and finished off with Doric Palisters and balustrades at either end.

The Aqueduct took four years to build, being completed in 1801 and was brought into service in 1805. Unsurprisingly, it has suffered leaks over the years and was closed in 1954, and dewatered in the 1960's and 70's prior to renovation and reopening in 1984.

A far cry from the industrial utility of the BCN!

An 1808 view by Nattes
www.freshford.com/past/limpley_stoke_prints.htm

www.pdad.co.uk/canal06.htm

For once I am not alone in my appreciation of this aqueduct. It carries a Grade One listing, and has the distinction of being the very first canal structure to be a scheduled as an Ancient Monument in 1951.

www.panoramio.com/photo/17946660

If you only ever take one bit of advice from me, take this: Stop the boat at the junction with the Somerset Coal Canal and walk down to the bank of the River Avon, then savour the experience.

Some people ask me why God made such an extraordinarily amazing Universe, to which I reply... because he could. Rennie's Dundas Aqueduct dosn't quite have the Universal "wow" factor, but why create such a beautiful answer when something simpler would have done? Because he could, I guess.

www.ellisrestoration.co.uk/masonry.aspx

Its good to see that the restorers were equally inspired and were able to deliver new sections which matched the originals so well.