Page updated 11 May 2001
This submission was made in May 2001 by a well known commercial user of the waterway and provides notes on the best approach for taking a pair of boats through these waterways.
Although wide locked, it is probably best to treat it as a narrow canal. It is shallow in places and breasted pairs can be very slow, also some bridges have low arches like the Warwick canals. You need to single out for Saddington tunnel anyway.
Theoretically wide, but bridge room can be awkward in flood times. On the other hand rivers are safer in such conditions with the boats abreast. If it is running really hard, the same applies as to the Kennet. Tie up!
Locks are wide up to Burton, but it is best not to try and work abreast. Tranquil Rose, wide boat used to work this, and still goes right through the K & A and the GU to Warwick, but she is 12 ft 6 ins beam, not 14 ft. No trouble over this section, or the Erewash, if you work it GU style.