The Grand Canal. Work began on the Grand Canal in 1. Engineering difficulties and mistakes by the builders in the early stages meant that progress was slow - by 1. The tempo picked up during the last twenty years of the 1. The canal company managed to make the link with the Shannon in 1. The important branch to the river Barrow had been completed a decade earlier. Passenger boats used the waterway until the 1. After their closure to commercial traffic in 1. ![]() ![]() Grand, unlike the Royal, remained navigable). However the vision of the inland waterways activists encouraged a more enlightened attitude by Government. Branches were restored (for example, Naas in 1. Route 1: Hazelhatch to Sallins: 8 miles, 1. The starting point at Hazelhatch bridge is just half a mile to the east of the railway halt of the same name on the Celbridge to Newcastle Road. ![]() ![]() Two pubs lie within the shadow of the bridge which is a favourite mooring spot for boat owners away from the built up areas of the city. Begin your walk on the south bank of the canal and stay on this side all the way to Sallins. For the first half mile the underfoot going consists of an old tarmac path which gives way to a firm grass track on the approach to Aylmers Bridge. The view to the east is dominated by the Dublin mountains. The first lord Cloncurry built the classic great house which can just be glimpsed through the gates of the demesne wall. It was remodelled by the renowned Palladian architect Richard Morrison in 1. Lord Cloncurry with architectural treasures from Greece and Rome. Lyons Hill to the east rises to 6. Leinster. An old pumping tower stands off the canal to the east indicating the location of the large Boston limestone quarries, now flooded. The stump of a 6th century round tower may be glimpsed on Oughterard Hill in the background. In a cemetery at the foot of the tower is the grave of Arthur Guinness (d. Indeed the hill echoes many footnotes to the past - it was on this slope in 1. Daniel O' Connell and John D'Esteere fought a pistol duel, with mortal results for the latter. The stretch from Ponsonby Bridge to Devonshire Bridge is tedious with difficult underfoot conditions but patience is rewarded west of Devonshire Bridge where two locks - 1. The Grand Canal from Sallins to Robertstown covers some of the most picturesque and, from an industrial heritage aspect, some of the most intriguing sections of waterway. Morell feeder form an interesting diversion. This vigorous stream which tumbles from the hills of east Kildare was a crucial factor in resuscitating the paralysed canal building scheme in the 1. Dublin Corporation drove the project on to reach the Morell which they saw as a fine supply of clear water for a thirsty and growing city. The old sluice house at the 1. Leinster Aqueduct west of Sallins. As mainline trains thunder overhead pause for a moment and reflect on how this spot marked a watershed in Irish transport history in the last century . In the 1. 84. 0s as the rail route was being built towards the south from Dublin the canal company directors tried to stop their faster and more spectacular competitor by refusing the rail company permission to build the bridge across the canal. After the case went to the highest levels of Government the rail company was given permission to bridge the canal near Sallins thus giving the green light to the spread of the railway system to the rest of the country. The enterprise failed but the building is noted as one of the first to use reinforced concrete. Sallins is a gem of a canalside village. Fine rows of houses stand back from the compact harbour which once bustled with boats loading and unloading for Odlums mills just settlement clustered around the canal and the mills were powerhouse of the local economy. The meat factory on the north bank stands on the site of an old canal hotel. Sallins is a good starting point for a circular walk to the Leinster Aqueduct, back along the interesting and scenic Naas branch, and then returning by a path along the main road to the village. ![]() Alternatively it is also the starting point for the walk towards Robertstown. Stock up well on snack material - it is the last village for seven miles. Beginning on the north bank from Sallins bridge (tastefully widened some years ago) the towpath follows a gravel road for the first mile out of Sallins. It would be easy to miss the abandoned canal channel to the right (through a gate just past the meat factory) which marked an early failed attempt to cross the Liffey. Equally inconspicuous on the south bank of the canal is an abandoned dry- dock chamber. Shortly afterwards on the same side is the three - legged junction with the impressively scenic and historic Naas & Corbally branch of the canal. Some say the name comes from the ghost of a soldier who hung himself there; more likely it refers to the location of a guard post during the 1. There is no sense of traversing a major landscape feature yet the Aqueduct was a huge challenge for the canal builders and still inspires awe. Sit on the low wall (take care, of course ; ) and look down at the muddy waters of the Liffey spanned by the mass of the Aqueduct. The completion of the Aqueduct opened the way for the canal builders to continue their progress to the west. ![]() There is an added thrill in store for the walker who descends the embankment immediately after the parapet of the aqueduct bridge and finds the passageway under the canal which leads to the public road. The experience of walking under so many hundreds of tons of water will surely heighten admiration for the canal builders of two centuries ago. Just as Digby Bridge comes into view an intriguing structure just off the towpath defies explanation. Commonly thought of as an overflow control device its concentric walls with tunnels and culverts seem highly elaborate for such a routine purpose. ![]() At the bridge, transfer to the south bank and continue along a narrow path on the water's edge with a coppice to the left. This leads out on to the public road which has been following the canal bank since the Aqueduct and which in turn swings back to the north bank of the canal at Landenstown Bridge. The noise of racing engines at the nearby Mondello motor- racing track can often be heard forming a contrast to the otherwise quiet ambience of canal and farms. ![]() ![]() Follow the road for just under a mile until the canal swings to the south - west leaving the road which has been its constant companion since the Leinster Aqueduct. The 1. 8th lock may seem like any other but it has special significance - it is the last step to the summit level of the main line of the canal. From this stretch, 2. Ordnance Survey sea - mark in Dublin Bay, the headwaters of the canal divide to the east and the west. This is one of the least attractive stretches but fortunately on passing under the next bridge - officially titled Burgh Bridge but invariably known as the Cock Bridge - the character of the walk changes sharply for the better. The cutting although still impressively high widens out and the towpath becomes firmer forming a fine walking track through the Hill of Downings and on to Bonynge or Healy's Bridge. In high summer and autumn this a particularly delightful stretch with a forest of blackberry bushes featuring among the luxuriant growth. Cross Healy's bridge to the south bank. After a few paces the canal scenery changes again - this time revealing a vista of cut- away bog, forest and whin bushes which will be constant theme for the remainder of the canal's course across the bogs of West Kildare. For the first time since leaving Sallins the canal is carried on a high rampart. This elevation was caused both by the need to build the canal on an embankment over the bog and by the effect of decades of cutting of the peat on either side of the waterway. Canal historians record that the entire canal project nearly foundered in the morass of bog over the one- and- half miles between Healy's Bridge and Robertstown. Draw closer and the solid outline of the Grand Canal Hotel at Robertsown becomes clearer. An unusual place to find a hotel on this island in the bog of Allen but it was no doubt a welcome sight for boat passengers and crews battered by bad weather on the slow journey from Dublin. However the building continued in use for various purposes including a constabulary barracks and, in the 2. Seizing on the tourist potential of the village's water- side location the locals set- about restoring the hotel and recapturing the village's period atmosphere. Period banquets in the hotel, barge cruises, and a week of canalside festivity marked a resurgence of Robertstown, this time as a tourist venue. The Cybersecurity Market Report covers the business of cybersecurity, including market sizing and industry forecasts, spending, notable M&A and IPO activity, and more. Welcome to the Free E-mail Database. This page is a public service to provide E-mail addresses for any purpose you may need. Drawing from a constantly-updated. Diamond Reynolds, girlfriend of Philando Castile, speaks to a crowd outside of J. Hill Montessori School during a memorial on July 7, 2016 in St. Paul, Minnesota. InformationWeek.com: News, analysis and research for business technology professionals, plus peer-to-peer knowledge sharing. Engage with our community. Sky News delivers breaking news, headlines and top stories from business, politics, entertainment and more in the UK and worldwide. ![]() The momentum was difficult to sustain and now the programme is more modest but on summer weekends you may find a coffee shop open in the hotel and the opportunity to take a barge cruise from the Robertstown quayfront. The other half, Lowtown Junction, is another mile along the road. Cross the bridge at the west end of the village (Binn's bridge) to the north side of the canal and keep to the canal bank road where it diverges from the main road. Lowtown once served the canal system as a stables for barge horses and as a coal yard. Today it is an inland dockyard. There, distant from any town, is a place of industry and activity within an island of canal links. In summer their number will be less with the craft having departed for cruises on the canal system but in winter the marina echoes to the sound of generators, angle- grinders and drills as boat owners snatch hours at the weekend to prepare their craft for another season's cruising. Continue your walk by returning over Fenton's bridge to the north bank of the main line of the canal. The second canal junction which you pass as you leave Lowtown is another link to the Barrow line. The walk passes by a neat culvert over the clear waters of the River Slate - an important bogland drainage stream. The track continues under Bond Bridge on the Allenwood - Kilmeague road where the gravel laneway gives way to the grassy bank. Locals have installed seating and planted trees along the route - a gesture which says welcome' to the passing walker.
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