Inverness, Clachnaharry, Caledonian Canal, Clachnaharry Sea Lock View from the west-north-west taken from the end of the protective breakwater looking up towards the bottom lock gates of the sea lock, ...

Description Inverness, Clachnaharry, Caledonian Canal, Clachnaharry Sea Lock View from the west-north-west taken from the end of the protective breakwater looking up towards the bottom lock gates of the sea lock, with the lock keepers' houses on the right Digital image of D 64152.

Date 30/3/1999

Collection Records of the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS), Edinbu

Catalogue Number SC 799633

Category On-line Digital Images

Copy of D 64152

Scope and Content Clachnaharry Sea Lock, Caledonian Canal, Inverness, Highland, from west-north-west This view looking east-south-east along one of the protective breakwaters shows the lock-keeper's cottage (right) and lock gates (left) of the sea lock which was built between 1810 and 1811. Along the top of the breakwater there are mooring posts with white-painted tops which can be used to secure boats waiting to enter the basin. The embankment to the right of the cottage has been piled up with rocks to protect it from the force of the Beauly Firth. The construction of this sea lock was a major achievement as two 365m-long embankments had to be created before deep water in the Beauly Firth was reached. The lock was then dug out of these embankments with the sea water being removed by hand pumps, six horses driving a chain-pump and a steam pump of the same power. This lock needs continual maintenance, as the sea would destroy it. The Caledonian Canal was designed by Thomas Telford (1757-1834) and built between 1803 and 1822 at a cost of £840,000. It was the first example of a transport network funded by the government in Great Britain. The 96.5km-long canal provides a route for boats travelling between the North Sea and Atlantic Ocean as it runs from the Beauly Firth at Clachnaharry, Inverness, to Loch Linnhe at Corpach. Only 35.4km of this length is man-made while the other 61km runs through four lochs: Loch Dochfour, Loch Ness, Loch Oich and Loch Lochy. Unfortunately at 4.2m deep the canal was too small for most sea-going ships which led to it being altered and deepened between 1844 and 1847. Source: RCAHMS contribution to SCRAN.

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/collection/799633

File Format (TIF) Tagged Image File Format bitmap