“Look, don’t touch.” Some heritage sites are just too fragile to handle.
That’s not the case here. Telford’s structures – like the man himself – were made from tough stuff. So you don’t have to just stand back and admire our World Heritage Site from a distance (inspiring though that is). You can experience it. In lots of different ways.
Try our top five for starters. 1. cross the aqueducts Dare you cross the stream in the sky? And can you do it without looking down? You can walk across Pontcysyllte, or save your legs and take a leisurely boat ride. But there’s one thing you have to take with you. A camera. The views are something else. Chirk Aqueduct is just a few miles downstream. And you could argue the views are even lovelier.
2. explore the tunnels If walking across the aqueducts gets your pulse racing, wait until you tackle ‘the Darkie’. A few yards into the tunnel and you realise where it gets its name from. It’s seriously dark, seriously long and once you’re halfway, there’s no going back. You can walk through it without a torch. It’s quite an adventure. But maybe a torch is a good idea?
3. walk the towpaths
A canter across will take you over the Welsh border and into England.
It’s not all aqueducts and tunnels along the 11 miles of World Heritage Site. Walking along the rest of the towpaths is a nice way to spend a few hours.
And if you work up an appetite, just keep walking past the pretty canal-bank cottages to the Poachers Pocket pub. Or The Bridge Inn. Good food and real ale are waiting.
Countryside rich in wildlife, sparse in people. In other words, peace and quiet. Nice thinking time if you’re by yourself. Catching up time if you’re with someone special.