Rediscover horsepower

Britain's newly restored canal network is rapidly becoming the centre of an expanding major leisure industry.

More people are taking their holidays sailing the old inland waterways while hundreds of thousands of others use them for fishing, walking and enjoying the wildlife which flourishes along the way.

In the Swindon area, it is no different.

We may still have some way to go before we can match the restored Kennet and Avon Canal, but great strides are taking place on our local canals.

This week I took a look at what life might be like when Swindon's waterways are up and really flowing again and I liked what I saw.

I sampled the quiet life on a stretch of the Avon and Kennet, where it meanders through countryside near Hungerford, as a passenger on a horse-drawn barge.

And it was the best few hours I have spent for a long time.

It was so peaceful. The countryside along the way included acres of land that have literally never been touched by human hand, and there were also several historic woodland sites teeming with wildlife.

And it is not being too unrealistic to say that in the not too distant future horse-drawn longboats could be operating on Swindon's doorstep.

Already the hard-working volunteers of the Wilts and Berks Canal Trust are running regular Sunday afternoon trips on a re-opened stretch of the canal using an electrically powered boat starting from Beavans Bridge at Swindon's Mill Lane.

Henry Smith, the Swindon branch's enthusiastic chairman, said: "Realistically, to operate horse-drawn narrow boats on our canal we would need about two miles to do a four mile round journey.

"In the Swindon area the most likely stretch of canal for this would be from Kingshill towards Wootton Bassett. I am confident that it will happen but it can't go ahead until the Front Garden is developed."

The old canal route is expected to be part of the infrastructure that has to be put in place on the controversial site before any development can take place.

Mr Smith said: "Regardless of any route that goes through there the most important priority for us is to get a crossing under the M4.

"This is critical to all our plans and at a cost of around £1.5 million to £2 million it is likely to be one of the most expensive single projects on the line of the canal route."

One of the overall aims of the canal enthusiasts is to link up the Kennet and Avon Canal, which passes through some of Wiltshire's finest countryside, to the former Thames and Severn Canal near Cricklade.

This will be done through the Wilts and Berks and the old North Wilts Canal.

Some people are not convinced that this will ever happen, but money has already been found to finance an engineering study to establish a protected route past Swindon which will form part of the local plan.

The Kennet and Avon Canal is widely regarded as the best example of canal restoration in the country.

Much of the canal's 87 mile long original route was still there when restoration work began, and a magnificent £25 million lottery grant ensured that the work could go ahead. The project is now just about finished.

It will eventually form part of a canal network which will help give the Swindon economy a major boost.

Millions of tourists will eventually use it, and thousands of extra jobs will be created in the area and that of the adjoining Cotswold Water Park through which the canal will flow.

But patience is a virtue that canal people have developed.

These things will take time but I am told an important next step to achieving this canal dream has already taken place.

An application has now been made for a lottery grant to help restore the Thames and Severn Canal and so far the feedback has been good.

The success of this project means that more time, energy and hopefully money, can then be focused on linking the two waterways past Swindon.

Improving the environment and protecting wildlife, flora and fauna is a major priority of the people who work hard to reopen our canals.

And the success of this philosophy can be seen on the Kennet and Avon where "green engineering" has done much to help nature flourish.

Waterway manager, Michael Goodenough, and his team are proud of what has been achieved.

The water vole, which was once threatened with extinction, is now a regular sight along the canal route and beneath its waters several breeds of fish are thriving.

Mr Goodenough said: "We have a strong emphasis on protecting the environment and green engineering helps us to do it."

The old craft of using hazel branches, or faggots, has been used to shore up and protect some stretches of the bank that were under threat of erosion from the water.

Wooden posts are driven into the canal bed at regular intervals and branches of hazel are woven between them.

A fleece liner is then applied to prevent fine material from washing out, and after soil is put in native plants are planted which go on to strengthen the banks and create wildlife habitats.

Another bonus to using this once forgotten craft is that it is a lot cheaper than using concrete or heavy wood planks.