History of the Crinan Canal

Once described as the 'most beautiful shortcut in the world', the nine-mile Crinan Canal was built over 200 years ago by a private company headed by the Duke of Argyll. The canal was created to open up the West Coast and improve access to the Western Isles, offering a safe transit route from Ardrishaig on Loch Fyne to Crinan, thus avoiding the often difficult sail around the Mull of Kintyre and cutting over 160km (100 miles) off the journey time.

In 1771, James Watt surveyed the district to find a course for the canal, originally planned by John Rennie. The Crinan Canal Act was passed in 1793, and Thomas Telford superintended the execution of the work. Funding for the canal came from London as well as Glasgow, but the money ran out in 1801. Government loans and additional funding finally allowed the canal to be finished in 1809.

In conjunction with the Lowlands system of canals (the Forth & Clyde, Monkland, and Union Canals) and the Caledonian Canal, it provided sheltered water communication between the Firth of Forth, Edinburgh and Central Scotland, Glasgow and the Firth of Clyde, as well as the western and northern areas of Scotland, from Argyll to the Moray Firth. At this time, there were no railways, and only military roads in the Highlands.

But in 1823, a section of the canal bank approximately three miles north of Ardrishaig failed, and the course of the canal was altered to avoid the marshy ground which had caused the problem. The old banks may still be seen between the canal and the main road to Oban.

Worse was to come in 1859, when a reservoir dam burst. Millions of gallons of water, to say nothing of hundreds of tons of rocks, boulders, peat and mud, were discharged in a period of 30 minutes from high above the canal into the summit reach. From there it spread in both directions wrecking locks, pounds, public road and canal banks - though, miraculously, without any loss of life.

Given these misfortunes, it is no surprise that the Crinan Canal never became financially self-supporting. By 1854, the canal was carrying 33,000 passengers, 27,000 sheep and 2,000 cattle: by 1906 most of the revenue was obtained from goods traffic, but at £6,000 a year this hardly covered operating costs. Nonetheless, it has been retained as a local amenity, and as a vital supply line to the Highlands and Islands.

Between 1930 and 1932, new sea locks were constructed at either end, making the canal accessible at any state of tide. Lock 14 and the canal bank between Crinan and Bellanoch were extensively improved as recently as 1991, in an effort to reduce the amount of water lost through leakage.

The canal is now used extensively by yachts as well as fishing vessels. For many years, some of the most prominent sights on the canal were the Clyde Puffers - little cargo vessels that designed to fit the Forth & Clyde and Crinan Canals. They delivered coal to the West Coast, bringing back whisky and other produce.

Today there are only two puffers left on the canal, Auld Reekie and Vic 32, which are based at the canal basin in Crinan. The canal itself no longer carries freight, although the harbour at Ardrishaig is an important element in Scotland's timber trade. Approximately 30,000 tonnes pass through the harbour each year: however, a programme of refurbishment and modernisation has boosted capacity to 150,000 tonnes.