Trent and Mersey Canal

Quick Facts

• Trent & Mersey Canal: approximately 93.5 miles, 76 locks
• Caldon Canal: 17 miles, 17 locks (Etruria, Stoke-on-Trent → Froghall, with the Leek Branch)
• Connects: T&M runs Preston Brook (Bridgewater Canal) → Middleport → Stone → Burton-upon-Trent → Shardlow (Trent Junction with the River Trent). Caldon branches off at Etruria.
• Build period & engineer: T&M opened 1777 (James Brindley); Caldon opened 1779
• Boat dimensions: T&M is mixed — narrow locks (72 ft by 7 ft) on most of the southern section between Burton and Wheelock; wide locks (72 ft by 14 ft) at the northern Cheshire end. Caldon is narrow, 70 ft by 7 ft.
• Typical cruise time: 8–10 days for the T&M end-to-end; Caldon adds 2 days return

What's it like to cruise?

The T&M is the spine of the Midlands network — Brindley's first cross-country canal, linking the Mersey to the Trent. Cruising character changes dramatically: the southern Trent section is broad, river-influenced and gentle; the central Potteries section is industrial heritage at its richest with the Harecastle Tunnel as the centrepiece; the northern Cheshire section is wide-locked and pretty. The Caldon climbs hard into the Staffordshire moorlands — a quiet, scenic backwater with the Froghall Tunnel and tramroad heritage.

Highlights along the route

• Harecastle Tunnel — 2,919 yards (1.66 miles) under Kidsgrove, one-way working with timed entry. Telford's later replacement of Brindley's original.
• Anderton Boat Lift (off the T&M, near Northwich) — Victorian counterbalance lift to the River Weaver, restored to working order.
• Etruria — historic Wedgwood country and the junction with the Caldon.
• Shardlow — handsome canal village at the Trent Junction.
• Burton-upon-Trent — the brewing capital with canal-side moorings.
• Caldon: Cheddleton flint mill and the Hazlehurst staircase junction.
• Froghall Basin — the upper Caldon terminus with the limekilns and tramway remains.

Connections & cruising rings

A pivotal canal: connects the Bridgewater (north), the Macclesfield at Hardings Wood, the Caldon at Etruria, the Coventry at Fradley, the Birmingham & Fazeley at Fradley, the Staffs & Worcs at Great Haywood, the Erewash at Trent Lock, the River Trent at Shardlow. Forms part of the Cheshire Ring, Four Counties Ring and many other combinations.

Suitable for

Good intermediate cruising. The Heartbreak Hill flight at Wheelock is the only really concentrated lock work — most of the route is well-spaced. Harecastle Tunnel needs a confident hand at the tiller and ear protection is sensible.

Practicalities

• Harecastle: timed one-way passage with CRT staff. Daily slots in summer; reduced in winter.
• Stoppages: standard winter maintenance; occasional Anderton Lift booked passages.
• Water and elsan: well-distributed along the entire route.
• Mobile signal: good in the Midlands corridor.
• Pump-out: at the many marinas — Stone, Aston, Mercia, Shobnall and others.

Best time to cruise

April to October. The Caldon is most rewarding in late spring before the moorland trees fully leaf in. Harecastle queues build in school holidays.