Foxton Locks

Foxton Locks form a system of ten chambers arranged in two flights of five, carrying the canal up a steep hillside. Each chamber measures roughly 7 meters long and lifts or lowers boats by a total of 23 meters between the upper and lower levels.

Engineer Thomas Telford designed the system between 1810 and 1813 to overcome a steep hillside section along the Leicester Line. Later, in 1900, an inclined plane lift was built beside the locks to speed traffic, but it closed by 1911.

The name comes from the nearby village of Foxton and marks an important point on the Leicester Arm of the Grand Union Canal. Walkers follow the towpaths alongside the lock flights today, while narrowboats occasionally pass slowly through the chambers.

Passage through both flights takes around 45 minutes and requires physical effort to operate the heavy lock gates. Visitors can watch from the towpath or visit the museum in the old boiler house, which explains the canal's engineering and history.

Between the two flights lie special side pounds that catch and reuse water, reducing consumption with each passage. This technique was advanced for its time and helped lower the canal's water demand.