Stephenson’s Bridge

Today’s the day ........................ to avoid the traffic

This part of the canal joins two generations of main road, namely the A5 and the M1 motorway – and the West Coast Main line railway – to simultaneously squeeze through a gap in the hills between the villages of Ashby St Ledgers and Watford.  This passageway is more commonly known as the Watford Gap and is often referred to as marking the boundary between the ‘civilized’ south of England and the uncultured, unwashed ‘up north’.  At any rate, there’s no doubt as to which means of transport I would prefer to travel by,  through the gap.  Give me the slow meandering green corridor of the canal any time, with its accompanying plants and wildlife.  

This rather magnificent bridge over the canal carries the West Coast Main Line railway.  It is rather curiously constructed with barrel vaulting at ninety degrees to the waterway – and this classical decoration of the ironwork girders and railings.  It bears all the hallmarks of being the work of the famous railway engineer and designer – Robert Stephenson, son of his even more famous father -  George........................