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Calder & Hebble Navigation

 The Calder & Hebble Navigation runs from Wakefield to Sowerby Bridge.

Map of the Calder and Hebble Navigation

Salterhebble Lock Cottage (Iain Duncan)

Fact & Stats

21.5 miles

(34.4 km)

The length of the Calder & Hebble Navigation that is navigable.

27 locks

1770

Opened

for boats following an Act of Parliament in 1758 to extend the navigation of the Calder.

From Wakefield to Sowerby Bridge

The Calder and Hebble Navigation runs from Wakefield to Sowerby Bridge, joining the Wakefield Branch of the Aire and Calder Navigation to the Rochdale Canal.

The Calder and Hebble Navigation was opened for boats in 1770, following an Act of Parliament in 1758 to extend the navigation of the Calder.

It is also joined by the Huddersfield Broad Canal at Cooper Bridge Junction, and has a small arm to Dewsbury of 1 mile. There was also an arm to Halifax, now closed and largely filled in, apart from the first 600 yards into Salterhebble.

 

Waterway notes

Maximum boat sizes

  • Length: 54′ 2″ (16.5 metres)
  • Beam: 14′ 2″ (4.32 metres)
  • Height: 8′ 7″ (2.62 metres)
  • Draught: 4′ 11″ (1.5 metres)

Navigation authority

Canal & River Trust

Useful info

Many of the locks require the use of a wooden Calder & Hebble Handspike.

Waterway news

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Hundreds of miles of waterways – along with their unique heritage and habitats – are currently starved of funding and rely on constant lobbying by us to safeguard their future.

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You can help Save Waterways Heritage.

Waterway restoration

Restoring the UK’s blue infrastructure – our inherited network of navigable canals and rivers – is good for people and places.