The Anderton Boat Lift by Narrowboat
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- Опубліковано 12 гру 2024
- In this weeks video we take a trip to the Anderton Boat lift. We cruise along the Trent and Mersey canal in a narrowboat and then descend in This Cast Iron giant of Victorian engineering down to the River Weaver Navigation. The Anderton boat lift is one of only two boat lifts in the UK , the other being the Falkirk wheel. The Anderton being much older built in 1875. The Boat lift is made of Cast iron and is a triumph of Victorian engineering built for the canal age. It has a unique place in British Industrial history as it was nearly lost in the 1980's due to corrosion but saved by the National lottery and the community. The Boats are lifted and descend in cast Iron tanks called Caissons there is a single Hydraulic ram underneath each caisson. This is a unique feature along Britains waterways and canals. A leviathan of Industrial History. We also take a look at Hunts Lock at the town of Northwich in Cheshire. Thank you to Stuart from the Canal and River trust for chatting to us.
A Scouser living now in Australia. Went on the Anderton Boat Lift. when we went back to U.K. for holiday. Thanks Martin for this happy memory, I've only got a fridge magnet reminding me of the incredible Boat Lift.
Thanks Barbara, make sure you keep that fridge magnet
It weighs exactly the same with or without a boat in it. The boats displace their own weight in water, that’s why they float.
Perfect explanation. I admit I forgot as obviously did Martin.
A "Eurika" moment!
Sounds obvious now you’ve said it, but you you look dead clever now either way 😄
I was just about to say this glad I saw your comment first.
The woman in the other boat must have displaced a fair amount of water in that case.
You truly are the modern Fred Dibnah. Yet another great programme, thank you so much Martin. John
Cheers John. I walk in Freds shadow
Would Martin suit a oily cloth cap no so sure . Very talented mankind good information excellent videos cheers Martin zero .John Rooney st.annes Lancashire UK ps
Youl have to start wearing a flat cap and climbing factory chimneys Martin 😀
When I was at London Road Art College in 1977, we were assigned a photo-project at the boat lift. At the time, visitors were allowed into the 'control room' thingy above to sign the guest book. My signature is/was on the same page as those of Roger Moore and Micheal Aspel.
Really, bloody heck Paul
Amazing peice of engineering. Can't imagine there will be too much from today being looked at in 150 years..
The Falkirk wheel boat lift could be
Ryan Jon that thing is a marvel of engineering, looks beautiful too
Garbage dumps, perhaps. We do admittedly only see the good stuff from prior eras. Everything else has long since disappeared. The Falkirk wheel is one of those rare examples of modern tech being used to improve aesthetics.
I know I play with words with my recent comments on here, but it's intended to be very much in support of what you do. My grampa was in a reserved occupation in Manchester during WW2 and did his bit firewatching as well. So my interest stems from his time there and hearing about it from his perspective as well. Still going strong at almost 100.
If you ever make it up my way, I'd very much like to say lunch is on me.
Thank you , whereabouts are you
@@MartinZero South East Scotland, near the border.
Fabulous. One of my favourite bits of Victorian and canal engineering. I remember driving out to have a look at in on a dilapidated state in about 1989. Been a couple of times in recent years and it’s wonderful to see it restored. Must have been great to be on it. I was having a good look at the Barton aqueduct and road bridge yesterday. Another marvel of iron and rivets.
Thanks Karl. I keep meaning to take a closer look at Barton from underneath
Many thanks Martin and Graham. When we were lads we would hop on our motor scooters and head off to Liverpool through Middlewich and Northwich. The Boat lift looked pretty sorry for itself then, it's so good to see it in beautful working order now.
Thank Mike, yes good to see a new lease of life
There's something about the sleekness of hydraulic rams that makes me want to run my hand down them.
Fascinating video Martin. Thank you!
That is such a magnificent structure! It is wonderful that locals and a grant from the lottery helped keep it going!
Yes true, it could have been a different story
@@MartinZero it does not even bare thinking about frankly!
Where would we be today, without the ingenuity of the Victorian era, masters of their crafts. 👍
Exactly Mark, we have a stunning legacy
So much amazing infrastructure. Weather it's something that was or something that still exists. Always new things to see with every video. I am astounded by the industrious tenacity of England.
Thank you, yes this one is a sight to behold
Amazing piece of British engineering! Thanks Martin for giving us a ride!
Yeah so unique as well
Many thanks for showing operation of Anderton Lift - I was on canal in 2001 or so and stopped and visited the Lift being restored but not yet open. Very impressive engineering but the salt deposits must demand heavy maintenance. On our way to Chester it was a worry to see ‘sink holes’ dotted in the field alongside - then one realises the enormous deposits of salt. Your video was great - takes one back and seeing how Anderton Lift operate. Cheers PS
Thanks very much Peter
Thanks for that Martin, and Graham too! What a fantastic bit of engineering that lift is...those Victorians really could put stuff together. As I watched I thought of the many places you've taken us over the years where there are only a few stones, bricks, and rusted bits of iron left; and imagined that they too would have once been magnificent structures like the boat lift had they not been left to decay. Great music too!
All the best.
Thats true Mike it could of been another story. I could of been visiting a lump of rust where the Boat lift once stood
Been checking all day to see if new video.sunday night now sorted.thanks martin.keep them coming .you work is better than telly.
Thanks very much Mike
It's Sunday!!! Cracking Martin . 👌
Thank you Neil
'Cross-the-pond gongoozler here. Thanks for your unique and detailed view of the ABL. I knew it from Cruising the Cut and The Narrowboat Experience, but your point of view appeals more to those of us who like spotting infrastructure. Hope to actually experience it someday!
Thank you. Yes well worth a visit
Again Martin, you blow my mind !. Every video you make seems to get better.
I live aboard a narrow boat and have wanted to see this, in person for a while now, along with the Falkirk wheel.
Thank you for bringing me this experience. It’s amazing how 150 year old engineering is still in use today. Makes me wonder what modern engineering feats will still be in use 150 years from now.
Great video, Thank you.
Thank you Kevin much appreciated
I hadn’t realised where the lift is and I’m often around that way so I’ll be taking a short detour to see the lift. Thanks Martin 👍
Yes definitely take a look Mr Diesel
I remember as a teenager, a school trip to the boat lift, mid 1960's. Great to see it still in use. I may be wrong but I thought the Weaver went into the Manchester ship canal and then the Mersey. Another great video, well done Martin.
Before the Ship canal was built the weaver nav went into the Mersey.
Thank you. Not actually traced the Weaver. It probably does
Hi Martin, Thanks once again for a lovely virtual afternoon out!! It was really interesting seeing the four boats/barges being lifted with the boat lift, what marvellous engineering. It just goes to show that necessity definitely is the mother of invention!!
Thanks Marilyn yes a truly impressive structure
Thanks, Martin, I have been past the Anderton Lift many times and felt I knew about it, but your video has taught me so much, brilliant work.
Thanks very much Nick
Thanks for filming & sharing such an interesting & informative piece of history. 👍👍😎
Thank you David
Nice to see you out on the cut Martin. Thanks for posting this. We went on the boat lift in a hire boat around 1978/9. Who knew that the structure was probably dangerous!
It could well have been dangerous then Ruth, before its refurbishment. Thanks again
One of the best illustrations of the new mechanism & how it works, nice one again Martin.
Thank you Laurie
Hi Martin. I`ve been looking forward to another adventure with you. Your channel is the best.
Thanks so much Demelza
Your like a kid on Christmas morning Martin. I've been told all those places with names that end in 'wich, the wich means there is salt here. Great vlog and many thanks to your mate Graham.
Thanks Greg. I never knew that
Fantastic piece of victorian engineering.
Iy certainly is Tim
It is a brilliant feat of engineering, Great that it's still going.
It certainly is Isaac
To come up with this and then build this in 1875. Some real clever craftsmen back then. Top vid as always martin. Nice one
Thank you sir
Brilliant as always martin 👍 Nice to see you having a mooch around Cheshire...
And very nice it was to Dan
That boat lift is amazing. Cheers for sharing.
Thanks Sean
Beautiful piece of victorian engineering. Thank goodness it has been saved for posterity and is doing the job it's original designers intended. Not razed to the ground and reclaimed by nature, with only the scantest evidence that it ever existed remaining.
Thats true Carl, it could of been a different story
You just find the most interesting old things, I love it, and thank you to Graham and the gentleman from the Trust.
Thanks very much Jessie
Very cool, love the old railroad style Semaphore signals.
Thanks Martin ,
One of my favourite walks is from Marbury country park. (The site one one of the most haunted houses in the UK). Where you can park you car for a small fee, through the parkland and wild flower meadows to the Trent and Mersey canal and then on the towpath to the boat lift. It's not a very long walk maybe a couple of miles each way, with refreshment facilities at each end and several places to give good views of the lift. I saw the lift way back when they were going to dismantle but now it looks fantastic.
That walk sounds good Kevin. Like the sound of the house
Love the canal history, thank you Martin. Take care
Thanks very much Christine
Great video Martin, thank you for taking us with you.
I think you did a pretty good job of capturing all the important bits with 1 camera.
Thank you so much Andy
Love it. There is a magesty to Victorian architecture and technology. No other era had or has it.
Hi Martin, another spectacular video. So fascinating watching places being brought to life. Especially in these strange times where we find ourselves. Thanks
Thank you, glad you enjoyed
How cool was that, what an experience that must have been! Great vid Mart!
Falkirk Wheel is a very interesting piece of equipment, Very simple. I watched it go up and down for about an hour.
This too is quite a piece of engineering.
Yeah I really want to see the wheel now
What a lovely day for a boat trip beautiful scenery I'm so glad they managed to save the boat lift an amazing piece of engineering, thanks yet again Martin.
Thanks very much
Fantastic Martin - I went to school in Northwich in the 1980s and never saw the lift in operation ... I think it’s the only one of its kind in the world
Yeah I believe it is Justin. there are others but they operate differently
1st Class presentation from Martin as usual.
Thank you James
I love the videos of cool old stuff over there..i live in a house built in 1897 and love it. Keep them coming!
Thank you MrTallwilly
Keep them coming Martin love your video's
Thanks very much Dart
Fascinating video of Victorian innovation at its best, thank you for posting.
Thank you Tony
Wow what a fantastic piece of engineering that is. What a height when you looked down frightening if you're scared of heights. It's hard to believe they used to use electricity to drive that lift the power that must have been needed. Another great Sunday night viewing stay safe and see you in the next.
David Howard It is counterbalanced, so surprisingly little power is needed to operate, just a few kilowatts. I understand that they also make use of slightly differing water levels in each caisson to make the top chamber heavier than the lower and hence descend largely using gravity while raising the bottom caisson as it does so.
@@spencerwilton5831 Thanks for reply
Thanks David, yeah it was quite a drop
Thanks Martin and Graham. I always enjoy a trip on a narrowboat.
Thank you Maggie
one of my life ambitions was to see the anderton boat lift,succeded 5 yrs ago . A truly brilliant place for a day out well worth the trip up the M6.
Yeah its a good one to visit
Well done Martin A wonderful feat of engineering and still working today, Keep up the good work, Thanks.
Thanks very much Liam
Nice one Martin .It is a great experience and love the film :) Terrific piece of engineering .Brilliant filming ..👍Great viewing .
Thanks Helena. Hope your well
Good day Martin well dun always look forward to your videos stay safe
Thank you Erik
Wonderful once again Martin
Thank you
Hi Martin another great video very interesting feat of engineering such a long time ago.
Thanks Andrew 🐝
Thanks very much Andrew
I lived near Northwich 83 to 87 and I remember that the lift was there but never saw it going - now I know why!
You never fail to educate and impress! Another stunner! Cheers from Edmonton Canada.
Thank you Christopher best regards to you
Great video, we have tried to go use the boat lift twice, once the canal feeding it was shut because of damage to the tow path and a second time the river was in flood due to bad weather. It's great to see on your video what we have missed.
Cheers Peter, too bad you never got to use it
Wow wasn’t that brilliant. These structures are absolutely brilliant. Mind you going down the canal made me a little green with envy. Loved learning about the lift it was brilliant. Thanks so much for taking me along. Stay safe
Thank you Linda, yeah overall a lovely day
Looked fantastic to me
Loving the variation on the channel at the moment, looking forward to the next one Martin.
Thank you very much
Hello and welcome BACK .... This is why I love your videos Martin. Thanks for putting content up. Makes me equal parts of homesickness and proud of the motherland.
I was born in Crewe and lived in Rochdale until I moved to the US in 2011.
Thanks very much David
Another great video Martin showing a piece of our history. Keep up the good work.
Thank you, its great isnt it
Martin Zero definitely. In the words of Ian from IKS Exploration it’s a golden gem. Any chance you could do a video from Sheffield?
Many thanks to both of you, I found it really quite impressive just how well they manage to keep it sealed and how dry it is underneath. I imagine at one time it may not have been quite as dry of an experience.
I am the same as you Michael. I was in awe of those seals and the dryness
You've been smashing it lately Martin lad keep it up mate.
Thank you Sir
Heard a lot about it but never seen it, so it was wonderful you did his superb video, what a wonderful machine! You explained it very well how it works, etc., very enjoyable. Thanks Martin it was a joy to watch.
Thank you very much Valerie
Fascinating Martin, great work. Thanks & best wishes sent to you & yours.
Thank you very much and best regards
A beautiful industrial piece of technology.
Yes it certainly is
What a brilliant vlog so much facts about the boat lift I didn’t know I have been down once in it must go again one day.
Thanks Philip glad you enjoyed
The gondolas/tanks would still weigh exactly 252 Tons with or without boats, as the amount of water displace by the boat weighs exactly the same as boat.
That is as long as the displaced water is displaced out of the gondola, which appears obvious, so agree a very clever observation,
you will need to know the mass of all the barges in the canal to determine the EXACT weight so the weight is only approximate.
@@An.Individual That's why they build the little aquaduct before the lift. The aquaduct has sluices that will close after the barges, which will be lifted, went on. So they have just a very small part of canal of which they exactly know what the weight of the water/barges is (that's also why ships have to wait for a couple of minutes before entering the caisson - to be sure there is exactly the mount of water/barges as the lift is build for).
Finally 👍
Brilliant video Martin. A couple of years ago I was there, CART did a walking tour of the lift booked in the downstairs office, which includes seeing the redundant winding gear at the top of the structure and the control room. Perhaps will be doing them again when covid restrictions are lifted.
Love this video, a little different from your usual ones. The boat lift is amazing and thankfully still in use. Thanks Martin and Graham, take care.
Thanks very much Julia
Excellent, nice change from mucky mines and locos.
The old tale is Archimedes who found out that the weight of water displaced is equivalent to the weight of the object placed in the water.
Missed you last week please keep up the good work.
John
Thanks John, I took a week off
Wow stunning engineering and design....hats off to you Martin and your friend for showing this...I've always wanted to see this..
I must drop in and see it when I am in the area...jim
Yeah I highly recommend it and thank you
i live 10 mins from the lift and we had a collapse last year a large section of the canal disappeared after we had a lot of rain and i think where lion salt works is which is a museum now they had a collapse there too
also @14:23 it wasn't the salt works its actually a power station and the former ICI soda ash plant which i think is due for demolition so they can build more houses, 2 years ago that stretch of the Weaver was full of ICI soda ash plants but they have been demolished for housing, ICI actually paid for the Weaver to be made bigger so they could bring ships upto the soda ash plants straight from the Mersey
Really?! I moved away in 2007 and remember the shacks on the right when heading towards Barnton from Northwich (is that bridge actually Roman before the Barnton left turn at the lights?). Across the road was an eyesore of a thing, big tower with a thin long piece connecting it to a massive disused industrial building. A great sight was the cricket pitch in the middle of the ICI works, could see it through the fence when walking past. It looked like a scene from the booklet that came with Jeff Wayne's War of the Worlds album. Oh, and the lime beds used to have steam coming from them back in the early 80's, they looked like a Dr Who set if you climbed up the side as a kid.
@@Slider2732 yeah its called winnington village now its just thousands of houses, although i wouldn't buy 1 after the stories i've heard about mercury being poured straight onto the ground when the plants were open
Cheers for the info Ever Hope
That was a brill video Martin that boat lift is like going through a lock but on a high scale glad they kept it, hope it stays like that for years to come
Hopefully it will Thomas
There's more restoration work being done on the lift and the visitor centre over the next couple of years.
I'm amazed that only 1 ram holds all that weight, fine engineering indeed.
Great music by the way.
Yeah its a scary thought when you are on it
I've sat on the edge on the boat lift over looking the river, before it was restored. Many years ago 😬😬😬 when I was younger and dafter. 😂
Another great episode Martin!
Thank you Julie
Yet another brilliant video. Thank you - thank you.
Yes, funny thing this displacement of water with boats. 🙂
Thanks very much glad you enjoyed
i've seen the Falkirk wheel first hand, very impressive, but I had no idea this existed, very impressive, especially for it's age. I''ve actually been invited to record in those salt works later in the year.
Oh wow thats amazing
Martin this was a EXCELLENT video, and narration outstanding as usual. This Anderton boat lift is quite an engineering feat, especially when it was built. Jerry from Meriden, Kansas.
Thank you Jerry. yes it was a pleasure to film it
Another brilliant video Martin !😁 . You did an excellent job too of capturing it all on your camera !! I've never seen the lift before, I found it fascinating to watch ! Thanks Martin ! 😀.
Thank you Suzy
What an amazing piece of engineering! So glad it didn't meet its end in '83 :)
That would have been tragic
Lovely to see that again. Have been on the lift a few times myself.
If you head towards Middlewich on the Trent & Mersey Canal, the first lock that you encounter is the only broad lock on the whole stretch of the T&M canal between Shardlow & Preston Brook.
Thanks Roy
Absolutely brilliant :)
I'm from Germany and I can say with confidence that this kind of stuff wouldn't be possible here, as they would think of all sorts of things that could go wrong, so you'd never get permission to operate a machine like this! Let alone let people ride the lift on their ships!
You have several of them in Germany 🙂 Look up Scharnebeck and Niederfinow 👍
@@d2doctor We do? Seems like I underestimated my fellow Germans :) Tanks for the info!
@@d2doctor Here's the sauce for Niederfinow boat lift. Enjoy! en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niederfinow_Boat_Lift
Thats a shame. I am sure there are some boat lifts in Germany. Best regards
Thanks Martin another fantastic video
Thank you Billy
Love that - really cool. Need to see that in the future...
Cheers John, yeah its very impressive
I wouldn't have imagined even in my dreams that something actually exists like that. Extraordinary.
Check out the Falkirk wheel.
Its incredible isnt it
@@MartinZero sure is, I never knew it existed until a couple of years ago but I was up there for business, it blew my mind.
Check out online - the Kirkfield Boatlift - on the Trent Severn canal, Peterborough, Ontario Canada. Built 1904-1907 still fully functioning as designed... hydraulically operated with canal water as the energy source... about 3 meters taller c/w same double caisson... It was the largest non-reinforced concrete structure on earth at completion.
It was refurbished during the 2023-2024 winter off-season... the canal freezes over during the winter months.
You're right, it's amazing to see the effort's and skills of those extraordinary generations still benefiting us to this day!
Cheers.
That was a good look at the lift with some pertinent info to interest me. Cheers..
Thanks Mark, glad you enjoyed
Thanks for sharing that was absolutely brilliant!
Thank you Alex
Great video, Martin. Nice to be able to see awesome stuff like that. I'm a big fan of 'Travelling Without Moving' - especially now. And you know all the fascinating places. Thank you so much. Is that Dean's wonderful music I hear as well? Top notch.
Thank you Brian. Not Dean on this occasion
Seen the other boat lift ages ago but every time I see this one on UA-cam it makes me want to visit it it's age and the way it's built is amazing the difference between this one and the other one (dont remember the name was yrs ago and was not on it ) is one is old style building and the other grey one is new style architecture can't beat the old cast iron one reminds u of the industrial age were as the other one is newer . Simply just amazing would of rather seen this than the newer shit ( u can expect it to work in the modern day like the other one but the fact they accomplished what they did with the limited resources compared to today is spectacular (old vs new )
Thank you, yes I can imagine a different story where it was scrapped, so glad it wasnt
Fascinating. I've seen photos of it before but never knew the exact workings of it, so thanks for that.
Thanks very much
Awesome video. Great shots - I love your canal videos - thanks!
Thank you Bender
The engineers from that era never cease to amaze me still standing now don’t think much for the buildings of today still standing in hundred years or more even the buildings are throw away like everything else that’s made now
Yeah there was something about the ingenuity of that era
Super awesome engineering..... great video too x
Missed a trick Martin, there's a Stephenson railway viaduct over the Weaver downstream of the boat lift. Same multicoloured stone as the on over the Irwell in Manchester.
But loved the video as always. I've had a fascination with the boat lift since I did a college project on the Cheshire ring canals back in the 80s.
Yeah there looked to be a few things in the area
@@MartinZero You'll love the bottom end of the Weaver Martin. Chemical factories, lots of disused locks, a chapel on an Island if I remember correctly and just lots of abandoned industry and reused industrial land. Also from the other direction the abandoned lock flight from the Bridgewater at Runcorn.
The ship canal cut off a lot of these when it was built so they became disused.
Probably changed a lot in the decades since I visited it. lol.
Excellent video Martin, you did it justice, Have been on it since it reopened, amazing piece of engineering.keep safe.
Thanks Brian, yes very nice piece its almost art