0:00:10 > 0:00:12Navigating Highland glens,
0:00:12 > 0:00:15rolling countryside, river valleys,
0:00:15 > 0:00:17and city sprawl.
0:00:17 > 0:00:22Britain's canals cut a sedate path through some of the country's finest scenery.
0:00:23 > 0:00:28Canals were the transport arteries at the heart of a booming industrial age.
0:00:28 > 0:00:31A network of locks, tunnels and aqueducts
0:00:31 > 0:00:36helped carry goods to every corner of the land and beyond.
0:00:36 > 0:00:40Transforming 19th century Britain into an economic superpower.
0:00:43 > 0:00:46Today, over 2,000 miles of restored canals
0:00:46 > 0:00:49offer a gateway into a different world.
0:00:50 > 0:00:52For me and many others,
0:00:52 > 0:00:58the towpaths alongside them offer the perfect way to explore this heritage on foot.
0:01:13 > 0:01:15Hello, welcome to the Scottish Highlands,
0:01:15 > 0:01:17and look at that for a bonnie view.
0:01:17 > 0:01:18What a way to start a walk.
0:01:18 > 0:01:23This is the West Coast of Scotland where the mountains meet the sea.
0:01:30 > 0:01:32I'm here to discover how Thomas Telford
0:01:32 > 0:01:39created a coast-to-coast canal transforming these remote Highlands by linking east to west.
0:01:40 > 0:01:45Scottish-born Telford was one of the great engineers of his day.
0:01:45 > 0:01:48On the outskirts of Fort William is his most ambitious project,
0:01:48 > 0:01:50the Caledonian Canal.
0:01:52 > 0:01:54At the turn of the 19th century,
0:01:54 > 0:01:58he realised there was a way through the heart of this remote and inhospitable region.
0:02:00 > 0:02:04By following the Great Glen, one of Scotland's most dramatic natural features,
0:02:04 > 0:02:09he saw that he could join it's freshwater lochs with sections of man-made canal.
0:02:09 > 0:02:13But there had never been a canal route on this scale before.
0:02:13 > 0:02:17Telford truly had his work cut out if he was to conquer the Highlands.
0:02:22 > 0:02:25This is more than a simple story of canal building.
0:02:25 > 0:02:28It's a tale of fame, fortune and, ultimately, folly.
0:02:28 > 0:02:31This wasn't just a navigational short cut.
0:02:42 > 0:02:44By the 1800s, canal mania was well underway
0:02:44 > 0:02:46in the industrial heartlands of England.
0:02:46 > 0:02:48But it wasn't until 1801
0:02:48 > 0:02:50that Telford started to survey a new route
0:02:50 > 0:02:54that would change the face of Scotland.
0:02:55 > 0:02:58He saw that the four main locks at the Great Glen,
0:02:58 > 0:03:01including Loch Ness, the biggest and the deepest in the UK,
0:03:01 > 0:03:03lay in near perfect alignment.
0:03:05 > 0:03:09Building an additional 22 miles of man-made canal would link them
0:03:09 > 0:03:13and create a cross-country route between Fort William and Inverness.
0:03:15 > 0:03:19My walk follows the first eight miles of this 60-mile route.
0:03:19 > 0:03:22I'll be starting from the sea at Corpach
0:03:22 > 0:03:26and undoing of the shores of the first freshwater loch at Gairlochy.
0:03:28 > 0:03:30This is Corpach sea lock,
0:03:30 > 0:03:34the start or end point of a journey along the Caledonian Canal.
0:03:35 > 0:03:38Clearly, this is not your average canal
0:03:38 > 0:03:40and that is not your average narrowboat.
0:03:40 > 0:03:47Telford's plan to join two sides of the country via a waterway was definitely bold.
0:03:47 > 0:03:51At the time, there was nothing on its scale anywhere else in the UK.
0:03:53 > 0:03:57He pledged the canal would bring prosperity and employment to the impoverished Highlands
0:03:57 > 0:04:02and help fishing boats shortcut the treacherous route around the top of Scotland.
0:04:02 > 0:04:06The race was on to expand Britain's transport network
0:04:06 > 0:04:10and private speculators rushed forward to fund new schemes.
0:04:10 > 0:04:12But this route was different.
0:04:12 > 0:04:16For the first time ever, the government would provide the money.
0:04:17 > 0:04:20If successful, it would be a triumph of its age
0:04:20 > 0:04:25creating badly-needed jobs and bringing wealth to the Highlands.
0:04:33 > 0:04:37- So, what are you doing here? - I'm the chief officer on the vessel.
0:04:37 > 0:04:40It's quite a big vessel to have on a lock.
0:04:40 > 0:04:44Yeah, it's the largest that will fit into the lock, just about.
0:04:44 > 0:04:48- Definitely bigger than your average barge or narrowboat.- Definitely.
0:04:48 > 0:04:51Some of these smaller locks,
0:04:51 > 0:04:54- it sounds very tight when you go in. - I bet.
0:04:54 > 0:04:58You've got measurements being given to the bridge of one or two feet on either end.
0:04:58 > 0:05:03And there's about 18 inches on either side in the smallest ones.
0:05:03 > 0:05:05- So a real skill?- Yes.
0:05:05 > 0:05:08- What do you think of Thomas Telford? - I think he's a brilliant engineer.
0:05:08 > 0:05:12His only problem seemed to be that a lot of the locks he built on bends
0:05:12 > 0:05:16- which makes it difficult for a vessel of this size to get through. - Yep.
0:05:16 > 0:05:19'A cruise boat certainly isn't what I expect to see on a canal lock.'
0:05:25 > 0:05:27And as this is the beginning of my walk,
0:05:27 > 0:05:29what can I expect see along the canal?
0:05:29 > 0:05:32- Rain.- Yes, I'm used to that, that's fine!
0:05:32 > 0:05:35Lots of rain, some nice wildlife,
0:05:35 > 0:05:40and, hopefully, at this time of year, maybe not as many of the tourists,
0:05:40 > 0:05:43but I think you'll find quite a number of people going along.
0:05:43 > 0:05:45Lovely, looking forward to it.
0:05:45 > 0:05:48Well, better leave you to it. Don't want anything to go wrong.
0:05:48 > 0:05:53- It's all right, they'll wait for me to get back on board.- Good!
0:06:00 > 0:06:05This impressive cruise boat, which is going in the opposite direction to me,
0:06:05 > 0:06:09has already carried 54 passengers 60 miles along the entire length of the canal,
0:06:09 > 0:06:11from Inverness to here at Corpach.
0:06:13 > 0:06:16It's now setting off for the open sea and the inner Hebrides.
0:06:16 > 0:06:18What a trip.
0:06:23 > 0:06:26Well, that got things off with a bang, didn't it?
0:06:30 > 0:06:34Telford spent two years surveying the options for this route
0:06:34 > 0:06:37and returned a compelling report to the government.
0:06:37 > 0:06:40He believed the region was in crisis.
0:06:40 > 0:06:45The devastating Highland clearances had shattered traditional clan life.
0:06:45 > 0:06:48At this time, people were being evicted from their homes
0:06:48 > 0:06:51and forced off their land to make way for sheep farming.
0:06:53 > 0:06:55Dispossessed and disillusioned,
0:06:55 > 0:07:00they were leaving Scotland emigrating to the New World and the promise of a better life.
0:07:02 > 0:07:06Telford believed the canal could give his fellow-countrymen a reason to stay.
0:07:09 > 0:07:13He wrote, "A canal would not only create much-needed employment,
0:07:13 > 0:07:16"it would also be hugely beneficial to the fishing industry
0:07:16 > 0:07:21"providing jobs way beyond the canal's completion."
0:07:22 > 0:07:26This was going to be a truly massive canal on an unprecedented scale
0:07:26 > 0:07:30making it capable of carrying ocean-going boats.
0:07:32 > 0:07:36They're proper seafaring tugboats, aren't they?
0:07:36 > 0:07:41He planned a route that sliced through the dramatic faultline of the Great Glen,
0:07:41 > 0:07:4620 ft deep, 30 ft wide with a total of 28 gargantuan locks.
0:07:58 > 0:08:00This is true mountain country.
0:08:00 > 0:08:03Ben Nevis is the tallest mountain in Great Britain.
0:08:03 > 0:08:09Imagine being audacious enough, and brave enough to think you could dig a canal through this terrain.
0:08:09 > 0:08:13I mean, even on the Telford scale, this was off the chart.
0:08:17 > 0:08:21Carving a canal through these giant mountains was an astonishing challenge
0:08:21 > 0:08:23that ended up going massively over-budget
0:08:23 > 0:08:25and took much longer than ever planned.
0:08:30 > 0:08:33I'm approaching Banavie, the first village on my walk
0:08:33 > 0:08:37where I've arranged to meet someone who can tell me more about Telford's ambitious plan.
0:08:37 > 0:08:40- Nigel, just the man I needed to see.- Hello.
0:08:40 > 0:08:43- Hello, how are you doing? - Fine, thank you.
0:08:43 > 0:08:49'Nigel Ricks is a modern-day engineer overseeing the upkeep of this stretch of waterway.'
0:08:49 > 0:08:54I need you to tell me about Telford. I mean, obviously he was this great man, this ambitious man,
0:08:54 > 0:08:59- but this was an enormous project, wasn't it?- Absolutely, it was the largest...
0:08:59 > 0:09:02..there was nothing like it in Britain at all, it was massive.
0:09:02 > 0:09:06It was a huge ship canal as opposed to the small canals they had in England.
0:09:06 > 0:09:09So, it was sort of beyond the imagination, really?
0:09:09 > 0:09:14Generally, yes, it was just beyond, certainly in this part the world, there was nothing ever like it.
0:09:14 > 0:09:16So who was going to fund this big idea?
0:09:16 > 0:09:21This was amazing, again, because it wasn't privately funded,
0:09:21 > 0:09:25it was public funded. The government paid, the taxpayer paid.
0:09:25 > 0:09:27- And then that was unheard of? - Absolutely.
0:09:27 > 0:09:30It was all private enterprise, canals and such like.
0:09:30 > 0:09:33- So this was nationalisation, really? - Yeah, very much so.
0:09:33 > 0:09:36The impetus was much greater because of the times.
0:09:36 > 0:09:39The times being times of strife, times of trouble?
0:09:39 > 0:09:43Yes, indeed, it was during the Napoleonic wars.
0:09:43 > 0:09:46There was also a mass emigration from this part of the world,
0:09:46 > 0:09:48people were leaving the Highlands in droves.
0:09:48 > 0:09:52The government wanted to stop that and to give employment.
0:09:52 > 0:09:56So, really, was this a huge master plan that covered all bases?
0:09:56 > 0:09:58Oh, very much so. Yes, indeed.
0:09:58 > 0:10:00Initially, and for the long term.
0:10:00 > 0:10:02That was the cunning plan.
0:10:02 > 0:10:05So, Thomas Telford, he was more than just an engineer, wasn't he?
0:10:05 > 0:10:07Well, yes, he was an absolute genius.
0:10:07 > 0:10:09He was a great visionary and he was so enthusiastic
0:10:09 > 0:10:11that when the canal started,
0:10:11 > 0:10:15he actually started about six months before he got the signature on the bit of paper.
0:10:15 > 0:10:20And they to had to rein him back. He was so enthusiastic, so keen.
0:10:20 > 0:10:25And let me show you just an example of his engineering genius. It's just along here. Follow me.
0:10:27 > 0:10:30It's just a couple of hundred yards further on
0:10:30 > 0:10:34to the bottom of Neptune's staircase, a dramatic flight of locks.
0:10:36 > 0:10:41Eight locks, rises 64 ft in 450 yards.
0:10:41 > 0:10:46And again, remember, when it was actually built there was nothing like it.
0:10:48 > 0:10:51Without this, the canal wouldn't have worked
0:10:51 > 0:10:56because we are in the Highlands, we are in the mountains, and water doesn't travel up, does it?
0:10:56 > 0:10:59No, it's an integral part of the whole structure.
0:10:59 > 0:11:01It's the largest flight of locks on this canal.
0:11:01 > 0:11:06- How long does it take to get through Neptune's staircase? - Approximately an hour and a half.
0:11:06 > 0:11:10It can be slightly quicker coming down because coming down is quicker than going up
0:11:10 > 0:11:12and you've got the water.
0:11:12 > 0:11:15What all this means, of course, is that I do have a bit of a climb
0:11:15 > 0:11:18which I didn't think I would have on a canal walk.
0:11:18 > 0:11:21Yes, it's a good climb, but once you get up there and along,
0:11:21 > 0:11:24- it'll be well worth it.- Right, I'm going to get on my way, then.
0:11:24 > 0:11:27Before you go, I'd like to give you this small pressie
0:11:27 > 0:11:30which is the Bible of the canal.
0:11:30 > 0:11:33Right, the Caledonian Canal.
0:11:33 > 0:11:36I shall read, take notes and learn.
0:11:36 > 0:11:40- Thank you very much, Nigel. - Not at all.- Thanks a lot.- Bye-bye. - See you, bye.
0:11:43 > 0:11:47This impressive flight of locks was named after Neptune,
0:11:47 > 0:11:49the Roman god of the seas
0:11:49 > 0:11:52by the navvies, the name given to the men who navigated the route
0:11:52 > 0:11:54and built it.
0:11:55 > 0:11:59Neptune's staircase might be hard work for walkers like me,
0:11:59 > 0:12:02but it also proved to be an obstacle for shipping.
0:12:06 > 0:12:09On 22nd February, 1929,
0:12:09 > 0:12:11the boat Girl Patricia
0:12:11 > 0:12:12crashed through the top lock
0:12:12 > 0:12:18and was swept into the next, damaging its gates before being brought to a stop.
0:12:18 > 0:12:24Disaster was narrowly averted and this lock wall held strong against the increase in water pressure.
0:12:24 > 0:12:27If it had collapsed, all the water in this reach
0:12:27 > 0:12:31would have cascaded down, flooding the village of Banavie.
0:12:35 > 0:12:37Three to go.
0:12:42 > 0:12:45Good thing about this route is you can't get lost,
0:12:45 > 0:12:47just follow the canal.
0:12:47 > 0:12:51Number eight. That's it for the climbing.
0:12:52 > 0:12:54The obstacles don't stop here.
0:12:54 > 0:12:57I'm also going to have to contend with the weather.
0:12:58 > 0:13:01But for the pioneering and patriotic Telford,
0:13:01 > 0:13:05he was determined to overcome all barriers.
0:13:08 > 0:13:09This wasn't just another route,
0:13:09 > 0:13:14it was the country's first social enterprise scheme and a matter of national pride,
0:13:14 > 0:13:19which he described as one of the noblest projects that was ever laid before a nation.
0:13:24 > 0:13:27For most canals built in England,
0:13:27 > 0:13:30securing a constant supply of water was an issue.
0:13:30 > 0:13:32Not here in Scotland.
0:13:32 > 0:13:35In fact, the opposite.
0:13:35 > 0:13:38There could often be too much water.
0:13:40 > 0:13:44Heavy rain meant flooding could easily threaten the banks of the canal.
0:13:44 > 0:13:48And, for me, it means a walk of showers and sunshine.
0:13:50 > 0:13:54By planting an embankment of half a million trees,
0:13:54 > 0:13:57with spruces from Sweden and 20,000 fine thorns,
0:13:57 > 0:14:02Telford strengthened the banks against the potential of devastating rising waters.
0:14:08 > 0:14:11Planting trees wasn't enough to secure the canal, though.
0:14:11 > 0:14:15Telford needed to implement some of the tricks of the trade he'd been developing elsewhere.
0:14:18 > 0:14:21After just over two miles, the canal is carried across
0:14:21 > 0:14:26a rather inconspicuous aqueduct which lies hidden below the towpath.
0:14:28 > 0:14:30I read about this in the book.
0:14:30 > 0:14:32And, you know me, I love a good snoop.
0:14:37 > 0:14:40Its purpose is to allow the rainwater from the hills
0:14:40 > 0:14:41to drain away under the aqueduct
0:14:41 > 0:14:45and therefore prevent the canal flooding.
0:14:45 > 0:14:49And it's where I am meeting Ian McLaren, the man who looks after the Seangan aqueduct.
0:14:49 > 0:14:53- Hi there, Ian.- Hello.- Drain problems?- Yes, drain problems.
0:14:53 > 0:14:56- We all have drain problems.- Oh, yes.
0:14:56 > 0:15:01- This is a really dinky little aqueduct, isn't it?- It is, it is. - How old is she?
0:15:01 > 0:15:05- She's coming up for 200 years old. - Can we go in?- Yes, certainly, yeah. - Come on.
0:15:07 > 0:15:10Ah, yeah, the torch. We might need that.
0:15:13 > 0:15:18- It kind of gets wet in the Highlands.- Yes, I've noticed that.
0:15:18 > 0:15:21So, because there's so much water, that was the problem for the canals,
0:15:21 > 0:15:24- because they would have flooded. - Yes, aye.
0:15:24 > 0:15:27It's a way of getting rid of the water, not going into the canal.
0:15:27 > 0:15:30And right now, how much water's on top of us
0:15:30 > 0:15:34- because the canal is on top of us, isn't it? - Yes, there's tons of water.
0:15:34 > 0:15:36There's nearly 20 ft of water above you.
0:15:36 > 0:15:41And this little structure is protecting us from that?
0:15:41 > 0:15:43- Yes.- And acting as a drainage system as well?
0:15:43 > 0:15:47- As a drainage system, yes. - It really was one of Telford's master strokes.- Oh, it sure was.
0:15:47 > 0:15:51Absolutely fantastic for a structure nearly 200 years old
0:15:51 > 0:15:54and still to be in the condition it's in.
0:15:54 > 0:15:58- And you've been working here for how long?- I've been here coming up for 25 years.
0:15:58 > 0:16:03- I'm actually the fourth generation. - Really?- From this canal, yes.
0:16:03 > 0:16:07So if we do the maths, So your grandfather, your father, your grandfather...
0:16:08 > 0:16:12- My grandmother's father worked on the canal.- So, well over 100 years?
0:16:12 > 0:16:16- Oh, nearly 120 years. - That's incredible.- Yes, yes.
0:16:16 > 0:16:19- Do you have children?- No, I will be the last.- This is it?- Yes.
0:16:19 > 0:16:20It stops here?
0:16:20 > 0:16:25I'm afraid British Waterways have had the whole of our family, that'll do us, I think.
0:16:25 > 0:16:29- Well, look, you know what, you've given your time, haven't you? 120-odd years.- Yes.
0:16:32 > 0:16:35Back up on the towpath, this lovely tree-lined corridor continues,
0:16:35 > 0:16:40making for some easy-going and scenic walking.
0:16:58 > 0:17:03Eventually, the trees give way to an altogether more Highland scene.
0:17:06 > 0:17:09This is where you get a real sense of the truly mountainous terrain
0:17:09 > 0:17:12Telford had to pioneer a route through.
0:17:25 > 0:17:30That little hut over there in the distance represents skiing in this part of Scotland.
0:17:30 > 0:17:32That's the back of Ben Nevis, that's Aonach Mor,
0:17:32 > 0:17:36and the great thing about this walk is that you don't have mountains at the start,
0:17:36 > 0:17:38they're with you every step of the way.
0:17:38 > 0:17:40In this mountainous landscape,
0:17:40 > 0:17:45Telford had to be prepared for just how much rain could pour off these slopes.
0:17:49 > 0:17:54Building aqueducts and strengthening the banks weren't his only precautions.
0:17:54 > 0:17:58He also needed to have a way of letting water out of the canal
0:17:58 > 0:18:01should it simply get to full.
0:18:01 > 0:18:04I've read about this in my book.
0:18:09 > 0:18:13This was Telford's answer, the Loy Sluices.
0:18:13 > 0:18:17An overflow system that would allow water to be drained from the canal.
0:18:21 > 0:18:27So, that lovely boat would be over my shoulder along with the handsome man on a horse
0:18:27 > 0:18:31which means I must be standing just about here.
0:18:31 > 0:18:35I'm having a look over there, not a lot of water
0:18:35 > 0:18:38so the sluice gate is shut.
0:18:38 > 0:18:40The plug's in today.
0:18:46 > 0:18:52Telford might have had the answers to some of the engineering problems which the route posed,
0:18:52 > 0:18:57but he knew these would amount to nothing without a strong and dedicated workforce.
0:18:57 > 0:18:59To cut the canal line alone
0:18:59 > 0:19:03required the removal of 5.25 million cubic yards of soil.
0:19:03 > 0:19:07This would have been such incredibly arduous work.
0:19:07 > 0:19:09A wheelbarrow, pickaxe, and not much else.
0:19:09 > 0:19:14It says here, the navvies, the workers, had "a pernicious habit of drinking whisky".
0:19:14 > 0:19:15I'm not surprised.
0:19:15 > 0:19:18You'd need something, wouldn't you, to help you through a day like that.
0:19:20 > 0:19:24These Highland labourers were more used to working in isolation as subsistence crofters
0:19:24 > 0:19:27than in teams of hundreds.
0:19:27 > 0:19:32Many proved unreliable, returning to their crofts during certain seasons
0:19:32 > 0:19:35to take part in peat cutting and harvesting.
0:19:36 > 0:19:40Telford's grand plan started to falter.
0:19:40 > 0:19:43His survey hadn't accurately estimated the costs of cutting locks through rock
0:19:43 > 0:19:47and the seven-year deadline proved unrealistic.
0:19:47 > 0:19:51Instead, it was to take a total of 19 years.
0:19:55 > 0:19:58But Telford's route through the Great Glen
0:19:58 > 0:20:03has paved the way for one of the country's most popular long-distance walking trails.
0:20:08 > 0:20:12Aye up, we've got company. And they're bigger than me. Hello, hello.
0:20:12 > 0:20:16- Where are you off to?- Fort William. - So what have you done?
0:20:16 > 0:20:19- Have you done the whole thing, the Great Glen Way?- Correct.
0:20:19 > 0:20:23- How many days have you been going?- Six.- Who's got sore feet?
0:20:23 > 0:20:28- He does.- Blisters?- No blisters. - Has it been good, a good experience?
0:20:28 > 0:20:30- Yes, it's lovely. - Even in the rain, it was good.
0:20:30 > 0:20:32Of course even in the rain!
0:20:32 > 0:20:35This part is particularly pretty.
0:20:35 > 0:20:37It's gorgeous, isn't it? It's lovely.
0:20:37 > 0:20:40Well, I'm on my way to Gairlochy, so I'm doing a mini walk.
0:20:40 > 0:20:42You've done the full thing, I'll do it next year.
0:20:42 > 0:20:46- All right, guys, lovely to meet you. Bye.- Bye, thanks.
0:20:50 > 0:20:54'With well over two-thirds of my walk now complete,
0:20:54 > 0:20:56'I'm planning to meet Ivor McKay,
0:20:56 > 0:20:59'a man who quite literally winds his way along this canal.'
0:20:59 > 0:21:02- Hello, how are you today? - I'm fine thank you, how are you?
0:21:02 > 0:21:08- I'm good, thank you. What are you up to?- I'm opening the swing bridge here.- So this is a swing bridge?
0:21:08 > 0:21:10This is a swing bridge, this is one of the...
0:21:10 > 0:21:15- ..this is the only original swing bridge left in the canal.- Right.
0:21:15 > 0:21:19- And it's near enough 200 years old. - Can I have a go?
0:21:19 > 0:21:23- You certainly can.- Thank you. - If you'd like to stand over here.
0:21:23 > 0:21:26Tell me, why is it here anyway?
0:21:26 > 0:21:30Just get the momentum going and you'll be fine. That's it.
0:21:30 > 0:21:32- Here we go.- Nice and easy.
0:21:32 > 0:21:34You don't really need to...
0:21:34 > 0:21:37- that's it. - Here we go.
0:21:39 > 0:21:46The reason the bridge is here was to give access to the farmland on this side
0:21:46 > 0:21:49- to the farmers on the other side. - Right.
0:21:49 > 0:21:52And to this day, it still stands that the farmer gets right of access
0:21:52 > 0:21:55when he comes down the path on his tractor.
0:21:55 > 0:21:59- How often do you have to do this? - Just depends how many boats we get a day.
0:21:59 > 0:22:02In the summertime, it's very busy, you know.
0:22:02 > 0:22:06- Can maybe do it 20 times a day sometimes.- Keeps you fit!
0:22:06 > 0:22:09It certainly does, aye, it's very enjoyable doing it.
0:22:09 > 0:22:11Is that...do you live there?
0:22:11 > 0:22:13No, this is an original lock keeper's house
0:22:13 > 0:22:16but it's rented out now to private tenants.
0:22:16 > 0:22:20But this house has been here since 1836.
0:22:20 > 0:22:22And on each gable end of the house,
0:22:22 > 0:22:28- there's small windows where the lock keeper used to...- Keep an eye out for the boats.- East to West for boats.
0:22:28 > 0:22:32But now people come on holiday, they can watch you doing all the hard work.
0:22:32 > 0:22:35That's right, aye, yes. I get lots of people here taking photographs
0:22:35 > 0:22:38and asking about the bridge, you know.
0:22:38 > 0:22:40- It's a lovely job.- It's a great job.
0:22:40 > 0:22:43I always say it's the best job in Scotland to people.
0:22:43 > 0:22:45We all enjoy our job on the canal, you know.
0:22:45 > 0:22:50- And we're quite proud of it, it's our heritage.- I'm sure.
0:22:50 > 0:22:55- And...you're nearly there. - There we go.
0:22:55 > 0:23:00- OK, we'll just take the handle out as well.- Right.- That's it.
0:23:00 > 0:23:02So you've to cross to the other side now?
0:23:02 > 0:23:05- Yes, open up this side over here.- OK. Well, you know what?
0:23:05 > 0:23:09- I'm going to leave you to it. Do you need that?- Just leave it down there, please.
0:23:09 > 0:23:11- Thank you.- Lovely. Nice to meet you.
0:23:11 > 0:23:14- Thank you.- Enjoy yourself. - I will do.
0:23:16 > 0:23:20- Do you paint the boulders as well? - Yes, we pay until the boulders we cut the grass,
0:23:20 > 0:23:23- and we do all the maintenance about here.- Lovely.- Cheerio!- See you.
0:23:24 > 0:23:27Seeing Ivor's bridge in full swing is a great reminder
0:23:27 > 0:23:30of just how much care goes into the canal's upkeep,
0:23:30 > 0:23:35which today has the impressive title of being a Scheduled Ancient Monument.
0:23:35 > 0:23:39It's also set to be enjoyed by another generation of boaters
0:23:39 > 0:23:42as the country's first ever designated canoe trail.
0:23:46 > 0:23:49In just a short distance, you get your clearest view
0:23:49 > 0:23:53of the River Loy, which has been burbling alongside throughout.
0:24:00 > 0:24:03It's been a walk brimming with impressive mountain landscapes
0:24:03 > 0:24:05and engineering prowess,
0:24:05 > 0:24:11but sadly it's now time for the last stretch to the Double Locks at Gairlochy.
0:24:13 > 0:24:16Originally, there was only one lock here,
0:24:16 > 0:24:19but in 1834, heavy rains flooded three feet above its gates,
0:24:19 > 0:24:21threatening the entire western section.
0:24:24 > 0:24:26For two days and two nights,
0:24:26 > 0:24:29the lock keepers worked around the clock to stem this growing tide.
0:24:29 > 0:24:34They built emergency turf dams and all the sluices were opened wide.
0:24:37 > 0:24:39It was a telling warning.
0:24:39 > 0:24:41One lock was not enough.
0:24:44 > 0:24:46A second was added in 1844,
0:24:46 > 0:24:51the only lock on the canal which doesn't date from the original construction.
0:25:05 > 0:25:09The canal finally opened in 1822, 12 years later than planned,
0:25:09 > 0:25:15and costing £905,000 rather than the £350,000 he had predicted.
0:25:15 > 0:25:17By the time it was finished,
0:25:17 > 0:25:21advances in shipping had made the north coast more navigable
0:25:21 > 0:25:23and boats didn't need the canal short cut.
0:25:25 > 0:25:29The much hoped-for commercial activity never really took off on the canal.
0:25:29 > 0:25:34Its late completion also meant the emerging railways soon stole its advantage.
0:25:45 > 0:25:50This canal has a new life now, people enjoying it on boats,
0:25:50 > 0:25:52on bikes, in boots.
0:25:52 > 0:25:54All sorts.
0:25:58 > 0:26:02Today, it's tourism that takes up the story.
0:26:02 > 0:26:05And the canal attracts over half a million visitors every year.
0:26:08 > 0:26:12So, just as Telford intended, the Highlands are prospering,
0:26:12 > 0:26:15all thanks to his canal which connects these locks
0:26:15 > 0:26:20and has created a gateway into the magnificent scenery of the Great Glen.
0:26:49 > 0:26:53That is a great glen. With a rainbow to boot.
0:26:53 > 0:26:55What a journey.
0:26:55 > 0:26:59From salt water, to a freshwater loch.
0:27:09 > 0:27:12I'm now drawing close to the shores of Loch Lochy,
0:27:12 > 0:27:16which Telford so cleverly realised could be part of a connecting chain,
0:27:16 > 0:27:20forging a route through this wild cross-country valley.
0:27:25 > 0:27:27There's my marker.
0:27:35 > 0:27:38Look at that.
0:27:46 > 0:27:50Telford created something on a scale that had never been seen before
0:27:50 > 0:27:52and you can't fail to be impressed by that.
0:27:52 > 0:27:55And yet it became a bit of a white elephant.
0:27:55 > 0:27:59It took three times as long to build as planned. It went over budget.
0:27:59 > 0:28:01And it was never fully utilised.
0:28:01 > 0:28:04But he did realise a dream, an enormous dream.
0:28:04 > 0:28:07He changed the local economy.
0:28:07 > 0:28:10And what an exquisite walk.
0:28:10 > 0:28:12What a legacy.
0:28:17 > 0:28:20Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd