Salwick |
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Site of former Lea Swing Bridge  |
BNFL Works between Bridges 23 & 24  |
Salwick Hall  |
Salwick Cutting  |
Bridge 26 & Salwick Wharf  |
The Hand & Dagger  |
The canal continues westwards through open country, with the railway in close proximity. The only blot on an otherwise rural landscape is the Springfield's plant of B.N.F.L. that manufactures fuel rods for our nuclear power stations. Visitors are admitted by arrangement and it can be reached from bridge 25. The small cluster of buildings on the left is Lea Town, which boasts a pub, general store and a post office and can be reached from bridge 22.
As you approach bridge 24, the canal starts to swing north, passing Salwick Hall (not open to the public) on the right. From bridge 25 it is a short walk to Salwick Station from where there is a limited service to Preston and Blackpool. Just beyond bridge 25 lies Salwick Wharf which once served the market town of Kirkham and is now a popular mooring spot.
The great loop that the canal traverses was made to accommodate a projected canal to Fleetwood and the coast, which never reached fruition. Past Salwick Wharf, the canal enters a deep cutting for the next half mile and is best seen in autumn. Bridge 27 is known as Six Mile bridge and a nearby milestone indicates that on original mileage, you are now six miles from Preston.
Salwick Moss bridge (no. 28) used to be nicknamed New bridge, because it replaced a former lift bridge. The canal heads due north, passing under the M55 motorway. From bridge 29, a fine view west across the rural Fylde plain can be seen, the most striking feature being the many radio masts of HMS Inskip, a major communications centre for the Royal Navy.
At bridge 32 there is a busy and attractive family boatyard with a useful shop and tea room housed in the old canal cottages and stables. The village of Catforth lies two thirds of a mile North.
