The Calder & Hebble Navigation. Halifax Branch Canal.

The Halifax Branch of the Calder & Hebble Canal is an approximately half-mile waterway that stretchers from Salterhebble Junction and locks to the Watermill bar at Salterhebble Wharf.

 

The canal opened in 1828 and rose through 14 locks to end at Bailey Hall, close to where the train station and Eureka museum now stand. The Halifax Branch fell into disuse with the rise of railways and road transport, and the section from Salterhebble Wharf to Bailey Hall was abandoned in 1942. This has now become a cycle and pedestrian route known as the Hebble Trail, with little evidence that it was once a canal.

 

There is a little support for reopening this stretch of canal to help boost tourism in Halifax, and a more enlightened council may look at these proposals, but sadly, with limited finances and an unambitious local authority, this is unlikely to ever happen.

 

There are a total of 13 pictures to view; they can be seen below or on Clickasnap, where they are full size, high resolution, and unwatermarked. They were taken on April 9, 2017, using a Nikon D3300 camera.

The start of the Halifax Branch, Salterhebble Locks are just to the
left of the picture out of sight. The bridge in the distance carries the
Halifax - Brighouse stretch of railway and crossers the canal which is
heading in the direction of Sowerby Bridge.

Wakefield Road Bridge. The canal brakes off to the left just beyond the bridge
through Salterhebble Locks in the direction of Brighouse.

The abutment to the right used to support a bridge that crossed the
canal here. The bridge has long since been removed.

Salterhebble Moorings can be seen in the distance. Tihs
is where the canal now ends.

To the right of the Watermill Bar is Salterhebble Tunnel. The canal continued through
 there and immediately entered lock 1 of the 14 on exiting the tunnel. The stone lock
walls can still be seen.

The modern day end of the Halifax Branch Canal. The Watermill Bar and
 Restaurant occupies what was the site of Salterhebble Mills. There is
also a Premier Inn hotel on the site,

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Clicking any picture will open a link in another window to my Clickasnap account, where I display

all my pictures.

 

All the pictures remain the copyright of Colin Green.