Abandoned canal and Sapperton tunnel
This explore took me to what remains of a section of the long forgotten Thames and Severn canal in Gloucestershire near a village called Sapperton. The main reason for the visit is the Sapperton tunnel, To the south you have the Coates portal and to the north the Daneway portal. An extract from wikipedia about the tunnel: The Sapperton Canal Tunnel is a tunnel on the Thames and Severn Canal near Cirencester in Gloucestershire, England. With a length of 3,817 yards (3,490 m), it was the longest tunnel of any kind in England from 1789 to 1811. Construction, following an Act of Parliament, began in 1784. Twenty-six shafts were dug along the line of the tunnel and workfaces dug in each direction eventually joining up before the diameter of the tunnel was expanded. Difficulties were encountered related to strata of Great Oolite (solid limestone) and Fuller's Earth clay. These caused roof falls and narrowing of the channel which continued after the tunnel opened in 1789 and required freq...