TRENT LOCK

Trent Hauling Bridge, Bridge 1, spans the entrance to the canal outfall, with the first lock, Trent Lock L1, lying 20 yards back. The river towpath which crosses the canal entrance going east is part of The Trent Valley Way, stretching a distance of 84 miles to West Stockwith, near The Humber estuary. There was no towpath along the lock beneath the footbridge, so the broad beam canal boats had to moor below the lock, and were hauled by rope capstan into the chamber. In periods of high water during Winter/Spring, with the river in spate, entering the narrow mouth of the lock with a fully loaded vessel would have been quite challenging. Trent Lock used to have an extra pair of gates fitted at the head of the lock, mitred in the opposite direction to the operational lock gates. This was part of a flood defence system to prevent inundation by rising river levels of the low lylng LadyBay area. Flood control systems subsequently built at Holme Pierrepoint, further down river, have now superceded this precaution. The head of the lock is now permanently sealed by a substantial blue brick wall with the culvert controlled by a penstock. In 1973 the Grantham Canal Restoration Society organised a rally, (see Trent Lock Rally).