Canal ring


A canal ring is the name given to a series of canals that make a complete loop.

Origin of the term

There have been canals which formed a ring for more than 200 years, but the term was unknown before the 1960s, when the Inland Waterways Association coined Cheshire Ring as part of its campaign to save the Ashton Canal and Peak Forest Canal from closure.
Working boatmen were concerned with getting from A to B as fast as possible, or for the lowest toll, rather than in visiting more of the system, and what are now known as rings were simply alternative routes to them, but circular routes allow leisure boaters to see twice as much of the system as is possible with an "out and back" cruise. Hire companies are keen to promote their proximity to popular cruising rings.
Since the Cheshire Ring was born, more rings have been named. The best-known are those that can be completed in one or two weeks, although some three-week rings have been given names, but there are many other unnamed rings.

Notable rings

The Netherlands

See also Canals of Great Britain
Incompletely navigable:
This ring is only possible when the Wilts and Berks Canal is fully restored.
This ring is only possible when the Thames and Severn Canal, North Wilts Canal and Wilts and Berks Canal are fully restored.
This ring is only possible when the Thames and Severn Canal and the Stroudwater Navigation are fully restored.
This ring is only possible when the Montgomery Canal and River Severn are fully restored.
This ring is possible only when the Barnsley and Dearne and Dove Canals are fully restored.