Canal Boats At Aldermaston Magnet

A selection of canal boats moored for the winter just above the lock at Aldermaston on the Kennet and Avon. This image was captured on a fine afternoon in early February just before the sun went down. The Kennet and Avon Canal, 87 miles long, was constructed between 1794 and 1810 to link the Kennet and Avon rivers and thus provide a smooth transport link between Bristol and London via Reading and the Thames. It fell into disuse due to the switch to rail transport and the rise of the Great Western Railway which runs alongside the canal here. It was, however, completely restored from the mid-1900s and the full length fully reopened in 1990. Nikon D7100 Nikkor 18-200