Description
Regent's Canal crosses north London for 13.8 kilometers, from Little Venice near Paddington to Limehouse Basin on the Thames: its towpath is a quiet way to walk or cycle past locks, tunnels and the backs of houses and warehouses.
The prettiest stretch runs from Little Venice along the northern edge of Regent's Park, past London Zoo and the foot of Primrose Hill, to busy Camden Town. A waterbus links Maida Vale and Camden, hourly in summer. Further east the canal slips behind King's Cross and St Pancras stations.
It opened in full in 1820 to carry goods, mostly coal and building materials, and was part of John Nash's grand plan for the Prince Regent. Today high-voltage cables run under the towpath, cooled with canal water.
At dawn on 2 October 1874 a barge loaded with gunpowder and petroleum blew up under Macclesfield Bridge, next to the zoo. Dead fish rained down on the West End. The rebuilt "Blow-Up Bridge" reuses the old iron columns, turned around, so the grooves worn by tow ropes now face outward.
The prettiest stretch runs from Little Venice along the northern edge of Regent's Park, past London Zoo and the foot of Primrose Hill, to busy Camden Town. A waterbus links Maida Vale and Camden, hourly in summer. Further east the canal slips behind King's Cross and St Pancras stations.
It opened in full in 1820 to carry goods, mostly coal and building materials, and was part of John Nash's grand plan for the Prince Regent. Today high-voltage cables run under the towpath, cooled with canal water.
At dawn on 2 October 1874 a barge loaded with gunpowder and petroleum blew up under Macclesfield Bridge, next to the zoo. Dead fish rained down on the West End. The rebuilt "Blow-Up Bridge" reuses the old iron columns, turned around, so the grooves worn by tow ropes now face outward.