Caen Hill Flight of Locks

Twenty-nine locks cascading down the hillside in a straight line - it's quite a sight when you first spot it from the Kennet and Avon Canal towpath. This isn't just any old stretch of waterway; it's the longest continuous flight of locks in Britain, and watching narrowboats navigate the whole sequence is proper entertainment. The engineering feat dates back to the early 1800s, when they needed to lift boats 237 feet up the hill between Bath and Reading. Standing at the bottom looking up, or vice versa, gives you a real sense of the scale involved. Boat enthusiasts will be in their element here - you can easily spend a couple of hours watching the lock operations and chatting to boaters making the journey. Families might find the novelty wears off after an hour unless there's plenty of canal traffic to keep things interesting. The towpath walk is flat and accessible, making it suitable for pushchairs and wheelchairs along most sections. It's free to visit and best appreciated on sunny days when the water sparkles and there's decent boat movement. From your base at Devizes Camping and Caravanning Club Site, it's barely two miles away - perfect for an early morning stroll before the day gets busy. Mill Farm Glamping offers another convenient starting point for exploring this slice of canal heritage.