Fundraisers' Lock

You'll find yourself at one of the locks along the Kennet and Avon Canal, part of a remarkable flight of 29 that carries the waterway over a substantial hill. It's genuinely compelling to watch narrowboats work their way through the system, steadily rising or falling as they pass through each lock gate in sequence.

The towpath offers a pleasant walk with the Wiltshire countryside spreading out around you, and there's something quite absorbing about spending an hour or so watching the engineering in action. This flight of locks represents an extraordinary feat of early nineteenth-century construction, originally built to link London with Bristol. After decades of neglect, local volunteers undertook a major restoration effort in the late twentieth century, and that community spirit remains evident in how the canal is maintained today.

Once you've watched a few boats through, Devizes lies just a short way off and makes an easy continuation to your visit. The market town has independent shops worth browsing, a castle worth seeing, and plenty of cafes and pubs where you can rest your legs. It's a striking example of how industrial heritage can sit comfortably within the English landscape, and worth the journey when you're exploring further afield from the Cotswolds proper.