falkirk wheel: where there's a wheel there's a way

a few months ago i was wandering through some of the channels that can very occasionally feature interesting documentaries and i came across one that showed the falkirk wheel in the north of scotland. the falkirk wheel solves the challenge of reconnecting small river borne craft travelling along the union canal with the forth and clyde canal, thereby re-establishing east to west coast access for boats.

it's a relatively attractive solution that undoubtedly contains some amazing technology.

the canals of the united kingdom have enjoyed a huge resurgence albeit primarily for pleasure use and not commercial use.

this is the homepage for the union canal which uses the falkirk wheel to effect transfers at its intersection with the forth and clyde canal.

here is some video of the falkirk wheel in action!

here are some still pictures of the wheel: