Our Adventures in England: The Kelpies and the Falkirk Wheel

The Kelpies
Lest you misunderstand this image, those are trees, not grass, at the bottom of this sculpture!
Imagine driving down the motorway, coming around a bend, to see these guys looming ahead!
That's just exactly what we experienced, on our way to the Falkirk Wheel!

These Kelpies are 30 meter high (90 feet high) sculptures of mythological beasts said to have the strength and endurance of 10 horses. These particular sculptures were created to honor the heavy horses that were once used along the canals to pull barges and coal ships here in Scotland. They sit next to an extension to the Forth and Clyde Canal very near the River Carron. They are the work of sculptor Andy Scott and have only been here in Falkirk since 2013. You can actually take a canal boat through a set of locks directly under the horses named appropriately the Horse Box.

The Horse Box boat locks

The Falkirk Wheel

The Falkirk Wheel is a rotating boat lift that joins the Forth and Clyde Canal with the Union Canal. The lift has been here since 2002 and connects the two canals that were last joined in the 1930's. The canals were once an important link between Glasgow and Edinburgh. This very unique machine is the only one of its kind in the world. The wheel rotates to lift canal boats 24 meters (79 feet) into the air to join the upper canal. If you have a bit of engineer in you this is something to see! Very cool...

So just in case you were wondering, the wheel is made up of 1200 tons of steel and has 15,000 bolts connecting 45,000 bolt holes. The water and boat filled gondolas weigh 600 tones. Because the top and bottom gondolas are always balanced it does not take much energy to turn the wheel. The balance is achieved through the Archimedes principe of displacement. The boat when loaded into the gondola will displace the exact amount of water of equivalent mass. So if you put two boats at the bottom and one boat at the top water is displaced to maintain an equal balance and the 600 ton total, very neat even if you are not an engineer.

First canal boat for the day makes it's way to the wheel.

That first boat loading onto the wheel.

The Falkirk Wheel is an impressive machine. It towered over us as we stood on the dock of the lower canal basin to check it out. We watched as the first canal boat of the day was loaded into the wheel and then with the "all clear" the big wheel rotated towards us lifting the boat high into the air. Surprisingly it is a very quiet and smooth ride. Once at the top the connection to the higher point canal was made. The gates were opened and the boat went on its way.

The pictures to the left show the lifting of the boat from the lower canal to the upper canal. The first picture shows the boat loaded into the lower gondola position. The pictures then show the rotation until it is moved to the top.

We did take a ride on one of the tour boats and experienced this first hand. It took us through the gates and up into the air. The boat exited at the top for a brief ride and then took us back the other way.