Detailed review by magdadh
magdadh
Perth, United Kingdom97%
Falkirk Wheel is a boat lift: a construction that, in 2001, re-joined the Forth & Clyde Canal and Union Canal. These canals were previously joined a series of 11 locks which took over 8 hours to pass. The locks were dismantled in 1933 and thus for almost 70 years the link between the canals had been broken.
Falkirk wheel claims to be the world's only rotating boat lift and is a truly spectacular construction. Most boat lifts work on the elevator principle - and even then it's a pretty impressive sight, a huge container full of water and craft, moving vertically up. But the Falkirk Wheel consists of two sets of opposing arms, extending 15 metres beyond the central axle and shaped like a Celtic double-headed axe. Two water-filled caissons, each with a capacity of 360,000 litres (including 300 tonnes of water craft), are fitted between the ends of the arms and thus remain in balance. The wheel takes about five minutes to rotate 180 degrees and uses very little power to do so, thanks to utilising the physics principles - most of the time the power comes from the balancing caissons and overall it takes just 1.5 kWh of energy!
Sadly, unlike in continental Europe, commercial traffic finished on British inland waterways long ago, displaced by rail and road transport; only leisure craft uses the lift - it's an engineering landmark and a tourist attraction rather than a seriously, practically useful construction. But as an attraction it works very well.
The piece de resistance is, obviously, the wheel itself: a handsome visitor centre with a small exhibition relating to the wheel's construction offers one-hour boat trips that include passage on the wheel.
The trip stars in the lower basin in the Forth & Clyde Canal, use the lift to get to the Union Canal, include a short ride through a tunnel and along the Union Canal, and then return via the wheel. The length of the trip as well as the experience itself - with the wheel part being obviously the highlight - is just right as a family experience: any longer and smaller children would get bored, any shorter and it would feel too short. I am probably slightly biased in my enthusiasm as I used to want to become a hydro-engineer around the age of ten, and thus all water-related structures, from locks to bridges, hold a fascination to me, but even for the less fixated, the views from the lift are great and the trip offers a chance to admire such an engineering marvel from close by and in action.
In addition to the wheel, the site itself offers other attractions, from the excellent sculpture trial of granite works by Ronald Rae to a good playpark (sadly covered in Irn Bru advertising) with a picnic area, to walking and cycling along the canals (in fact, it's even possible to do a joint deal from the Auchinstarry Marina on the Forth & Clyde Canal which includes a bike hire, lunch and the Wheel trip).
The environs of the wheel also offer nice shorter walks as well as the archaeological site of the remains of the Antonine Wall.
There is the usual type of a gift shop and a cafe at the visitors centre, and the whole experience is an excellent day out for a family or for adults, combining education, fun, outdoors and a bit of history and art too.
Opening Times
1st November 09 - 31st March 10
Open daily 11:00-16:00
1st April 09 - 31st October 09
Open daily 09:30 - 18:00
Prices (boat trip only - the rest of the site is free)
Adult GBP 8.00
Child (over 3 years old) GBP 4.25
Concessions GBP 6.75
Family GBP 21.05
The Falkirk Wheel9
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