Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Caledonian Canal to be lit up to mark 200th anniversary this weekend

Neptune's Staircase in the small Highland village of Banavie. Image: Scottish Canals.
Neptune's Staircase in the small Highland village of Banavie. Image: Scottish Canals.

Landmarks along the iconic Caledonian Canal will be illuminated to celebrate its 200th anniversary this weekend.

The event is part of Scottish Canals’ year-long celebrations to mark the bicentenary of both the Caledonian and Union canals.

Both waterways are feats of engineering built during the height of Britain’s industrial age to transport goods around the country before the cars.

Landmarks along the Caledonian Canal, including Neptune’s Staircase, Banavie and Gairlochy Lighthouse, will be lit up on Saturday, October 22 from 7pm to 10pm.

The structures will be illuminated against the dark Highland skies and can be seen by boats, paddlers and residents in the area.

Neptune’s Staircase is a popular attraction in the small village of Banavie, four miles north of Fort William and was built between 1803 and 1822.

It is the longest staircase lock system in Scotland, with boats taking around 90 minutes to pass through.

On Sunday, the public can head to Tomnahurich Bridge, to watch the Kommandoren boat sail down the canal, 200 years to the day since the canal it opened.

The Caledonian Canal begins in Inverness and travels down to Fort William. Image: Kenny Elrick/DC Thomson

‘The canals have to be relevant today.’

Catherine Topley, chief executive of Scottish Canals, spoke to BBC’s Good Morning Scotland about the celebrations.

She said: “We were talking about the canals, and with the Caledonian Canal, we are talking about a 60-mile long area of which 22 miles are man-made.

“The canals have to be relevant today. We have 120 long-term customers that live on the Caledonian Canal.

“We also have a part to play in the community and we are a big part of the community representing significant economy and opportunities along the canal side for businesses.”

This weekend’s events are in partnership with Mackenzie Construction and Circus Artspace, which created the artwork to be displayed in lights.

Circus Artspace has also prepared the Loch Ness Barge – a historic dredger – to showcase artwork from young people and communities across the Great Glen.

Scottish Canals chief operating officer Richard Millar said: “This is a big year for Scottish Canals as we celebrate 200 years of the Caledonian and Union Canals.

“These important heritage assets have stood the test of time; providing important transport routes, bolstering the local and national economy and helping put Scotland on the map as experts in engineering and innovation.”

Conversation