Blisworth Tunnel
Planning your visit
Address: 3 Bridge Rd, Stoke Bruerne, Towcester NN12 7SB View on Google map
Opening Times: You can't walk into the tunnel but the towpath to its entrance is open every day
Price: Once you park up it's absolutely free
Toilets: At the Stoke Bruerne end there are toilets at the Canal Museum café.
Blisworth Tunnel, on the Grand Union Canal, is:
- 3,075 yards (2,811 meters) long
- the longest wide, freely navigable tunnel in Europe (it’s wide enough for two narrowboats to pass in opposite directions)
- the third-longest navigable canal tunnel in the UK, after Standedge and Dudley Tunnels
- the ninth-longest canal tunnel in the world
- about 143 feet (43m) below ground level
- roughly 18 miles (29km) from the northern end of the Grand Junction Canal at Braunston
And importantly, it's also just a short walk along the towpath at the Stoke Bruerne end from the Canal Museum, which holds great stories and memorabelia from the tunnel. Combine the two places to visit for a great day out.
Things to do and see
- Walking
- Wildlife spotting
- Cycling (at least up to it)
- The Canal Museum, Stoke Bruerne
Places to eat:
- Navigation - Stoke Bruerne end
- The Walnut Tree Inn - Blisworth Village end
Boat trips from the Stoke Bruerne end:
Picnic spot:
Not really the place for a picnic but there's plenty in Stoke Bruerne or up along the woodland walk
Wildlife spotting:
There is the wonderful woodland walk just off the towpath at the Stoke Bruerne end as well as other nature trails and activities
Getting here
By car - there is parking in the Stoke Bruerne Canal Museum car park at £3 a day. And parking available at the Blisworth Tunnel canal car park at the Blisworth end: Blisworth, Northampton NN7 3DA
By boat - see our Stoke Bruerne page for visitor mooring details
