The epic Four Counties Ring navigates 110 miles of mostly rural canals through four counties
Passing through 94 locks in around 55 hours, this popular waterway odyssey takes canal boat holiday-makers through the counties of Staffordshire, the West Midlands, Cheshire and Shropshire.
It’s possible to navigate the Four Counties circuit in a week, but taking 10 days or two weeks allows more time for visiting attractions along the way.
The route travels sections of the Trent & Mersey, Staffordshire & Worcestershire and Shropshire Union canals. Highlights include: the World famous 2670-metre long Harecastle Tunnel; extravagant cuttings and embankments on the Shropshire Union; Market Drayton home of the gingerbread man; the Wedgewood Pottery Visitor Centre; views of the rolling Cheshire Plains; the Roman town of Middlewich; the Ski Centre, China Gardens and Waterworld at Etruria; the National Trust’s Shugborough Hall; Churches Mansion; the waters at Tixall Wide; and the flight of 15 locks at Audlem.
The Four Counties Ring can easily be accessed from Drifters’ bases at Autherley, Great Haywood, Stoke on Trent, Gailey, Brewood or Bunbury.
Four Counties Ring Map
For full details of the individual routes and attractions, simply hover your mouse over any one of the numbered Drifters Hire Bases.
Then click on “Routes and Availability” in the blue ‘pop-up’ panels.
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Bunbury Base Routes and Availability
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Wrenbury Base Routes and Availability
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Stoke on Trent Base Routes and Availability
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Great Haywood Base Routes and Availability
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Gailey Base Routes and Availability
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Autherley Base Routes and Availability
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Brewood Base Routes and Availability
FOUR COUNTIES RING
110 miles, 90 locks, 7 days at 9 hours cruising per day
Waterways:Shropshire Union Canal, Trent & Mersey Canal, Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal
Highlights:
Harecastle Tunnel, Wedgwood Visitor Centre, Market Drayton, Tixall Wide, The Potteries, Audlem Mill, Audlem Locks, Tyrley Locks.