Barley Mow Slipway
The Barley Mow Slipway launches onto the Basingstoke Canal at Winchfield, part of a 32-mile canal that runs from Basingstoke to the Wey Navigation at Byfleet, where it joins the River Thames at Weybridge. Much of the canal's Hampshire section is carried on an embankment above the surrounding land.
Twenty-nine of the canal's 32 miles are designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest, recognised as the most botanically diverse freshwater body in England and Wales, with around 87 species of native aquatic plant and 24 species of dragonfly recorded along its length. The Basingstoke Canal Authority caps the number of powered boat movements to protect this habitat.
Further west along the towpath, close to North Warnborough, stand the ruins of Odiham Castle, a moated stronghold built for King John between 1207 and 1214, long predating the canal itself. The Hampshire stretch also carries a line of concrete pillboxes built during the Second World War as part of the GHQ anti-invasion stop line.
Nearby
A small cafe on the station platform, reached through a side door.
Conditions to check
Inflatable craft are not permitted to use the locks.
The canal carries around 60 resident and up to 150 visiting powered boats a year, alongside a boat hire company and a charity offering waterborne trips.
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