Welcome to the Official Website of the Bude Canal & Harbour Society
Visit the Barge Workshop - Summer Sundays
From 7th July to 29th September we will be opening The Barge Workshop every Sunday from 2 pm until 5 pm.
Your thoughts on Events please
We are currently planning events for the society for 2024 and 2025 and wanted to engage with our members to ensure you have a say in what we do. We are running a short online survey of ideas and if you could take a couple of minutes to give us your thoughts the trustees would be very grateful.
The link to our survey can be found here.
OR - if you find surveys restrictive - email us here
GUIDED WALKS - starting 21 June
Join the Bude Canal & Harbour Society on a guided walk to see historic features along the lower two miles of the Bude Canal, including the sea lock, wharves, inland locks, and preserved items in the Barge Workshop at Helebridge.
The walk is led by Peter Daniel, Secretary of the Bude Canal & Harbour Society. The walks start at the Bude Tourist Information Centre in the Crescent Car Park at 10.15 prompt. The route is to the Sea Lock and then back up the canal to Helebridge where the Barge Workshop will be open, and a preserved canal tub-boat and various other artefacts relating to local industries can be seen. There will be explanations, with illustrations, at each point of interest along the way. At Helebridge there is a choice of returning with Peter along the canal (getting back at about 1pm), having lunch at The Weir or in Marhamchurch, or making your own way back. The total there and back distance is four miles. Walks will be 21 June, 26 July, 23 August and 27 September - and we are planning for good weather!
Start Time: 10:15am.
End Time: 1:15pm
Meeting Location: Bude Tourist Information Centre
Route Overview: The route is 4 miles total with flat, hard terrain. Walking shoes advisable and dress for all conditions.
Price: Adult £10 / Child £5 BUY YOUR TICKETS HERE Bude Tourist Information Centre
15 months membership for the price of 12
Memberships run from 1st September but coming soon join in June and the membership will be for 15 months rather than 12 - an opportunity not to be missed.
Do you visit our FACEBOOK page where we try to keep you up to date with, for instance, the dredging works on the Canal, locking in etc.. It's also a great opportunity for a quick conversation, answer to your questions and comments - please have a look.
Petition · Fund Britain's Waterways - United Kingdom · Change.org
The TUB BOAT is the Society's Newsletter produced four times a year as a printed booklet and emailed to members. Non members can access the previous edition on this website - but to get the new edition as soon as it is available please join the society (details on membership page) Over time The Tub Boat provides a very real archive of the work of the Society including reports, stunning photos and detailed news items.
Amazingly there are over 80 editions available on the site, click on the nearby pics for the latest editions or here to go to the Archived editions pages.History
John Edyvean, a Cornishman, originally conceived the idea of the Bude Canal in 1774 - well over 200 years ago.
Learn More1904 Maps & Notes
8 detailed colour Maps each with information sheet and carefully transacribed Surveyors' Notes.
Learn MoreRegeneration Project & Gallery
Gallery of over 400 photos taken by Chris Jewell during the Restoration of the Canal when it was not accessible to the public.
Learn More18 Bi-Centenary Panels
18 Panels A2 in size for Bi-Centenary Exhibition with great detail now available to view on site or print to A4.
Learn MoreChris Jewell (Chairman BCHS)
BUDE CANAL & HARBOUR SOCIETY
Some elements of this website will only be comfortably viewed on a desktop (very old editions of the Tub Boat, certain map and historical information). We have also tried to include pdfs for downloading (maps, Tub Boat Newsletters etc) . We are working on the site to improve its responsiveness whilst retaining the wealth of information it contains.
Bude Canal - historically a major and vital engineering project - today a wonderful resource for all - tranquility, nature, lovely walks, lots of history - well a delightful easy and free place to explore with all the family - even the next generation in their pushchairs can enjoy the extensive (and quite vocal) wildlife!
The Bude Canal is England’s most westerly major canal but now just a short stretch remains of the original thirty five and a half mile long project constructed 1819 to 1825. Some has been restored and you can also explore on this site the historic maps and fascinating details of the incline planes and industrial heritage.
Discovering the Canal
Maybe a quick FAQ - well some answers anyway
Some pictures of Bude
Join Our Amazing Community
The Society are always keen to welcome new Members - especially younger ones with tons of energy and ideas. The Canal has been around for 200 years and we want to ensure it is kept thriving for another 200 years providing the Community with many opportunities
Important Links
Bude Canal Trust
Bude Harbour consists of a seaward area, known as Budehaven, and an Inner Harbour with a sea lock connecting them which gives access further upstream to the Bude Canal. Harbour Orders relevant to Bude date from 1819 to 1960.
The Harbour Master is employed by Cornwall Council so contact him for all Canal related permissions and information such as locking in boats.
108 real visitors
during 13 BARGE WORKSHOP open days in summer 2021
Over 14,000 unique website visitors
in year to August 2021
1,817 unique
visitors to this site in August 2021
History, Maps & Project photos
were most popular pages