The Trust promotes towpath visits to the aqueduct and locks. Access refers to the public towpath; closures and diversions take precedence. The railway viaduct beside it is not a walking route.
Check the official visitor arrangements ↗ · checked 2026-09-13
Stay within authorised areas. Do not enter unstaffed tunnels, shafts, railway land or restricted property.
How to explore responsiblyReviewed 2026-09-13 · review due 2026-10-13. Desk research from official records and published operator or public-authority information. No site visit or direct operator contact.
Why this place matters
The Peak Forest Canal opened in 1800 to carry limestone from Derbyshire towards Manchester. Its Marple lock flight followed in 1804. Canal & River Trust identifies Benjamin Outram’s aqueduct as a key part of this landscape, beside a higher railway viaduct.
The waterway did more than connect two destinations. Its different levels required a sequence of crossings and locks. A boat could carry a heavy cargo economically, but only after the canal builders had created a continuous, manageable water route.
- Canal & River Trust — Peak Forest Canal history ↗ · reviewed 2026-09-13
What to look for
Compare the water-carrying aqueduct with the railway crossing beside it. Their proximity offers a clear view of two transport systems negotiating the same valley. The aqueduct is the canal structure; it should not be confused with the much later railway viaduct.
A useful visit combines the crossing with a short section of the lock flight. Choose the distance and surface from the operator’s map rather than drawing a straight line between atlas pins. Remain on the designated towpath and keep back from water and drops.
- Canal & River Trust — Peak Forest Canal history ↗ · reviewed 2026-09-13
What remains uncertain
The scheduled record is a legacy entry without a full historical description. Canal history and visitor guidance come from Canal & River Trust; no present structural survey is claimed.
Sources used for the access review
- Canal & River Trust — Marple Locks ↗ · reviewed 2026-09-13
What the official index records
Historic England / Planning Data records this location as Marple aqueduct. Our atlas groups it under industrial relics using that source wording.
Record details
- Category
- Industrial relics
- Source classification
- Marple aqueduct
- Period / construction dates
- Canal opened 1800; lock flight completed 1804
- Current condition
- Not verified
- Designation
- Scheduled monument
- Designation date
- Not supplied
- Nearest reference town
- Stockport (approximate)
- County / historic source county
- Not supplied
- County or local authority (ONS)
- Stockport
- Nation
- England
- Source record ID
- 1001954
- Coordinates
- 53.407266, -2.068786 (reference point, not an entrance)
- Index checked
- 2026-09-13
- Source last updated
- 2026-08-28
- Published access reviewed
- 2026-09-13
Index verification means the record and supplied attributes were checked against the official downloaded index on 2026-09-13. It does not mean a site visit or confirmation of current access. Points may refer to a whole complex, a surviving component or a recorded location.