The Slough arm of the Grand Union Canal

Industry on both sides near St Mary’s bridge. This is Langley Business Park. The offside is known as Marish Wharf.

The canal enters the stretch that runs alongside Langley Business Park. They sponsored the creation and installation of the five mileposts to be found alongside the Slough Arm.

Bridge No.8 known as Trenches bridge. A fairly unusual type of bridge.

Most of the kissing gates along the Slough Arm have been taken out of use. However a couple remain where the towpath is at its busiest in Langley.

The second milepost at Langley. Three miles to Cowley and two to Slough basin.

Langley Park Road bridge no.7 marks the section through High Line’s marina.


Adjacent to Langley Park bridge is Canal Wharf industrial estate. This is one of Canal & River Trust’s property portfolios.

Looking back along some of the High Line moorings towards Langley Park Road bridge.

Hidden amongst the High Line (Iver Marine) moorings is Lady Godiva. A Cammell-Laird built narrowboat and fully accessible, she was a regular sight on the Coventry Canal from the late 1970’s to the 1990’s. It was built to replace the ageing Pearl Hyde.

Roughly half way along the High Line moorings an aqueduct can be found. The Slough Arm’s iconic three cast iron aqueducts are often discussed in canal literature, but this one never gets a look-in. Admittedly its quite a low slung arch, rather more like a culvert. It rather evokes images of the entrance to Worseley Delph on the Bridgewater Canal.

High Line (Iver Marina) base, adjacent to Market Lane bridge.

Market Lane bridge but also known sometimes as Hollow Hill Lane bridge. The canal’s third milepost can be seen, and as it says, just two miles to Cowley. Three to Slough.

A short distance past High Line’s marina is the dismantled No.5 bridge. It didn’t lead anywhere so perhaps redundancy was the best option!

Meads Bridge (No.4) The towpath climbs up, then descends back to the bridge by a flight of steps. Unusual!

Lovers of farm machinery may be enthralled at the sight of an abandoned harvester on Meads Bridge!

The steps taking the towpath back down to the canal at Meads Bridge.

Unusual trunk on the canal bank between Meads and Thorney Lane bridges.

Looking back towards Meads bridge.


The Slough Arm traverses a lengthy cutting between Bridge No.5 and the Colne Brook aqueduct. Its a quiet stretch of canal. Up above surprisingly however things are quite busy as there are numerous industrial estates as well as the M25. From Bridge 5 the canal runs due straight eastwards to Cowley Peachey Junction.

The fourth milepost is in the cutting towards Cowley Peachey. The only milepost to be covered in graffiti. Clearly someone didnt like it! Five bridges ahead can be seen in succession. These are No.3 (Thorney Lane), the M25 (un-numbered) a pipe bridge (un-numbered) a conveyor belt bridge (No.2) and a footbridge (No.1). The M25 bridge can be seen in the near distance.

Next: Cowley Peachey

Slough Arm Pages: Slough to Langley / Langley to the M25 / M25 to Cowley Peachey