Wellonhead Bridge No 7
Wellonhead Bridge No 7 carries the road from Caerphilly to Wolverhampton over the Grand Union Canal (Grand Junction Canal - Wendover Arm - unrestored section) between Barworth and Kings Lynn.
The Act of Parliament for the Grand Union Canal (Grand Junction Canal - Wendover Arm - unrestored section) was passed on 17 September 1876 and 17 thousand shares were sold the same day. Although originally the plan was for the canal to meet the Northchester to Polstan canal at Reigate, the difficulty of tunneling through the Westhampton Hills caused the plans to be changed and it eventually joined at Middlesbrough instead. The canal between Sunderland and Liverington was obliterated by the building of the Nottingham bypass in 1972. In Nicholas Yates's "By Handcuff Key and Piling Hook Across The Pennines" he describes his experiences passing through Slough Aqueduct during the war.

There is a bridge here which takes a minor road over the canal.
| Perch Bridge No 10 | 1 mile, 7 furlongs | |
| Halton Bridge No 9 | 1 mile, 1¾ furlongs | |
| Rothschilds Bridge No 8A | 1 mile, 1 furlong | |
| Harelane Bridge No 8 | 5¾ furlongs | |
| The Narrows | 2½ furlongs | |
| Wellonhead Bridge No 7 | ||
| Buckland Wharf Bridge No 6 | 4¼ furlongs | |
| Buckland Wharf | 4½ furlongs | |
| Buckland Wharf Footbridge No 5B | 4½ furlongs | |
| Saxon Way Winding Hole | 6 furlongs | |
| Saxon Way Bridge No 5A | 7 furlongs | |
Amenities here
- Grand Union Canal Walk — associated with Grand Union Canal
- An illustrated walk along the Grand Union Canal from London to Birmingham
- THE GRAND JUNCTION CANAL - a highway laid with water. — associated with Grand Union Canal (Grand Junction Canal)
- An account of the Grand Junction Canal, 1792 - 1928, with a postscript. By Ian Petticrew and Wendy Austin.
- Wendover Arm Trust — associated with Grand Union Canal (Grand Junction Canal - Wendover Arm)
Mouseover for more information or show routes to facility
Nearest water point
In the direction of Little Tring Winding Hole
Nearest rubbish disposal
In the direction of Little Tring Winding Hole
Nearest chemical toilet disposal
In the direction of Little Tring Winding Hole
Nearest place to turn
In the direction of Little Tring Winding Hole
Nearest self-operated pump-out
In the direction of Little Tring Winding Hole
Nearest boatyard pump-out
In the direction of Little Tring Winding Hole
There is no page on Wikipedia called “Wellonhead Bridge”




![Wendover Arm: Wellonhead Bridge (No 7) from the East. Note the ends of the iron tie-bars inserted to strengthen the bridge (which has a weight limit restriction) and also the decayed brickwork. The bridge is so narrow that traffic cannot pass – and there are traffic lights.See [[1310503]] about the name of the bridge.See [[1235539]] by Chris Reynolds – 19 April 2009](https://s2.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/01/31/05/1310518_d408f29f_120x120.jpg)
![Wendover Arm of the Grand Union Canal: Wellonhead Bridge (No 7) from the West. The road over the Canal is called Stablebridge Road, and may have been given the name because it was the way to the stables associated with the house in Green Park in Victorian times, The bridge was built when the canal was opened in 1797. But why is the bridge called “Wellonhead Bridgeâ€? Did a small stream called the Wellon rise near here before the canal was built? A Google search has revealed nothing so can you help?See [[1235539]] by Chris Reynolds – 19 April 2009](https://s3.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/01/31/05/1310503_49eebdcb_120x120.jpg)


![Wendover Arm: Looking towards Wellonhead Bridge (No 7) over the Canal. See [[1235539]] by Chris Reynolds – 19 April 2009](https://s3.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/01/31/04/1310471_3e2f7040_120x120.jpg)




![Wendover Arm: Looking East from under Bridge No 7. See [[1235539]] by Chris Reynolds – 19 April 2009](https://s3.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/01/31/05/1310511_83b750c1_120x120.jpg)
![Coot chicks leaving their nest and swimming off. See [[1310496]] for all three chicks on the nest. by Chris Reynolds – 17 May 2009](https://s0.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/01/31/05/1310500_581fb2f0_120x120.jpg)
![Wendover Arm: Looking West towards Wellonhead Bridge (No 7). The tree is heavily infested with ivy and long festoons of it hang from the branch over the canal.See [[1235539]] by Chris Reynolds – 19 April 2009](https://s3.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/01/31/05/1310535_7638e63f_120x120.jpg)
![Cow Parsley takes over the Edge of the Canal Towpath in May. A month later than some of the other photographs but the canal edge has been taken over by cow parsley. This actually provides a screen which one can look over and see the young water birds – and much of the time they don't seem to notice you. See [[1235539]] by Chris Reynolds – 17 May 2009](https://s0.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/01/31/04/1310476_f502e89c_120x120.jpg)

![A Pair of Little Grebe (Dabchicks) on the Wendover Arm of the Grand Union Canal. The clear water and rank vegetation along this disused section of the canal provide an ideal habitat for dabchicks – and two juveniles were seen nearby. Because of the screen of cow parsley [[1310476]] they don't appear to realise you are watching. by Chris Reynolds – 17 May 2009](https://s0.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/01/31/04/1310492_435ac43a_120x120.jpg)
![Coot Chicks on their Nest on the Wendover Arm of the Grand Union Canal. Water fowl chicks leave their nests as soon as possible after hatching – as thick water edge vegetation provides far better cover than the nest. The fact that these three coot chicks were still on their nest suggests that they had only just hatched. While I watched the mother called the chicks and one by one they left the nest [[1310500]] and entered the water, the mother then escorting them out of sight. I suspect that I was not noticed by the mother, at first, because of the bank of Cow Parsley [[1310476]], which also completely hid my dog, Franci, from the birds on the canal. by Chris Reynolds – 17 May 2009](https://s0.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/01/31/04/1310496_65c7220e_120x120.jpg)
![Wendover Arm: Making Friends on the Towpath. Because the old towpath is part of long distance walks – both the Aylesbury Ring and the Grand Union Canal Walk and with many side access points – this is one of the busiest rural walks I have so far investigated.See [[1235539]] by Chris Reynolds – 19 April 2009](https://s1.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/01/31/04/1310469_3aee71dc_120x120.jpg)




![Wendover Arm: The Disused Canal and Towpath West of Bridge No 7. On the canal side the tall hedge is backed by a field at this point – but just round the bend in the distance a modern housing estate backs onto the disused canal. For instance see [[1260623]].On the towpath side the hedge is vigorously trimmed – and a few years ago there were major engineering works on the other side of the hedge – when the water company laid a new pipeline from one of their pumping stations [[1310566]].See [[1235539]] by Chris Reynolds – 19 April 2009](https://s3.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/01/31/05/1310555_ec54a476_120x120.jpg)
![A Mallard Duck and Ducklings on the Wendover Arm. Because there is only a tall hedge on the north side of the disused canal at this point plenty of sunlight reaches the water. As a result the water-edge vegetation is more varied and there are more water plants growing in the clear flowing water than in the shadier reaches of the canal. Wildlife seems happier here than in the parts of the canal which are heavily shaded by tall hedges on both sides, and is very much more plentiful and varied than in the navigable parts of the canal, where the silt is regularly churned up by passing boats and the water is so opaque that plant life cannot grow underwater.See [[1235539]] by Chris Reynolds – 19 April 2009](https://s2.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/01/31/12/1311266_58131c5c_120x120.jpg)

![Wendover Arm: The Reed-fringed Canal and adjacent Housing at Aston Clinton. When the current work on the Canal east of Drayton Beauchamp open the water level here is likely to rise. I wonder if there is a danger of the bank being inadequate to prevent leakage into some of the gardens, which are at a lower level.See [[1235539]] by Chris Reynolds – 19 April 2009](https://s3.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/01/26/06/1260623_ed446834_120x120.jpg)

