Gnosall Towpath Restoration group in association with Gnosall Parish Council

Gnosall  Canal Festival

July 18 - 20

2025

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We're looking forward to seeing you all again soon x

Check out the new photos in the gallery below - you'll still spot some of the golden oldies too !

General Event Information

Preparation is underway for this years event...

keep checking back for more details as they get confirmed.


Features

Historic Boats

  • Saltaire - Town Class built by in 1936 by Yarwoods for the Grand Union Carrying Company
  • Saturn
  • Saturn - 1906 wooden flyboat built for the Shropshire Union Railways & Canal Company
  • Scorpio - Star Class built in 1935 by Yarwoods for the Grand Union Canal Carrying Company
  • Leo - Built in 1927 by Yarwoods
  • Nuneaton - Town class built in 1936 by Yarwoods for the Grand Union Canal Carrying Co
  • Brighton - Town class built in 1936 by Harland & Wolff. Paired with Nuneaton
  • Darley - Town Class built in 1937 by Harland and Wolff for the Grand Union Carrying Company. Cut in two in the late 1960s for use as a dredger but reassembled in 1983
  • Buckden - Town class built in 1937 by Harland & Wolff.
  • Bainton - Town class built in 1936 by Harland & Wolff for the Grand Union Carrying Company.
  • Stanton - Town class built in 1936 by Yarwoods for the Grand Union Canal Carrying Co



Guest Boats

  • Pearl Barley and Ipswich (pair) - here as guest boats moored north of bridge 35


Charity Boat

Feldermaus - Inland Waterways Association (SD&NW)


Trade Boats 

*Demonstration TBC



.

Live Music / Entertainment / Refreshments


Festival Garden - open Saturday and Sunday

Located at and kindly supported by The Navigation Inn


Stalls based in the Festival Garden - All TBC:

  • CRT - Canal & River Trust. Organisation tasked by government to maintain around 2,500 miles of navigable canals and rivers.
  • IWA - Inland Waterways association. Shrewsbury District and North Wales branch, Membership charity aiming to promote and protect our national waterway network.
  • SUCS - Shropshire Union Canal Society. Society promoting and enhancing our waterway from Wolverhampton to Ellesmere port and associated branches.
  • SNCT - Shrewsbury and Newport Canal Trust.  Local charity restoring and promoting the canal from Norbury through Newport to Shrewsbury.
  • SWT - Staffordshire Wildlife Trust. Our vision is of a thriving natural world, with our wildlife and natural habitats playing a valued role in addressing the climate and ecological emergencies, and everyone inspired to get involved in nature’s recovery.
  • RBL - Royal British Legion - Gnosall Branch. The Royal British Legion is at the heart of a national network that supports our Armed Forces community.
  • RNLI - Royal National Lifeboat Institution. 250 years old! Your support will help the RNLI save lives at sea.
  • Lions - Gnosall and Newport Lions. Lions meet the needs of local communities and the world every day because they share a core belief - to serve their community.
  • GTR - Gnosall Towpath Restoration.
  • Control point
  • Information and directions
  • Children's activities - Pirate hat making, Dragonfly making and more...


Festival Garden Food, Music and Entertainment:

  • Food
  • TBA
  • Music
  • TBA


  • Boat Trips

The boat trips are free but you must have a ticket.

Tickets can be collected from the GTR stand by the big marquee in the festival garden.

Boats leave hourly on the half hour and last about 50 minutes. Some of the trips include a Gnosall history talk, please enquire when booking.

Pedestrian entrance to the festival garden is from the towpath using the brick steps by the herb garden. Please DO NOT use of either set of steps at bridge 35 to/from the A518.

  • Raffle - win a trip on a day boat plus many other prizes. Tickets for sale in the Festival garden and at the Bridge 34 Gazebo (near the Boat Inn).




The Boat Inn Food and Entertainment

  • Food
  • TBA
  • Music
  • TBA

Click here to access our Poster and here for a map  of the venue.

Feel free to share with your friends......but please think before you print

 Meet the Team

Barry Witts is the founder member of the GTR - Gnosall Towpath Restoration group and is the main contact for C'Fest.

Chris Hutton-Ashkenny is in charge of all waterside queries.

Tracey Moore is the contact for any media enquiries.
 Request A Spot 
 Send your request for a Trade boat or Historical boat space to cfest.gnosall@gmail.com
Testimonials
Here are just a few coments from last years attendees, and at the end a link to an excellent video summary......

"Many thanks to all the organisers of Gnosalls’ first Canal Festival - C Fest!!!
A great w’end had by all & we all look forward to being part of the next one ... Thanks again for all of your hard work 🤗"

"A massive THANK YOU to all of our customers at Gnosall canal festival this weekend and also to the organisers who did a fantastic job! "

"Many thanks to the everybody who came to Gnosall Canal Festival at the weekend. I especially thank those who bought one of my pieces, despite the biblical rainfall on Saturday! I had a great weekend and hope to return another year 😊"

"To all at Gnosall Cfest. The Organisers volunteers and visitors ..a big thankyou "

"A big thank you to all involved in the hard work of G-Fest . We really enjoyed being part of it 😊😊"

"Lovely weekend, good company great talks and super music and food. Thanks a million"

"A HUGE ‘thank you’ to everyone involved in the organisation and running of the Festival, and to all of those who supported it too! "

Click the link below to see a short video round-up....