You are now at the 12th Lock on the Royal Canal. The largest lock on the canal. It is also a double lock. It has a 18ft (5.6 mt) rise.
The 12th Lock and Talbot Bridge near Blanchardstown. Blanchardstown Mill was the 4th mill built on the Dublin stretch of the canal. A lease was granted to Thomas Bryan for a site to build a woollen mill here at the 12th lock in 1822. When the mill went into production it employed between 80 and 100 local people. Although it has been used for a variety of purposes over the years, it only ceased production as a working factory in 1994, when a fire damaged the building and it was demolished. Some of the stone was saved and incorporated into the new apartment development built on the site. Blanchardstown was a small village on the road between Dublin and Navan right up until the early 1970’s. Today it is a busy suburb of Dublin offering all amenities and facilities, while still retaining its rural village charm. It is only a short distance away from where a full range of services are available.
Standing on the 12th Lock, looking back along the canal across the woods and fields of Blanchardstown, you can see the large dome of Dunsink Observatory in the distance. The
12th Lock marks the start of a 7.5 mile (12km) stretch of canal without locks, ending at the 13th Lock between Leixlip and Maynooth Co. Kildare.
About 8 minutes walk west is Castleknock train station where you can get trains back to Dublin or to Maynooth.