Dalsland Canal ( sv, Dalslands kanal) is a

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

canal that enables ships to sail between

Lake Vänern A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much larger ...

and central parts of the

Dalsland Dalsland () is a Swedish traditional province, or ''landskap'', situated in Götaland in southern Sweden. Lying to the west of Lake Vänern, it is bordered by Värmland to the north, Västergötland to the southeast, Bohuslän to the west, and ...

and southwestern

Värmland Värmland () also known as Wermeland, is a '' landskap'' (historical province) in west-central Sweden. It borders Västergötland, Dalsland, Dalarna, Västmanland, and Närke, and is bounded by Norway in the west. Latin name versions are ''Va ...

lake districts. The canal runs across the well-known aqueduct at Håverud and is a much visited tourist attraction during the summer months, drawing yachts, motor boats as well as canoeists.

Geography

The canal system stretches from Köpmannebro on

via the Dalsland lakes of Råvarpen, Laxsjön, Lelång and continues into southwestern Värmland by means of the lakes of Foxen, Töck and finally reaches Lake Östen and its extension named Snäcke Canal. The lakes of

Stora Le Stora Le or Lesjön in Swedish and Store Le in Norwegian is a lake in Dalsland, Sweden, the northern end of which proceeds into Norway and into Värmland, where it continues as Lake Foxen. The lake stretches approximately 70 km (43.5 Mi) fr ...

and both Västra Silen and Östra Silen are also deemed part of the canal system. A boat lift at Strandviken on Stora Le Nössemark enables ships to be loaded onto

lorries A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame construction ...

Halden Halden (), between 1665 and 1928 known as Fredrikshald, is both a town and a municipality in Viken county, Norway. The municipality borders Sarpsborg to the northwest, Rakkestad to the north and Aremark to the east, as well as the Swedish muni ...

in Norway and continue their journey down Idefjord and

Svinesund Svinesund is a sound separating the Swedish municipality of Strömstad in the province of Bohuslän in the county of Västra Götaland from the Norwegian municipality of Halden in the county of Viken. Two bridges, the old and new Svinesund Bri ...

Skagerrak The Skagerrak (, , ) is a strait running between the Jutland peninsula of Denmark, the southeast coast of Norway and the west coast of Sweden, connecting the North Sea and the Kattegat sea area through the Danish Straits to the Baltic Sea. The ...

is situated 66 m (217 ft) above Lake Vänern. Thirty-one

locks Lock(s) may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainment * ''Lock ...

help to span this drop. 17 metres of head space along the route enables sail boats to ply the entire length of the canal, in contrast to many other canals in Sweden. However, it pays to note that only 1.8 m (6 ft) of draught and a maximum length of 22.75 m and width of 4.05 m are allowed. Maximum speed on the canal is set at 2.5

knots A knot is a fastening in rope or interwoven lines. Knot may also refer to: Places * Knot, Nancowry, a village in India Archaeology * Knot of Isis (tyet), symbol of welfare/life. * Minoan snake goddess figurines#Sacral knot Arts, entertainme ...

History

The canal was dug between 1864 and 1868 by engineer

Nils Ericson Nils is a Scandinavian given name, a chiefly Norwegian, Danish, Swedish and Latvian variant of Niels, cognate to Nicholas. People and animals with the given name * Nils Bergström (born 1985), Swedish ice hockey player *Nils Björk (1898–1989), ...

. Only 12 km (7.5 Mi) out of the 250 km stretch of the canal system had to be dug or

dynamite Dynamite is an explosive made of nitroglycerin, sorbents (such as powdered shells or clay), and Stabilizer (chemistry), stabilizers. It was invented by the Swedish people, Swedish chemist and engineer Alfred Nobel in Geesthacht, Northern Germa ...

d, as Ericson made good use of the numerous lakes which span this area.

Canal use

The canal is exploited by the Dalslands Kanal AB company, seated in

Åmål Åmål () is a locality and the seat of Åmål Municipality in Västra Götaland County, Sweden with 9,065 inhabitants in 2010. It is situated on the western shore of Vänern. In 2005 Åmål received second prize in the international competition ...

. The canal dues are SEK50 per lock for small boats up to SEK2500 for the whole canal back and forth (in 2010). Several shipping companies offer short cruises on the canal. The ''Dalsland kanotmaraton +'' canoeing competition is partly held on lakes forming part of the canal system.

References

* This article is based on the Swedish Dalsland Canal article * Sveriges turistråd

External links

dalslandskanal.se
{{Coord, 58, 51, N, 12, 24, E, display=title, region:SE_type:river_source:GNS-enwiki Canals in Sweden Canals opened in 1868

Geography

History

Canal use

See also

References

External links