TOURISM in Lydney could get a huge boost if a scheme to link up Lydney docks with the Dean Forest Railway goes ahead.
Commodore Eric Witheridge of Lydney Yacht Club suggested the project which he says could help to bring the whole area back to life.
He suggests dredging the canal to re-open it as far as the railway station. It has been silted up with large amounts of weed cover for decades.
The mile long clearance project might encourage range of new river traffic to venture into Lydney, including narrow boats from Sharpness and visiting boats coming upriver from Bristol.
He said: "From the steam railway it is only a few minutes walk into town where people can stock up on supplies and have a look around."
A depth of one metre would be needed to allow most boats to travel along the canal. There would also need to be work done on the banks to cut back foliage and prepare suitable mooring places.
"We would need to get the swing bridge working again, and to clear enough depth for boats to get up there," Commodore Witheridge continued. "I know there are some worries about dredging because of tin deposits in the canal, but it might be worth getting a proper survey done."
As late as the 1980s, Yacht Club boats were kept at that end of the canal and lifted in and out of the water with a big gantry crane which was used for unloading timber.
Commodore Witheridge said: "I recently went to a Forest Business Future meeting and was disappointed with some of the schemes I heard about. I think projects like this with a smaller investment and hard work could be more effective."
The canal was opened in 1813 to transport iron and coal from the Forest to the Severn and remained in commercial use until the 1980s.
It was once connected to Pidcock's Canal (The Cut) by a horse drawn tramroad which brought materials to the wharves by tub boat.