Ellesmere Port.

A port was established here long  before the canal was opened and handled traffic between  the Shropshire Union Canal and the Mersey.

The port is now a busy container base and the new wharves almost hide the entrance to the old docks which were built in 1795. At the entrance to the old docks is a small lighthouse which was built in 1802 to guide vessels in from the Mersey estuary. A small lock here (alongside the Holiday Inn) gives access to the Shropshire Union Canal.

The old docks and the now disused lighthouse form part of the Ellesmere Port Boat Museum which boasts the largest fleet of inland craft currently afloat anywhere in Europe.

One notable exporter from here was the nearby Vauxhall car plant.

The freighter "Bothniaborg" seen at Ellesmere Port on 4th August 2002.