AN OPEN day is being held this weekend at the working blacksmiths forge next to Dobson Lock in Apperley Bridge on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal.

The Canal & River Trust is giving people the chance to unlock the hidden history there and see behind the scenes at the historic site.

The open day, being held on Saturday, is also an opportunity to see Canal & River Trust staff and volunteers demonstrating their carpentry and blacksmithing skills by making items such as box paddles for lock gates.

The team will also be demonstrating the techniques of using lime mortar, a traditional material used for building and repairing lock walls, and talking about the history of the canal at Apperley Bridge.

The Leeds and Liverpool Canal Society will also have its historic barge Kennet moored up for visitors to climb on board. The barge houses a Floating Interactive Museum, which takes the history of the canal to local communities.

Visitors will be able to see inside the cabin as well as learn from the interactive exhibition on board.

Bill Froggatt, heritage adviser at the Canal & River Trust, said traditional skills would be on show and it would be a good chance to see them in action.

He said: “The Canal & River Trust cares for a remarkable network of historic waterways which are still working just as they were designed to 200 years ago.

"Repairing and maintaining these waterways is a painstaking task which requires traditional materials and methods to be used to preserve this vital part of our industrial heritage.

"The open day on Saturday is a great opportunity to come along to see skilled blacksmiths work the forge, step aboard an old barge and watch modern tradesmen use traditional skills to make items that the canal still needs today.”

Warehouses at Apperley Bridge date back to the early 1800s when they held merchandise that was transported along the 127 miles of the canal.

Lock gates and swing bridges were also made in the warehouses, with an onsite blacksmith to make all the metal work required. Lock gates for the 2,000 miles the charity cares for are now made at two workshops in Wakefield and Wolverhampton.

The open day will be held at Dobson Lock, Apperley Lane, Apperley Bridge, Bradford, between 10am and 4pm.

To find out more about the series of summer open days being held by the Canal & River Trust, log on to canalrivertrust.org.uk.