Hardmead Lock (No3) is a

lock 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 ...

on the

River Lee Navigation The Lee Navigation is a canalised river incorporating the River Lea (also called the River Lee along the sections that are navigable). It flows from Hertford Castle Weir to the River Thames at Bow Creek; its first lock is Hertford Lock and its ...

Great Amwell Great Amwell is a village and civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district, in the county of Hertfordshire, England. It is southeast of Ware and about north of London. History On a hill above the church there are some traces of an Iron Ag ...

close to the town of

Ware Ware may refer to: People * Ware (surname) * William of Ware (), English Franciscan theologian Places Canada * Fort Ware, British Columbia United Kingdom * Ware, Devon *Ware, Hertfordshire * Ware, Kent United States * Ware, Elmore County ...

. The lock has a reputation as being difficult to negotiate.

Location

The lock-keeper's cottage stands on an island formed by a section of the

River Lee Flood Relief Channel The Lee Flood Relief Channel (FRC) is located in the Lea Valley and flows between Ware, Hertfordshire, and Stratford, east London. Work started on the channel in 1947 following major flooding and it was fully operational by 1976. The channel in ...

which flows through an automatic

sluice gate Sluice ( ) is a word for a channel controlled at its head by a movable gate which is called a sluice gate. A sluice gate is traditionally a wood or metal barrier sliding in grooves that are set in the sides of the waterway and can be considered ...

adjacent to the lock. To the east of the lock is the Amwell Quarry nature reserve a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) Amwell quarry
Retrieved 2 July 2008 and a section of the Old River Lea known as the

Amwell Magna Fishery Amwell Magna Fishery is located on the River Lea at Great Amwell which is south of Ware in Hertfordshire, southern England. History The fishery was established in 1831 and is the oldest fly fishing club in the United Kingdom still fishin ...

where it merges with its tributary the River Ash . The New River flows close by to the west.

Public access

The lock is located on the River Lee Navigation towpath which is part of the

Lea Valley Walk The Lea Valley Walk is a long-distance path located between Leagrave, the source of the River Lea near Luton, and the Thames, at Limehouse Basin, Limehouse, east London. From its source much of the walk is rural. At Hertford the path follows t ...

Public transport

Ware railway station

References

{{Reflist

External links

Hardmead Lock- a history
Locks in Hertfordshire Locks of the Lee Navigation Ware, Hertfordshire