Culture
As time as passed, the many elements created during the construction and use of the canal have become a cultural legacy worthy of conservation. These them are: docks, weirs, bridges, aqueducts, holding basins, sluices, fulleries, mills and factories.
The best known element may be the 49 sluices that make it possible to overcome almost 500 feet (150 meters) of difference in altitude between the beginning and end of the canal. These structures concentrated the difference in altitude in specific points, resulting in a gentle slope of 1.26 Inches/mile (5 cm/km) that facilitates the navigation of the rest of the route
The sluices consisted of a rectangular or oval-shaped stone basin that was closed by two wood doors. Filling the basin made it possible to raise the water level by an average of 10 feet (3 meters) per sluice in the simplest way.
The usual barges were 15 feet wide and 50 feet long and could transport 800 fanegas (about 1200 bushels) of grain. The draught of the hull was about 3 and a half feet. An unwritten code of circulation established the direction of traffic, rules for passing and working hours.
While the canal was in use, animals were the dominant form of traction because even when the internal combustion motor came into general use, the waves generated by motor-powered vessels damaged the canal banks. Barges were therefore drawn by a team of mules chained to the side of the barge and the pilot used the rudder to avoid hitting the bank.
In light of a new appreciation for this legacy and the need to conserve it, the Canal de Castilla was declared an Asset of Cultural Interest in 1991 under the Historic Complex category. This declaration was articulated through a plan that entered into effect in 2001, the “Regional Plan of the Canal de Castilla,” which established specific guidelines for the regulation and protection of its heritage and environmental wealth.
