Locks 11-12

Locks 11 and 12, built between 1759 and 1804, form a double hydraulic system that overcame a particularly steep drop in the North Branch. Their oval basins, with lengths between 23.10 and 24.30 meters, widths of 9.30 to 9.60 meters, and heights reaching 5.20 meters, demonstrate the solidity of the limestone masonry in Lock 11 and the sandstone in Lock 12. On the left bank is a fixed-lip spillway that begins a diversion channel: it first runs underground to cross a stream via a small box culvert, and then continues in an arch until it rejoins the main channel about 110 meters downstream. A stream also crosses beneath the upper edge of Lock 11 through the Pendón culvert, resolving the confluence of the two watercourses. The entire system is in good condition.

The complex is structured around several secondary elements. The bridge over the locks, also from the Enlightenment period, features a semicircular arch in sandstone ashlar, with wing walls and balanced proportions that allowed passage between banks without interfering with maneuvers. Two auxiliary bridges, made of limestone ashlar with parapets of the same material, are preserved at the diversion point, ensuring the continuity of the towpath. Alongside them stand the former dwellings of the canal workers, a long, single-story building 80 meters in length, with brick and adobe walls, a wooden frame, and a hipped roof. Although now in poor condition, they retain facades and structural elements that evoke daily life linked to the maintenance of the canal. Next to it is the stable, built of rammed earth reinforced with limestone rubble, now in ruins but still legible in its outline. Further along are the remains of the paper mill, of which only the foundations remain, a testament to the industrial activity that harnessed the power of the water. The complex is completed by the almenara, a small square building made of limestone ashlar with a four-sided roof, intended to regulate irrigation and located about 300 meters from the complex.

A visit to Locks 11-12 offers a unique experience: the water flows down between centuries-old walls, stone bridges frame the landscape, and industrial ruins recall the intense activity that once animated this section of the canal.