Restoration

After the canals' abandonment, roughly 9 miles (14 km) of the waterways were infilled.^{[lower-alpha 2][14]} The Sapperton Tunnel was impassable, having suffered numerous roof falls,^[15] and both its ornate portals had fallen into dereliction.^[16] Early work by the Trust included the restoration of the tunnel's southern portal at Coates, which took place between 1976 and 1977.^{[17][lower-alpha 3]} Restoration of the tunnel's north portal at Daneway was completed in 1996,^[19]

Much of the charity's early work focussed on work parties undertaking various tasks including digging silt and renovating copings at the lock chambers.^[20] In the late 1970s and early 1980s, a number of locks and bridges were restored, including Blunder Lock on the Stroudwater Navigation^[21] and Cerney Wick Lock on the Thames and Severn Canal.^[22] Obstructions to the waterways' restoration also included the A38 and the A419 roads, which were built after the canals were abandoned.^[23] The M5 motorway also bisects the route of the Stroudwater Navigation; the waterway is planned to pass beneath the motorway using the same channel as the River Frome.^[24] When the A419 Cricklade bypass was built in 1997, the Trust was able to have an underpass built in prospect of a restored canal.^[25]

In 2001, British Waterways and The Waterways Trust released a report and feasibility study in which they stated that canal restoration brings social, economic, and environmental benefits,^[26] and British Waterways stated that "historic waterways in the Cotswolds, abandoned for half a century, will be restored back to full use".^[27] Following this, the Cotswold Canals Trust – as part of the "Cotswold Canals Partnership" along with British Waterways – began to develop plans to restore the waterways.^[28] Of the 9 miles (14 km) of infilled canal, so far approximately 3⁄4 mile (1.2 km) has been reinstated.^[14]

The Trow

The Trust publishes a quarterly magazine, The Trow, which takes its name from the Severn trow vessels and features a depiction of a trow in its masthead. The first issue of the magazine was published in February 1973,^[42] and carried news that the society had approximately 200 members.^[43]

Visitor attractions

In 1986, the organisation ran two trip boats on the watered section of the Thames and Severn Canal between Stroud and Bowbridge. Two working boats – punts Aline and Bell of Wallbridge – were used.^[44] The following year, the trip boats were relocated to the pound between the locks at Bowbridge and Griffin's Mill,^[44] and in 1988 a trip boat was operating from Stonehouse.^[45] At one point, the Trust operated a trip boat into the southern end of the Sapperton Tunnel; the trips ended in 2005 when bats were discovered to be roosting in the tunnel.^[46][47] An agreement between the Trust and English Nature in 2006 sought to reinstate the trips from 2007 onwards.^[31]

The Trust now has three trip boats – Adventure on the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal at Saul, Perseverance and Endeavour on the Stroudwater Navigation at Ebley, and Inglesham on the Thames at Lechlade.^[48]

The Trust operates visitor centres at Saul Junction, Bond's Mill in Stonehouse, and Wallbridge in Stroud.^[49] In 2016, the Trust opened a bookshop in Brimscombe.^[50] The shop moved to a new location in 2021.^[51]