Grand Junction Canal Nene at Northampton, to the turnpike road at Old Stratford (north-west of the modern Milton Keynes), and to Watford in Hertfordshire: those to Daventry and Watford were not built. The branch to Old Stratford was amended before it was built (see below). The branch to Northampton was delayed as the plans of the Leicestershire and Northamptonshire Union Canal to reach Northampton and thus join with the Grand Junction came to nothing. The link to Northampton was made by a tramroad transferred from Blisworth Tunnel, with the 5-mile (8-kilometre) canal from Gayton being opened in 1815. The link to Leicester was
Shrewley Tunnel which crosses the tunnel; having crossed this the path then descends on another ramp to reach the southern portal. The interior of the tunnel is unusually wet and this has led to the creation of flowstone formations. The tunnel runs from the south-east to the north-west. From the northern portal, the canal is level for to the bottom of a flight of five locks at Knowle, which raise the level of the canal by . Kingswood Junction, which connects to the Stratford-upon-Avon Canal occurs about halfway along this stretch. To the south, the canal if level for around to Hatton