About The Project

Tales from the Towpath is an immersive story inspired by Manchester’s waterways and their ecological fate. It spans the Victorian city to an uncertain future 50 years from now. Three characters circle one another across time, with fragments of their stories found in geocaches (past), live performance (present) and augmented reality Zappar codes (future).

Are we Walking Visionaries?

Tales from the Towpath is in the running for another award: this time it’s the Walking Visionaries Award. You can vote for Tales from the Towpath if you think the project should win this award. Voting opened today (26 May) and runs until 16 June.

More from the Cache Logs

The six geocaches created for this project are still in place in Manchester, and being found on a

Shortlisted for New Media Writing Prize

Tales from the Towpath was shortlisted for the 2014 New Media Writing Prize. In its fifth year, this international prize showcases

Story Trail | Online

You don’t need to be in Manchester to find the story fragments hidden in geocaches and Zappar codes – grab your mobile device, download the apps and use our interactive map to experience the Story Trail from wherever you are in the world.

self-guided story trail | 2014

Grab a mobile device, download two free apps, and hit the towpath and streets of Manchester! Watch the 1 minute “how-to” video to get started, then use the map to locate the 11 episodes.

This self-guided tour uses Geocaching, Zapcodes for a multi-sensory experience.

reviews

Read reviews of Tales from the Towpath, including Manchester Evening News and Blogger Sarah Jasmon from Manchester Literature Festival.

Read audience Feedback:
“I loved the interwoven voices of the story from performers, from the audience and from the participants of the trail. Please, more of this fantastic project from beginning to end: trail, performance, and the workshops. Very complete!”

Micro-elements

Origami narrowboats and mobile projections popped up unexpectedly in a variety of locations around Manchester, weaving fragments of the story text into the city.