Tag Archive for: canal boat holiday

Visit an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty by canal boat

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Britain’s 3,000-mile network of inland waterways flow through some of our most beautiful and unspoilt countryside.  This includes many Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONBs).  So a canal boat holiday is a great way to explore the countryside.

From gliding through the Vale of Pewsey, to cruising through Cannock Chase, here’s our Top 6 AONB cruises:

  1. Explore the Staffordshire countryside & Cannock Chase

    On a short break from our new narrowboat hire base at Kings Orchard on the Coventry Canal, you can cruise to the wildlife rich Tixall Wide and back.  Along the way you’ll pass through Cannock Chase AONB. The journey there and back travels 32 miles, passes through 10 locks (five each way) and takes around 16 hours.

  2. Drift through the prehistoric Vale of Pewsey to Hungerford

    From our canal boat hire base on the Kennet & Avon Canal at Devizes, on a week away, you can cruise to the historic town of Hungerford.  You’ll pass through the beautiful Vale of Pewsey, part of the North Wessex Downs AONB. The journey there and back takes around 40 hours, travelling 54 miles through 106 locks.

  3. Navigate along the Pennine Summit to Barrowford

    From our narrowboat hire base at Barnoldwick on the Leeds & Liverpool Canal you can travel Barrowford.  This is close to Pendle Hill and the Forest of Bowland AONB. The journey there and back covers 20 miles, passes through six locks and takes around eight hours.

  4. Cruise to the Aylesbury Vale

    On a week’s break from our canal boat hire base at Gayton Marina on the Grand Union Canal in Northamptonshire, you can travel south to the Aylesbury Arm. This will take you into the Vale of Aylesbury, part of the Chilterns AONB. The journey to Aylesbury, which passes through Stoke Bruerne, travels 44 miles, passes through 41 locks and takes around 22 hours.

  5. Float through the Dee Valley in North Wales

    From our canal boat rental base at Chirk on the Llangollen Canal, you can float through the Dee Valley AONB.  On a short break, you can reach the pretty Eisteddfod town of Llangollen. Along the way the route passes over the UNESCO World Heritage Status Pontcysyllte Aqueduct. The journey to Llangollen and back takes around eight hours, travelling 14 miles, with no locks.

  6. Take a Thames boating holiday to the edge of the Cotswolds

    On a four-night break from our narrowboat rental base on the River Thames at Oxford, you can reach the pretty market town of Lechlade. This is in an AONB on the edge of the Cotswolds. The route passes through 22 miles of Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire countryside.  It takes you past Kelmscott Manor, once the Cotswold retreat of William Morris.  It passes through 14 locks (seven each way) , and takes around 17 hours.

 

 

Wanderlust Magazine, November 2020

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Debbie Walker lists the ‘Top 10 Canal Boat adventures for beginners’

Wanderlust Magazine, November 2020

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In ‘Tales from the Riverbank’ Lyn Hughes reviews her first narrowboat holiday on the Oxford Canal

Mudpie Fridays, 14 October 2020

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Clare at Mudpie Fridays offers ’10 Tips for your first narrowboat break with kids’.  She and her family took a canal boat holiday on the Kennet & Avon Canal.

https://mudpiefridays.com/2020/10/14/10-tips-for-your-first-narrowboat-break-with-kids/

The Saturday Express Magazine, 10 October 2020

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‘A new world on the waterways’ reviews a Drifters canal boat holiday on the Kennet & Avon Canal

A Narrowboat Holiday in Northamptonshire

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Countryman editor Mark Whitley describes his holiday on the Grand Union Canal in Northamptonshire

The Grand Union Canal celebrated its 90th anniversary this year.  A good reason to enjoy its many delights by on a week’s narrowboat holiday.

So on a sunny Saturday, I and three friends (my crew for the week) met up at Napton Marina.  There we were warmly welcomed by Howard & Ann Davies of Napton Narrowboats.  Napton Narrowboats are part of the Drifters group of canal boat hire operators.

They introduced us to our home-from-home — ‘Caroline’, a Regency 4 class narrowboat.  She is luxuriously fitted out with all the mod cons, including a rear deck folding table (perfect for alfresco dining).

The boat yard staff give us an informative overview and tour of the boat.

The cruise to Braunston

Then we were off, beginning with a short section of the Oxford Canal.  A couple of hours later we reached the pretty canal village of Braunston for our first overnight stop.  We moored up alongside the Admiral Nelson pub, the perfect spot for a post-cruise drink or two on our first day.

The next day, after a leisurely breakfast, we were soon entering Braunston Tunnel. We kept a wary eye out for the Braunston boggart.  This ghostly figure of a Victorian canal worker is said to haunt the tunnel.

A night at Weedon

Six miles, seven locks and three hours peaceful cruising later, we moored up near Weedon Bec for the night. Jon, our resident chef for the week, rustled up a wonderful meal for us all to enjoy.  We ate while admiring the sunset with a glass of wine in hand.

On to Stoke Bruerne

Monday morning we cruised leisurely on and then through the 2800-metre long Blisworth Tunnel.  Then we moored up at Stoke Bruerne for lunch.  It’s a lovely spot to while away an hour or two. I enjoyed an ice cream while watching the canal traffic.  It’s official, I’m a gongoozler!

In the afternoon we set off again, travelling through the flight of six locks at Stoke Bruerne.  We then went on through the Northamptonshire countryside to Cosgrove. And then we cruised across the Iron Trunk Aqueduct, an exhilarating experience.

A night at Wolverton

Late afternoon, we moored up for the night near Wolverton. A couple of us headed off along the towpath to the local supermarket to replenish our supplies.

About turn

Tuesday, we turned around and headed back along the Grand Union Canal through Stoke Bruerne and Blisworth Tunnel.  Then, shortly after we headed up the Northampton Arm.  This is a lovely stretch of canal, though with 17 locks we get plenty of lock practice!

Overnight at Bugbrooke

Wednesday, we headed back re-join the mainline of the Grand Union again, and then cruised on overnight moorings at Bugbrooke.  Here The Wharf pub has a lovely beer garden overlooking the canal.

Exploring Braunston

Thursday, we had another glorious day of boating and arrived back at Braunston by mid-afternoon. That left plenty of time to explore Braunston itself, where we found a couple of pubs, a village shop, a fish and chip take-away and a butcher’s.

Overnight at Napton

Friday, we re-joined the Oxford Canal for the final leg of our journey, to overnight at Napton Bridge.  This was the perfect spot to reflect back on a wonderful week exploring the Grand Union Canal.

Saturday, as we left the boat, we were already planning our next narrowboat adventure. We’ve got the boating bug, that’s for sure!

8 ways to reduce plastic waste on your narrowboat holiday

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Programmes like Blue Planet II have highlighted the damage plastic is wreaking on our oceans and the animals that live there.

More recently, David Attenborough’s BBC ‘Extinction’ programme gave a stark warning that 1 million species face extinction, unless we take urgent action now to protect biodiversity.

Our beautiful inland waterways are also affected by plastic waste.  This poses a threat to our native biodiversity. And, as a staggering 80 per cent of marine debris comes from inland sources, to ocean life too.

To help combat the blight of plastic pollution in our canals and rivers, we’ve put together a list of easy ways to reduce the plastic waste you might generate on a canal boat holiday.  And to prevent plastic from entering our waterways:

  1. Don’t use products with microbeads – much of the plastic polluting our waterways and oceans is microplastics which derive from bigger items breaking down.  Also from consumer products like face wash and toothpaste. Avoid items with ‘polypropylene’ or ‘polyethylene’ on the ingredients list and go for natural biodegradable alternatives.
  2. Use eco-friendly cleaning products – make sure your washing up liquid and other cleaning products are eco-friendly.  The water you’ve used to clean and wash-up with will drain directly into the canal.
  3. Bring a refillable thermos and reusable plastic bottles – So if you stop off to buy a coffee somewhere on your narrowboat holiday you won’t need a disposable cup and you won’t have to buy bottled water. You can use boiled water from the boat’s tank to make a cup of tea or coffee, and we suggest bringing one large bottle or canteen to top up at water points for drinking water.
  4. Bring your own shopping bags – remember to pack your re-useable bags every time you shop and avoid products with excess packaging.
  5. Make use of recycling facilities – there are an increasing number of boaters’ recycling points available and the rubbish you put in the Canal & River Trust’s canalside Biffa bins will be sorted at the depot, with suitable waste sent for recycling.
  6. Bag all rubbish – make sure the bags are tied securely so they don’t spill open. Only dispose of your bagged domestic rubbish inside bins marked domestic waste, and don’t forget to close the lid.  If the bins are full, keep your rubbish securely on board until the next available waste disposal point.
  7. Control your fenders – A frightening number of plastic boat fenders end up at the bottom of locks. Don’t leave them dangling when cruising – except bow and stern fenders.  And when your fenders are in use, make sure they are properly secured.
  8. Help clean up – take part in the Canal & River Trust’s Plastics Challenge campaign.  You can pledge to pick up and safely dispose of at least one piece of canalside litter a day while on your narrowboat holiday. For more information, go to https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/news-and-views/features/plastic-and-litter-in-our-canals

 

Travel to Bath by Narrowboat

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Clare Minall and her family travelled to Bath and back on their first narrowboat holiday.

They set off for a weekend away from our canal boat hire base on the Kennet & Avon Canal at Hilperton.  This is near Trowbridge in Wiltshire.

Clare describes their boat, saying it was “well appointed and had everything we needed for our stay”.

She says they had a full induction prior to getting onto the boat.  Although they were daunted by what lay ahead after pulling out of the boat yard, they did get the hang of navigating quite quickly.  They used a map from the boat yard to give them “prior warning of places to moor, bridges…locks and…turning points.”

They travelled through Bradford on Avon lock and over Avoncliff and Dundas Aqueducts.  They stopped at the George Inn at Bathampton and enjoyed at cream tea at the Lock Café in Bradford on Avon.  Clare describes Bradford on Avon as “reminiscent of Bath but without the crowds.”

To read Clare’s full review, go to https://mudpiefridays.com/2020/09/15/our-first-stay-on-a-narrowboat/

Yorkshire Wonders reviews a canal boat holiday from our Barnoldswick base

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Last August, Nikki Turner-Chaplin and her family set off on their first canal boat holiday.  They travelled from our narrowboat hire base on the Leeds & Liverpool Canal at Barnoldswick.  This is run by Drifters operator Shire Cruisers.

Nikki and her husband had enjoyed holidays afloat as children and wanted their two children to experience a canal boat holiday too.

They set off on the sunny August bank holiday weekend and journeyed east towards Skipton.  And then they travelled through the three locks at Greenberfield, under instruction from the Shire Cruisers team.

They moored for their first night at East Marton.  The following day they ‘headed further towards Skipton where the canal winds around and the scenery is stunning’.

Nikki and her family turned around before reaching Skipton and spent their second night at Foulridge. Here they ate at the Cargo Café and spent their last night at Salterforth.

Nikki’s blog includes a video review of their boat ‘Rutland’ and lots of images of canal scenery and their boat.

To read the review, go to https://yorkshirewonders.co.uk/narrow-boating-on-the-leeds-liverpool-canal-in-yorkshire-review

Loveexploring reviews a holiday travelling round the Droitwich Ring

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Jo Kessel, her husband and three teenage children set off for their first canal boat holiday from our Worcester base in July.

Travelling aboard the 69ft ‘Aquatic Warbler’ narrowboat for up to eight people, Jo and her family took a four night midweek break and completed the Droitwich Ring, also known as the Mid-Worcestershire Ring.

This journey took them on a 21-mile circular route – the only canal boat ring that can be completed comfortably on a short break.  They passed through 33 locks in around 16 hours.  They travelled along sections of the Worcester & Birmingham Canal, the Droitwich Canals and the River Severn.

Jo says, ‘A holiday on a narrowboat ticks so many boxes: it’s different, it’s active, it’s adventurous and it’s more about the journey than the destination.’

She describes the facilities on board the boat, their top stops (including Hanbury Hall and the village of Salwarpe) and how they worked as a team to navigate their route: ‘While the boat’s captain has to stay put, the crews’ jobs are unexpectedly physical. We winded paddles on lock gates back and forth; we hammered pegs into the ground; we pulled and tethered ropes; we pushed away swing bridges. And in between we walked the towpath, foraging for fruit. Blackberries, raspberries and greengages were ripe for the picking.’

Summing up, Jo says the holiday was ‘a perfect blend of physical activity and relaxation’, saying they slipped into a ‘new rhythm’ they ‘dubbed the slow life’.

To read the full review, go to https://www.loveexploring.com/news/98895/family-canal-boat-holiday-uk

To see Jo’s tour of their narrowboat, visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7mmx69LQSv0