A Beginners Guide
to Canal Boating
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This page last updated 20/2/2000
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In this page I will try and give you an idea of why I feel that everyone should try a canal holiday at least once in their lives.
What are the main attractions of a canal holiday? IT IS RELAXING - the speed limit for the majority of the waterways is 4mph. You will be lucky if you achieve more than 2½ to 3mph. For most of your holiday if you wish you can have solitude, cruising through open countryside hardly seeing a soul. In spite of their growing popularity it is still easy to select a route where you may only see half a dozen other boats a day even in the height of summer.
ITS ENERGETIC - If you want it to be! You are your own master, you can choose to cruise every daylight hour, or if you wish just a mile or two a day. There are locks to be worked to build a thirst and an appetite, and at the speed your boat travels, if you wish you can stroll along side on the towpaths all day long.
CHILDREN LOVE IT - From the age of around 6 or 7 if properly supervised children can help with the steering and working of the locks. There is always something different to see and do, spotting boat names, watching for wild life, a spot of fishing (check which licenses you will need) Most canal side pubs and restaurants cater for children, they realise that you will not use the facilities if you cannot bring the children.
YOU ARE SELF CONTAINED - On most hire craft apart from buying supplies along the way, and topping up the water tank you need not worry about civilization, you will have everything you need aboard, and unless you wish to sample the joys of a canal side pub or restaurant or explore the local area, you will not need to leave your boat. Even though most canals are rural it is unusual not to pass within a few hundred yards of several pubs and villages each day.
YOU CAN USE YOUR BOAT AS A FLOATING HOTEL - If you wish (and many people do) take your boat into a city and moor up for a few days and explore at your leisure. Moor opposite Worcester cathedral. In the center of Stratford -on -Avon. By the walls of historic Chester. In Central London. These are just a few of the many choices which await you.
CANALS ARE A GIANT LINEAR NATURE RESERVE - Even when the canal passes through the center of a city it is not unusual for the towpaths to be tree lined, when a motorway passes overhead you can still hear the birds sing. See the mist laying on the water as the sun rises, spot a hare in a field or a darting Kingfisher, maybe even an otter if you venture onto the rivers. Nature is laid bare before you.
CANALS ARE FULL OF HISTORY - The canals date back over 200 years in places, and were one of the spurs that led to the industrial revolution due to the way they revolutionized transportation. They also pass through many of the old quarters of our major cities as well as hundreds of country villages almost untouched by time. At almost every turn there is some sign of our industrial heritage to be spotted.
YOU CAN COME & GO AS YOU PLEASE - There is almost no restrictions on where you can moor (for an hour - or a day or two) to rest a while or explore the surrounding area. Most boatyards now offer a choice of starting days for your holiday, and allow you to chose from a long weekend or a midweek break to several weeks at a time, whatever suits you. Also more and more companies hire boats all year round. with most boats having full central heating and many also wood burning stoves you wont be cold what ever the weather, and to cruise in snow through a winter wonderland is a whole new experience!
While with water around care should always be taken, there is NO DRINK-DRIVE LAWS to observe as you cruise from village to village, so a sensible drink is OK even for the driver!
The downsides? I suppose there are some. Cost is comparable to a holiday abroad with (almost) guaranteed weather. The only danger I would warn you of, is that once you try a canal holiday, like me, you will become addicted and want to return again and again.