Skipper is having withdrawal symptoms I think as he has mentioned hiring a canal boat several times so with this in mind we drive on through the flat moors and industrial towns to a couple of marinas to discuss the possibility of hire.
We strike a deal with Wyvern Shipping, who were absolutely wonderful and have good clean boats for hire and decide now to hand the hire car back with 5,300 miles added to the odometer and swap the road for the Grand Union Canal.
THE GRAND UNION CANAL built by engineer William Jessop was opened in 1800 and formed part of a network of canals designed to give faster and a more direct route for transporting goods between Birmingham and London by barge/narrow boat. Its main line stretches for 137 miles (220 km) and has a total of 166 locks although we only went through around 30 of them TWICE! as we had to turn around and come back to base.
The canals are lined by tow paths along which horses would haul the barges before the introduction of engines, now they are used for walking, cycling or access between locks.
Press the arrow in the box below to view a slideshow of our holiday:
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