This is a departure from my normal kayaking adventures, but a trip on a narrow boat in the heart of England provided a real voyage of discovery. True it was not action packed, the water was not rough and we were protected from the wind, no matter how hard it blew. Even so, it was a very rewarding experience. Welcome to a short voyage on the Florence Edith, a 54ft narrow boat ..........
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| First night mooring in the middle of fields in the English countryside. |
Starting at Stockton we headed towards Warwick, with an over night stop just after the Good Hope pub, in a tranquil part of the canal, that seemed to be in the middle of no where. After picking up two further crew, we headed back past Stockton and stopped at the Bridge at Napton. Did I say it has a pub close by? We headed north to Braunton, a delightful village with yet another canal side pub.
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| Each barge proudly displays their name. |
Undoubtedly, narrow boating is not a speed activity. Instead, it is something to savour and a joy to watch the world pass by slowly. So speed is irreverent, part of the experience of canal travel is taking in the scenery and enjoying the company of other canal folk. This is a world within a world, almost cocooned from the reality of everyday life happening just over the hedge or field, but seemingly a universe away.
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The Cape of Good Hope Inn, a long way from South Africa.
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A delight of canal cruising is the canal side public house, not just the location but the hospitality, food and of course beer. It is possible to plan your journey to lunch and dine at a wayside pub, but we decided to restrict our imbibing to dinner time only.
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| Locks are a part of canal life. |
No gain without pain, well canal boating has locks to keep you fit. A necessary evil to smooth out undulating countryside, they have to be "worked" to move across the country.
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| Idilic or what? |
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| Gill enjoying the serenity of canal travel. |
No doubt we will return to complete another voyage, next time to spend some time enjoying the slower pace of life and to spend some time exploring some of the heritage of the canals and barges.
