Day 39 Sunday May 18

 Day one of the canal boat trip! Took possession of our boat about 1.30pm. Brian took us through all aspects of canal boating - more he talked, scarier it got! Gary is skipper as he’s the only one with boat experience. Bob is Gilligan, Kath is Ginger and I am Maryanne! Sincerely hope we don’t get shipwrecked like they did!

The boat- the Rose Drum!

Set off about 215pm to cruise up to Skipton to meet Graeme and Maureen . A group of 3 young guys took off just after us. You have to stop at these swing bridges and one of you (Bob) gets off to open the swing bridge. All went well, we kept it open for the young guys to go through as well and then closed it.

You can only go 4kms per hour, so people walking alongside the canal on the towpath can actually walk faster than you! Young guys overtook us which was great as they did all the bridges after that! They were so good and kept them open for us to go through and then would close them. Saved us so much time! 

It was just lovely, so quiet. Lots of ducks, baby ducks, swans and baby swans. The countryside is so green, just beautiful! We passed through a couple of small villages where the houses sit right on the edge of the canal! Tomorrow we go through a couple of locks! The water is so low at the moment that they will be closing all locks on Thursday, possibly until September. So we’ll do a couple of them and then just stick to the canals with swing bridges! 

Sitting on the boat having drinks and nibbles - dinner actually! 
 
Buying dinner the night before at Thai restaurant 

Catching train to Skipton. Photos out of sync a bit but these are from Gary’s phone! 


No wifi on boat so not sure if I’ll get many photos up. 

Comments

  1. Pam and VernonMay 18, 2025 at 4:34 PM

    It looks a little cold? Have a relaxing week before you have to endure that tough trip home!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. marmyMay 19, 2025 at 1:01 PM

      Looks incredible Trish. An experience not seen here at home. Always thought you looked like Ginger 😂…especially the hair. (was thinking of other body traits but I’m your sister ❤️). Must be honest…never thought Gaz resembled Skipper 😂. Great relaxing way to close what looks like the trip of a lifetime. Cannot wait to see you both xxxx

      Delete
    2. Gary and TrishMay 19, 2025 at 1:44 PM

      Jude I was Maryanne as Kath has the red hair! It really is an experience. Quite a lot of people live on these boats permanently - not sure I could but it’s fun for a short while! 😄

      Delete

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