Navigate a boat through a narrow canal

“Floating down the river was wonderful but after I had leaped onto the grassy banks from a moving vehicle, tied up, ran across the narrow lock gates to let us through, then closed them which is most important, then leaped back onto the moving boat I was a nervous wreck! The energy it takes for one person to do all that time and time again is astonishing.”

“Narrowboats are powered from the rear – a very obvious fact that seemed to escape my betrothed as we yawed from one side of the canal to the other. Watching him heave the tiller back and forth, as though this motion was actually responsible for powering the vessel, and with boats moored either side of us, the danger seemed clear.”

“It was some relief to find this section of the canal quieter than we had expected, and creeping through the peaceful rural landscape with the sun beating down, my idyllic vision of boating was already being realised. Then came our first major challenge – a bridge.”