- Estimated Cost: $1500
- Deposit: $200
- Max Trip Size: 10 people
This is a two-week canal boat trip in the county of Cheshire, in west central England, near the Welsh border. The canal boat will be our moving base of operations, a sort of floating RV with a kitchen, bathrooms, showers and bedrooms. Each day we will cruise down the canal, through the lovely English countryside, for about 4-5 hours, leaving us six to eight hours each day to explore scenic villages, ancient castles and churches, and dramatic overlooks. It’s also possible to take short rail journeys to visit some of the larger historic cities of the region, such as Chester and Shrewsbury. The area is criss-crossed by multiple long distance hiking and biking routes. For those who are interested in less than two weeks on the boat, it will be possible to leave or arrive during the first week of the cruise, as we will be close to rail stations on this leg.
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I have reserved a 12 person boat with 8 single beds and 2 double beds, starting Sep 22 and returning Oct 6. You will also have the option of joining me for 5 or 6 days of hiking one of England’s long distance paths after the boat trip.
For the hiking part of the extended trip, I’m tentatively planning to take the English “Gentleman Hillwalker” approach, where we set up a base in some central location, like Ludlow or Leominster, and walk circular day trips along the high ridges and through picturesque villages, using trains and buses to reach trailheads when needed. This would be immediately after the boat trip, in the area about 20 miles SW of the canal ring. It looks like we will be able to rent a house or cottage in the area for about $25 per person per night.
Estimated cost is $1500 (boat part only, extra food and lodging for hiking part) – boat, food, train transport from London, lodging before and after, and airfare (which is currently about $700 RT).
Email me, and I will send you an email with links to the trip plan, maps, and attractions. You will also get links to a video showing how easy it is to run the boat, and videos produced by one of the British TV networks called “Great Canal Journeys” showing what it is like cruising the canals.