[Help with cruise alternatives please]

I'm starting from Mercia Marina on the Trent and Mersey, near to Derby.

[Help with cruise alternatives please]

Hi everyone,

Being the new and proud owner of a boat, I am looking at the alternatives for getting the boat to my mooring in the East Anglian river network.

Transport is costly, especially as the boatyard where the boat is currently at wants to charge £500 to crane the boat out onto a lorry.

I checked on canalplan.eu for a route to sail her, and it suggested going west along the Trent and Mersey to the Coventry and Oxford canals before heading east along the Grand Union to the mouth of the Nene.

Looking at the waterways map, it seems a fair bit shorter to head east to the river Soar / Grand Union then south past Leicester down to the Nene.

Is there any reason I shouldn't go for the shorter route?

Thanks in advance!

Nick

[Are you new to boating?? CLICK HERE]

Hello to all,

 

After many years of hiring, I am working on a plan to own my own narrowboat in the next 2 - 3 years

 

The Canal World forum seems to be a treasure chest of useful information on how to find the right boat and what to look out for.

 

One thing has surprised me though; the cost of mooring. I would hope to travel the canal network for several weeks each year, so I think I would need a permanent mooring space.

 

Looking at the available options for mooring, it seems I might pay tens of thousands of pounds over the years I would hope to own the boat.

 

Is this something I need to accept and plan for, or are there any alternatives?

 

Thanks in advance!

 

Nick