doratheexplorer

Good advice there. Sarah - you would be best buying a short term licence for the Avon if you go that way. A week is £50, fortnight is £60, month is £70.

Welcome to boating! Exciting isn't it? The best thing about exploring the canals and rivers is that there's so much diversity. If you don't think where you are is pretty enough, move on. That said, the Gloucester and Sharpness where your boat is, is one of my favourites, so don't miss the opportunity to explore it a bit. It will also give you time to get used to cruising before you hit your first lock which will be Gloucester lock onto the Severn. Gloucester Lock is manned by a lock keeper so it won't give you any concerns, just follow the lock keeper's advice and let them know you're new to things. Lock keepers can be a very useful source of info and advice. From there, if I was you, I'd head up the Severn and onto the Avon at Tewkesbury. The Avon is my vote for prettiest waterway in the country. The locks can be hard to work, but not beyond single-handing, just take your time. The scenery is just gorgeous. Come off the Avon at Stratford and onto the Stratford canal, another very pretty canal. Heading up the Stratford you can continue up into Birmingham, which is not alway pretty but is very interesting, or turn onto the Grand Union towards Warwick. By then, I reckon you'll have your own ideas about where you want to go...

There are plenty of 42' boats with a fixed bed and a small living area. A clever design/layout is needed. But 42' is still pushing it, which is why I'd go for something longer.

second?

I'm not sure what you mean by a lot of this. Do you mean?: 1. You plan to get a permanent marina mooring but then head out on trips from time to time? or; 2. You plan to stay out on one long continuous trip through spring, summer, autumn and then go into a marina for winter? Most marina moorings require you have have CRT licence anyway, so for those it doesn't matter. Some marina moorings don't require a licence, so for option 1 you could just just a short term licence for each of your short trips. For option 2, your best bet would be a 12 month licence and then get a refund on your unused bit when you go into a marina. I've read this bit several times and I can't work out what you mean: "whilst i know its a cost, i still need to know i have enough time to get back a day before work, (getting their is kinda easy as their is numerous points that i can stop at to keep me on route)" Can you explain? 42" is a little short for a boat. 42' would be better and many liveaboards have a boat that length. Personally I wouldn't consider anything under 50' and 55'-65' is better still. No problem with microwaves if he's in a marina and hooked up to 240v.

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