Anglo Welsh’s top 5 Mother’s Day trips afloat
This Mother’s Day, why not spoil your Mum with a relaxing day afloat, enjoying a posh picnic afloat or stopping off for a pub lunch along the way?
Anglo Welsh offers day boat hire from five of its bases, from less than £10 per person. Full tuition is included, so if you’re new to narrowboating, you can get the hang of steering, mooring up and working the locks.
Boats are equipped with cutlery, crockery and a kettle and most day boats also have a toilet, cooker and fridge.
Here are our Top 5 Days Out Afloat for 2017:
- Glide across ‘The Stream in the Sky’ – from our canal boat hire base at Trevor on the Llangollen Canal in North Wales, it’s less than 10 minutes by water to the incredible World Heritage status Pontcysyllte Aqueduct, also known as “The Stream in the Sky”. At over 38 metres high and 305 metres long, the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct is truly one of the wonders of the waterways, offering stunning views of the Dee Valley below. After travelling over the Aqueduct, boaters can turn at Froncysyllte and head back across, travelling on to the ancient Welsh town of Llangollen in two hours. Day boaters can moor up in Llangollen Basin to explore the town and visit Plas Newydd house and gardens and enjoy lunch at the Corn Mill, with stunning river and mountain views. Day boat hire from Trevor starts at £120 for up to 10 people, £160 on weekends and bank holidays.
- Explore Shakespeare countryside – from Wootton Wawen on the Stratford Canal near Henley-in-Arden, boaters can head south, crossing the Edstone aqueduct, to the pretty village of Wilmcote, a journey that takes around 2½ hours. Here, day-boaters can moor up above Wilmcote Top Lock and take a short walk into the village to enjoy lunch at The Mary Arden Inn or the Masons Arms, and a visit to the childhood home of Shakespeare’s mother, Mary Arden’s Farm. Day boat hire from Wootton Wawen starts at £99 for up to 10 people, £140 on weekends and bank holidays.
- Cruise the Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal – from Great Haywood on the Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal near Stafford, day boaters can cruise to the historic market town of Rugeley and back, passing the National Trust’s stunning Shugborough Estate, with beautiful Georgian Mansion house, walled garden and rare breeds farm, as well as and the delightful Wolseley Arms pub at Wolseley Bridge. The journey to Rugeley and back takes a total of six hours. Day boat hire from Great Haywood starts at £99 for up to 10 people, £140 on weekends and bank holidays.
- Cruise along ‘The Shroppie’ to Hack Green – from our base at Bunbury Wharf on the Shropshire Union Canal near Tarporley, cruise north for nine picturesque miles, past Barbridge and the canalside Barbridge Inn, through Nantwich and over the Nantwich Aqueduct, to a mooring and turning place just above Hack Green Locks. Here it’s a short walk to the Hack Green Nuclear Bunker, a vast underground complex which remained a secret for over 50 years, now a fascinating visitor experience. Day boat hire from Bunbury starts at £99 for up to 10 people, £140 on weekends and bank holidays.
- Travel through rural Worcestershire – from Tardebigge on the Worcester& Birmingham Canal near Bromsgrove, cruise north to Kings Norton Junction, passing through fields, woods and three tunnels, including Wast Hills Tunnel, one of the longest in the country. The route, which covers a total of 16 miles there and back, takes boaters past a choice of waterside pubs, including the Weighbridge at Alvechurch and the Hopwood House at Hopwood. There are no locks on this journey, which takes around three hours each way. Day boat hire from Tardebigge starts at £99 for up to 10 people, £140 on weekends and bank holidays.
