Canal Boat Diaries

Narrowboater Robbie Cumming begins a 170-mile journey across the north of England, starting in the historic town of Wigan. But he soon runs into difficulty when he encounters a propeller problem, thanks to an errant t-shirt, and then runs aground around Blackburn. Nevertheless, he pushes on to navigate a true wonder of the waterways, the Burnley Embankment.

Narrowboater Robbie Cumming continues his canal quest through the north of England, crossing the Pennines on the picturesque Leeds and Liverpool Canal. He’s traveling 32 miles from Barrowford, via Skipton, to Bingley, through some the country’s most dramatic landscapes. He lends a hand to boaters in Gargrave, North Yorkshire and encounters Bingley Five Rise Locks, a wonder of the inland waterways.

Jump on board with narrowboater Robbie Cumming as he explores the Victorian village of Saltaire in West Yorkshire on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal. He moors up in Leeds Dock and goes in search of an abandoned waterway on the Aire and Calder Navigation. But a swing bridge hampers his progress, as Robbie has to hold up traffic and pedestrians to successfully get his craft back onto the water.

The last leg of Robbie’s epic journey across the north of England is the longest, as he tackles two canals and three rivers. On the way he’ll see the historic regions of Selby and York. One challenge he faces is the fast-flowing, tidal River Ouse where he’s forced to make an emergency stop. Will he make his destination of Ripon Basin at the outer reaches of Britain’s inland waterways?