Rhiwbina Living

The views
Gorgeous valleys, endless
meadows, and slow-rolling
countryside. These are the
sort of views you're likely to
experience when you're out on
a canal.
Waking up in a different place
every day means that no two
days are the same. And it's not
only the views from the river
that you can savour. The best
part about boating is that you
can park up and go for a good ol'
explore.
And if your idea of a great view
is an ice cold beer or a glass of
white, you can also stop off at
many of the riverside pubs that
dot the banks of the waterways.
holidays
Visit new places
With hundreds of miles of the UK's rivers
to explore, the possibilities of new places
to discover are almost endless.
The best part about it is that you
can literally create your own holiday
adventure. You have the freedom to
choose which location you want to stop
at and discover. You create your own
itinerary, you create your own schedule,
and you create new memories that can
last a lifetime.
Historical landmarks
Many of the UK's canals were built during the country's great Industrial
Revolution. Many of the waterways included revolutionary feats of
engineering and world-firsts. Thomas Telford's Pontcysyllte Aqueduct on
the Llangollen Canal, now a world heritage site, has been described as ‘a
masterpiece of creative genius’.
The 18-arched stone and cast iron structure was completed in 1805,
having taken ten years to design and build. It stands at 12 feet (3.7
metres) wide and is the longest
aqueduct in Great Britain
as well as the highest canal
aqueduct in the world.
Not too far away, the Chirk
Aqueduct, also designed by
Telford a few years prior, was
briefly the tallest navigable one
ever built, and it now is Grade
II listed in both England and
Wales as it spans the border of
the two countries.
Holidays for all
There are over 100 hire firms
operating on UK's waterway
systems, giving you a vast choice of
both locations and boats for hire.
Whether it's a romantic boat for
two on the Monmouthshire and
Brecon Canal or a larger cruiser for
you and your friends on the Norfolk
Broads, the sheer variety of boating
holidays is as wide as the Thames.
From busy city waterways to rural
bliss, there's simply a holiday for
everyone on a canal.
The boats that are available to
hire these days are a real home-from-home too. Many feature showers,
flushing toilets, central heating, full-sized cookers and fridges, microwaves,
TVs, DVD and CD players.
Ditch the car
Our over-reliance on our cars
means we often never take in
the scenery that we are passing
through.
Exploring the country via the
waterways provides you with a
chance to fully appreciate our
surroundings while on the move.
Meet the wildlife
The varied habitats that you'll come across
will gift you sightings of creatures both
above the river, on the riverbanks and in the
water.
Expect bird sightings along the riverbanks,
ranging from ducks and kingfishers to
larger species such as swans and herons. If
you're lucky, you may even spot otters and
water voles. Butterflies and dragonflies are
also common during the summer months.
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