Welcome

We have always loved the peacefulness and calm of the UK’s canals.  The change in pace and relaxation (well, apart from locks of course) brings such a wonderful sense of well being and oneness with nature that after many trips in hire boats and with boat owning friends – at all times of year – we made the decision to commission our own liveaboard narrowboat, to live on after retirement.

We have lived and travelled on “Brandy Pad” for over five years and have thoroughly enjoyed our time afloat.

As “Continuous Cruisers”, we have travelled as far North as possible (Ripon in North Yorkshire), as far East as possible (Brandon on the Norfolk/Suffolk border), and as far West as possible (Llangollen in Wales). We have travelled many miles of canals and a lot of river – both non-tidal and tidal. The tidal rivers could be quite scary, especially when you exited a lock from a canal into a full-on tidal flow. PFDs (personal floatation devices) and anchor at the ready.

Unfortunately, the arrival of the Covid-19 virus rather put an end to our plans for 2020. We berthed the boat in a marina at Droitwich Spa. We were intending to head down to Sharpness, from Droitwich, and on down the Severn Estuary to Bristol. The journey would be a serious challenge, involving the wide and tidal waters of the Bristol Channel. It would mean hiring a Pilot, who would guide us down to Portishead Marina. Then, with the tide and weather right, we would have to make our own way up to Avonmouth and along the tidal Avon into Bristol. From Bristol we would then continue on up the River Avon to Bath, onto the Kennet and Avon canal and eventually join the Thames near Reading. Sadly, none of this was possible in 2020.

2021, however, saw us finally making the trip. In July we made our way down to Sharpness, where we had to wait a little less than a week for the right conditions to join the tidal Severn Estuary. You can see video of the journey to Portishead in our blog here, and then on to Bristol here.

Time and tide wait for nobody and since we have completed our plans to travel as much of the UK waterways as we could, the time has come to move Brandy Pad on. Other commitments and new adventures beckoned to us, so with some sadness, but many fond memories, we said goodbye to our floating home .

Kit and Tracy, the new owners, will also be living on the boat full time. They intend to do as we did and travel everywhere they can, exploring the same waterways and rivers we had visited.

We wish them “bon voyage” and know they will enjoy happy times and many wonderful experiences aboard Brandy Pad. It is a lovely boat and will do them proud.

 

 

Not wanting to cut our ties with boating completely, we have become volunteer crew on the Swansea Community Boat Trust widebeam “Copper Jack“.

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