There are few better ways to spend your canal boat holiday than relaxing in the cratch with a good book.
Make your next read come alive by mooring up in the places that inspired the imaginations of Arthur Conan Doyle, Jane Austen and JRR Tolkien.
1. Meet the bard at Stratford-Upon-Avon
We all know Shakespeare's Globe on the River Thames in London, but if you prefer to get away from the hustle and bustle of the capital, head to Shakespeare's County.
Moor up at Bancroft Basin, in the heart of historic Stratford-Upon-Avon, to visit the bard's birthplace, schoolhouse and grave. It's also worth taking a trip to Anne Hathaway's house and stopping by the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Swan Theatre or The Other Place to catch a show.
William Shakespeare was born in April 1564 in Stratford-Upon-Avon.
The Stratford-upon-Avon Canal connects the town and the River Avon with Birmingham. There are 56 locks, one tunnel, four aqueducts, three embankments and a reservoir along its length.
Visit Stratford-Upon-Avon as part of a rural two-week cruise along the Avon Ring. Leaving Birmingham behind at King's Norton, you'll take a picturesque rural route through several hours of lock-free cruising with an occasional lift bridge. Go down the Lapworth Flight to join the South Stratford and head into the pretty little town.
It's hard to imagine Jane Austen stepping aboard a coal-dirtied boat and helping out with the locks in the early 1800s. But, living from 1775-1817, her time coincided with the height of canal mania.
Austen's first and last completed novels, Northanger Abbey and Persuasion, were partly set in Bath.
Jane Austen spent her early life regularly visiting Bath and, at age 10, spent two years at the Reading Abbey Girls' School, close to the Kennet Navigation (open from 1723). As an adult, she moved to Bath in 1801.
It was at this time that the Kennet & Avon Canal was first navigable from Bath to Devizes – and in one postscript of a letter writes, "Last night we walked by the canal." What plots were hatching in her mind as she strolled?
You can walk in Jane Austen's footsteps as you cruise down the K&A – 87 miles of spectacular landscapes and rolling hills. Heading towards Bath, you'll pass through 54 locks, including the impressive Caen Hill Flight.
One of the world's most famous addresses and home to the legendary detective Sherlock Holmes, 221B Baker Street is just one kilometre from the canal towpath.
At the time of writing, in 1887, Baker Street did not go as far as 221. It was expanded in the 1930s, with Abbey National Building Society occupying the premises between 219 and 229 (and diligently answering all fan mail).
Today, you'll find a museum where you can step back in time to explore the clues and characters of Sherlock's most famous cases.
London’s other classic characters include Dickens' Pip, Woolf's Mrs Dalloway and Orwell's Winston.
Tie in your trip to Baker Street with a tour of London's landmarks. Cruising down the Regent's Canal, you'll see the colourful narrowboats at Little Venice, the vast aviary in the London Zoo, the excitement at Camden and the London Canal Museum.
The rural landscape of the Lakes stretches across Cumbria, and you can get as far as Tewitfield on navigable canals, a short distance from Kendal.
The Lancaster Canal was only recently connected to the national waterway network in 2002. Spending the majority of its life in isolation, it has developed its own uniqueness – just like the characters found in the words of so many writers and poets, from Wordsworth and Coleridge to Beatrix Potter.
The northern reaches, while inaccessible by boat, make for good walking and cycling.
Join the Lancaster at Preston to cruise through one of the few coastal canals with 41 miles of lock-free cruising. Moor up at the end of your journey and make the short distance by car to Windemere, where you can meet Peter Rabbit, Jemima Puddle-Duck and friends at Beatrix Potter's Hill Top farm.
Take a trip to where everyone's favourite vigilante once roamed. The River Trent is one of England's mightiest rivers, flowing right through the lands where Robin Hood stole from the rich and gave to the poor.
Legends place Robin Hood in the 12th century, somewhere between the Rivers Trent and Wharfe. Today, we recognise Sherwood Forest as his main territory.
Nottingham also inspired the writings of Lord Byron and D.H. Lawrence, who both lived nearby.
You can moor up near Nottingham and make your way to Sherwood Forest to learn more about the lore of Robin Hood. Visit Nottingham Castle, which is connected to the Sheriff of Nottingham and the literary legend himself. Take time to explore the forest's famous Major Oak, believed to be the outlaw's hideout.
Our canals are a vital part of the UK's industrial heritage – and Elizabeth Gaskell was a key literary figure of the Industrial Revolution. Her works often portrayed the contrasts between the industrialised north and rural south.
The Rochdale and Ashton Canals pass through the heart of Manchester, where you can walk in the footsteps of Mary Barton and Margaret Hale – Gaskell's iconic heroines.
The Rochdale re-opened to boats in 2002 after an ambitious volunteer restoration project.
Moor up and take a short trip to Gaskell's beautifully restored house. Located on Plymouth Grove, this is where Gaskell lived for many years, hosting other notable literary visitors, such as Charles Dickens and Charlotte Brontë. The house is now a museum dedicated to her life and works.
Make your journey a longer one by following the Two Roses Ring, crossing from Lancashire into Yorkshire, where you might spot the local literary ghosts of Alan Bennett or W. H. Auden. This 183-mile route could take up to a month with 183 locks and five different canals.
7. Head to Birmingham for the origins of Middle-earth
For fans of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, a cruise to Birmingham offers a glimpse into Tolkien's formative years. Tolkien spent his childhood in and around Birmingham, and the landscapes and experiences from his youth are said to have inspired his creation of Middle-earth.
Birmingham is easily accessible for boaters, with more miles of canal to explore than Venice. The Birmingham Ring takes just one week at a leisurely pace. The slightly longer Black Country Ring and the Warwickshire Ring also both offer beautiful rural views and industrial cityscapes.
Moor up in the heart of Birmingham and embark on a Tolkien trail, which includes landmarks such as Sarehole Mill, the inspiration for the Shire, and Moseley Bog, a spot often linked to the mysterious Old Forest.
Birmingham's industrial past has been transformed into a water-side oasis at the heart of the city.
If you're a big Tolkien fan, follow the Oxford Canal from Napton on the Hill all the way to Oxford. Here, you can visit the famous Eagle and Child Pub, where Tolkien and fellow author C.S. Lewis frequently met.
