Brian & Debbie have been cruising our canals for the past 25 years. Their love of our canal countryside, industrial heritage and bankside pubs, has inspired them to leave a kind and generous gift to our charity in their Wills.
All the way from North & South Carolina, over those years, they’ve introduced 44 other Americans – friends, family members and neighbours – to our waterways.
In Brian's words
My wife Debbie and I had long careers in telecommunications, which took us all over the world.
But until 1998, I’d never been to Europe. Debbie, however, was born in Blackpool. When she had to come to England on business, she included a visit to her uncle in Fleetwood and I decided to join her. While driving from Fleetwood to the business appointment in Wetherby, we crossed over the Leeds & Liverpool Canal at East Marton, just as a colourful narrowboat with flowers on the top was passing under the A59.
Although I learned about the canals and the industrial revolution at school, I didn’t know that the canal network was still thriving as a leisure resource. So, we stopped and had a canalside natter with a couple of locals about what we were seeing. A short while later that same day, we stopped in Skipton and took a cruise on a tour boat. We were immediately enthralled.
The idea of floating around the gorgeous English countryside at walking speed had instant appeal. As soon as I got home, I did a lot of research online. The following year we decided to bring my aging parents to England and included a short three-day break on the Shropshire Union Canal. Although we banged around embarrassingly (our efforts at making a turn in a winding hole entertained many assembled gongoozlers), Debbie and I were forever hooked.
We’ve now taken 17 canal holidays in all, often in the company of two or more friends or family members who also crossed the pond to share the experience. On several occasions, there were so many of us we hired two boats that then cruised in tandem, which definitely helped with the lock work. Most people in the States have no idea that these canals are still operating and love the idea of joining us for this kind of holiday.
I’ve recorded every mile of our trips with the help of the on-line Canal Route Planner tool and a GPS device. We’ve cruised 2,493 miles, passing through 2,262 locks and 90 tunnels in 232 days (almost 8 months). That’s the entire end-to-end length of 22 canals and completed most – but not all – of seven others. Perhaps the most memorable and enjoyable of all our holidays afloat was a two-week, two-boat cruise around the South Pennine Ring in 2014, the high point being the Standedge Tunnel.
I echoe author Steve Haywood when he said he finds spending time on canals the ‘fastest way of slowing down’ and Debbie says she sees an amazing difference in me on every trip.
"When I saw him get his hands on that tiller for the first time, his shoulders just dropped. The release of stress was just amazing to see. And I was like, ‘Okay, this is worth every penny, just to see Brian chill out'."
As well as the peaceful, quiet and slow pace of cruising, the countryside and the industrial history, we also regularly enjoy a canal-side pub with pint or two in a beer garden, followed by a meal and a game of Spades back on the boat. I think my favourite pub is the Holly Bush in Denford, near Leek on the Caldon Canal. It's got upholstered furniture, a fireplace and little nooks that give you some privacy. It's somewhere you can meet and have a chat with folks that you've never met before.
Several years ago, we were passing through Foxton Locks for the first time and learned that the Canal & River Trust hoped to reconstruct the inclined plane there someday. We thought that maybe we should donate something to that. But then we thought, the Canal & River Trust knows where donations might be best spent.
Even though I'm older than dirt, I have never gotten around to preparing a Will. But then it dawned on me that a lot of my friends and family were passing away around me. And I said, 'wait a minute. That might happen to me someday'.
We had very successful careers, and we never wanted kids, so over the years the value of our estate has become quite healthy. And when we thought about leaving a gift to a charity, there was no question. We wanted to give something back to the canals. We went to our lawyer and got the Wills drawn up with all the necessary information to identify the Canal & River Trust as the beneficiary of our entire estate.
Still our canal adventures are far from over. We can't wait to get back on a plane and head back to the UK, and maybe meet up with some of the folks from the Canal & River Trust at Ellesmere Port.
We’ve met a lot of volunteers and always had a great experience with lock keepers and others. I’d love to spend some time volunteering on the canals myself someday. We want to also say to the many folks that we’ve encountered during our cruises, thank you for helping make our holidays afloat so special. We’ll see you again on the cut.
