north shore news aaKV a Sunday, July 12, 1998 — North Shore News - 37 -—, England far from the madding cr Susan Helter Contributing Writer Are you planning a trip to Britain in the near future? If the answer is yes, and you plan to stay in England for an extended length of time, you may consider taking an affordable, totally relaxing, slow boat to ... sav, Chester or Birmingham or The Potteries or just about anywhere. “What is a slow boat in England?” you ask. The fact is that, interwo- ven throughout some of the most spectacular and beautiful parts of England, canals wind, conl and slow. If vou have pre - viously been to England and traveled by car or rail, you may have seen the canals, or passed under aqueducts, and - you may have seen the people coming off the boats. Until 1948, canals were used primarily for commercial purposes. They provided an economical means of trans- porting lace from Nottingham; silverware from Sheftield; pottery from Stoke- on-Trent, wool. from the north, et cetera. Tiey all had to get to major ports for export, ¢.g., Liverpool, Manchester or London. In the Midlands alone, the _ connected waterways include: The Birmingham Canal; Coventry Canal, Grand Union; Shropshire Union; Staffordshire and ~ Worcestershire Canal; ~ Stourbridge, Stratford upon Avon; Trent and Mersey. Yes, there's that name Worcestershire again, how do ~ they get their tongues around - that word? Hint ... try saying . “Woostershire.” <4 The Midland canals, alone, cover. 269 miles of waterways and inchide 240 locks or ~ swing-bridges. Locks are the ‘means by which the canals tra- - verse up or down grade and aré sure to work up an appetite or thirst that will ~ enable you to do justice to the “many pubs that are dotred “along the canals. “""."" These public houses look “: similar to the delightful hous- es you sce on toffee tins and the menus they offer will suit your palate as well as your wallet. Alongside the canal you can stil] walk che towpath that in bygone years, was used . by the magnificent heavy draft horses to pull the barges before the development of the In cur BG-1 Home Style flyer, Oak -E finish rolt top computer desk offer on page 8 should have read “Save $500" and not Save 50%. Major appliance offers on page 14, 15 and 16 are limited time offers — sale ends Sat., July 11 untess oth- erwise stated. Goldstar 0.7 cu. tt. microwave oven #MS7 1MOU offer on page 14 should have read “Our seg. 149.99. Sale 134.99 each”. Café de Roma 16-pce. dinnerware sets on page 21 — quantities are limited and may be substituted at the store. . Sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused. internal combustion engine. It was also common in those times for families to live on the boats as the mentolk traveled from town to town to island work. People still live on the boats. The moorage fees can range from an attractive S50 per foor per year. When vou have experienced the beauty and serenity of this alternate seven feet. This is so that they can fit inte the locks. Thev house between nvo and 12 berths and are fully self-contained. The boats are as compacdy and well designed as motor homes and yet, because they are all built along the old traditional stvle, they will remind you of the old Romany, horse-drawn gypsy caravans. " Photo S. Chinchen AT Devizes and Caen Hill the Kennet and Avon Canal falls steeply through 29 locks. lifestyle, you may even consid- ey it yourself. [ suggest you ask fellow travelers when they last heard from the jolly tax man. Canal travel is the last word in slowing down. It’s not hard to imagine when one considers that you will be breaking the law if you travel more than four miles per hour. But then, why would anyone want to travel any faster. You might miss the wildlife or the scenery, or the quaint old church spire that you get a glimpse of through the spin- ney. This is a different England, far from the Madding Crowd. The boats are referred to as “Narrow” or “Long” boats. They are never longer than seventy feet or wider than They are brightly painted and are often decorated with delightful, painted planters containing an abundance of summer annuals. You can skipper the boat yourself, because it’s not hard to learn how and children will enjoy Russian Waterways The Glories of imperial : ; ON SALE with Leisure Cruises! Arlene Kirby, CTC. has just returned from this trip. Fer first-hand details, call'now! 14 day CRUISE/TOUR MOSCOW to ST PETERSBURG inclides aic/shore excursio! Oct. 7/98 sailing only 1 Russia a-<5 takings a turn at the helm. The people that you meet on the canals are very friendly. Indeed, they may have not seen anyone for a few hours. Complete strangers will call you “darlin’” and “sweet-art” and as you soak it in, you real- ly do begin to believe that you fit in and that you have a place in this wondertul country. There are over eighty boat -hire companies in the United Kingdom servicing more than 2,000 miles of waterway. From $220 per person, per week, (haoed on a six-berth boat in low season) you can see that this is an affordable and unique wav of seeing the country. Yeu can moor the boat in towns of your choosing and see the sights and explore. Singles and seniors who may preter others to man the helm and galleys may preter the all inclusive hotel boats. These boats often travel nwo by nwo, the front boar having the motor, the second, known as the “butty,” being towed. At night the boats moor, eside by side and guests can cross over and intermingle. These holidays start from around $900 per person per week and cach boat holds between eight to ten guests in single or double cabirs. Misha Pavlik is a specialist in canal boating at North Vancouver's Pavlik Travel. She owned and operated an hotel- boat for sevrn years. She told me that the borts vie for “Mos: Beautifu’. ‘ecorated” status. Pavlik ‘fhovel Services has been selling buating holi- days since the 1980°s and Misha is wel: qualified to answer all your questions. For more intermation call Pavlik Travel Services at 929- O f all — Arlene 926°854 1. p.taxes - pp: sharing twn. con 33 99... £ Free breakfast ALBERTA Calgory-University BRITISH COLUMBIA Abbotsford (Vancouver Area) Kamloops Kelowna Parksville Vancouver-Airport Voncouver-Northshore 01998, Sass Hotels & Resorts inc. Alt nghts reserved. Most hate!s are independently owned and/or operated. NEW BRUNSWICK Moncton NOVA SCOTIA Holifox/Bedford ONTARIO Chotham Cornwall EXPRESS. '1-800-HOLIDAY ¥.* - e Homilton-Stoney Creek london Airport tondon-South Toronto-East Toronto-North York PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND Hotel 6 Suites Charlottetown 1011.8 N.VAN.N.SHORE.NEWS, 7911 or Toll free at 1-800- 665-950]. If you have access to the Internet, check our a canal site at: www. british- Waterwavs.org or write to British Waterways, Willow Grange, Church — Road, Warford, Hertfordshire, WDI 3QA, England for free cata- logues with suggested routes, stating distance and number of locks. You can choose whether vou wind down and have a gloriously mellow holi- day or an adventurous, active holiday depending upon the route and location of your starting point. On the canal you are free to choose and go. where you want and free to do what and when you want. It's simply perfection. -. LOWEST AIRFARES __.. GUARANTEED 986-5855 LAS VEGAS 2.cc one way From? 1 49 From* 46 From 399. . 3305 Lonsdele fve., Park Reyal Nerth, West Ventouver 913-1640 Al locations ore registered with the 8.C. Wevel Register sa FLIGH’ Honolulu August 30/rtn September 13 July 25/rtn August 8 August 8/rtn August 15 T CENTRE October Fall Fa a #HOoOkt. if MLAS. SSeear. ATLYNN BACT ns i Unit Vancouver and reflect sel BDA YY S Telephone 980-8301 6 1199 Lynn Valley Road North Vancouver, BC V7J 3H2 ures. NEW BOOKINGS ONLY. Prices are per person, roundtrip ied departure dates. Air only prices are the lowest available at issue date, and are subject to change or withdrawal without notice. Canada 3000 Holidays terms and conditions apply. All taxes, AIF, and transportation celated fees are not included. Issue date: July 8, 1998. BC Reg #5284-1.