2011 Cruises

Reedley to Skipton
3 nights Apr 15 & 29 , May 6, Jun 3 & 24, Jul 15, Aug 12, Sep 9 & 30

Skipton to Reedley(via Kildwick)
4 nights Apr 25, May 02 & 30, Jun 20, Jul 11, Aug 8, Sep 5 & 26 , Oct 17

Fabulous views over Pendle Hill and some of the prettiest parts of the English canal network are parts of this cruise. The nearly 1 mile long Foulridge tunnel, the canals twists and turns along the valley side means there is always something to look at. If tunnels are not for you then the country walk over the horse path means you can meet us on the other side.

The land of James Herriot, stone villages and friendly pubs await. Historic Skipton  ‘The Gateway to the Dales’ with its magnificent castle is a must visit.

The return cruise sets off away from Skipton toward the lovely village of Kildwick. This interesting stretch of the canal and shows clearly how it clings to the contours of the land. We turn and head back through Skipton, through the dales and Foulridge tunnel finishing at our marina in Reedley.

Skipton to Apperley Bridge
4 nights May 9, Jun 6 & 27, Jul 18, Aug 15, Sep 12, Oct 03

Starting from Historic Skipton ‘The Gateway to the Dales’ this interesting cruise takes in one of the wonders of the UK canal network, the fabulous Bingley 5 rise of locks, and the less well known Bingley 3. The 5 rise staircase locks, the bottom gate of one is the top gate of the next, take the canal down through an incredible 90 feet. A feat of engineering at any time but these were built in 1774, two years before the USA won its independence from England.

We then move on to the UNESCO world heritage site of Saltaire with its Hockney collection and very interesting town built by Sir Titus Salt for his workers, no pubs or pawn shops were allowed, it has pubs now.

From there we continue on an interesting route which includes isolated countryside and glimpses of the canals industrial past. We end at Apperley Bridge on the outskirts of Leeds.

Starting from Clarence dock in the centre of Leeds, home to the famous Armouries museum, this cruise finishes at the pretty Yorkshire town of Silsden.

We set off on the Aire & Calder navigation passing through the centre of Leeds before joining the Leeds and Liverpool then canal. Surprisingly quickly we are then into countryside.

On the way we will encounter the UNESCO site of Saltaire with its Hockney collection and very interesting town built by Sir Titus Salt for his workers, no pubs or pawn shops were allowed, it has pubs now.

We will move up through one wonders of the UK canal network, the fabulous Bingley 5 rise of locks, and the less well known Bingley 3. The 5 rise staircase locks, the bottom gate of one is the top gate of the next, take the canal up through an incredible 90 feet. A feat of engineering at any time but these were built in 1774, two years before the USA won its independence from England.

We finish on the edge of Silsden whose claim to fame is being the place where the biggest onion ever was grown by Vincent Throup ,at 10 lb 14 oz (4.9 kg)

Starting from the pretty Yorkshire market town of Silsden we head toward Gargrave passing through the splendid villages  and mooring up with plenty of time to visit a variety of Yorkshire villages, and should you wish to some lovely pubs.

We pass through the picturesque village of Kildwick and it is clear that the canal is clinging to the contours as we head toward Skipton through wooded countryside. We pass through superb scenery with interesting villages, like Bradley along the way where there is time to pop into the local for a pint

We pass through Historic Skipton ‘The Gateway to the Dales’ with a stop and time to visit the magnificent castle. When you leave the cruise you can walk up to we would recommend a trip on the trip boat up the canal arm that gives a view up to that castle from below.

A run up to Gargrave provides a glimpse of the dales before returning to Skipton.

Saltaire to Skipton
3  nights Apr 22

Skipton to Saltaire (Via Gargrave)
4  nights Apr 18

Starting from the UNESCO site of Saltaire with its Hockney collection and very interesting town built by Sir Titus Salt for his workers, no pubs or pawn shops were allowed, it has pubs now.

We will move up through one wonders of the UK canal network, the fabulous Bingley 5 rise of locks, and the less well known Bingley 3. The 5 rise staircase locks, the bottom gate of one is the top gate of the next, take the canal up through an incredible 90 feet. A feat of engineering at any time but these were built in 1774, two years before the USA won its independence from England.

We pass through the picturesque village of Kildwick and it is clear that the canal is clinging to the contours as we head toward Skipton through wooded countryside. We pass through superb scenery with interesting villages, like Bradley along the way where there is time to pop into the local for a pint should you wish to.

We finish at Historic Skipton ‘The Gateway to the Dales’ with its magnificent castle. When you leave the cruise you can walk up to the castle but we would also recommend a trip on the trip boat up the canal arm that gives a view up to that castle from below.

The 4 night version of this cruise takes in a trip up to Gargrave for a glimpse of the dales before returning to Skipton.Starting from the pretty Yorkshire village of Silsden this cruise takes us through Historic Skipton ‘The Gateway to the Dales’ with its magnificent castle. When you leave the cruise you can walk up to the castle but we would also recommend a trip on the trip boat up the canal arm that gives a view up to that castle from below.

We pass through the picturesque village of Kildwick and it is clear that the canal is clinging to the contours as we head toward Skipton through wooded countryside. We pass through superb scenery with interesting villages, like Bradley along the way where there is time to pop into the local for a pint should you wish to.

A run up to Gargrave provides a glimpse of the dales before we turn and head back to our mooring at Skipton.

Apperley Bridge to Leeds(via the Aire & Calder)
3 Nights May 13, Jun 10, Jul 01 & 22, 19 Aug , Sep 16, Oct 07

This cruise takes us down through Leeds off the end of the Leeds and Liverpool canal onto the Aire And Calder navigation.

Passing through lovely scenery we have some surprisingly isolated spots as we go through the Newlay set of locks and some small staircases locks where one lock leads into another.

Dropping off the end of Leeds and Liverpool canal we join the Aire and Calder navigation, quite a shock to move from the canal onto the wide river navigation. Passing through the centre of Leeds we go through the large automated river locks down to Castleford with our turning point determined by our timings as we have to give way to the commercial traffic.

We then head back to finish at Clarence Dock in the centre of Leeds home to the interesting Armouries museum.

York to Leeds
3 nights May 20, Jul  29, Aug 26

Leeds to York
4 nights May 16, Jul  25, Aug 22

Starting from Clarence dock in the centre of Leeds, home to the famous Armouries museum, this cruise finishes at the splendid Yorkshire city of York. Taking 3 nights to travel from York to Leeds we take 4 nights to travel from Leeds to York as we add an additional stretch of the Aire & Calder navigation to our itinerary.

We set off on the Aire & Calder navigation passing pass through the outskirts of Leeds and are surprisingly quickly into countryside.

We move onto the Calder branch before joining the River Aire which is very meandering and unlike the canals and navigations we are used to operating on.

We then join the little known Selby canal for the run up to the River Ouse. Passing out of the Selby Canal through the flood lock at flood tide we make our way onto the tidal Ouse, another new experience for many.

It is then the lovely run up from Selby to York on the Ouse and the chance to explore the wonders of York.