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Hello and welcome to the July edition of the newsletter.
When I wrote last month's intro, I referenced a heatwave the UK had experienced the prior week, with temperatures soaring to 33C, which for the UK is very hot.
Well brace yourself for a strong case of deja vue this month because as I write this, the UK has once again experienced (along with most of continental Europe) an even more substantial heatwave over the past week, with temps here up to about 39C, and records being broken according to the UK Met Office.
It really was sweltering and no time to be trapped inside a metal cylinder - aka a narrowboat - in the blazing sun (this does not explain why I went away in my campervan, also a steaming metal heat-trap, during the affected days!!)
Thankfully, we're now back to a much more civilised 23-ish C (73F) and long may that continue, as this is ideal for boating and I plan to move my boat back up the South Oxford canal this coming week!
Cheers
David |
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*** News from the canal world. Send press releases (about canal topics!) to newsletter@cruisingthecut.co.uk *** |
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Mad World
A man who, along with a team of helpers, voluntarily spent hours cleaning up waste and detritus from a river in Essex has been threatened with prosecution by the Environment Agency for doing so.
Paul Powlesland, a lawyer and environmental campaigner, was so fed up with the EA failing to clean the River Roding, he organised a group of people to do it themselves.
200 bags of rubbish were filled at the site and removed over a ten-day cleanup but the EA say he should have sought permission first and that he's broken the law.
Powlesland said he'd requested the EA clean up the stretch of river for several years but they'd neglected to do so - so he took matters into his own hands.
Since the story broke, receiving widespread media coverage a couple of weeks ago, the EA has (slightly) backed down saying they won't prosecute but that it mustn't happen again.
The EA insists it's not the bad guy and that cleanup operations must be done with care and planning so as not to disturb a delicate eco-balance.
See https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/jun/17/campaigner-threatened-prosecution-environment-agency-river-roding-cleanup
and then also https://www.rollonfriday.com/news-content/exclusive-environment-agency-receives-death-threats-after-warning-barrister-stop
Closing Down
The Inland Waterways Association says open-ended navigation closures on canals and rivers across the UK are increasing alarmingly, with a huge jump since the end of last year.
In November 2025, the IWA's "risk index" marked 15 indefinite stoppages (works that have taken over 30 days and where there is no planned end date for completion) - but that this has already shot up to 21, a 40% increase.
They say the East of England and North West England appear to be among the regions most prone to network interruptions.
Many stoppages are due to circumstances such as extreme weather or infrastructure failures, but long-term closures can have significant consequences for navigation, tourism and local businesses.
The group is calling for more investment and better information about planned works from the waterways authorities.
See https://waterways.org.uk/about-us/news/indefinite-waterway-closures-rise-by-almost-40-iwa-reveals-growing-network-disruption
A Breach in Time
The Canal & River Trust has issued an update on works to repair the collossal breach that happened on the Llangollen canal at Whitchurch last December.
So far, temporary dams have been installed to isolate the site, supported by pumps that keep water flowing so boats downstream remain afloat.
Ground investigations and structural surveys have assessed the condition of the embankment and canal bed. Damaged materials and debris have been removed to create access for repair work, and a new site compound and access road have been built so machinery can reach the breach safely and efficiently.
The plan now is to rebuild the collapsed embankment in layers, incorporating "geogrid reinforcement" to increase structural strength. The canal channel will also be reconstructed in concrete.
See https://tinyurl.com/CRT-Whitchurch-Update
Counting Sheep
The Canal & River Trust’s National Boat Count, carried out in March each year, has recorded a slight decrease in how many craft are on the charity’s waterways.
The count is a physical sighting of boats carried out by the Trust’s towpath teams and shows a fall this year of 2.1%.
Following the trend of the last decade, the number of boats without home moorings ("continuous cruisers") continues to increase, rising 3.6% to 8,825.
Interestingly, boat numbers across London and South East actually fell, by a substantial 9.7%.
Licence evasion across the country stands at 11.8%, a fraction up on 11.7% last year.
See https://tinyurl.com/CRT-boat-count-2026 |
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My recent videos
The last month has been all about cruising my narrowboat down to Cropredy marina near Banbury, a rather pleasant trip that I covered in three days, making three videos.
And - just too late for inclusion here but it should go online later today - there will be an update video about Twiggy, my project boat, where I - gasp! - actually lay up fibreglass over the back, bringing the transom rebuild to the beginning of the end.
Click the links below to watch the videos (or go direct to my YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/@CruisingTheCut/videos). |
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What am I up to?
I am slightly galled this month to confess that my plan to take narrowboat Gentian further down the south Oxford canal has been scuppered, by an assortment of factors.
Other random things in my diary; weather; maintenance stoppages on the canal itself; and a mooring agreement ending have all conspired such that I will in fact next be moving the boat back up the canal towards its home mooring.
On the upside, that journey will itself make at least one video (I doubt there's any benefit to crafting three out of the trip as I did on the way down, since all the elements of the journey will have been covered in that first set of videos; see "New on the Dock", above)
And another planned trip, joining a friend on his narrowboat going down the Severn Estuary from Sharpness to Bristol (which would have been an amazing journey, out on the vast expanse of the estuary) has had to go ahead without me too.
Never mind; there will always be further opportunities arising. These things happen.
Meanwhile, I have been down to London on a scorching hot day, to boat along the River Lee with a friend. The Lee runs north through east London and is a very different experience to the calm countryside canal boating I am used to, as you will see in the upcoming film.
Hopefully I will get more work done on Twiggy this month, now that the heatwave has passed (too-hot weather is not suitable for fibreglass work) and if I'm not careful, I may get round to working inside the cabin again soon...
There will be more trips aboard Gentian, undoubtedly, though the specifics have yet to be decided. Stay tuned! |
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Canal-themed events this month
Shocking!
The main event this month is surely the Electrika show at Brinklow Marina on Friday 10th and Saturday 11th July.
A small but specialised event covering everything to do with electric canal boating, it includes a talks programme each day, a smattering of exhibitors (electric motors, battery suppliers, solar specialists and so on) plus - crucially - a number of electric narrowboats and their owners, who have been out cruising and gaining real experience of the challenges and pitfalls of this emerging technology.
Tickets are FREE but you must register for one in advance, at the website https://electrika.uk/
If you have any serious interest in the topic, this is well worth going to, as the smaller nature of the show means you will get a proper chance to discuss matters in detail with the exhibitors and boaters. Plus it's quite a jolly social too...
And if you're coming from some distance, there are also camping pitches available at the site, for tents and motorhomes (fee applies).
Hay, good lookin'
If you're in Hayes at the end of the month, why not pop along to the Canal Festival on July 26th. it runs from 11am-4pm and is described as "A family friendly festival where you can take to the water, enjoy live music and dance, and take part in a variety of fun activities."
https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/things-to-do/events/canal-events-canal-festivals/2026-07-26-hayes-canal-festival-2026
Ware Again!
The Ware Festival seems to run all month but it has a dedicated boating element from Friday 3rd to Sunday 5th and is on the upper reaches of the River Lee.
Attracting around 50 boats from the local area, there'll be a boat handling competition, a themed parade - and plenty of cakes and ice cream no doubt.
See https://www.waretowncouncil.gov.uk/whats-on/ware-festival/
Ducktastic
The Admiral Nelson pub at Braunston is the place to be on July 26th, from 10:30am until midday only, as they're holding a duck race!
Featuring a series of heats culminating in a final showdown, the event sees (plastic!) ducks competing against each other. You can sponsor a duck (£5 each), with proceeds going to the British Heart Foundation.
https://www.braunston.org.uk/org-event.aspx?eid=6959#event
Feeling Festival
As usual through the summer, there are various floating markets and local canal festivals across the country. It's best to have a look at the Roving Canal Traders Association website for all the schedules: https://www.rcta.org.uk/markets-festivals-and-events/#!event-list
Plus there's a long list of waterways activities throughout July on the CRT website at https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/things-to-do/events/canal-events-canal-festivals?page=8&start=2026-07-01&end=2026-07-31 |
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Into the dusty archive...
In the very hot weather recently, I have been making use of a gadget I bought back when I moved aboard my first narrowboat, namely a 3-sensor temperature display.
The sensors work wirelessly so you can distribute them around your boat or house or wherever.
I currently have the unit at home but also took it with me in the campervan last week, see my van channel for the video: https://vandemonium.co.uk/travels/van-99-boil-in-the-bag/
So this month's archive choice is when I installed the unit and made a review of it, back in 2019.
See that video at https://cruisingthecut.co.uk/2019/03/07/vlog-164-damp-patches/ |
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In this section, I give a recommendation for another YouTube channel that might be worth your time, not necessarily related to boating.
And this month it's a bit of a specialised choice, namely one for any iphone or ipad users (which I am, hence finding this channel)
As something of a "Boomer" who's beginning to find technology baffling - especially new features in new releases of the iphone operating system - handy guides in plain English are very welcome.
Thus I recommend to you Brooke Tierney, an American lady who seems to know her way around everything Apple-related and makes very detailed but easy to follow videos with all kinds of hints and tips about the apps you get on your phone.
If you could do with some guidance too, have a look at https://www.youtube.com/@BrookeTierney |
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Final Thoughts
Just before I finish, thanks to those who got in touch about the issue of the state of the canals; everyone who did so expressed an interest in a video on the topic, so it's been added to my "to do" list though I think it may be one for the quieter winter months when there's less chance to go boating.
That will also give me time to plan the video properly too.
Thanks for reading. Cheerio!
David |
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