Author: David Johns

Vlog 413: Go with the flow

Posted on September 30, 2026 by David Johns

After months of painstaking procrastination, the time finally came to paint some gelcoat (and then flowcoat) onto my rebuilt transom on the project boat, Twiggy. However, it appears Twiggy has cellulite.

Vlog 412: Tork of the town

Posted on September 20, 2026September 20, 2026 by David Johns

I was kindly invited aboard DB1, an all-electric prototype day boat for part of its journey along the length of the Thames, powered purely by the sun.

Vlog 411: There and back again

Posted on September 10, 2026 by David Johns

After the summer canal carnage shown in vlog 410, here’s my return journey when things got even busier! But can you guess how many boats will have gone past me in just over two hours?

Vlog 410: School’s Out

Posted on August 30, 2026August 30, 2026 by David Johns

In the midst of the school holidays, in summer, in a heatwave, at a weekend, just how busy do the British canals get? Let’s find out as I take a two hour trip to Braunston on my tiny narrowboat, Gentian.

Vlog 409: London? Aye.

Posted on August 20, 2026August 20, 2026 by David Johns

I was invited to spend a day aboard the narrowboat of my friend Hannah Bodsworth, who moors on the River Lee in east London. Then in return, I invited her to spend the day with me cruising the countryside canals.

Vlog 408: Bleep!

Posted on August 9, 2026 by David Johns

Honestly, it’s nearly done, I swear, but Twiggy’s bottom needed a final layer of fibreglass to bump it up a bit, as well as some chopped strand mat around the corners, then a load of filler to join up all the gaps. This was filmed over two trips and with a very windy day, lead to much swearing (which I have bleeped, for your delicate ears)

Vlog 407: Nuts and Volts

Posted on August 2, 2026 by David Johns

The third annual Electrika show was held again at Brinklow marina in mid-July but rather than film flashy boat tours, I thought I’d take the opportunity to challenge experts and exhibitors about how safe we are having lithium batteries aboard, as these are widely used on electric narrowboats but you cannot help but see worrying stories about battery fires.

The video's host, David, is staring at the camera lens while he steers his narrowboat away from a bridge. The video is titled Juggernautical.

Vlog 406: Juggernautical

Posted on July 24, 2026July 24, 2026 by David Johns

This is part 2 of my return journey up the south Oxford canal from Cropredy marina to Napton. You can see part one using the link below. During this trip, I was unintentionally uncouth at a bridge-hole, a failing I have documented and lamented in this video.

Vlog 405: 404? Not Found

Posted on July 12, 2026 by David Johns

At the end of June, my mooring contract with Aquavista expired and the renewal was more than I wanted to pay, so I had to move the boat! This video is part 1 of 2 of me heading firstly back whence I came, up towards Napton.

Vlog 403: High Fibre

Posted on July 1, 2026July 1, 2026 by David Johns

It’s an event that few thought would ever happen but I have finally applied three (so far) sheets of 1708 biaxial fibreglass over the back of my project boat, Twiggy, and this video documents that sticky process, using Atlac 580 vinylester resin.

Canal Life