Cool canals Guides & Waterways Directory

Whether you're an ambler, rambler, long-distance hiker, jogger, dog walker, wheelchair user, or just a gongoozler - there's a place on the waterways towpaths for everyone.

Canals are never far away, whether you live in the city or countryside, so step into the secret world of these waterways. Walk amongst forgotten flora and woodlands, meet wildlife, watch narrowboats pass by, and taste the history of Britain's most unique and tranquil waters.

Towpaths were originally designed for horses towing boats, but these days you are more likely to see footprints than hoof prints. Most canals have easily walked towpath trails. The shortest canal is under a mile, the longest 137 miles, and collectively, they make up over 2,000 magnificent slow waterside miles, meandering from the highlands of Scotland to the sands of Cornwall.

If you want to, you can wear gortex, carry laminated OS maps round your neck, eat hearty cheese sandwiches and scramble to your limits, canalbagging like a 'Munroist'... but expensive equipment, speed and distance are all just details in the slow world of canals - the real stuff of walking is getting out there, enjoying the open air and discovering freedom on foot.

 
 
 

Why walk canals?

• It's a walker-friendly environment
• Canal walking can be as challenging as you want - walk a mile, do the entire length of the longest canal, walk the cruising rings or go canalbagging...
• Your map-reading skills don't have to be great - just follow the water...
• Towpaths are mostly easy underfoot, & rarely too hilly
• You can nip to your local canal (half of us in Britain live within 5 miles of a canal) or hop on a train and walk a canal in your favourite landscape. Railways were built alongside canals so there's usually a station nearby.
• Every canal is different, with surprises around every corner
• Canal walks can be urban, rural, and sometimes even coastal
• There are no cars - and no cows (except perhaps a random stray!)
• Canals don't discriminate - between experienced walkers and those new to walking, between young and old, between anyone in a wheelchair or not, between scruffy trainers and designer walking boots
• No matter how far you walk, there's usually a welcoming canalside pub at the end...

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The Seasons

It's worth remembering that canal boating is seasonal. In some places the water gets busy with boats during school holidays and throughout the summer, yet turn into a sleeping dormitory for boats in winter.
The towpaths vary with the season's popularity too, but some stay active all year round especially at weekends near residential areas, tourist attractions or busy waterside pubs.

Springtime perks us up as nature comes to life on the waterways, summer is a great time to soak up the sun and watch boating activity, and autumn can be beautiful with its changing colours. But don't forget winter. That's the time you get the place to yourself, and the stunning canalscape is a wild experience! Just wrap up warm and remember to take food for the hungry canal wildlife too.

What motivates you?

• Fitness & health:
  The Ramblers' Association points out that "For general health, experts recommend accumulating a total of 30 minutes of brisk walking on most, preferably all days of the week." Canalside walks are conveniently on your doorstep (even in cities) and great for regular walks building up fitness at your own pace. Forget about gasping up hills, just push yourself further every time you go out canal walking.
• Social walking:
  Whether you prefer to go solo or in a group, being happy and exchanging cheery hellos is mandatory in canal walking territory. It's easy to be absorbed into the 10-minute transient friendships unique to the canal way of life and it is typical to find a small gathering at any lock with a boat passing through... Festivals, boat gatherings, organised group walks are also great for socialising. Festivals >>>
• Relaxation:
  The moment you step down onto the canal towpaths, you leave all irrelevancy behind.
  It's slow, it's peaceful, and the perfect walking space if you want to escape the mayhem of the modern world...
• The great outdoors:
  In their entirety, canals travel formidably from Scotland all the way to Cornwall, and the great outdoors in between takes in mountains, forests, meadows and cities. So whatever your favourite corner of Britain, there's probably a good canal walk for you to enjoy.

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