We were starry eyed and excited as the prospect materialised and we set off into the sunset on this romantic notion of travelling on the canals in our home. Then as we turned the corner and negotiated our first set of locks, we lost propulsion. We were on our own and confused, our dream and wishes had become reality, but our first cruise had become a nightmare.

We were forced to seek the refuge of a marina where we found out so much about our boat and even more about ourselves. We spent too much time and even more money fixing her up whilst we mastered the art of floating. But the build-up to leaving was a rush and a count down. So, it was with equal measures of apprehension, excitement and sadness, that we started the engine and ventured out of our familiar, safe haven.

The second beginning of our odyssey took us up the Birmingham & Worcester and as we were going through Sidbury lock, we encountered our first tourists who quickly pulled out their cameras and started snapping away, photographing “the strange people who live in those dinky little boats”.

Even though we were clueless, we must have looked authentic, and it brought the widest smiles and most peculiar feeling to us; once out of earshot we reflected with embarrassed laughter. Having spent so long as voyeurs contemplating the whim, we were now being observed from the other end of the lens. It has become apparent to us during our journey that gongoozlers are so very, very curious. They want to chat and consider how us odd people live. Some want us to sell the dream, whilst others are disturbed by the prospect but generally the young are inspired, and the elders see the wisdom.

Our trip to date, has taken us through some foreboding milestones: up the thirty-six locks of the Tardebigge flight; through several spookily long tunnels; across some dauntingly high aqueducts; a little bit of Birmingham and the notorious “Wolverhampton 21”; the Shropshire Union and onto the Llangollen canal in north Wales. All of which were wonderful experiences and are now fond memories.

Autumn and nature's last flourish have served up a most spectacular palette of colours and when the mercury dropped, the frozen “Golly” left us basking with a raging log fire and clear blue skies with fabulous vistas. She has shown us the merit of being out on the cut in the cold and we agree with our fellow boaters who prefer the more peaceful winters on the cut without the lunatic fringe on their one-week binge.

Though having worked for a hire boat company, I had much empathy for these adventure seekers. Watching them during their boat introduction, politely nodding with their newly acquired captains’ hats, then gingerly negotiating their way out of the marina. Prior to ripping off their shirts and cracking open the booze whilst getting their craft up to warp speed ready to clatter everything on their merry way.

But this playful corruption of an observation can be more insightful... How else do hard working holiday makers manage their downtime? Other than to chuck some clothes in a bag, slam the boot on the car and tear-arse it up the M40, just to slow down their fuel injected lifestyles for a week on the water.

Maybe this yarn is more about navigating life rather than a boat. How one interprets the fundamentals and expectancies of being an upstanding member of society and dedicating ambition to correspond with the indoctrination of authority. Should government philosophy dictate our work ethic and a 40-hour 5-day week, just to spend the ensuing 30 something years trapped on the financial hamster wheel with annual sojourns of piracy and debauchery on our inland waterways.

Or can one relinquish Friday’s gin fizz, Tom Ford, Vorsprung durch Technik for a more sedate life?

Cruising through our shallow waters and deepest thoughts with the time to enjoy them. This choice is not some poetic idyl, there are always jobs to do on a boat and it comes with a diverse set of risks that some may consider reckless. One needs to get down and dirty; it is a frugal existence as we manage our resources and utilise the opportunities when they arise. Be it emptying the loo or topping up the water, foraging or shopping, cleaning, or fixing, making the most of the weather and living on the cut requires a love of nature and the outdoors. But giving up much and sacrificing luxuries for a life aboard is precious and the rewards reveal themselves and life evolves in a different spectrum.

Because the people who choose this way of life do so for a myriad of reasons. Most have unusual back stories and have tested the constricts imposed on us by our puppet masters. One finds higher incident rates of free radicals bouncing their take on life around the fire. You hear the wackiest ideas and fascinating life stories when engaging with the “Characters of the Cut”.
There exists an acceptance and friendship in this gentle, open-minded community with the understanding and time to support and a desire to pool skills and resources.

There isn’t any need to rush, to achieve and prove oneself has all but evaporated and stress eludes us. Occasionally we hear the hum of a near-by motorway or a dashing siren, but they serve as reminders of what we left behind. The greatest gift this life-choice provides is a slow tranquillity and peaceful priceless moments.

In life, there are more answers than there are questions; But whomever we are, and by whichever means we skid into our grave… our experience of life is a most important question!

I’ve never been daunted by change; indeed, I undeniably relish it, but Donna is generally more grounded and sedate with her decision making. It usually goes something like; I throw up a fantastical idea verging on lunacy, then Donna has a meltdown and spends the next few days percolating and figuring out the feasibility and possible pitfalls, so that we end up with a refined plausible plan that might even work.

Buying a narrowboat is a consideration not to be taken lightly. We bought our boat to cruise the cut and experience the nature and the seasons at close hand, to visit all the places that the canal system granted us access to and spend time in the company of kindred spirits. The quintessential English idyl that many dream of, however, as in life, things conspire, plans change and sometimes matters can unravel very quickly.

Once we had got aboard, we realised that immediate repairs and some long-term refitting needed to be completed before we could start exploring.  We had an idea of what was involved, as I had already created a spreadsheet with all the things we would like on our hypothetical boat, and I had costed it within an inch of its life. Of course, this turned out to be a total work of fiction and had very little relevance with the Jeremiah Lee. We had only recently dusted ourselves down after a 2-year renovation of a 1900’s cottage but a narrowboat is an entirely different prospect and when reality struck, we didn’t know whether to make a bowline or a beeline.

She had been built as a holiday, getaway, weekend boat by some very capable and experienced boaters who knew exactly what they needed twenty years ago, in effect she was an out of date leisure boat. Her second owner had also fallen in love with her because she will charm anyone who boards her. He wanted to live on her on a permanent mooring, with electric hook up, piped water and all that one requires close by, the well-used phrase and crudely put “floater not a boater” springs to mind.

However, the ambiguity of constant cruising means that your floating home requires a level of self-reliance, the vessel needs to be capable of sustaining you for a duration of time between facilities; you might say her off grid capabilities.

Our narrowboat was indeed somebody else’s baby, and a refit requires one to work within someone else’s original plan. For every action we would take there would be a reaction, that’s to say that the impact of doing one thing will affect another thing that you will have to live with. The boats’ depth and attitude in the water, her ballast, air draught, keeping us warm and a healthy engine are of course crucial, but changes needed to be made regardless.

Primarily the lack of space, the required tools and building materials along with clothes, food and all the essentials needed for cooking and eating, washing and dressing, somewhere to sit, somewhere to sleep, it may sound odd but with so little room, we must move things about just to be able to work.

Secondly, besides the carpentry and decoration, there’s a whole load of other skills required; electrics for both direct current and alternating current, solar systems, security systems, comms systems, gas and water plumbing, engineering and an understanding of engines and mechanics.

Then there are the chores; walking Dylan and trying to keep our place and things clean, shopping, topping up the water, the diesel, the gas and coal, foraging wood, buying food and sorting our waste requires a chunk of time. All of this whilst not owning a car could make matters even more difficult but luckily for us, we could rely on the benevolence of our friends’ network.

One also needs appropriate work arounds to live long term on the cut and this is another quagmire that needs thought and ingenuity; financial arrangements, an income and banking, medical arrangements, any conditions, requirements and prescriptions, mail and parcels, groceries, all need sorting out. There’s the general maintenance of your boat, an appreciation of the weather, understanding navigation, being able to handle the boat and know how to manage locks, bridges and tunnels. In short, becoming competent helmspersons.

Whilst working on the boat has and can be an arduous undertaking, sometimes stressful, always testing but essentially rewarding. We have flagged a few times, run out of steam, lost the will, taken time out, whatever excuse we’ve used them all. But generally, Donna remains more sanguine and hey if you’re going to get knocked down, fall forward rather than backward as its easier to get up again, so we muddle on and through the tricky stuff.

We knew that making time for ourselves would be crucial for the pleasure of the experience, so our desire hasn’t diminished, and our aspirations grow with the completion of each task. Whilst we are still a few months from being able to go cruising, we are a long way from where we started and have learnt much, how much is to be discovered but that is at the core of our endeavours.

It’s not just the geography, the landscapes and the flora and fauna that requires our further investigation and quiet contemplation, it’s the journey of self-exploration and expression. Getting off the hamster wheel is a life choice and trade off; we have given up comfort and security to slow right down. We may not have an alarm, but the clock is relentless and being able to enjoy our fitness and good health to pursue ones’ aspirations is our reward.

Living in a small space with a bookshelf is all we need to have a light touch in our world. We both have interests and creative pastimes that will occupy our days and quench our ambitions and we have taken this holistic approach to experience life within the briefness of the time that we have.

A major contributing factor for our mental wellbeing is being able to live within this close-knit community of persons who are alternative thinkers, decision makers and risk takers. The achievers that choose their destiny and find their own and unique pathways, gives us a sense of belonging and helps us feel comfortable as our adventure unfolds. It’s also a very social environment that requires our engagement and attendance of events and some considerable quaffing.  After all, your vibe is our tribe eh!

You can follow us on Instagram; @narrowboat_nomads, watch us on YouTube; Narrowboat Nomads and find out more at; www.nomadplan.co.uk