Our mooring base at Braunston in Northamptonshire is something of a unique position with many advantages for groups thinking about and interested in a canal boat residential holiday with us.
Not only are we convenient and easy to reach from all corners of the country, but being situated at the junctions of the Grand Union Canal and Oxford Canals and in essence at the very heart of the canal network provides you and your group with a wealth of choice on routes for your trip.
In the first of two features, we provide you with suggestions of some of many great places you and your group can reach and visit depending on your length of trip.
Do it in a weekend
Head to…Rugby
Rugby is known throughout the world as the birthplace of the game as it was here, in 1823, while playing football at his school that a William Webb Ellis picked up the ball and ran with it. This moment took place on The Close at Rugby School, which is one momentous spot as part of the tours that Rugby School offer (advance booking required)
Close by is the Webb Ellis Rugby Football Museum is packed with rugby memorabilia whilst you can get a group selfie next to the statue of William Webb Ellis which is also close by.
All this is set in Rugby’s town centre which has a wide range of high street stores and independent shops as well as plenty of cafes and restaurants, and the impressive Rugby Art Gallery and Museum
The North Oxford Canal runs east to west towards the north of Rugby and by mooring here you can visit the Elliott’s Field Retail Park which has a great range of shops, cafes and restaurants, with a Tesco superstore just across the road in case you need to stock up on supplies.
Before reaching Rugby, you will visit and pass through the Hillmorton Locks; this picturesque village setting is famed for being the busiest lock section on the whole of the canal network with Locks 2&3 together being the most used locks on the Canal and River Trust’s network.
To the west of Rugby and heading on the North Oxford towards Coventry you will reach and pass through the historic Newbold on Avon Tunnel which like Braunston Tunnel (although not as long) is a great experience.
At the junction go west to…Napton and Napton Locks
As we have already mentioned, Braunston (and LNBP’s boats) is in a wonderful position situated at the junctions of the Grand Union Canal and Oxford Canals. At the very junction of the canals, three canals in fact – the Grand Union Canal and the North and South Oxford canals, known as the “Braunston Turn”, instead of continuing north towards Rugby and Coventry, by turning left provides a great lock-free section for everyone a chance to explore the boat and also the time to give everyone a chance to have a go at steering.
That is before reaching the village of Napton and Napton Locks.
Napton-on–the-Hill, as it is properly known, is as its title suggests a hillside village, watched over by its majestic Windmill which can be seen for many miles around. The Grand Union and Oxford Canal form a moat like quality at the foot of the hill, with a set of 8 locks being some of the nicest locks around, set as they are in beautiful peaceful countryside and climbing 49 feet.
For such a small village, it offers a surprisingly large number of amenities which includes a village store including post office, general store and coffee shop, play park, plus canal side shops and marina.
More on this route in the words of one of our now-retired project skippers, Chris Woodward, can be found here
South to…
Heading east out of Braunston on the Grand Union through the flight of six locks will bring you to the historic Braunston Tunnel, which at over a mile long and with a curve in the middle is an experience to go through.
Heading south at Long Buckby locks after passing the idyllic Norton Junction will bring you to Weedon Bec. That is about an eight hour cruise and the village has has a vast playing field with swings and goalposts for youngsters to burn off any unspent energy. It also has an early morning / late night convenience stores stocking up on supplies or grabbing an ice cream.
If there’s time, head to visit the Weedon Depot, which originally known as The Royal Ordnance Depot dates back to 1802 just prior to the Napoleonic Wars and was a store for muskets, cannon and gunpowder. Today the visitor centre offers guided tours (by advance arrangement) with a café also on site
More details about this route from Braunston to Weedon Bec in the words of our Booking Officer Nigel Smith can be found here
Branching off to…Northampton
From Weedon, there is short journey to reach the Northampton Arm which leaves the Grand Union Canal mainline at Gayton Junction and joins the River Nene in the centre of Northampton.
This arm of the Grand Union Canal does feature many locks – 17 single locks in fact – along its short length.
Northampton town centre is worth a visit for it offers a good blend of historic attractions and ultramodern entertainment, gaming, dining and fun for everyone.
Stoke Bruerne and Blisworth Tunnel
If you would rather continue on the main course of the Grand Union heading south, then another historic village and spot on Northamptonshire’s will soon come into focus.
Stoke Bruerne is lovely village of which its canalside setting becomes a hive of activity especially spring spring and summer. Here you will a Canal Museum which is located just off the canalside path in a historic Grade II listed corn mill and has three floors of waterway heritage and panoramic views, a café and gift shop. Outside the museum you can normally find the historic boat called ‘Sculptor’ which was built in 1935 and still going strong
To get here (and back to Braunston) is to navigate through another historic tunnel, the Blisworth Tunnel, which at 3,075 yards (2,811 meters) long is the longest wide, freely navigable tunnel in Europe (it’s wide enough for two narrowboats to pass in opposite directions). It is the third-longest navigable canal tunnel in the UK, after Standedge and Dudley Tunnels and the ninth-longest canal tunnel in the world!
* For more details about these and other routes and great places you can visit, click here
And look out for part two of our features on 10 great places to visit with LNBP.
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To make a booking or check on availability and the dates you want, head to our Bookings Page here
