Since first learning to use kayaks, we have felt that we would like to paddle the Lancaster Canal from Preston to Tewitfield Locks just north of Carnforth. It was our hope that the Building Fund would benefit from us taking up this challenge as a somewhat different sponsored event.

We embarked on a more or less regular training programme, during which we would like it to be known that we suffered! We had expected aches, pains and a few blisters but we didn’t expect to have stones thrown at us or to have our parentage called into question when we refused to exchange a kayak for a Jack Russell terrier!

There were a few anxious days in July when Janet thought she might be paddling the canal alone while Chris languished in hospital with appendicitis but, thankfully, he recovered without the need for surgery and the original plans were back on.

After breakfast on day one we loaded our two big kayaks onto Janet’s little Metro. It all looked a bit unbalanced and top heavy but it didn’t creak too much. We managed the drive to the end of Aqueduct Street with no problems and parked opposite Kirkham Funerals – the canal is, after all, a dead end. We were quickly on the water and waving goodbye to Tim by 7.30. (Apologies to all those who turned up at 8.00 to see us off).

Very early on in our adventure we met Peter Sheasby walking towards us along the towpath. He kept alongside us for a short way and gave us each a little olive wood cross from Bethlehem. Janet fastened hers to the front of her boat (though it is now safely sewn to the beanie hat she often wears when paddling) and Chris keeps his in the pocket of his buoyancy aid. It was while we were with Peter that we saw the first of the seven or eight herons we encountered that day as it took flight from someone’s back garden near Haslam Park. It was also while we were with Peter that we ran into the first duckweed. Peter left us near Lane Ends Bridge and we paddled on through the soup. Parts of the canal were thick with the stuff and the new holding basin at the top of the Ribble Link was completely carpeted. The duckweed was a nuisance and made canoeing unpleasant as it clung to paddle shafts and began to make our hands sore – not something we welcomed so early in our endeavour. We finally saw the last of the dread weed near Salwick Bridge.

Our first scheduled stop was to be at Guy’s / Owd Nell’s. The stretch from Barton to Bilsborrow is one of the most boring sections of the canal, the scenery is very flat and featureless, there are few bridges to use as landmarks, not many people use the towpath and the canal passes beneath countless pylons and cables that click and buzz (especially in the drizzle). In our eagerness to get this bit over we must have accelerated and so arrived at Owd Nell’s at 10.30, a full half hour before we had asked the children to be there. Alison Stevens was also going to join us here and offer moral support as she walked along the towpath with us for a few miles. When the children (our support crew) finally turned up, we sat outside at one of the picnic tables with a tray of tea.

Alison turned up bang on time but her plans to walk alongside the boats were scuppered slightly because we paddle a little bit faster than walking pace and had really got into our stride by now. However, Elizabeth had offered to keep Alison company for the next four miles or so, which meant that the two of us didn’t have to worry that anyone was being left behind.

Near Brock, we found a closed gate blocking the towpath. Knowing that our hikers would find it difficult to get around, Chris gave it a prod with his paddle. It was only after Janet had gone under the bridge and looked back that we realised there was a herd of cows being ushered across by the farmer and the gate was there to prevent them from straying in the wrong direction. Fortunately, the farmer had put up another gate further along the towpath so no one got trampled (well, not anyone we know anyway!)

Our next stop was in Garstang at Byerworth Bridge where we were to have lunch. Tim had driven round to meet us and soon after we had started to eat Liz and Alison caught up with us. This had been a noisy section of our journey as for the last three miles the motorway, canal and railway had run alongside each other.

Following lunch the children left us and Alison continued to walk (and sometimes run) along the towpath. She had planned to find a disused railway track and walk along that – but that’s another story. We finally parted company somewhere close to Garstang Marina.

During the afternoon we devised a cunning plan to help us survive the privations of long distance kayaking. We decided that we would paddle for an hour then stop and have some chocolate; paddle for another hour and stop for more chocolate. In fact, have chocolate whenever we felt the need. The plan worked well and our first choccy stop was at Cabus Nook.

At some point it began raining, nothing heavy, just fine drizzle so by the time we reached Potter’s Brook Bridge, our next chocolate stop, we were getting a little soggy. We didn’t mind though, we were still well ahead of our planned arrival time and the rain by now was pretty sporadic so we weren’t unduly bothered by it.

The last few miles of our paddle today were really very attractive and took us passed Ellel Grange, an impressive pile built in 1857 for a merchant by the name of William Preston. The Grange has one of the most attractive bridges on the canal leading onto the estate. The next bridge along is a very wide one, built to serve two farms. Unfortunately the two farmers didn’t get on so required a bridge with a wall down the middle so neither could use the other’s side – some people! We hope this isn’t an urban legend, we will have to go back one day and check.

Near Galgate we paused for a few minutes at the top of the Glasson branch where a rather dainty little bridge crosses the first of the locks. Then came the last of our paddling for today as we passed through the marina towards Galgate Bridge where we could see Tim and Elizabeth waiting for us. A few final photos of the day and we scrambled out of our boats. We carried the boats to the car park at the cafe and were just about to get changed when Barbara Chesworth appeared. She had been inside the cafe and was on her way to the canal to see if we were coming back. Apparently she had spent a large part of the morning trying to catch up with us only to catch a tantalising glimpse of us disappearing over the horizon as we paddled away from the Jolly Roger. She had also hoped to catch up with us at Owd Nell’s but gave up and left fifteen minutes before we arrived! While Barbara was talking to us, Joyce and Alan Clarke drove into the car park to offer their encouragement. It really is lovely to know that so many people were thinking about us during our trip

Today our expedition began back at Galgate Bridge. The weather this morning was glorious and we began the day’s paddling on time at 9.30. We began by going through what must be the posh part of Galgate where some very big houses backed onto the canal; big conservatories, own moorings, that sort of thing. After that, we were in open countryside and heading towards some hills. It wasn’t long before we entered a very deep and heavily wooded cutting. This was the part of the canal that we enjoyed most and would love to paddle again at a future date. There was a wide variety of trees and other plant life, we were well away from the hum of the motorway and the architecture of some of the bridges was fascinating particularly Brantbeck Bridge which was huge and dwarfed the kayaks. We could have spent ages there, it was so peaceful.

Once out of the cutting we suddenly rounded a sharp right hand bend and there we were in Lancaster, then it rained. Fellow canoeists had warned us that the canal through Lancaster can be a bit grotty and not very nice to paddle. We couldn’t disagree more and felt that the city takes a certain pride in this amenity. There are obviously industrial areas, but as this is what the canal was built to serve, it is hardly surprising that they’re there. It was cleaner that we would have expected a city canal to be and newly built flats and offices have been constructed in sympathy with their surroundings.

The rain really didn’t last long. In fact, it was over well before we left Lancaster, but by now the wind was beginning to pick up and we were stuck with that for the rest of the day.

Once out of the city and round another sharp bend – left hand this time – we reached the approaches to the Lune Aqueduct where we could see Tim and Elizabeth waiting for us. The Aqueduct is not a very elegant structure but is good, solid engineering and built to last. (It can be seen from the M6 when travelling north, just after junction 34). We had a break here for twenty minutes or so. Elizabeth had been impressed on her walk to the Aqueduct by just how clean the water was. She had seen several fish swimming about, luckily for them they were nowhere near the two boys who were dangling lines in the water. Tim was fulfilling his role as our driver very well and so far was managing to arrive on time at all our rendezvous points. It was pleasant to lean over the parapet of this impressive bridge and sip tea, but the wind was already beginning to slow us down and we felt we should be pressing on.

The headwind, though not incredibly strong, was enough to make progress a bit tiring as we passed through Hest Bank. The canal runs very close to the sea here and there are beautiful views across Morecambe Bay, which we could only see through gaps in the hedges but which must be quite lovely when seen from the deck of a narrowboat.

We weren’t far off with our timings when we arrived at Hatlex Swing Bridge, our scheduled lunch stop. We had to get out here as the bridge is kept closed to canal traffic and is too low for the kayaks to pass beneath. Nevertheless, the getting out is not easy as the sides are very high. Chris went first ‘cos he’s a boy and can cope with adversity and it was while he was lying across the towpath with his feet hanging over the water, that a passer-by offered to open the bridge for us. We smiled politely and said we’d be OK, then Chris clung onto Janet’s buoyancy aid as she made a rather inelegant exit from her boat. The swing bridge forms part of the driveway to a single house in Hest Bank; we rather like the idea, it’s a bit like having a drawbridge, though we’re not sure who has to maintain it.

A lot of work has been done at this end of the canal to improve the towpath particularly through Bolton le Sands and on this stretch we always meet a lot of hikers, dog walkers and cyclists. It’s a real pleasure to see the canals being used by as many people as possible – the more they’re used, the brighter their future.

Having paddled through Bolton le Sands we were back in farming country again. The one disappointment of today was that we didn’t see a single heron. We became very adept at spotting kingfishers over the two days of our journey, however, and are pleased to report that these lovely little birds occur throughout the length of the canal although we have to admit, we never got very close to any of them, we simply saw flashes of brilliant blue and orange darting across the surface of the water.

Paddling became hard work for Janet during the afternoon although Chris seemed to get his second wind. A combination of tiredness and blustery weather meant that we were well behind time when we arrived at Carnforth. We had a chocolate break here though as we were both in need of a rest. Carnforth is our least favourite town along the canal. The water is always filthy here and the whole place has a back of beyond feel to it.

The journey from Carnforth to Tewitfield normally takes us about an hour to complete so we were beginning to scent home. Once under the M6 we stopped briefly, studied the map and struck out for Tewitfield. We didn’t stop again but definitely found the last couple of miles hard work. We soon passed the Capernwray Arm, a little known and very short branch of the canal, then Borwick Hall, the outdoor pursuits centre.

Just before the final bridge we were aware of a small knot of people standing on the towpath some of whom were waving at us. They were Tim, Elizabeth, Barbara, Alison and some members of Janet’s family. It was nice to have a little crowd. Joan Hardman and Kathleen Speight caught up with us a bit later.

We finished in triumph, paddles held high, as we thumped into the end of the canal. We felt a real sense of pride at having achieved something that few people have done before – the fact that very few people would want to emulate us did nothing to dampen our spirit.