As we write, the boats are tucked away at the end of The Montgomery Canal at Maesbury Marsh surrounded by autumnal colours. We awoke this morning to see a kingfisher sitting on a post in the winding hole opposite and realised just what a lovely unspoilt part of the world this is. Hanna is looking forward to getting in some horse riding this winter, (in between the driving lessons), now that her father and boat horse Buddy are only down the road. John meanwhile, is thinking of a holiday in a warmer climate. This shall be our first winter without boat fitting for 2 years.

Successful 2008 season
Thank you to all those that holidayed with us this year, we hope you enjoyed it as much as we did! It was certainly a challenging first year with a pair of boats and double the number of guests, but a rewarding one for all the same reasons. There were a number of new boating skills to be mastered and we have thoroughly enjoyed learning to handle the boats on cross straps, snatchers and snubbers, bow hauling the full 24 tonnes of butty along short pounds and long and in particular delivering the tea tray between two moving boats fully loaded with the days afternoon tea, cake and all. At this point we feel it only fair to thank in particular, Bob, our long suffering crew member, for all his input, help and hard work. We are very much hoping he will return next year as, we suspect, are many of our guests.

Going Solar
As per our original intentions we shall be installing solar panels to help with the power requirements on the butty. This should enable us to travel on a long towing line (snubber) a little more often making the cruise experience for those guests on the butty more serene and with a superior view of the canal and surroundings as we travel. It also minimises the impact of our own power needs during the winter months when we live on board.

Looking ahead to 2009.
There have been one or two adjustments to the provisional schedule we released in May, however for the most part it remains unchanged. We had been expecting to have to make a further increase in our prices for next year due to inflation in the prices of food and fuel. However, with much consideration of the current economic climate and our feeling that inflation will probably stabilise over the next 6 months, we have decided to hold off so the prices printed originally shall stand.

We have spent the past 2 Aprils boat fitting on the towpath in glorious sunshine and we felt it was only right that we begin our 2009 season earlier to take full advantage. We also have several cruises that are particularly appropriate for those who enjoy walking while the boats cruise. If you would like to discuss these, please just give us a call. Although there is at this time plenty of availability with only one cruise fully booked as of yet, cabins are filling so, as ever, we would recommend considering booking early if you have a particular cruise or cabin in mind. Regulars will already be aware of our ‘previous customer’ discount which this year stands at 10%, (we expect to keep this at this level for the foreseeable future) so should you be tempted to return… This applies to all Bywater Holidays including all those run by Stephen, details of which are on this website.

We hope you find these updates of some interest and if you have any questions about any of the holidays offered by Bywater please don’t hesitate to get in touch. Until then have a nice winter, Christmas and New Year.

Our warmest regards for this chilly time of year.
Hanna & John
p.s. Please don’t be too surprised if you call and reach Hanna’s father Stephen, as he will be manning the line while we take a much needed holiday at some point this winter.

2009 marks the 20th year that Stephen has been running his Moorland Rover tours. As ever there is a wide and varied choice of holidays to choose from. If you are the type of person who looks at a road you’ve never been down before and wonders ‘where does that lead?’ or prefers being where the crowds aren’t, then these are the perfect holidays for you!

If something appeals or you would like further details of the options available please don’t hesitate to call him. Tel: 07971303416

February 2009
Monday 2nd to Friday 6th See of Snowdrops South Devon 4 £295
Friday 6th to Monday 9th See of Snowdrops Exmoor 3 £230
Monday 9th to Friday 13th See of Snowdrops The Cotswolds 4 £295
Monday 16th to Friday 20th See of Snowdrops Shropshire 4 £295
Friday 20th to Monday 23rd See of Snowdrops Llangollen 3 £230

March 2009
Monday 2nd to Friday 6th Spring in Cornwall Lostwithiel 4 £390
Friday 6th to Monday 9th Spring in Devon Okehampton 3 £295
Monday 9th to Friday 13th Spring in Exmoor Exmoor 4 £390
Monday 16th to Friday 20th Spring in Wales Brecon 4 £390
Monday 23rd to Friday 27th Spring in Lakeland Patterdale 4 £390

April 2009
Thursday 2nd to Thursday 9th The Burren and Beyond Gallway 7 £895
Tuesday 14th to Monday 20th Spring in Snowdonia Criccieth 6 £595

October 2009
Thursday 1st to Monday 5th Pennine Potter Alston 4 £395
Monday 5th to Friday 9th Look at Lakeland Great Langdale 4 £420
Friday 9th to Tuesday 13th Forest and Fells Settle 4 £395
Thursday 15th to Monday 19th Autumn Gold Exmoor 4 £395
Monday 19th to Friday 23rd Deepest Devon Okehampton 4 £395
Friday 23rd to Monday 26th Autumn Gold Exmoor 3 £320
Monday 26th to Friday 30th Cotswolds in Colour Cirencester 4 £420
Friday 30th to Tuesday 3rd Cambria in Colour Brecon 4 £395