Slow boat through the mountains

James Wood discovers the joys and challenges of narrow boating in the Brecon Beacons

- James Wood

Have you ever wandered down an autumnal towpath, amid the mild fug of stove smoke, and wondered how cosy a trip aboard a canal barge could be? I know I had. A few steps more and a welcoming pub is usually to be found, only adding to the appeal.

So when my wife, Ali, suggested a narrowboat holiday with Beacon Park Boats, I didn’t need convincing. We could combine it with seeing Welsh relatives, while the kids – used to ‘roughing it’ in our 45-year-old project boat – would be thrilled at the prospect of a boat with a TV (we didn’t mention there was no signal reception).

The Monmouth and Brecon Canal (known as the Mon & Brec) is a little-known stretch of canal, unconnected to any other UK waterway. It’s almost entirely rural, located in the Brecon Beacons National Park. A number of picturesque walking trails follow the route of the canal, including the Usk Valley walk and the Taff Trail. The section now navigable to narrowboats or river cruisers runs 35 miles from Brecon down to Cwmbran.

Although construction started in the 1790s, the canal didn’t open fully until 1812, initially transporting coal, lime and agricultural goods. However, following the industrial revolution, the Mon & Brec became one of the main arteries for iron ore (incoming), and finished iron (outgoing) from the forges at Blaenavon. The decline of the canal began only a few decades later, with the rise of rail and the eventual acquisition by Great Western Rail (GWR). The canal finished work as a commercial artery in the 1920s, and restoration for pleasure boating only really began in 1968.