Cruising Classroom

Liveaboard Emma welcomes a lighter lockdown

At the time of writing this, lockdown is starting to ease on the UK canals. Liveaboards, without a home mooring, can now move and the normal mooring rules apply. This obviously does not include those who are still sheltering at home or those with medical needs and the CRT is always flexible with mooring rules for continuous cruisers, where there are special circumstances. Leisure boaters can visit their boats and take them out for short trips but must return to their home mooring and cannot stay on their boats overnight. They are considered second homes, as are caravans and motorhomes. Hire boats are not allowed out, but days boats are if the group on them is from one family unit.

As we travel and visit local towns, only essential shops are open, although there are plans for other shops to reopen soon. Pubs and restaurants are still closed apart from takeaways. It sometimes feels hard to keep up with all the changes to lockdown rules, but in some ways being able to cruise again has brought back a degree of normality for us.