Sailing around Southern England

[NUTMEG]

In YM there is an article where Sir Richard Stilgoe sails up the Thames and goes through the canal system to Bristol then back home.
This got me dreaming. It would be nice to take my boat to different cruising grounds, could I do it via the inland waterways? After all people go down to the Med by canal, why not through our country?
Any thoughts, recommendations or have you done it?

What about pottering up the Chelmer navigation to get it out of your system? On your doorstep! I kept my first boat on the broads for a season to try to get the missus confident in a relatively safe environment (didn't work) and I found it really boring. No tides to speak of, no excitement, lots of hire motor boats, horrible!

Anyway I need someone to follow this season so I don't want you sneaking off!!!

All the best mate,

Steve

 

[Romeo]

Have found this page which seems to give dimensions for beam and length (but not draft and air draft) for most canals:

http://www.jim-shead.com/waterways/mwp.php?wpage=CraftSize.htm

It does seem to indicate that a reasonable sized seagoing boat could cross from the Humber to Liverpool/ Preston...... a little project that I sometimes think about.