Leo

Whilst I was in Skipton, I met up with some friends and we had a walk along the Springs Canal. This is a short branch attached to the main Leeds-Liverpool canal. It was built in 1797 by Lord Thanet, who lived in Skipton Castle, in order that limestone from the Yorkshire Dales could be brought down by a tramway to load onto barges. It's a quiet, pretty little canal these days (a far cry, I imagine, from its noisy heyday as a working canal). The path goes right behind the walls of Skipton Castle and then on up into Skipton Woods, which is a lovely green oasis full of birds and wildlife.

The narrowboat Leo, in my photo, does regular short trips up the Springs Branch and back to the canal basin - for £3 you can spend a very pleasant half hour watching the world drift past. The boatman is a neighbour of my friends - cue for a certain amount of waving and banter as the boat slid by!