Half way up

On a sunny Sunday stroll along the Leeds-Liverpool Canal, I noticed there were a lot of boats moving up and down. It was the final weekend of the summer holidays, just before most of our schools went back, so maybe that had something to do with it. (School holidays inevitably inflate prices, so perhaps the first week back ushers in more reasonable costs for boat hire?) Every lock seemed to have a boat in it too. The Canal and River Trust staff were running around making sure everything was going to plan - very necessary with the multiple locks in Bingley. This widebeam vessel, hired from Bear Boating at Apperley Bridge (see the paw prints on the bow?), was half way up the staircase of Bingley's famous Five Rise Locks. Bear Boating is a company that prides itself on ensuring that novice boaters are properly trained before letting them loose, with a full two days training at the start of your holiday. Perhaps some of the other hire companies should cover more than just the rudiments before people set off. You do see people doing some rather silly things.