comments:
You can moor everywhere on the towpath side for 14 days, unless signs tell otherwise and you're not in anyone's way. Water points are not for mooring overnight and neither are lock landings or winding holes. Popular spots are often limited to 48 hours and "mooring being full" can happen as well. Which most of the times just means you cannot park your boat directly in front of the pub but half a mile past it and have to walk back for dinner. Very popular spots may be full almost entirely. Like the Oxford Visitor Moorings (I was lucky, two weeks ago, snatching the last spot a minute before the boat behind me came up Isis lock). Or potentially anywhere popular. Need good walking boots, like for a hiking trip to the Lake District, as towpath can be muddy af. Canalplan, even with setting "slow lock working" may still be a bit too optimistic, plan for some buffer. A busy lock may throw your timing off by half an hour or longer. For maps, install opencanalmap on your phone and iPad, so you have at least something. If you want to be well equipped, buy the Nicholson Guides for the region you're planning to go. For the Grans union, this should be the correct volume: https://www.amazon.de/-/en/Grand-Union-Oxford-South-East/dp/000836379X And to top it off, you may want to consider the Pearson Guides. Lovely written and a joy to read, although the maps are pointing in every possible direction, just to fit on the page. There's also waterwayroutemaps to download onto your iPad. Cheap as long as you don't want to print them on paper. Also: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lXn47JYXs44 Also: it's canal time, everything happens slowly. If something goes wrong slowly, it's only embarassing and nothing brakes.