A flotilla of eighteen narrow boats celebrated the bicentenary of Regent’s Canal last Saturday, sailing from Little Venice, through Islington, and ending at Limehouse.
The party from the St Pancras Cruising Club recreated the journey taken by the canal’s architect, John Nash, when it opened two hundred years ago.
“We have had to cancel events this year because of the pandemic,” said Lucy Greenwood of the Canal & River Trust, “but the event on Saturday could go ahead as it was people who lived as a social bubble on their boats.”
“It took about five hours. It was a really successful event,” Lucy continued. Four volunteers from the Canal & River Trust manned the organisation’s boat – Jena – on Saturday.
The event also celebrated the canal’s transformation in the last two hundred years. Originally used for freight, today the canal provides Londoners with access to green space and wildlife.
“It’s amazing to see how it’s evolved from an industrial centre to a space where the canal puts people first,” said Kabir Kaul, a 15-year-old conservationist and spokesperson for the event. “As a result of that process people’s mental health is being benefitted.”
It seemed fitting that this celebration came at a time when residents have been connecting with the canal during lockdown.
Lucy said that the Canal & River Trust’s towpath counters have seen “a huge increase,” in footfall recently. “That passion to protect the canal is being spread,” concluded Kabir.
