For an easy weekend to combine cruising and exploring, spend a day in Bradford on Avon and another cruising to the base of the Devizes flight. Perhaps use this as a 'taster' weekend to take a look at the impressive rise to Devizes, incorporating the notable Caen Hill Locks, one of the most impressive flights of locks in the UK.
Varied and delightful shops and restaurants line Bradford on Avon's narrow streets made all the more glorious with multi-coloured hanging flower baskets.
25 hours cruising would elsewhere be considered little more than a short break, but here the route includes Bradford on Avon, Bath, Bristol and, unusually, many more towns and villages that the canal passes through the centre of. Having followed the route of the River Avon by canal, after Bath the navigation uses the River itself, reverting to canal to divert into Bristol city centre.
Some stunning weirs accompany each river lock down to Bristol.
Museums and waterside features reflect the city's former importance as a sea port.
Frequent reminders of the route's industrial history such as the brass mill at Kelston are found within rolling valley countryside.
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