THE first operation of a new cruise route on the Wey & Arun Canal has proved a hit with visitors with almost every place on the trips that ran on Saturday 1st and Sunday 2nd September sold out.
The trips on the recently restored Alfold section of the canal, close to the Three Compasses pub, marked the first boat use on the Surrey section of the canal for over 100 years. According to Wey & Arun Canal Trust chairman Sally Schupke, the new cruise route marks a milestone in the Trust's 40 year restoration efforts.
Prove popular
In the run-up to the trips, even though the event and the Trust's restoration work was promoted at Dunsfold's Park's recent Wings & Wheels event, the Trust had no idea if the cruises would prove popular, with Sally commenting:
"We have run regular boat trips from our Loxwood centre in West Sussex for a number of years now and these generate a regular stream of visitors but we were very pleased with the response to the new cruise route."
Moved especially
The Trust moved one of its boats—the John Smallpeice (which was named after the Clerk of the original Wey & Arun Junction Canal Company) to the newly restored section of canal at Alfold especially for the inaugural trips in September.
It is now hoped that boat trips on the summit section of the canal can become a more regular feature in the Trust's cruising calendar.