Isolation

When I first began cruising back in April 2019, I was excited by the prospect about being able to finally live my dream. Summer was on it’s way and the canals were beginning to get busy with not only boaters but also walkers, joggers, cyclists and anglers. It was a time to enjoy the canals at their finest time, meet lots of people, be socialable and make new friends….and that’s exactly what I did. 

However, there is a downside to living fulltime on a boat and that’s the isolation. While many boaters I meet thrive at the thought of being isolated and cherish this, this is one aspect I’ve struggled to cope with as there are often times when I’m totally alone, far from anyone or anything. That’s part of the reason I started writing this website and also having my YouTube channel as it gives me a purpose and sense of belonging. 

As the days get darker leading up to winter, once the sun sets, one of my biggest challenges is to remain active which is difficult living on such a small boat. At just 24 feet, my living space is tiny compared to most other craft, making it difficult to find enough activities to keep me going. So again, having my YouTube channel plus this website (blog), gives me some purpose and activities to keep me going. ie comments to respond to, updates to record or publish etc. 

Social Interaction

Like I said above, over summer, the canals are busy and bustling with all kinds of people so cruising around is a treat. But when winter arrives and the days are short, this poses a significant challenge. Many boaters often frequent local canal-side pubs but this can become increasingly expensive. A pint of ale costs around £4 with food costing around £10 or more. If I were to visit the local pub every night of the week my costs would escalate to the point that I simply couldn’t afford to provide for myself the necessities required to keep my boat afloat. 

Many people read books to pass the time. However, I’m not the type of person who can simply sit there and read…I like to remain active and keep busy. 

Of course, I also have my partner but we only talk once a day for a short time. And he visits every other weekend. I do prefer the company of others so if you’re like me and need external sources to keep you company you may struggle…but you may find solitude in being alone in a boat on the canals. 

Become Your Own Best Friend

Unless you’re living on board with your partner, you need to become your own best friend. That is, you need to be comfortable with the fact that it’s just you alone on the boat for hours, days and weeks at a time and be comfortable with yourself as your main source of company. 

Furry Friends

Many boaters, myself included, have pets to keep them company. Most boaters have dogs but I have cats. They give me someone else to talk to (as opposed to talking to myself), and they’re always around to pat and have a cuddle with…and I can also talk to them whenever I feel lonely. 

That said, I now have one special patron by the name of Charlie. I now call him the “Charming Charlie” lives in Texas, USA and while he’s a patron, we’ve developed a nice friendship as well. We’re both loners in many ways so having each other helps alleviate the loneliness we have and we have each other to chat to. We often send voice messages to each other and quite often have video chats on Whatsapp. 

Entertainment

Quite often I’ll have a TV show I’ve watched a million times playing in the background as it provides me with the comfort of human voices. Just the sound of voices in the background is enough to provide me with company while I do other things. When I first began cruising, I envied the sound of silence as coming from a house previously with 3 screaming kids next door, it was quite refreshing to switch everything off and hear nothing but silence.