Rupert Holmes looks at popular, reasonably priced boats that are ideal for cruising rivers, canals and estuaries
There are as many different styles and eras of boats suitable for use inland as there are seagoing vessels – and a lot of them overlap between the two disciplines.
Indeed, a sizeable proportion of boats based on rivers with easy access to the sea, such as the Thames above Teddington lock, or the Lee Navigation in east London, have powerful engines that allow them to achieve planing speeds in open water. However, those further inland will tend to have smaller units that are more economical to run but will still deliver hull speed in nearly any conditions.
An early decision will be whether to opt for a wide beam vessel or a narrow beam one able to navigate the UK’s narrow canals with a lock width of 6ft 10in.
However, these canals are only a small section of the network, and a narrow beam boat has significantly less space. By contrast, many wide-beam river and canal cruisers have far more accommodation than any sailing boat of a similar length.
Freeman 22 or 26
Over 26 years John Freeman, a decadeslong caravan builder, built 6,000 river and canal cruisers, starting with the Freeman 23 in 1957. At a time when production boatbuilding in glassfibre was in its infancy, Freeman transferred techniques learnt from the caravan side of the business with such success he stopped making caravans just three years later.
This boat, along with the slightly later Freeman 26, has since become a classic. Large windows help create a bright interior, which includes a small toilet compartment, double vee-berth forward,
compact galley and four-person dining area that converts to a double berth. With a good cockpit shelter, the outside space can also double as an extra saloon area.
A Mkll version, with full headroom throughout and a distinctive stepped sheerline, followed in 1964 and continued in production until 1970. A variety of motors were fitted, mostly marinised car petrol engines including side valve units from the Ford Anglia in early boats, while some later boats had Perkins 4.107 diesels as used in London taxis. Spares are still readily available for many. The simple shaft drive won’t suffer from the expensive problems that can be experienced with the outdrives that became popular in the 1970s.
Prices for the Freeman 22, which had a 6.7m/ 22ft 0in LOA and 2.3m/7ft 6in beam range from £7-10,000.
Princess 32
Another classic yet capable design, dating from 1970 with more than 1,200 built, the Princess 32’s roots are in Project 31, built by Marine Projects in Plymouth, which also built Moody and Sigma sailing yachts, and was the first design to be branded
