A common sight along the banks of the Intracoastal Waterway on the east coast of the USA is the snapping turtle sunning itself on a tree root. So it wasn’t initially a surprise to see a similar sight on the Lancaster Canal - until I realised we don’t have snapping turtles and, in fact, we don’t have any fresh water turtle-types at all. What I saw was probably a terrapin set free when the novelty of ownership had worn off and now ‘gone native’ in wildest Lancashire. These terrapins were imported in large numbers, mainly from the USA, to satisfy the demand created by the Ninja Turtle craze, and subsequently released into the rivers and canals.
The boats you meet on the canal are many and varied. Narrowboats, of course, with their traditional floral livery, Dutch barges, Broads cruisers, motor boats of various shapes and sizes, canoes and kayaks. We’ve even encountered a family in an inflatable dinghy. Minnie still turns heads, however, and gets the odd comment from other boaters – ‘ahoy sailor’ and ‘get those sails up’.
