Not all work ..

When Marina Manager Georgina and myself went to the British Marine Inland Waterways Conference 2025 yesterday, it was definitely not a question of ‘all work and no play’. In fact quite the opposite.

Held at the Black Country Living Museum, we were lucky enough to be able to do a very quick whistlestop tour during our lunch hour which enabled us to get a flavour of excactly what the museum is all about, and believe you me we (well I for one) will definitely be back to spend an entire day there. It was brilliant in every way, everything was so authentic, it was like taking a real step back in time and to top it all the weather was amazing.

But there was a serious side to the day clearly as over 120 delegates attended the annual day long event which featured fascinating talks and updates from industry experts on topics such as Fire Prevention, HVO and Fuels of the Future plus Waterways Chaplaincy, Toursim on the Thames and a variety of breakout sessions. The conference is particularly good for networking, the value of which cannot be underestimated, after all we are (excuse the pun) all in the same boat and everyone is experiencing the same issues associated with the boating and leisure industry. Overall a very interesting day.

The other bonus was it gave all the Cruise Moor members the opportunity to meet up and discuss how Cruise Moor had performed during the Summer and how it was being welcomed by boaters; there has been some fabulous feedback. It is always lovely to see our small but perfectly formed group of independent family runner marinas face to face. Sadly Janet and Angus from Overwater marina were unable to attend but hopefully we will all get together next year and hopefully it will be back at the Museum. Below just a few pictures of our whistlestop tour