But volunteers aim to refurbish historic narrowboat.
The volunteers who operate the George Watson Buck narrowboat based on the Montgomery Canal in Llanymynech have taken the difficult decision not to run weekend boat trips during 2026 due to factors outside their control but have confirmed that the Visitor Centre will still be open at weekends offering light refreshments, canal exhibition and gift shop.
Said Graham Deakin, chairperson at Llanymynech Canal Wharf: “This decision hasn’t been taken lightly, but we didn’t want to promise trips that we might not be able to deliver for our visitors.
“The situation does though give us an opportunity to refurbish our boat during the summer months when it is hopefully drier, warmer and with longer days.
“We recently received a generous donation for £500 towards refurbishment from the Cabin in Llandrinio so we are looking to use that to help us improve the boat for future generations of visitors.
“We have long planned to make 2026 a year to raise funds to refurbish our historic and unique boat, the only narrowboat built by JCB, so we are now launching a campaign to attract 2,026 people to donate a fiver to help us complete a major overhaul of the boat this summer.
“We are aiming to install new windows and toilet on the boat as well as replacing the internal cabin cladding. The work is likely to cost £10-20,000 so if we can recruit local tradespeople and volunteers who would like to become part of this project, it would make it much more manageable.”
Based at the Llanymynech Canal Wharf in the Heritage Area in Llanymynech, the Visitor Centre is in a historic stable block and is an ideal spot for locals and visitors to the area to find out more about the heritage and wildlife of the Montgomery Canal. The wharf is run by volunteers from the Montgomery Waterway Restoration Trust charity.
A small exhibition outlines the history associated with the Montgomery Canal which was built to carry limestone from local quarries as well as passengers and agricultural goods. The Centre also has a number of second-hand books and small gifts for sale – all proceeds and donations go towards running the Centre and keeping the George Watson Buck ship shape.
Added Graham: “We will continue to offer visitors a space to buy light refreshments and ice creams at weekends from Easter until the end of September and we are upgrading our souvenir shop to give visitors more to experience by the canal.
“We are a small, friendly group here and we’d love to welcome new volunteers to come and find out how they could help.”
The Visitor Centre is now open on Saturdays and Sundays from Easter until the end of September. Opening hours are 1.00 – 4.00pm.
If you can be one of 2,026 people to donate a fiver – please donate online here – https://pay.sumup.com/b2c/Q0JTJS4I and if you are interested in helping in the restoration of the George Watson Buck narrowboat, please email news@themontgomerycanal.org.uk.