Circle Line: Around London in a Small Boat

by Steffan Meyric Hughes

Join the editor of Classic Boat magazine as he sets sail around London, glides through historical monuments, and unearths long-forgotten secrets from beneath the waterway Magic, to a sailor, is harnessing the wind—getting something for nothing—the surprise of a gust, the boon of a side-wind, and the trial of a headwind and best of all, the moment when a change in direction means turning away from the head seas and wind and spray in silence and warmth. In 1969, man flew to the moon and sailed around the world solo. In 2009, sailor and Londoner Steffan Meyric Hughes thought he'd try something a little closer to home and became the first to sail and row around London in a small boat. Along the way, he discovered the history of the great city's future and great secrets of the mysterious wrecks, bombs, and intrigue. This is the story of a unique journey on the forgotten waterways of one of the world's greatest capitals; an investigation into the way we live today; and a humorous, moving trip down memory lane.

Genres: London, Travel, Nonfiction

256 pages, Paperback

First published July 2, 2012

Reviews

[Kristina · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author’s love for “messing about in boats” and his knowledge of sailing are impressive and his idea to sail the waterways of London in a small boat was exciting. However, the organization of this travelogue was as choppy as some stretches of the Thames, careening back and forth between the past and present without much warning or anchor. I really enjoyed reading about “Frank the Hermit” and loved the side notes of maritime history along the way. Ultimately, though, this journey would have been more satisfying if the author had split this book into two separate tales…one for his past adventures and one for the present excursion.

[Sophy H · Rating 1 out of 5]

Disappointingly, this wasn't for me.

There were some fairly interesting snippets of information but they were lost in a lot of boat-techie jargon and multiple boring reveries about previous boating trips in different parts of the world.

The minuscule discussions of London that the author did manage, always seemed to have unnecessary observations within, such as debating fox hunting (WTF? Why?!!) or bemoaning people observing lock navigation!

Just not my cup of tea, I thought this was going to be a different type of book.

Off to the community book exchange.

[Henry Crabtree · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

[Christine · Rating 3 out of 5]

At the beginning I was enjoying this book, as the author talks a lot a out the canals and the things he is seeing along the way. It was fascinating for me to read about the fact that the canal goes over the A406 in aqueducts and one can drive underneath and not even realise it is there. It has made me want to go to these places and see the canal with the road passing below.
However, the last few chapters of the book felt quite tedious to me, as the author goes off on tangents about his past life. Although these tales were, in the main, mildly interesting, they were not about his journey round London in a small boat and so did not feel to me as if they fitted in this book.
Not convinced I'd recommend the book.

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

A delightful little book about sailing and rowing around London. Which to be completely honest I didn't think that you could do!

He journey takes him on the rivers and canals of North London, and then back on Thames to his original starting point. The book is part travel, and part London history, with a mix of reminiscence of previous sailing adventures.

Thoroughly enjoyed it.

[Bob Stays · Rating 3 out of 5]

ok. more about london than sailing but there you go. i had hesrd most of the anecdotes before so i learnt nothing new. too many book are published thst have a vaguely interesting premise but not worth actually putting into print.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

The travel narrative aspect is okay, but the digressions into boat-related topics and other matters rather lost me. Moreover, following the events probably requires a more solid grounding in London's geography than I possess.

[Sophie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I felt like that kid who didn't quite fit with the cool kids when reading this.

[Julia · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was fine. Generally interesting, but never really engrossing.

[George · Rating 2 out of 5]

Someone who likes boats would enjoy this more

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of those books that exceeded my (admittedly modest) expectations from an author I've never heard of, and one written by a sailing enthusiast, an activity I have no interest in. The tone and pacing was perfect though, reflective without being pretentious, and free of some sort of 'cheat' to ensure that he completed his challenge. It took me ages to finish too due to searching some of the events and monuments mentioned, significant and under-reported, but interesting nonetheless.

Hughes' plan was to sail in a circle on the Regents Canal and Thames, a 70 mile trip that in the grand scheme of things is not a long distance, but offered the challenges of sailing or rowing on small waterways and keeping patience going through locks as a single traveller (the tidal Thames was navigated much more quickly). As a result it was free of daring life-threatening incidents but Hughes avoided trying to make himself the story or auditioning for a comedy show, instead recounting the interesting people and landmarks he met, in a personal but concise manner. He was selective though, providing detail and context where appropriate, and skimming past uninteresting sections rather than cataloguing every building and bridge.

As a result, Hughes did pad out the journey with snippets of his life, from his early employment to a trip around the Thames Estuary, but they were relevant to his love of sailing and never felt like a boring tangent to me. However, this was not a memoir under the guise of a personal journey and genuinely added to the story, and despite never having sailed in my life, I did at least understand the appeal of the skill and the reticence to use his outboard motor.

Whether I would have found a trip around Manchester as interesting is up for debate - London has a special appeal for me and quirks like a redirected River Tyburn forming part of Gray's Antiques lower floor may not appeal to others as it did to me. Others may also disagree with some of the more personal digressions, such as the more curmudgeonly sentiments of waterfronts all consisting of soulless 'luxury' apartments rather than model shops and independent hardware stores, whereas I was in agreement more often than not.

This was not a hair-raiser but more of a gentle, pleasant read, that never dragged but did have a distinctive personal touch. It's also made me want to go to London to visit some of the spots mentioned, albeit by tube and foot rather than as the next Knox-Johnston.

[Sally · Rating 5 out of 5]

I live in Southwest London so am familiar with some of the places travelled through, but this was a new perspective. The journey is not so important of itself - it's used as a basis for lots of interesting stories about the history of London's water traffic and the author's experiences of learning to love the water. There are some great pen-portraits of characters along the way, too.

[Susan Corcoran · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a sucker for a book with a gorgeous cover and a quirky tale to be told and so was attracted to this book. It's a little gem of a tale about a man sailing and rowing around London.
Didn't catch my heart in the way some other non-fiction books have this year, but definitely worth a read.
I was put off a little about the talk of boats etc, but given the title it should be expected.

[Steve Chilton · Rating 3 out of 5]

A gentle light-hearted travel round parts of London that I know pretty well, but not in way a small boat owner would. Takes me back to along ago holiday on the canals - not in a canal boat but a friend's dinghy.

[Terri D · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved the cover as I'm a sucker for line drawings and especially of London. The sub-title also intrigued me. This turned out to be a gem of a book with lovely little chunks of London waterways history included which I hadn't heard of previously.