Jo aboard Monkey’n’ Around
A flooded Thames, three muddy teenagers, a former taxi-company owner and a growing love of the quieter side of life afloat.
Jo
Jo has been living aboard and continuously cruising for around four years. Her first narrowboat hire was back in 2007 — on a flooded Thames, in the rain, with three wet and muddy teenage boys. Somehow, that was enough to convince her that boat life was for her.
Before boat life, Jo ran a busy taxi company.
Her first real taste of the waterways came in 2007, when she hired a narrowboat on the Thames.
The river was flooded, it rained, and she had three wet and muddy teenage boys in tow.
You might think that would have put her off.
It did the opposite.
Years later, she made the move aboard and has now been living afloat and continuously cruising for around four years.
What she loves most is the connection with nature — the sound of birds, the changing scenery and those towpath conversations that happen almost without trying.
Meet Monkey’n’ Around
Monkey’n’ Around is a 2009 Liverpool boat with a reverse layout.
One of the things that drew Jo to her was the extra interior height — an important detail when you’re choosing a boat to live aboard full-time.
The stove is a multi-fuel stove, and if Jo could change one thing about the boat, she’d change the exterior colour.
There have been the usual practical challenges too.
One of the biggest has been the calorifier.
And there’s a fairly major job on the list: removing the pumpout toilet and tank, then reconfiguring the bedroom.
Life along the waterways
Jo’s favourite waterways so far include the Caldon Canal, the Leeds & Liverpool Canal and the North Oxford.
The Barley Mow at Newbold, Rugby gets a mention as a favourite stop.
Still on the list is the Rochdale Canal, which she plans to tackle early next year.
For Jo, some of the best parts of boating are the small things: hearing the birds, chatting to people on the towpath and feeling connected to the places she passes through.
Practical boat life
Toilets are never far from the conversation on boats.
Jo is moving away from a pumpout setup and towards composting.
Her reasoning is practical: pumpout stations can close, break down or simply not be available when you need them.
Removing the existing toilet and tank will also allow her to rethink the bedroom layout at the same time.
The simple things
For Jo, boat life seems to come back to freedom, nature and community.
It’s the changing view, the wildlife and the people you meet along the way.
That’s the part of life afloat that keeps her moving.
For now, I wouldn’t invent project links, a nomination, or any extra quick-fire answers we haven’t actually got.
Follow Ken’s projects