I mentioned this narrow boat couple a little while ago. They escaped expensive London in favour of a life of on the canals.

Since then, I’ve become pleasantly hooked on their videos. A lot of the joy comes from the beautiful b-roll and drone footage of frosty fields and ducks-a-dabbling, but I’m also increasingly impressed at the resilience and practical-mindedness of the couple themselves. The episode where they have to rescue a dropped water cap from the canal could have been banal but is riveting.

Sometimes, with escape-to-the-country-type stories, the joy comes from watching silly urbanites floundering and out of their depth. But that’s not true for this pair. They go about things in a very sensible, practical way; always learning but always putting those lessons to good use. Less exciting that the “retrieval” video linked to above is one where Andrew has to fish a carrier bag out of the engine prop: not exciting viewing but a very good case in point.

What all of this should remind us of, once again, is that escape is possible. If you find ways to apply yourself. Yes, escape can be a game and escape can be fun. Above all, it can be a great romance. But admire the application. Admire the seriousness of mssion.

You could dip into any of their videos at all, but here’s their latest episode, posted just yesterday, about the joys of spring on the canal.