On Saturday we popped up to Totenham Hale to take an Old Town on to the River Lee Navigation. The hire place is an easy walk from the station, and easy to find at Stonebridge Lock.
Going north, the portages of the first few locks are dead easy, save for a really grumpy swan who took a dislike. There is some nice scenery around Tottenham marshes but to be honest it ain't always pretty on this stretch there are a number of nesting fridges at the side of the water - you do go past Ikea though - we did wonder if we could get a billy bookshelf back. We whooshed up to Enfield lock in about an hour fourty, helped by a bit of wind. We stopped and lunched there and decided to turn round as the portage looked to be a fair challenge (high ledges, multiple fences to get over and a (quiet) road to cross) and the weather was changing.
We paddled back to a pub we had passed (The Navigation i think), and took coffee on the bank - useful having a pub you can tie up next to - but as the weather got worse we pulled the boat up on to dry land and sat out the worst of the rain in the pub.
The rest of the way back was a challenge, a real wind had blown up and rain was still coming in - canals aren't meant to have near foot high waves, and though this caused no trouble with the boat (loaded canoes being heavy beasts) it was hard going through the wind - word is that wind blows right up the valley no matter which way its should be going on windy days. We learnt lots about solid power strokes, communication and steering without loosing power. Took us about 3 1/2 hours to get back i think.
I'm currently figuring that the wind was exceptional (the news that morning was talking about a stormy thames for the boat race) and that it wouldn't be a bad location for a car free beginners canoe trip. The north end is a lot prettier (I used to cycle round there) and would be worth considering a paddle if we could get some boats up there
Lee Valley Canoe & Cycle hire out Canoes and a few kayaks for around 45 quid for a day, a little less for a 1/2 day i think the price includes barrels and PFDs, though we brought our own gear. There are lockers on the site, and i think there may be a shower but I'm not sure of the access. They aslo do teas and coffees and would no doubt fill a few forgotten flasks if not busy.