A floating piece of Miramichi plies the canals of Britain

NewBrunswickersspending time near the canals of England have a chance to see an unexpected, familiar sight: the logo and name of the city of Miramichi, emblazoned on the side of a 55-foot narrowboat.

The boat is owned by Bill and Jean Blanchard, who live in a small town in Cambridgeshire.

They built the boat 10 years ago and decided to name it after the New Brunswick city and river to honour the stories of Bill's father, who was born in Bathurst.

"When I was a young boy," Bill said, "he always used to speak about New Brunswick and Canada and various places like Miramichi. ... He used to get me interested in fishing and what he used to do during the Depression. That was my childhood memory."

Roots in Canada

Bill's father, William Joseph Blanchard, lived inBathurstand Saint John, and to this day much of the extended family remains in the region.

After fighting in the Second World War, the senior Blanchard settled in England and started his family there.

When the narrowboat was built, Bill Blanchard got in touch with the City of Miramichi for permission to paint its logo on the boat. The city agreed.

Since then, Blanchard has visited the area multiple timesfor fishing trips and to reconnect with relatives.

"What we always wanted to do was follow in my dad's footsteps and see where he came from, where he used to go, where he fished," he said.

Spotted by Canadians

Blanchard said that over the years he has fielded many questions from tourists who spot the boat.

"Canadians will come along, and they'll see you and say, 'Hey, we've come from there, we're from Fredericton,'" he said. "And you then go into the story of everything, and it comes down to tellingthem about my father,how we came from New Brunswick and the significance ofthe name of the boat."

In 2015, two representatives of the City of Miramichiwere on vacation in London and stopped by the boat to give Blanchard some gifts, including a Miramichipendant that flies from the stern to this day.

One of those representatives was Heather Coughlan, who runs an inn near Miramichi.

"I think when people travel, they love to travel and see other places but still they like a connection to home, and this is a connection to home," she said."It makes the world a smaller place ...it's like they're still home, they've never left home."

4,020 kilometres to explore

Narrowboatsare designed to move through England's canal system, whichBlanchard said provides 2,500 miles(about 4,020 kilometres) of pathway to explore.

The boats are dozens of feet long theMiramichiis 55 feet, or almost 17 metres but they can'tbe morethanseven feet wide. This is because the locks on the canals are seven feet wide, or a little over two metres.

TheMiramichihas central heating, two double beds, a shower, bathroom and a dining room. Blanchard described it as "very, very comfortable" enough so that he and Jean often spend up to four weeks at a time living in it.

Even when the canals get icy,Blanchard still visits his little patch of Canada.

"Over the winter we tend to use it like you would in Canada, with a cabin you'd go up to. ... You could use it just like a cottage, but very, very narrow."