Reputedly playing host to hundreds of ghosts, with bats and frogs aplenty, creepy tunnels, spooky locks and misty towpaths, Britain's 200-year old canal network provides the perfect backdrop for a haunting Halloween.

From shaggy coated beings and shrieking boggarts, to ghost walks and spooky boat trips, Drifters Waterway Holidays and the Canal & River Trust have put together the following guide to the spookiest spots for adults and children:

• Beware the bloody steps at Brindley Bank… the Trent & Mersey Canal at Brindley Bank Aqueduct in Staffordshire, is said to be haunted by Christina Collins, who was murdered there on 17 June 1839 and her body flung into the canal. It is said that the stain from her blood occasionally reappears on the sandstone steps leading to the canal. Brindley Bank is just over an hour away from Drifters' base at Great Haywood on the Trent & Mersey Canal. Hire the eight-berth 'Grey Goose' over Halloween for a week for £765 (28 Oct to 4 Nov), £537 for a short break (28-31 Oct). Price includes boat hire, damage waiver, gas, car parking, tuition on arrival, first pet, buoyancy aids, bed linen and towels. Fuel is extra – a £50 deposit is taken for a short break, £90 for a week. Second pet is £25 for a short break, £35 for a week. To book visit www.drifters.co.uk or for further location details visit www.canalrivertrust.org.uk

• Experience the chilling history of Standedge Tunnel…at 3.25 miles long, Standedge Tunnel on the Huddersfield Narrow Canal at Marsden, West Yorkshire, is the longest on the canal network, and over its 200-year history it has witnessed some gruesome events. As well as tales of leggers who were crushed between boats and navvies dying in explosions for an adult audience the visitor centre will host a range of events for children. On 26 October, 1-4pm, Standedge Tunnel Visitor Centre is running a special Haunted Disco, with party games, face painting, themed treats, a haunted trail and spooky fancy dress competition. And on 27 October, 11am till 2pm a Pumpkin Carving Class is on offer for £5 per pumpkin. Booking is essential. For more information call 01484 844 298 the Standedge Tunnel Visitor Centre or visit www.canalrivertrust.org.uk/standedge-tunnel

• Explore the Halloween Trail at Gloucester's National Waterways Museum…from 22-30 October, the National Waterways Museum at Gloucester Docks will be offering special Halloween activities, including spooky stories, pumpkin carving, Halloween crafts and a Halloween trail around the Museum. For more information contact the Museum on 01452 318200/1 www.canalrivertrust.org.uk

• Get the chills in Chester…visit the City's old Northgate where the canal was dug into part of the town's moat and a Roman centurion can sometimes be seen guarding the entrance to the City. What's more, the King's Inn, an old coaching house, is believed to be haunted by three separate spirits. Hire a boat from Drifters' base at Bunbury on the Shropshire Union Canal in Cheshire, reaching Chester in seven hours, passing through nine locks. Enjoy a week's holiday on from Bunbury on the appropriately named four-berth 'Killington' for £675 (28 Oct to 4 Nov), £473 for a short break (28-31 Oct). Price includes boat hire, damage waiver, gas, car parking, tuition on arrival, first pet, buoyancy aids, bed linen and towels. Fuel is extra – a £50 deposit is taken for a short break, £90 for a week. Second pet is £25 for a short break, £35 for a week.

• Go for a ghost walk at Stourport Basin…guided walks led by the ghost of the great canal engineer James Brindley will take visitors on a night-time tour to learn of the development of the basins and how the town of Stourport has grown since his death. Children's (7-12 years old) walks begin at 4pm £4, adult's walks begin at 6pm, 30-31 October 2016, Tontine Stables, Stourport Canal Basins, Stourport Wharf, Stourport-on-Severn, Worcestershire, DY13 8UJ. Book in advance by emailing info@stourportown.co.uk or for further information visit www.canalrivertrust.org.uk

• Look out for the Monkey Man on the Shroppie…the Shropshire Union Canal is said to be Britain's most haunted canal with five ghosts along its length, including 'The Monkey Man' at Bridge 39 near Norbury. This hideous black, shaggy coated being is believed to be the ghost of a boatman drowned there in the 19th century. Head north from Drifters' base at Brewood on the Shropshire Union Canal in Staffordshire near Stafford. Enjoy a week's Halloween holiday from Brewood on the four-berth 'Sir Fergus' for £788 (28 Oct to 4 Nov), £473 for a short break (28-31 Oct). All inclusive price includes fuel, damage waiver, bed linen, pets, buoyancy aids, boat handling tuition and car parking.

• Prepare to be spooked at Blisworth Tunnel…on the Grand Union Canal at Stoke Bruerne in Northamptonshire, the Blisworth Tunnel has spooked a number of boaters over the years. At 3,076 yards (2.81km) it's one of the longest on the canal system. When construction began in 1793, the tunnel was a major feat of engineering.       Teams of navvies worked with picks and shovels for three years until they hit quicksand and the tunnel collapsed, killing 14 men. A new route for the tunnel was found and it finally opened on 25 March 1805. Over the years, a number of boaters travelling through the tunnel have reported seeing lights and a second route emerging. But the tunnel runs straight through the hill so people have must seen the flicker of candlelight at the spot where the first tunnel would have intersected with the main canal tunnel. Perhaps the ghostly navvies are still working there...? Enjoy a week's Halloween holiday from Drifters' base at Braunston on the four-berth 'Cotswold' for £685 (28 Oct to 4 Nov), £485 for a short break (28-31 Oct). Price includes diesel, boat hire, cancellation protection, first pet, gas, car parking, tuition, buoyancy aids and bed linen. A non-refundable compulsory £30 damage waiver is extra. Second pet £25.
• Hear about a killing at Kidsgrove…the Trent & Mersey Canal's Harecastle Tunnel at Kidsgrove is said to be home to a shrieking boggart – the ghost of Kit Crewbucket who was murdered and his headless corpse was dumped in the canal. Hire the four-berth 'Rushton' from Drifters' canal boat hire base at Great Haywood on the Trent & Mersey Canal over Halloween for £473 for a short break (28-31 October), £675 for a week (28 Oct to 4 Nov). Price includes boat hire, damage waiver, gas, car parking, tuition on arrival, first pet, buoyancy aids, bed linen and towels. Fuel is extra – a £50 deposit is taken for a short break, £90 for a week. Second pet is £25 for a short break, £35 for a week.

• See witches, ghouls and spiders in Dudley Tunnel…super spooky family boat tours into Dudley Tunnel & Limestone Mines are on offer every 30 minutes from 4.30pm to 8pm, 28-31 October. Each trip lasts 45 minutes and features puppetry, ghost stories and surprises. Tickets are £7.80. Contact Dudley Canal Trust to book in advance www.dudleycanaltrust.org.uk Tel 0121 557 6265

• Watch out for an Aqueduct Apparition…the Llangollen Canal in Wrexham is haunted by an eerie figure that can sometimes be seen on moonlit nights gliding along the towpath by the World Heritage Pontcysyllte Aqueduct. Drifters' base at Trevor is just a 20-minute cruise from the Aqueduct. Hire the four-berth 'Anna' from Trevor for a short break Halloween holiday for £591 (28-31 Oct), £846 for a week (28 Oct to 4 Nov). Price includes boat hire, damage waiver, gas, car parking, tuition on arrival, first pet, buoyancy aids, bed linen and towels. Fuel is extra – a £50 deposit is taken for a short break, £90 for a week. Second pet is £25 for a short break, £35 for a week.

For further details of these spooky spots and other locations across Britain's 2,400 miles of historic waterways visit www.canalrivertrust.org.uk. To book a spooky waterway holiday visit www.drifters.co.uk

Ends

For further media information and images:

Liz Woznicki, Canal & River Trust: 07977 459913 Liz.Woznicki@canalrivertrust.org.uk

Debbie Walker, Drifters Waterway Holidays: 077486 40577/01628 318069 walker.debbie@sky.com

Notes to Editors:

The Canal & River Trust is the guardian of 2,000 miles of historic waterways across England and Wales, caring for the nation's third largest collection of listed structures, as well as museums, archives, and hundreds of important wildlife sites.

We believe that living waterways transform places and enrich lives and our role is to make sure there is always a place on your doorstep where you can escape the pressures of everyday life, stretch your legs and simply feel closer to nature.

www.canalrivertrust.org.uk @CanalRiverTrust @crtcomm

Drifters Waterway Holidays is made up of a consortium of 11 hire boat companies: ABC Boat Hire, Ashby Boats, Anglo Welsh, Black Prince, Countrywide Cruisers, Kate Boats, Rose Narrowboats, Napton Narrowboats, Shire Cruises, Valley Cruisers and Union Canal Carriers. Between them they offer over 580 boats for hire, operating from 45 bases across England, Scotland and Wales.  2016 hire prices start at £395 for a short break, £575 for a week.  Narrowboats range from 32ft to 70ft and can accommodate up to 12 people.  www.drifters.co.uk Tel 0844 984 0322.