Channel challenge in a poo canoe

Lez Paylor and Lawrence Toms had teething problems on their first outing

A pair of entrepreneurs are planning to paddle to France in a special canoe consisting largely of paper made from sheep poo.

Snowdonia-based Lez Paylor and Lawrence Toms tested their craft in Bala, Gwynedd, and now plan a more ambitious trip across the English Channel.

The canoe frame is covered with a waterproofed skin made from sheep poo paper and a flour and water paste.

The pair's Creative Paper Wales firm makes products from sheep poo paper.

Mr Toms said they hoped to paddle their canoe to France to raise money for the Wales Air Ambulance.

"Rural Wales really depends on the air ambulance and if we can do something entirely preposterous and raise them a few quid, it would be a nice way to give something back," he said.

Mr Toms and Mr Paylor said the poo canoe was built using the frame of a two-man vessel once used by the Special Boat Service during World War II for covert operations.

It is waterproofed using beeswax and a soya bean extract resin but Mr Toms is not entirely convinced their vessel is totally seaworthy.

"I'm not even confident it will operate in a bath!" he said.

"It was my business partner [Lez Paylor] who built it. I've been training in a swimming pool so I can swim 15 miles in cold water!"

The Bala maiden voyage supported some of Mr Toms' concerns. Despite managing about five miles (8km), a small leak had caused a soggy patch about the size and shape of a sheep, he said.