The canal / narrowboat thread

[john2443]

Simpo Two said:

Or maybe the bank crew opened the lower paddles as the boat was still crossing from upper to lower... which would be pure incompetence.

That's how it looks!

[john2443]

Due to head off on Friday from Braunston for the Leicester Ring...just hoping Bozo won't suddenly close the canals before we get going!

[john2443]

mcdjl said:

john2443 said:

Due to head off on Friday from Braunston for the Leicester Ring...just hoping Bozo won't suddenly close the canals before we get going!

Might see you on the lower soar section....I'll be in an unpowered boat of some sort if you do!

Ours is Sojourn, dark blue with some red, we'll be there Sun aft or Mon morn, give us a wave!

[john2443]

My final narrowboat trip of the year - Narrowboat Trust coal run, down the Thames from Reading to Eel Pie Island with a diversion up the Wey as far as Pyrford.

Nice to go past Windsor, Hampton Court etc. Also lots of nice houses with th eThames at the bottom of the garden. I like the idea of living there...until I think about what happens when the river floods!

The Wey


16 tons to be Loaded at Walton


Partly full, most to be offloaded at Ash Island (near Hampton Court) and Eel Pie (Twickenham)


Walton


Bloody phone putting pics on their side!

[john2443]

miniman said:

MikeT66 said:

miniman said:

Sounds fab, I would love one at some point, albeit not to live on. Would really like a Josher bow.

Sorry, miniman... "Josher Bow"?

http://www.tylerwilsonboats.com/josher

From the same site, this shows a Josher bow better - it's the double curve (and maybe the rubbing strakes??) that make it a Josher, named from Joshua
Fellows of Fellows, Morton, Clayton canal carriers. I think this one might be a bit short, but I can't find a clear picture of a real one.

[john2443]

bristolbaron said:

Is this the right thread for cabin boats too, or can I be pointed elsewhere?

Gretchen said:

Can I join in?

Good to have you joining in - there won't be enough cruisers or Dutch bargers on here to justify separate threads so best to have everyone together.

I should probably have called the thread 'Inland Waterways' but didn't think of that when I started it.

[john2443]

Coventry canal basin. Was expecting it to be full of "live aboard ignoring the 7 days rule" boats, but remarkably quiet. Heading back to Sutton's stop and down the Oxford tomorrow, going here and there aiming for the Nelson, Braunston Weds eve for Mikron Theatre.

[john2443]

spitfire-ian said:

I’m sure we passed you a few days ago.

It's shared ownership, so if you passed before Friday it would have been someone else using it.

[john2443]

classicaholic said:

We have not been going anywhere for a long time now!

Oh dear! Where's that? The Macc?

[john2443]

dudleybloke said:

Seems to be a trend.



https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/black-country/car...

They're trying to show the knobs at Rufford ford how to do it properly

[john2443]

Upinflames said:

Llangollen?

It's not only the Shroppie that's topped up, it's for Cheshire's tap water.

The flow's much stronger and the channel narrower after Trevor, we took a 72' trad boat converted into hire boat (Middlewich) up there in the 80s, it took about 4 hours up from Trevor and an hour and a half back! Going up w years laterwe couldn't go much beyond tickover, if we did it drew the stern down onto the bottom and we ground to a halt.

We were drawing about 2'6" though and every time we met a boat coming down we had to pull over to let them past as they couldn't stop!

We did it again a few years later in a normal hire boat and I don't remember having any trouble.

Grindley Brook staircase gets quite a queue so don't expect to get a long way that day!

It may well have been dredged better these days which would make it easier.

What boat are you taking?

Edited by john2443 on Wednesday 19th July 11:34

[john2443]

Upinflames said:

Its a 1970s heavily built 50 footer with an aircooled twin cylinder Lister.

Should be fine, just be prepared to be very slow from Trevor onwards...but enjoy surfing back down!

[john2443]

Our shared ownership boat was moving base from Dunchurch (North Oxford near Rugby) to Great Haywood - we offered to do the move as we had 2 cars and some owners would have found it too far in a week (wimps ).

The direct route was blocked due to the landslide near Brinklow, but that was too short anyway for a full week.

Good to have a one way trip so we went Grand Union Braunston to Kingswood then up the North Stratford into Birmingham, up to Titford Pools as we hadn't been there before, low pound between locks on the Gower branch so had to let water down, through Netherton tunnel.

Then down Dudley No 2 to Halesowen - Gosty Hill tunnel is fun! Started quite high but then lowered - I was sitting down and still had to duck! Nowhere to moor at the end...except the "harbour master" from Hawne Basin trust invited us to stay there from the night (for free!) ; they don't get many boats down there so are happy to see visitors.

From there, down the Delph and Stourbridge locks to the Staffs and Worcs which meant Botterham Staircase and The Bratch which are both novel the chugged up to Great Haywood so we now have a new area to explore - have done most of the canals from there but not for 30+ years so worht doing again.