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Issue 141, July 2017
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Festival visitors take a break on the Ashby Canal towpath at the Moira Canal Festival stival which also hosted this year’s IWA National Trailboat Festival over the recent bank holiday weekend. Full report on page 17. PHOTO: WATERWAY IMAGES
New letting licence aims to safeguard liveaboard tenants THE Canal & River Trust is introducing a new letting licence to ensure the safety of the increasing number of people living on rented boats. It is responding to the numbers of boats for rent in London and further afield as people try to find alternatives to rising housing costs. A second market has sprung up with the advent of website letting sites
New loop
which regularly feature listings of boats for rent, while anecdotal evidence from boaters shows that it’s becoming more common. CRT boating strategy and engagement manager Matthew Symonds explained: “Living afloat can be a great lifestyle choice but too often there are frightening accidents, from carbon monoxide poisoning to fires and boats sinking.
BOATERS can use a new three-mile Bow Back Rivers route from this month following a 10-year transformation project at East London’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. It follows an investment of more than £60 million as part of the wider regeneration before and after the London 2012 games. The loop of waterways around the London Stadium, which includes the Old River Lea, City Mill River and St Thomas Creek, is being opened to public navigation in July.
“Boat owners may not be aware that they have greater responsibilities to tenants than they would if they were using the boat themselves, and it’s vital that those renting boats are protected by more rigorous standards to ensure they are safe.” Boat owners can now apply for a Static Letting Licence for static boats which will cover all types of boat
Dredging project
A MAJOR project to remove 17,000 tonnes of silt from the Kennet & Avon Canal has been completed in time for the peak summer season. The dredging between Pewsey and Wootton Rivers in Wiltshire makes the canal deeper and has also benefited local farmers as the nutrient-rich silt removed from the canal was spread on adjacent fields. This also saved hundreds of road miles by avoiding lorries taking the dredgings to a tip.
rental, including long-term renting, Airbnb-style short breaks and overnight stays. The boat owner will need to have a permanent mooring and should talk to their local planning authority to see if planning permission is needed. The price will be the same as for the current Self-Drive Holiday Hire licence. • Continued on page 2
Tunnel paddlers
CANOEISTS are being allowed to paddle through the Foulridge Tunnel beneath the Pennines, writes Geoff Wood. For 200 years, it has been the preserve of narrowboats but now entry to the mile-long tunnel on the Leeds & Liverpool Canal is being controlled by lights allowing access to other craft. Local canoeist Rob Hardy said it was a great development – however, a boaters’ group has described it as exceptionally long and dark to canoe through safely.
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Taking a step back in time at Parkhead
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WELCOME
IT IS a beautiful June morning as I write and I am sure many of you are making the most of the warm weather and long days out on the water. But since last month, we have had horrific terrorist attacks in Manchester and London, the general election and now, as I write, breaking news of the catastrophic fire in a West London tower block. The chance to escape the rat race and the stresses of our modern world is what drives many people to take up boating – even if it’s just for a short break. The slower pace of life and timelessness of the landscape allow you to – excuse the modern word – chillax and absorb the tranquillity of your surroundings. A scene from the past was recreated recently at Dudley – see Malcolm Ranieri’s report on this page – and it’s not surprising that crowds flocked to Crick Boat Show and the Beale Park Boat and Outdoor Show this year as more and more people hook into this lifestyle. See pictures from these shows on pages 16 and 18; also Harry Arnold’s report and pictures from the Moira Canal Festival which incorporated the IWA National Trailboat Festival – and a historic re-enactment – on page 17. I had a rare chance to head south over the past month and attended the official opening of the Sonning Eye hydropower generator, see report on page 5, and I also caught up with Volunteer of the Year finalist David Junkison at the Basingstoke Canal Authority’s visitor centre at Mytchett, report on page 4. By the time you read this we will officially be in midsummer and the festival season. There’s another chance to win tickets to Fairport’s Cropredy Convention – celebrating the band’s 50th anniversary – on page 74 and, to coincide with the Braunston Historic Rally where you may have picked up this paper, Julie Webb meets its host Tim Coghlan on page 9. Wishing you all a safe summer cruising.
Jes Inglis, chairman and membership secretary of the Waterways Craft Guild, demonstrates his traditional painting skills at the National Waterways Museum.
Janet
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Editor Janet Richardson jrichardson@mortons.co.uk Publisher Tim Hartley Advertising sales team leader Tania Shaw – tshaw@mortons.co.uk Advertising sales representatives Stuart Yule – syule@mortons.co.uk Christopher Heaton – cheaton@mortons.co.uk Editorial design Tracey Barton Divisional advertising manager Sue Keily Production editor Pauline Hawkins Publishing director Dan Savage Commercial director Nigel Hole Contact us Customer services 01507 529529 Telephone lines are open: Monday-Friday 8.30am-7pm. Saturday 8.30am-12.30pm help@classicmagazines.co.uk www.classicmagazines.co.uk News & editorial Tel: 01507 529466. Fax: 01507 529495 editorial@towpathtalk.co.uk Advertising Tel: 01507 524004. Fax: 01507 529499 Published by Mortons Media Group Ltd, Media Centre, Morton Way, Horncastle, Lincs, LN9 6JR Tel: 01507 523456. Fax: 01507 529301 Printed by Mortons Print Ltd. Tel. 01507 523456 Next Issue – July 27, 2017
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By Malcolm Ranieri
A RECREATION of a once everyday sight of a horse-drawn boat on the canals was arranged by David Williams of Time Line Events on May 31 with the assistance of Steve Bingham and colleagues of the Dudley Canal and Tunnel Trust in and around Parkhead Locks and Basin, Dudley. The location was initially at the south portal of the 1792-built Dudley Tunnel
Legging through the south portal of Dudley Tunnel.
– the 1884 date on the south portal refers to the tunnel extension – through the Parkhead Basin followed by the locks and to the junction of Dudley Canal No 2 and the through route of Dudley Canal No 1. Finally they undertook a short trip up Dudley Canal No 1 to a winding point at Blackbrook Junction of the now disused Two Lock Line to turn the boat. At the south portal of the Dudley Tunnel there was a demonstration of legging through the tunnel, which has no towpath. Legging is of course the practice of the boat crew lying on their backs and propelling the boat through a tunnel by human power of their leg muscles only; an exhausting exercise. In fact on the day the boat used for the recreation was pulled through by a tunnel tug from the Dudley Canal Trust headquarters at the Black Country Living Museum. The short haul working day boat used in the recreation is the historic 1875 GWR No 65, located at the Black Country Living Museum and owned by Bernard Hales. This vessel is an 1875 Thomas
Bantock boat, originally leased to the Great Western Railway (GWR). Thomas Bantock was born near Aberdeen, Scotland, but moved to Wolverhampton as agent for the Duke of Bridgewater. Thomas Bantock then developed his own business interests which included, among others, manufacturing and leasing canal boats especially to the GWR. The horse used was a small shire called Caroline owned by local enthusiast Jane Muntz Torres and the re-enactors were all dressed in period clothing which enhanced the experience. The GWR boat was in what is thought to be original livery, ascertained from pictures and drawings from the lateVictorian period. The colours are very much like the GWR stations and signalboxes and the livery paint was applied by Brinklow Boat Services. Steve Bingham also took his 1932 Ford Model A tipper to demonstrate delivering goods to the canal boat at the Parkhead Basin.
Boat horse Caroline hauling GWR No 65 through the Park Head locks. PHOTOS: MALCOLM RANIERI Towering above Parkhead Locks is the substantial currently disused railway viaduct built in 1880 by the Oxford,Worcester & Wolverhampton Railway and later taken over by GWR. Last used in 1993, the viaduct is scheduled to be used again as part of a new tram route.
Waterways Craft Guild to be wound up By Harry Arnold
AT AN extraordinary general meeting held at the National Waterways Museum at Ellesmere Port on May 13, members of the Waterways Craft Guild agreed to a proposal by the current directors that the organisation should be closed. The decision was made on the basis that nobody has stepped forward to take on any of the committee, directors or trustees roles. The objectives of the guild were to encourage, set and maintain high standards of knowledge and practice in the traditional skills of those who lived and worked on and around the
waterways in the days of commercial carrying. Also, to help to raise the public’s awareness of the quality of work commercially available while encouraging members to develop their skills. Members practising a relevant skill, either professionally or as an enthusiast, could apply to have their work accredited by the guild. Three categories of accreditation were available – Apprentice, Journeyman and Master. Traditional painting is perhaps obviously the best-known skill in this sphere but all aspects of boats, boatyard and boating family crafts were encompassed by the guild. It was agreed that at the end
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New letting licence aims to safeguard liveaboard tenants The Static Letting Licence has more rigorous requirements to make sure that both the boat is safe and that potential renters are fully briefed before spending a night on board. Boat owners will be required to have: proof of adequate insurance; a Non-Private Boat Safety Scheme Certificate; a detailed handover document including emergency procedures and contact numbers; a Landlord Gas Safety Certificate; and written permission from their mooring provider. Alongside this the charity will be introducing a new process for dealing with boat owners who may be breaching the terms of their licence by renting out their boat. If a boat is suspected of being rented out illicitly the trust will contact the registered licence holder, as well as hand-posting letters on to the boat itself to alert tenants. The licence holder will be given 28 days to clarify the situation, cease trading if appropriate, or apply for a Static Letting Licence. After this period their licence will be revoked if they continue to rent out their boat. Matthew added: “Sadly we’ve heard reports of people running into trouble and this needs to stop. Any boat being rented out needs a Letting Licence that ensures that all the proper requirements have been met and the tenants will be kept safe. “We want to spread the word among existing and potential landlords and will be getting in touch with those who we think are renting their boat unofficially, asking them to work with us to do it above board.” Sarah Dhanda, chief officer of membership and services at British Marine, said: “We support the Canal & River Trust’s decision to introduce this new licence. This new approach provides reassurance for all customers, by raising safety standards in line with those that our members already abide by.”
of the winding up process the guild’s funds would be disbursed among the Friends of Gloucester Waterways Museum (craft group), the Shropshire Union Fly-boat Restoration Society (Saturn), The Boat Museum Society (Gifford and craft group) and the IWA’s Waterway Recovery Group. The guild said that in supporting both Saturn and Gifford it was underlining the fact that horseboating is at the heart of what it had always tried to do. For the future, Canal & River Trust head of museums Graham Boxer is keen for craft courses to be run at the waterways museums and would like ex-guild members to act as tutors.
PHOTO: WATERWAY IMAGES
Bridges across the Mersey
Progress towards completion of the new Mersey Gateway Bridge, seen from Spike Island, Widnes, by the Sankey Canal. PHOTO: WATERWAY IMAGES By Harry Arnold
WORK continues apace on the new Mersey Gateway Bridge spanning not only the river but parallel waterways such as the Manchester Ship Canal. There has been some press publicity about who, among local Halton area residents, will have free use of the new bridge and the existing Silver Jubilee Bridge road crossing when both have toll charges levied. A scale of charge has been published. Further upriver on the Mersey at Warrington there is continuing progress on the preservation of the historic Transporter Bridge. The Friends of Warrington Transporter Bridge (FoWTB) have had a useful meeting with representatives of Warrington Borough Council (WBC) where the results of an inspection by consultants Up and Under Ltd on the condition of the structure was presented. Some remedial work has been done to remove loose inessential sections and some lower sections of the stairways have also been removed to prevent illegal scaling of the bridge. Currently the bridge
is safe and stable. Cheshire County Council is also being asked if it has any original drawings or paperwork concerning the bridge before its transfer to WBC. Further agreed progress will be that WBC will use the consultant’s report to develop possible options including costs, for future discussion at a further meeting in September. Options include how long the bridge will last if nothing is done and how much it will cost to paint the bridge and preserve its longevity. FoWTB suggested that WBC consider the considerable benefit to the Warrington area of this unique potential World Heritage site which is the only surviving rail transporter bridge. Once all the options have been weighed FoWTB would consider applying for funding in conjunction with WBC for the costs of renovation and preservation. FoWTB are delighted with the two grants that they have received from Neighbourhood Boards and have received many favourable comments about the new information board in Warrington’s Bank Park.
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Licence fee rises anger Avon boaters By Phil Pickin
BOATERS and marina owners have hit out at the Avon Navigation Trust (ANT) over an increase in licence fees. They claim they are now being charged between 10% and 80% extra for their 2017 boat licences by ANT, which is the licensing authority. For some this has proved to be a last straw and one marina has seen a number of boats moving off the Avon on to Canal & River Trust waterways thus reducing the marina’s income. According to a group of marina owners and operators, the feeling among the boating community is that they are not getting value for money. A number cite a reduction of navigable river as one reason why they are upset with the increased fees. Damage caused to one boat that had spent much of the winter undergoing hull repairs only to be damaged again within a couple of miles from its home berth due to bottoming is, they say, an example of a lack of maintenance on the river. We contacted ANT regarding the points raised by the users we spoke to. The trust’s chief executive, Clive Matthews, was keen to point out that the non-profit distributing charity had
needed a review of the licence structure for some time. ANT felt it unfair that a 50ft boat was charged the same as a 70ft boat. It expects that the increases will generate an extra £80,000 towards a major works spend of £300,000 with the aim of making ‘the navigation easier to use and more navigable’.
Significant investment
Mr Matthews said: “In recent years we have invested significant sums of money into improving facilities, equipment and infrastructure. We have rebuilt two weirs, rebuilt a lock island that was on the verge of breaching, a major dewater and refurbishment of one of our larger locks and improved numerous overnight and lock mooring sites, together with the installation of new overnight mooring sites. “For an independent charitable navigation authority that has a budgeted turnover of just over £500,000 we believe we have delivered a significant amount.” With regard to the review of licence fees he said that ANT had taken it very seriously and understood that it would greatly affect boaters. A professional consultation document had been designed to clearly
Boats moored at Strensham Mill on the River Avon. PHOTO: PHIL PICKIN communicate the reasons behind the change and the draft proposal. The consultation leaflet went out to all boaters registered with ANT last summer and it was published online. Mr Matthews added: “This gave all boaters and marina operators the opportunity to give us their views and feedback before any decisions were made.” The trust also issued a consultation feedback leaflet with the licence renewal notices detailing the feedback received from the consultation and answers to all the points raised. In his opinion the consultation feedback was: “very positive with a very small number of objections. We actually had more feedback in support
of the review than against and none of the marina operators gave any feedback during the consultation.” ANT also had concerns regarding boats leaving the river and, as a result, made sure the new licence structure is ‘the cheapest other than the Broads licence’. And a quarter of the way into its licence year the number sold is higher than this time last year. “Both our charity and the marina businesses are interdependent and rely on boaters wanting to be on our river so it is not in anyone’s interests for them to leave hence why we went to all the trouble and expense to conduct a full consultation and feedback,” Mr Matthews concluded.
MP launches Golden Mile campaign EREWASH MP Maggie Throup has officially launched Derby and Sandiacre Canal Trust’s fundraising campaign to rebuild the first stretch of the former waterway and create a new visitor attraction. A three-quarter-mile stretch of the canal in Draycott between Hopwell Road and Derby Road – known locally as the Golden Mile – has been earmarked to be rebuilt into a level canal without locks. The bentonite-lined canal will have a constant water depth of 1.2m with a weir created close to the Derby Road bridge to allow any excess water to flow down the existing drain. Once completed, the Golden Mile will have a slipway to allow canoes and boats access to the water with mooring points at each end. The canal will be stocked with fish and angling facilities set up. There will be a hard-standing car park at Hopwell Road for the visitor attraction with a relaid foot and cycle path as well as a grass track for horse riders. The charity needs to demonstrate public support and is appealing for pledges totalling £100,000 before applying for grant funding to complete the £352,000 project.
A contractor has been identified and, once the money is raised, it is estimated that the work will take just 12 weeks to complete. The original Derby Canal was completed in 1796 but was abandoned in the 1960s and filled in during the 1970s. The canal trust was founded in 1993 with the aim of creating a new 25-mile cruising ring between Derby and Sandiacre, which would be connected to more than 2000 miles of navigable waterways across the UK. As well as restoring the canal, the ambitious programme includes creating a short canal stretch through Pride Park with an ‘arm’ lift to take boats down to the river level so that they can then travel up the Derwent to the Silk Mill in the city centre.
Restored bridges
Trust volunteers have so far restored bridges at Swarkestone and Borrowash to the demanding heritage standards and undertaken hedge planting along the route so that it can be enjoyed by walkers and cyclists. Chris Madge, chairman of the trust’s restoration committee, explained: “The Draycott Golden Mile is the first
stage of the overall vision to see the canal reinstated. “A great deal of hard work has gone into getting us to this stage but now we have the stretch surveyed and priced, we’re raring to go. “We’ve focused on this section as our first project to reinstate a stretch of canal as it is the most cost effective to deliver and we have very positive support from the local community. “We are confident that the canal will become a real attraction locally and hopefully encourage more collaboration in future restorations. “We need pledges of support from individuals, businesses and organisations at this stage which we will then call upon when the funding target has been reached and the construction work is scheduled to begin.” Maggie Throup said: “To have the Derby and Sandiacre Canal re-established would be fantastic for our local community and for visitors alike. “I hope that once people see that what is happening here, the other stages will come to fruition even quicker.” Society vice-chairman Eddy Case concluded: “The Golden Mile plans are another important stage in our
Trustees Val Clare, Chris Madge, volunteer John Dyson and Maggie Throup MP launch the appeal.
PHOTO SUPPLIED
partnership work with the local community in Draycott. The feedback from local residents and the parish council has been extremely positive and the village has effectively adopted this project as their canal. It will greatly support local businesses with increased visitor numbers and will improve the biodiversity of the area by attracting wildlife. “The Golden Mile is therefore an important first part of our overall programme to create a fantastic leisure resource for the local area.” The trust is looking for public donations in the form of pledges. The trust will take details from any supporter and only call for the money when the balance has been raised. Pledge forms are available from http://derbycanal. org.uk/activities/the-draycott-project
IN BRIEF Fume warning
IF YOU can smell petrol-engine exhaust fumes inside your cabin or covered deck area, stop the engine, outboard or generator and get out warns the Boat Safety Scheme (BSS) – you may not have any leeway to escape the threat of carbon monoxide (CO). The call follows the publication of the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) report into the circumstances leading to the deaths from CO poisoning of two boaters on their moored motor cruiser in Norfolk. More information is available at www.boatsafetyscheme.org/co
Boater fined
A HOUSEBOAT owner was convicted of boat registration avoidance at Banbury Magistrates Court recently. The court heard the offence was recorded by Environment Agency officers on a routine patrol in October 2016 – the boat was found moored to private land above Days Lock near Abingdon. Defendant, Ryan Faller, 29, from Oxford, did not appear in court, so the case was proved in his absence. He was fined £500 and ordered to pay the full 2016 boat registration fee of £584.01 plus costs of £85 and a victim surcharge of £50 – £1219.01 in total.
Book award
THE Railway & Canal Historical Society’s Waterways History Book of the Year was The Leeds & Liverpool Canal by Mike Clarke, published by Milepost Research in 2016 to coincide with the canal’s bicentenary celebrations. This book is the culmination of 50 years of research by Mr Clarke and sets a new benchmark for the writing of waterways history. The other shortlisted book in this category was Ferries across the Humber by Kirk Martin, published by Pen & Sword Transport. Award winners were announced at a ceremony held recently at the University of Exeter.
Towpath trek
A METHODIST minister chose the Leeds & Liverpool Canal as his 127-mile walking route to visit churches along the way, writes Geoff Wood. The Rev Paul Davis, who is chairman of the Lancashire Methodist District, chose the canal route because the waterway had last year celebrated the 200th anniversary of its opening. The walk took six days to complete but the minister said he very much enjoyed meeting folk from churches along the way. The trek was so good, he added, he plans another one next year along the Fylde coast ending in Lancaster.
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Basingstoke Canal stalwart receives volunteer accolade By Janet Richardson
Volunteer of the year finalist David Junkison receives his award from Towpath Talk editor Janet Richardson.
PHOTO: PABLO HAWORTH
TOWPATH Talk caught up with Volunteer of the Year finalist David Junkison at the Basingstoke Canal Authority’s Canal Centre at Mytchett to present his award of a trophy, certificate and £100 cheque for his volunteer organisation. David was accompanied by Pablo Haworth who has also been an active volunteer with the Basingstoke Canal Society, formerly the Surrey & Hampshire Canal Society, for many years. Both men are passionate about the Basingstoke Canal which runs for 32 miles from its junction with the River Wey at Byfleet with 28 locks in Surrey and one in Hampshire. They showed me the display in the canal centre which includes photographs of Greywell Tunnel into which David canoed in his teens. It is now a protected bat habitat, the limit of navigation about half a mile to its east. It is unlikely that the last five miles to
The Basingstoke Canal Centre at Mytchett. PHOTO: JANET RICHARDSON Basingstoke can be restored due to the tunnel and M3 motorway – however, a scheme to link the western end of the canal to the Kennet & Avon Canal has been mooted. The canal has been owned by the Surrey
and Hampshire county councils since the mid-1970s although there have been discussions about a possible transfer of responsibility for the waterway to the Canal & River Trust.
CARNIVAL THEME FOR CRUISING CLUBS’ RALLY
Wychavon chairman Frances Smith and Pershore Mayor Bob Gillmor officially opened the new ANT moorings at The Angel Hotel. Pictured from left are: Angel founder and chief executive Darren Eden, Mayor of Pershore Bob Gillmor, chairman of Wychavon Frances Smith, ANT chairman Jack Hegarty, Coun John Smith, ANT Volunteer chairman Paul Cronin, Jenny Rogers, ANT chief executive Clive Matthews and Margaret Cronin. Inset: the plaque honours long-time ANT volunteer and ‘jazz musician and kind soul’ Ambrose Emerson, from Herefordshire, who died in February at the age of 81.
WORSLEY Cruising Club hosted the 52nd rally of the Federation of Bridgewater Cruising Clubs at their clubhouse in Patricroft, Salford, over the Spring Bank Holiday weekend, writes Hilary Foster. The rally’s special day on the Sunday was attended by the ceremonial Mayor and Mayoress of Salford, Coun Peter and Mrs Mary Connor, Bridgewater Canal Company manager Peter Parkinson and representatives from the Federation of Bridgewater Cruising Clubs. They took part in a sailpast of all the boats taking part and the club commodores picked the winners of all the various trophies which were presented by the mayor. This year’s theme was Caribbean carnival and as expected there were many Bob Marley lookalikes on show along with some pretty ladies.
Mayoress Mary Connor, BCC manager Peter Parkinson and Mayor of Salford Peter Connor enjoying the sailpast.
PHOTOS: AVON NAVIGATION TRUST
Angel’s chorus of cheers for new ANT mooring THE official launch of a welcome new tourism and business-boosting mooring in Pershore marked a stream of successes. Avon Navigation Trust’s (ANT) five-boat provision at The Angel Hotel is the latest partnership project to provide more facilities for boaters. The event also celebrated the life of a longstanding volunteer, attracted a record attendance at ANT’s annual volunteers’ dinner and toasted The Angel returning back to local ownership for the first time in nearly a century. Wychavon chairman Frances Smith cut the ribbon and she and Pershore Mayor Bob Gillmor christened the new mooring with a bottle of Pershore Brewery ale at a VIP event that was also blessed by glorious sunshine and the attendance of Maritime Volunteer Service, who provided a guard of honour. ANT chairman Jack Hegarty, chief executive Clive Matthews and Angel founder and chief executive Darren Eden also welcomed guest Jenny Rogers, whose late partner Ambrose Emerson is celebrated on a plaque overlooking the river and the Pershore lock he volunteered at for decades. “Jenny also kindly supplied the wine at the wonderful Angel Volunteers’ dinner where there was even more to celebrate when Darren announced that they had purchased the Angel’s freehold, protecting its future in the town at the centre of the community,” said ANT chairman Jack, whose day job is heading up Wychavon and Malvern district councils. “It was a great night and we’re delighted with the new moorings,” added Darren.
Salford Mayor Coun Peter Connor presents the best decorated boat award to Dee Woodhouse of Watchouse CC with Nannadee.
Boats awaiting the sailpast. PHOTOS: DOUG WILDMAN
Moorings have been provided for five boats. “The revival of Britain’s waterways is extraordinary and we at The Angel are happy that we can play a small part in it. Boaters from far and wide are always welcome.” The Angel financed the materials and lease the land to ANT, which designed and built the mooring free of charge. It’s the latest partnership project, following on from a mooring at the Fleet Inn at Twyning in 2015. “We are working on a new provision for this year. We are very happy to handle these projects in between our day-to-day work because it means more provision for our boaters,” explained ANT chief executive Clive. “Our challenge is that we don’t own riverside land and so we are continually working behind the scenes and on the lookout for mooring provision opportunities with businesses and private individuals.”
Paul Gourdji from Bridgewater MBC with JusRomin, winner of the Federation Trophy.
NEWS 5
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Turning the screw for green electricity By Janet Richardson
MARINA company Pridewater Estates Ltd has celebrated the official opening of its hydropower generator at Sonning Eye in Berkshire. Following recent rain it was operating at almost full capacity, generating 98.1kWh as guests gathered on the banks of the Thames for the ceremony on May 18. The plaque was unveiled by Terry Lane of Pridewater Estates, who explained that the 99kW generator can produce enough electricity to offset its four canal marinas plus a surplus which can be fed back into the National Grid. The marinas at Fazeley Mill, New Mills, Kings Orchard and Grove Lock between them have berths for some 300 boats. In his speech, Mr Lane referred to the company’s commitment to make a significant contribution to the green energy movement while also turning a profit for the business. “We hope it provides the inspiration for others to look for similar opportunities to improve the environment, while at the same time growing their businesses as we are growing ours, in order to create more job opportunities, a stronger economy and increased prosperity for this country.” Landowner Hugo Gamble thanked everyone who had supported the project and mentioned his and wife Annabel’s desire to establish a hydroelectric scheme at this location. “For many years we have stood at this point and thought this would be a very good place from which to try to generate green electricity from hydropower. Look at all this water coming from the weir, it seems a shame not to make use of it. “We owned the land, the Abstraction Licence and had a rather sketchy
The Archimedes screw generates enough electricity to offset the needs of four marinas and still have some left for the National Grid.
A team from the Derby & Sandiacre Canal Trust bow-hauling Dawn Rose with Python in support behind. PHOTOS: CHESTERFIELD CANAL TRUST
Canal boat pull a huge success
In front of the newly unveiled plaque are: Simon Rogers of Greenford Ltd, landowners Annabel and Hugo Gamble and Terry Lane, Pridewater Estates Ltd. PHOTOS: JANET RICHARDSON vision but Pridewater Estates Ltd and contractors Greenford Ltd were the masterminds, they literally took an idea and turned it into reality and are, in our opinion, an excellent example of British engineering and ingenuity.” Following several years of planning and environmental surveys, construction began in the summer of 2016 and was completed by January 2017 with the screw now fully operational. Water from the River Thames enters over a cascade, rotating an Archimedes screw, which generates electricity. Alongside is a specially constructed pass for fish and eels which is stepped to control the flow so the salmon can leap. While not feasible to install a screw at each marina location, the idea came to build one which would produce more than enough energy to offset all four marinas at once – something which the generator at Sonning is already on track to achieve.
The opening ceremony was held at the hydropower site on the Thames with a reception afterwards at the neighbouring Upper Thames Motor Yacht Club. To find out more about this sustainability initiative and to view the company’s marina locations, visit the Pridewater Estates Ltd website www. canalmarinas.com
The shield can be dropped in an emergency to save the screw from damage.
Water flowing through the fish pass with the Archimedes screw on the left.
l A video of the Archimedes screw in action can be viewed on the Towpath Talk app, available in the following formats: Apple iOS (iPad and iPhone): http://mrtns. uk/towpathapple; Android (phones and tablets): http:// mrtns.uk/towpathandroid and Amazon (Kindle fire): http:// mrtns.uk/towpathkindle
A GROUP of canal volunteers recently arrived back at Shireoaks in the pouring rain having completed an epic journey. They had just completed their second sponsored boat pull. The Friends of Dawn Rose had set out from Shireoaks Marina on the Chesterfield Canal more than three weeks earlier. During this time, Dawn Rose had been pulled by 15 different groups of people to West Stockwith on the River Trent and back. That’s 56 miles and 48 locks. The first group were the Friends of Woodlands and Coachwood Green, from Shireoaks, and the last were a group of undertakers from Harold Lilleker & Sons from Chesterfield. In between there had been a huge variety of pullers including scouts, canal societies and even ‘Ladies on the Pull’ from the Retford & Worksop Boat Club. The journey was split up into 21 legs which varied from less than one mile to four miles and no locks to eight locks. Groups chose which section suited them best – on which day and at what time of day. Every group paid a fee to the Friends of Dawn Rose and everything else that they raised has gone to their chosen good cause. The total amount has
run to several thousand pounds. For most of the time there had been good weather, but the heavens opened on the final day. For the entire journey, Dawn Rose was accompanied by Python, the trust’s 88-year-old ex-working boat. Dawn Rose is the only Chesterfield Canal boat in existence. They were built to a unique design dating back to the 1770s. This design scarcely changed in 150 years. All the old boats had rotted away, so a group of volunteers from the Chesterfield Canal Trust built Dawn Rose from scratch. It is 70ft long with no engine. This herculean task took four years because they stuck to the traditional design and only used hand tools. They even made their own 9in nails! They then set up the Friends of Dawn Rose as a way to support the maintenance, mooring and other costs to keep it afloat. A horse, Knight, is currently in training and it is hoped that it will do some towing demonstrations later this year. To find out more about the Friends of Dawn Rose, go to the Chesterfield Canal Trust website at www. chesterfield-canal-trust.org.uk/ and search for Chesterfield Canal.
Lifting the towrope over a moored boat.
6 NEWS
IN BRIEF Satisfied customers
BOATERS’ satisfaction with the waterways has increased over the past year, according to the Canal & River Trust’s latest Boat Owners’ Views survey. In 2017, 76% of the 1160 respondents said they were happy with their cruising experience, up from 68% in 2016. There was some regional variation with boaters most satisfied in Wales & Borders and least satisfied in London, where 39% would recommend the waterways to others. Sent to a third of the trust’s licence holders, the survey was carried out by independent consultancy BDRC Continental in March and April.
Cinema culture
A FLOATING cinema boat is coming to Hull Marina between August 7 and 13, writes Geoff Wood. Berthed during Hull’s City of Culture celebrations, the cinema aboard a barge will celebrate what makes the city unique with people from Hull taking part in the films. Eventually, the barge will tour eight locations across Yorkshire. Annabel Grundy, film hub manager, said: “We were delighted to support this project, which will bring new commissioned work and independent film programming."
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Lost milepost rescued from railwayana auction ONE of the Leeds & Liverpool Canal’s heritage mileposts has been rescued from a railway memorabilia auction and restored to its rightful place on the towpath in East Lancashire, thanks to the eagle-eyed chairman of the Canal & River Trust’s North West Partnership. Last year the Canal & River Trust launched an appeal to restore or replace all the missing and damaged mileposts along the 127-mile canal as part of the Leeds & Liverpool’s 200th birthday celebrations. The Trust’s North West Partnership chairman, Bob Pointing, was involved in launching the EveryMileCounts bicentenary campaign but by complete coincidence came across the missing canal milepost while checking out the catalogue for a sale of railway antiques at a saleroom in Poynton, Cheshire. He worked with the trust’s legal team to get the item withdrawn from the sale and negotiated for it to be returned to its rightful owners, the Canal & River Trust. And this month after being carefully restored and repainted by volunteers,
the milepost has finally been returned to its original location on the Leeds & Liverpool Canal towpath in the village of Church, near Accrington.
Stroke of luck
Bob Pointing said: “It was amazing stroke of luck to come across the milepost advertised in the sale catalogue. I’m a bit of a railway history bore and was intending to attend the auction in search of some old Furness railway items. “I was so surprised when I saw one of our mileposts offered in the sale with a note suggesting it would make ‘a useful garden ornament’! Presumably it must have been stolen or mislaid at some point. Sadly it is too late to find out who the culprits are after all these years but we are just delighted to have the milepost restored to its rightful place alongside the canal.” This particular milepost is significant because it marks the halfway point of the trans-Pennine canal – the longest man-made waterway in England.
Salford setback
A £5.5 MILLION project to improve a section of the Bridgewater Canal in Salford is three years behind schedule, writes Geoff Wood. Salford City Council won funds from the Heritage Lottery Fund to regenerate five miles of canal with tunnel entrance improvements and the lighting up of the historic Baron Aqueduct. Designed to boost the local economy by £2 million a year, the scheme was scheduled to be completed by 2016. A council boss said they would be showing plans and timescales to the public later this summer but do not expect work to be completed until 2019.
Canal & River Trust North West Partnership chairman Bob Pointing (centre) after installing the missing milepost with the help of Emma Fielding and volunteer Neil Hartley. PHOTO: ALICE KAY
Bags of help for canal play area project
Historic ships
PHOTOGRAPHERS of all ages are invited to enter the National Historic Ships UK’s Photo Competition, now in its eighth year. It is dedicated to encouraging everyone to engage with historic vessels or maritime themes in their local area. There are two new categories and some great prizes including an overall prize of £1000 to be awarded on a theme or activity involving a historic vessel. Submissions are accepted online until August 31. For further details visit the photography competition page at www.nationalhistoricships.org.uk
Since the EveryMileCounts project started over a year ago, £5770 has been donated by individuals and groups, and more than 100 volunteers have donated their time and expertise to painting and repair work, including damaged half-mile and quarter-mile posts. The project has resulted in the restoration of 32 missing mileposts, 80 missing or damaged distance plates and more than 100 missing half- and quarter-mile posts. Although the canal is 200 years old, the original cast iron mile markers date back to the 1890s. They were installed as a response to legislation introduced to regulate canal freight tolls – the Railway and Canal Rates, Tolls and Charges Order of 1893. This prompted the whole of the canal to be resurveyed and new mileposts, along with half and quarter mileposts, installed along the towpaths. More than a century later and now gleaming in their new black and white paint, the milestones provide an attractive reference point for walkers, cyclists and boaters.
The ferry across the Wyre Estuary. PHOTO: WYRE COUNCIL
Reprieve for threatened ferry service THE Wyre Estuary Ferry in Lancashire has been thrown a lifeline, writes Geoff Wood. The 176-year-old service links Fleetwood with Knott End, alternative journeys by road taking 40 minutes. But the council-funded service was threatened with the axe because
of running costs for the modern ferry. Following the local elections, Lancashire County Council and Wyre Council have pledged to fund it after all. Local residents say they are delighted that the ferry service has been saved.
Drainage works will leave boaters high and dry BOATERS who have enthused about living at the New Islington Marina, in Manchester’s Ancoats district, have been dealt a new blow, writes Geoff Wood. Forty residents have been told they will have to leave for 12 months while the area is drained for civil engineering work. Notices for them to move off by August have been served by the city council and they are now scrambling to find new moorings and are to hold a series of meetings to discuss their position.
Two years ago the area was hit by vandalism but since then, with extra police surveillance, things have settled down and recently most residents declared they were happy with the conditions there. But now council chiefs say there are major problems with water seeping on to nearby land, including footpaths and areas earmarked for housing development. Once the work is completed, boat owners can apply for a new mooring licence to move back.
A NEW children’s play area will be created at the Grand Western Canal’s basin in Tiverton after the project bagged the support of supermarket shoppers. The scheme, which already has funding from Devon County Council and Tiverton Town Council, has also received support from Tesco’s eco-friendly community awards scheme Bags of Help. The funding initiative awards grants to thousands of local community projects every year, and is funded by the 5p singleuse carrier-bag charge. Visitors to stores across Devon, Somerset and West Dorset voted for their favourite scheme earlier this year. The play area, which is intended for children aged from three to nine, was the most popular and has been awarded the maximum £5000. It follows Devon County Council, which manages the canal, consulting local children over the design of the new play area at the Mid Devon Show and through local schools.
The final design is a combination of the children’s views and a theme inspired by the canal’s setting and natural environment. The themed play equipment includes slides, swings and a roundabout. One of its main features will be a boat for children to climb and explore. The Bags of Help award will pay for a basket swing that can also be enjoyed by children with disabilities, as well as a roundabout. Once completed, the play area will be just a short walk from facilities at the canal basin including the Canal Visitor Centre, Tiverton Canal Co’s floating cafebar (The Duck’s Ditty), gift shop and the nearby Canal Tea Rooms and Garden. Designers and installers of outdoor playground equipment Proludic won the county council’s tender to supply and install the equipment. Tesco’s head of community Lindsey Crompton said: “We can’t wait to see the project come to life.”
Tiverton canal basin will be a short walk from the new play area. PHOTO: JANET RICHARDSON
RYA SPOTLIGHT 7
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The Royal Yachting Association (RYA) is the national body for all forms of boating, including dinghy and yacht racing, motor and sail cruising, RIBs and sports boats, powerboat racing, windsurfing, inland cruising and narrowboats and personal watercraft.
Stay lock safe this summer WHEN the paddles on a lock open, thousands of gallons of water rush from one part of the canal to another and that much water generates a ferocious amount of power. Locks make canals the special places they are. But they also need to be treated with the respect thousands of gushing gallons of water demands. So what can you do to make sure you’re ‘lock safe’ this summer? “The engineering and history around locks make them a fascinating thing to experience,”
says Ali Selby-Nicholls, RYA Inland Waterways instructor trainer and chief instructor at Castaway Canal Boats on the Kennet & Avon Canal. “But whether you’re operating or observing a lock in action, they are the most hazardous parts of the waterways. “Locks are noisy places. Once that water starts rushing it’s hard enough to hear someone next to you let alone at the back of a boat often 100ft or more away, so when you are approaching a lock communication and planning become critical.
“After all if something went wrong, either on the boat or with the lock operation, shouting would be futile. How would you get a message to another person?” Instead of verbal, non-verbal communication should take over. By agreeing a set of hand signals before you enter a lock, everyone is clear what is going on. The person operating the lock is ultimately in charge of the situation as they can close the paddles and stop the water flow if required. Meanwhile simple signals a helm can employ could include
When going uphill, only open the paddles fully once the cill is covered by water. PHOTOS: RYA
raising a fist to convey that the boat’s clear of the cill, or beckoning forwards and a hand up for stop, etc.
Lifejacket advice
Don’t forget your journey along the canal isn’t always the most important thing either; maybe something has happened on the towpath where people being able to hear and talk is paramount and the operator needs to get the paddles shut as soon as possible. “We all love the idyllic notion of cruising along the canals on hot, dry summer days but the reality is we live in Britain,” Ali continues. “Rain happens, boats, towpaths and areas around the locks get slippery and accidents, however rare, can happen. “If someone falls into the water while a lock is being operated, instead of 4ft of relatively still water suddenly there is a deep vacuum and gushing, heavily aerated water where you have no natural buoyancy to stay afloat, and getting your bearings in the torrential water is nigh-on impossible.” Ali’s advice? Even if you do it at no other point, around locks wear a lifejacket and put one on any youngsters too. They might not yet be standard waterways attire, but lifejackets are becoming less of a rare sight, and wearing a correctly fitted lifejacket gives someone in the water the chance to keep their
Water rushing through the lock gates. head above it, and buys a bit of rescue time. Of course accidents are much less likely to happen if nothing is rushed. And the sedate nature of life on the waterways almost dictates a ‘slow and steady’ approach. But when you’re operating a lock, there is an especially good reason that approach takes on even greater significance. As Ali explains: “The general rule is you should only open the paddles halfway to start with. If you open them all the way, the sudden pressure difference means the water moves in really quickly, with the danger of the boat heaving forwards, damaging the gates and the boat with the risk of the helm getting knocked off.” What happens if you’re
travelling downhill or uphill varies too. Downhill, once the helm is happy the boat is clear of the cill, open the paddles fully. Uphill you are starting off in an empty lock so opening the paddles fully puts the boat in turbulent water and all the risk that presents. Only open the paddles fully once the cill is covered by water. And make sure you lower, never ‘drop’, the paddles back down. “When it comes to locks the key is to do things slowly and with understanding,” Ali concludes. “Every lock will be different but they all have paddles, gates and a ratchet system. Moor up and take the time to have a look and figure out how it works if you want to, it’s all just part of the magical and unique waterways experience.”
● For more information about RYA inland waterways training courses visit www.rya.org.uk/go/inlandwaterways
8 NETWORKING
SOCIETY NEWS Anniversary cruise
SOUTHAMPTON Canal Society members celebrated the 50th anniversary of the society’s formation with a cruise on the Basingstoke Canal on board trip boat John Pinkerton. According to one of several articles to mark this milestone, 20 people attended the first meeting in June 1967 at the Millbrook scouts HQ, membership blossoming into a fairly large group given that the nearest canals were the Kennet & Avon and Basingstoke except for the Itchen Navigation and a small section of the Southampton/Andover Canal at Romsey. (SCS Newsletter, June 2017)
Lock restoration
THE River Stour Trust is well on the way to completing the restoration of Stratford St Mary Lock, the culmination of 10 years of hard work. New gates are being manufactured in Yorkshire thanks to an £85,000 grant from the Cory Environmental Trust. The Stour, which flows through Constable country in Suffolk, is part of the planned transfer of waterways from the Environment Agency to the Canal & River Trust. (Lock Lintel, spring/ summer 2017)
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Towpath raised by trust volunteers HARD-WORKING volunteers have completed the latest improvements to a restored stretch of canal between Chippenham and Lacock. The Melksham, Chippenham & Calne branch of the Wilts & Berks Canal Trust has finished raising a section of towpath which dropped when the waterway was abandoned more than a century ago. Supported by a grant of £4685 from Chippenham Area Board, a team of volunteers spent more than a week transporting several tons of soil and hardcore to the site near Double Bridge. The 150 metres of affected towpath have now been levelled off and pipes have been installed to improve drainage. This has also allowed the water level to be raised to improve access along the canal for the charity’s workboat. Branch chairman Dave Maloney said:
“The towpath is a very popular route for walkers and cyclists to enjoy the open countryside, and many people use it to travel between Chippenham and Lacock. “However, there was a short distance where the period of dereliction had resulted in it sinking slightly due to poor drainage, so we wanted to raise it back to its original height in order to improve access for everyone.” He explained: “The main challenge was keeping the towpath open while we worked, but people were very understanding of any brief delays and we even managed to recruit a few more members!” The Wilts & Berks Canal Trust is restoring the former waterway which once linked the Kennet & Avon Canal near Melksham to the Thames & Severn Canal near Cricklade and the
Wild flowers
RECENT activities by the Uppermill Community Action Network (UCAN), supported by the Canal & River Trust, have focused on sowing wild flowers. They were obtained from Grow Wild and others and have been planted in the verges cleared during the recent wash-wall repairs, the beds at Wade Lock, and in the woodland section under Limekiln Lock. UCAN has also continued with painting work on the new gates at Dungebooth Lock and has started Himalayan Balsam clearing activities.
Work party organiser Ray Canter and fellow volunteer Keith Vickery beside the raised towpath. PHOTO: W&BCT
New push towards canal restoration
Boiler appeal
AN APPEAL has been launched to pay for necessary work to President’s steam boiler. Built in 1909, the historic coal-fired steam narrowboat is owned by the Black Country Living Museum and maintained and operated by Friends of President. It is currently undergoing a refurbishment of the hull and cabin costing around £10,000. As part of the work required for the boiler’s 10-year test, the 76 steam tubes need replacing at a cost of £100 each, £50 will pay for a safety valve, £40 for a sight glass and £25 for a steam valve.
River Thames near Abingdon, linking Chippenham, Calne and Swindon. Longer-term, the aim is to extend the line to Melksham where a planning application has already been submitted to create a new junction with the K&A at Semington and then bring the canal along the River Avon through the town centre before reconnecting with the historic route south of Lacock. Dave added: “We would love to welcome more volunteers. There are lots of roles to choose from including fundraising and event management, but we’d particularly welcome people who are interested in the physical aspects such as digging, bricklaying and grass cutting. It’s a great way to enjoy the fresh air and make new friends.” Visit www.melkshamwaterway.org.uk or www.wbct.org.uk
Stewarts & Lloyds boats gathered in front of the former tube works at Coombeswood. PHOTO: KEVIN MASLIN
Stewarts & Lloyds boats mark 50th anniversary of works closure A GROUP of tugs and joey boats gathered recently to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the shutdown of the Stewarts & Lloyds tube works at Coombeswood in Halesowen, West Midlands, writes Steve Bingham of Dudley Canal & Tunnel Trust. This special event was organised in conjunction with Coombeswood Canal Trust Open Weekend in Hawne Basin and was open for all original Stewarts & Lloyds boats to attend. Tug 1, Tug 4 (Pacific) and, after a major restoration to its hull and a repaint, Tug 5 (Bittell) arrived along with two other original joey boats – No 37 (not converted) and Squire, which was joey boat number 102 and has been converted into a motor boat. The
other tug was Tardebigge that Stewarts & Lloyds leased, but never owned, for a short while to be used for ice-breaking purposes along the Dudley No 2 Canal. A small marque was also erected to put all the Stewarts & Lloyds artefacts on display; manly old photos and maps of the area when the tube works were active. Plenty of ex-employees turned up to view all these photos also telling their stories of when they worked at the tube works factory. Later all the Stewarts & Lloyds boats were taken up to what’s left of the factory which is now a retaining wall holding up an industrial estate and the boats were lined up in front of the large plaque for photos of this special 50th anniversary.
Volunteers filmed for adoption campaign THE Shropshire Union Middlewich Branch Adopters (SUMBA) recently visited the 48-hour moorings at Sykes Hollow picnic area and Brickyard Bridge 6 to carry out annual repainting of the picnic tables, barbecues, totem posts, the bridge’s timbers and the steps handrail. An unusual aspect of this work party was that they were joined by the Canal & River Trust’s local press officer and cameraman to film some volunteer material for the recent launch of its ‘500 miles of canals up for adoption’ media campaign. Before setting off from Cholmondeston Lock in workboat Gowy, there was a lot of getting on and getting off the boat until the right sequence had been captured and much stage-managed group waving! On reaching Sykes Hollow there was essential filming of the materials and
Much waving on board workboat Gowy! PHOTO SUPPLIED safety equipment being unloaded and one of the picnic tables was painted so many times that the wood was almost dripping from the underside. Eventually the press team departed and the serious work commenced. By early afternoon everything had been repainted and returned to a pristine condition – and Brickyard Bridge is again its iconic white colour as it straddles the canal.
HOPES are high that water will flow again along a stretch of a unique Norfolk canal, following a major effort by volunteers. Work parties have spent many strenuous hours restoring the damaged spillway at Royston, on the North Walsham & Dilham Canal. Their efforts mean that it will soon be possible to rewater the dry section of Norfolk’s only sailing canal with locks, and they are appealing for budding bricklayers to help bring that day closer. If successful, the added section will mean that a 3.7km (2.3 mile) stretch of the canal will have been reopened, thanks to supporters and canal owners, over the past 17 years. North Walsham and Dilham Canal Trust members want to see the 19th-century waterway, which fell into neglect before the Second World War, thrive again and become a well-used attraction for locals and visitors. They are urging canoeists, sailors,
Work to face the back-soke slope with bricks. PHOTO: IVAN CANE
paddle-boarders, swimmers, walkers, bird watchers and fishermen (in season) to make use of the flourishing section between Ebridge Mill pond and Bacton Wood Mill. Trust volunteers mixed, moved, spread, tamped and smoothed countless wheelbarrow-loads of concrete to create a new six-inch deep pad on the Royston spillway, downstream of the Old Wherry Inn. The concrete pad measures 70ft by 12ft and will divert excess water to a back-soke when the canal is at its correct depth. Work involved laying the pad with a fall of 1in in 12ft to allow the water to flow gently into the back-soke without eroding its back bank. The trust work parties are currently protecting the bank into the soke further by facing it with brick, an awkward procedure as it is built on a 45-degree slope, and they would welcome extra help. The work was carried out with the backing of Laurie Ashton, whose Old Canal Company (OCC) owns the waterway between Ebridge Mill and Swafield Bridge. The trust has a licence for a trial rewatering of a dry section of the canal, at Royston. The words OCC Ltd 2017 have been inscribed in the concrete surface, echoing the date 1941 etched by those who placed a concrete cap on the Ebridge spillway in wartime. Continuing restoration work on the Ebridge section of the canal may require water levels to be adjusted occasionally. Volunteers are always welcome. More information can be found on the trust’s website www.nwdct.org
Gould award for ‘behind-the-scenes’ service CROFTON branch secretary Pam Weeks has been awarded the Kennet & Avon Canal Trust’s John Gould Award for 2016. Her title as secretary belies the range and volume of work she has undertaken for the trust. Particularly outstanding are her efforts to keep the Crofton Beam Engines open to the public and driving forward the project to conserve them for future generations has been outstanding. The award also recognises the great behind-the-scenes work she does in keeping the Crofton Branch running, improving standards, and her contribution to the great boiler appeal and other fundraising achievements. Pam has a clear idea of what needs to be done and her organisational skills motivate and direct others. That makes her a great role model for the new generation of volunteers that KACT seeks to attract to Crofton and the trust.
Secretary of the Crofton Branch, Pam Weeks, receives the award from Kennet & Avon Canal Trust president David Bruce. PHOTO: KACT The John Gould Award is presented annually to a person or group who has undertaken ‘noteworthy actions or deeds’ in the past year. It is made in memory of the late John Gould who initiated the campaign to restore the canal in the 1950s.
NETWORKING 9
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From city stockbroker to country marina owner – Tim Coghlan. PHOTO: JULIE WEBB
Characters of the cut Julie Webb meets the man who masterminded the revival of Braunston Marina.
READERS of April and May Towpath Talk may have seen with interest the pieces by Tim Coghlan on Braunston Marina and the discoveries which resulted from dredging the route of the historic narrowboats’ annual parade. The story of Tim’s 30-year development of the marina is equally interesting. Cometh the hour, cometh the man, they say, and with his combination of boating experience, financial acumen and love of history, Tim was ideally qualified to rescue a neglected site of great importance to industrial archaeology and turn it into a successful business. He was born 70 years ago, into a boating family. “Grandfather was a yachtsman at Cowes before the First World War, and my father did lots of sailing round the coast, and cross-channel racing, pre the Second World War,” he said. “He was 33 when the war came, and able to join the navy because of his navigational skills. “I was always in dinghies as a child. My late wife and I bought a small offshore cruiser – a 22ft Dufour, a keel-boat – and did some quite adventurous sailing.” Tim has had the horrible sadness of losing two wives to cancer. He has four children, two from each marriage, and has recently married again. He specialises in women with royal names, his wives being Camilla, Diana and, now, Elizabeth: he also has daughters called Alice and Louise. His next boat was a Contessa 32, bought with a friend: “We did two Fastnet Races, and took it down to Spain in 1987, where we were knocked flat. I thought ‘This is it. Not a bad way to go!’ But we survived: there was a foot of water in the cabin but the batteries were okay. “I was on watch that day with a friend who went on to crew on the Jam ’Ole Runs.”
The Jam ’Ole Runs – one of Tim’s many inland waterway initiatives – were re-enactments of the journey from Atherstone on the Coventry Canal with coal for the Kearley and Tonge jam factory near Brentford. He organised the first in 1995, the 25th anniversary of the last commercial run. By that time, he had been at Braunston for seven years. “Before that I was a stockbroker. When I was first in the city it was like a gentlemen’s club – but then pressures crept up; I wasn’t seeing the children. The youngest was four months old when Black Monday happened in 1987. I turned 40 the day after and decided the only thing to do was to buy a business and be in control. “I looked around. I remember vividly, it was Tuesday, May 13, 1988 and I was sitting in the train. The FT had a ‘knacker’s yard’ page – businesses for sale of which about 80% were bust – and I saw an ad for the Ladyline site at Braunston, the old Nursers’ boatyard.”
Opportunity
To cut an extraordinarily involved story short, in October 1988, after months of negotiation with banks, British Waterways and the Receiver, Tim and some friends who put in n money as shareholders becam me the marina’s new ownerss.
Tim Coghlan beside the plaque commemorating the marina’s Civic Trust Award. PHOTO: JULIE WEBB
The marina under repair. PHOTO SUPPLIED
The most urgent need was to repair the historic buildings. “Everything was derelict,” said Tim. “Marinas are like gardens – they fall apart quickly if you don’t look after them.” His philosophy, though, is ‘adversity creates opportunity’, and with the example of the south coast in mind, he pioneered mooring facilities new to inland marinas. “We put in things people said there was no demand for, such as electricity and water. We were the first to have a DIY pump-out, and a tank to recycle filthy engine oil – which was being pumped into the canal – for use in power stations.” He also devised a way of using gabions (stones caged in wire netting) instead of steel piling, to allow waterlife to move more freely. As a result of this environmental work, the marina won a British Nautical Award and, for bringing new life to the site, one from the Civic Trust. In partnership with BW, Tim developed the 1990s housing scheme adjoining the Marina and, from 1991 to 1999, put on an annual boat show, which sprangfromaneventheorganised in 1990, at the IWA’s suggestion, to celebrate the Oxford Canal’s bicentenary. As well as beer, boats and entertainment, this featured a spectacular firework display: in an instance of the black humour he relishes, Iraq’s invasion of Kuwaiit led d to cancellation of the kin ng’s birthday bash and redirection of firreworks destined for it by the pyrotechnics firrm booked for the Braunston event. The annual Historic Narrowboats Rally – this weeekend, June 24-25)– originated in a party for the 1909 Fellows Morton and Clayton steamer President, with which Tim has a longstanding association. He has no plans to retire yet. “There’s always something new,” he said. “One evening a couple turned up on a tandem. They’d cycled from Germany and were studying the Industrial Revolution, looking at 10 British sites – and ours was one! “Our little dock, dated 1792, is one of very few buildings being used exactly the same way 200 years later. “The paddle used to empty it is an 1862 design. That’s what I love about canals: it still works!” www.braunstonmarina.co.uk
10 COMMUNITY BOATING
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A course for those hiring a boat
In this article Derek Stansfield, director of training for the National Community Boats Association, describes one of the NCBA courses that is ideal for the first-time hirer of a boat. MANY a time on the canal we find a boat approaching us and one question that often emanates from our helmsman’s lips is: “Where are they going?” This is due to the fact that the boat appears to be heading towards us going one way and then the other. Once apparent that this is a hire boat, the reason for a zig-zag course is sometimes understandable, especially if it is a day hire as opposed to a longer period. The pressure of time and enthusiasm to get under way often restricts the amount of explanation given, or understood, to the clients. Operating and negotiating bridges is another obstacle to be overcome and we occasionally find ourselves willingly explaining and helping with this task. For those on longer hire, locks become another unknown to them. Some boaters find this sort of boat management an irritation but we find it most encouraging and satisfying that more people are taking to the waterways and enjoying, sometimes in a perverse way, the experience. I know the boat hire companies around our project in the main give a good introduction to the
boat and its operation and some with a longer hire will often travel by road to the first lock to help them through. However, there is no substitute for having some hands-on experience. The NCBA offers a series of progressive courses and one of these, which can be taken in isolation, is an ideal introduction for those hiring a boat for the first time, whether this be a day hire or longer. The Boat Handling Course is for people of 14 and over. Between one and four people are trained together. No previous experience is needed. These courses are run by an NCBA Approved Training Centre (ATC) and a list of these can be found on the NCBA website at www.national-cba.co.uk. The course takes place on a boat approved by the ATC and will be tutored by an NCBA trainer. It takes at least one full day of boating and at least one day, which could be long distance learning, including theory elements. The latter could be split into multiple shorter sessions. There are five units to the course and these are: 1. Preparation of a boat 2. Engine transmission and propeller
Young boaters undergoing training. PHOTO SUPPLIED 3. Practical boat handling 4. Emergencies 5. Discussion and appraisal On successful completion of all the units an NCBA certificate is issued. BHC certificates are not subject to renewal and are valid only for the waters where the course was taught.
If you want to do the course
You first approach an NCBA approved training centre – as mentioned, a list can be found on the NCBA website. The centre arranges with you suitable dates and a boat – which may be your
own, subject to the boat and insurance being suitable – or maybe a boat from the centre. You also agree costs. There is a standard fee for registration and certificate issue. Beyond that, boat hire, catering, administrative and trainer’s costs are for you to agree with the centre. You will be wise to do some pre-course reading, in particular to make yourself familiar with: • The Canal & River Trust Boaters’ Handbook. This can be downloaded free from the CRT website. There is also a video of this on the website. • An appropriate canal guide,
such as the Goma, Pearson or Nicholson guide for the waters where you are doing the course. Also, you have to complete a registration form and return it to the centre before the course starts. On the course, you do some classroom work, a good deal of practical steering and, mostly on the second day, practical training and assessment. The order of work depends on the weather and the route as well as your needs. At the start, you are given notes and a record sheet. As you complete each task you
initial and date the record. When the trainer has seen you do each task successfully he or she signs and dates the record for that unit. The trainer assesses how you get on and when all units are complete, arranges for you to receive a certificate. The main aspect of attending such a course at a NCBA centre is firstly enjoyment and satisfaction in acquiring new skills and competence but also to gain an understanding and confidence so that taking out a boat for the first time becomes a far more enjoyable and less stressful experience.
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Get on board to help the environment A NARROWBOAT will be embarking on trips down the Coventry Canal to help an environmental charity continue with its educational work. Coventrian will be voyaging along the stretch of water over the coming months with a number of different events. The Living Environment Trust, the charity which operates the 70ft canal boat, has an array of activities planned between now and September and everyone is being invited to get on board. Those who join in can have the chance to indulge in delicious treats and entertainment with events such as strawberries and cream cruises, Sunday lunches, Mexican dinners, karaoke and a buffet and much more. Raffaella Tentindo, from the Living Environment Trust, said the events were the perfect way to spend time with family and friends and help a local good cause at the same time. “What better way to enjoy the spring and summer months than by joining in with the special events that we have planned,” she said. “We have a whole host of trips coming up and there is something to cater for all tastes and ages. Not only that, the cruises are a chance to sit back, relax and unwind." Raffaella continued: “Bookings for the events are being taken now, so secure your place before they sell out. “All profits obtained from the hire of and events on Coventrian are directed into the development of The Living
A number of canal trips are planned over the coming months on Coventrian. PHOTO SUPPLIED Canals Project, an educational scheme for schoolchildren, so the money is put to good use.” Strawberries and cream events will go ahead in June and August when fresh fruit and a glass of fizz are served up while people cruise through the picturesque countryside. Delicious dishes will be served up for the Mexican dinner and Sunday lunches, while vocal skills can be shown off when people hop on board Coventrian in August for a karaoke trip. All events will begin from either the Coventry Canal Basin,
Hawkesbury Junction, or Swan Lane Wharf. Prices vary for each event and there are a number of different start times to accommodate people’s needs. The Living Environment Trust is an environmental charity based in Coventry, which aims to promote environmental and sustainability awareness within local communities. Its four main areas of service delivery are environmental management, educational projects, community projects and Coventrian.
● For further information about any of the events or to book, visit www.covsf.com/coventrian/cruises, email coventrian@covsf.com or call The Alan Higgs Centre on 0247 630 8244.
A J Felgate turns out of the Cannock Extension on to the main Wyrley & Essington canal at Pelsall Junction. The boat is steered by new skipper Sarah Barton with TENT chairman Pete Davies in the fore-cockpit. PHOTOS: KEITH ELEY
Having a go in the BCN challenge A GROUP of volunteers from the Truman Enterprise Narrowboat Trust (TENT) took part in the recent BCN 24-hour Marathon Challenge organised by the BCN Society over the Spring Bank Holiday weekend. The crew included several TENTskippers, and a wide range of ages – the youngest being under two years old! When the results came out this week, the A J Felgate was placed 17th out of the 42 boats completing the challenge – a creditable achievement for ‘first-timers’. TENT has two more of its popular ‘Have A Go’ cruises on Saturdays July 1 and 22.
Other events in the summer include a ‘fish and chips’ social cruise on Saturday, August 5 on wheelchair accessible boat Walsall Enterprise. TENT will also be attending the Wednesfield Canal Festival on Saturday and Sunday, August 12 and 13. It is hoped to have nb A J Felgate there, as well as a publicity stand and the ‘Have A Go at Roses & Castles’ feature which proved popular at the BCNS Titford Boat Rally in May. For details and cruise bookings, contact 0121 777 7737, friends@truman-enterprise. org.uk
12 IWA ROUND-UP / NEWS
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AROUND THE BRANCHES WITH IWA’S MARION BIRCH
Lichfield
North Staffs & South Cheshire with Trent & Mersey Canal Society
BRANCH volunteers recently held a work party at Brindley Bank in Rugeley with the very welcome addition of three new people. The main task was to cut back the grass and vegetation which was encroaching over the towpath. After checking that no birds would be harmed in the process, a lot of overhanging branches from the top path were lopped which generally made the path easier to walk along. After lunch it was time to go ‘batty’ as the branch had purchased three heavy-duty bat boxes on the advice of Staffordshire Bat Group and installed them in appropriate trees. After some rain a few days later, a trial wildflower seed scattering was carried out. The results will
AS PART of the long-term project to maintain and improve the area around Cheshire Locks, Thursday, May 18 saw seven volunteers painting the metalwork on and around Lock 41 at Kidsgrove. In addition, members of the group completed the painting of all eight mileposts between the north portal of Harecastle Tunnel and Wheelock.
Branch walk
LICHFIELD branch members took part in an interesting walk around Pelsall and Little Wyrley on May 9. Fourteen walkers set off from the Finger Post pub at Yorks Bridge on the Wyrley & Essington Canal and crossed over the distinctive Horseley Iron Works bridge at Pelsall Junction to join the Cannock Extension Canal. At the gauging stop by Friar Bridge the two BCN cottages (nos. 211 and 212) and the modernised stables opposite formed an interesting group of canal buildings on the edge of Pelsall Common which was once the site of a huge ironworks. The route then proceeded northwards along the regimented Extension Canal, which was opened in 1863 to tap the Cannock coalfields. Leaving the wide towpath at Pelsall road bridge they entered the site of the former Wyrley Grove colliery. An information board gave a potted history of the coalfield, a map showing a network of railways and two narrowboats being loaded in the colliery basin. A winding and narrow path, the Forest of Mercia Timberland Trail, led to the estate of Little Wyrley and its hall where engineers have made
Placing bat boxes in the trees.
LEFT: John Lawson and Dave Sproson pictured alongside the last of the eight mileposts between the north portal of the Harecastle Tunnel and Wheelock to be repainted. This work was carried out by John Lawson, Dave Sproson, Roger Evans and Margaret English working as a sub-group from the Cheshire Locks Working Party.
IWA WORK PARTIES IN JULY
PHOTOS: IWA
Anyone intending to attend one of these events for the first time should contact the organisers beforehand and wear suitable clothing and footwear. If staying all day take a packed lunch unless other arrangement indicated.
determine whether more will be sown next year. If any local members are splitting any wildflower plants, or can gather seeds for future planting, please contact the branch.
East
North
IWA Ipswich Branch supporting River Gipping Trust: Pipps Ford (Needham Market, Ipswich, Suffolk IP6 8LJ) or Baylham Mill Lock (Mill Lane, Ipswich, Suffolk IP6 8LG), River Gipping. Meet at 9am to continue clearing storm damage to Pipps Ford or carry out maintenance at Baylham Mill Lock, finish at 3.30-4pm. Contact Martin Bird 01394 380765, restoration@ rivergippingtrust.org.uk
IWA North Staffordshire & South Cheshire Branch supporting the Burslem Port Trust: Twice-monthly work party on the Burslem Arm, Stoke-on-Trent, 10am to 3pm. Meet at Luke Street, Middleport, Stoke-on-Trent ST6 3LY. Contact Steve Wood 07976 805858, steve.wood@waterways.org.uk
attempts to correct subsidence at Hall Farm and its outbuildings. Little Wyrley Hall has a Tudor core and is currently owned by the Wallace family. The gate entrance has its own postbox and one of the walkers recalled emptying this on a regular basis. On the next stage a brook flows down the pathway and walkers had to cross two small fords to divert to a neighbouring field before rejoining the green lane before stumbling across Fishley ‘church’. This is nothing more than a broken stone in the undergrowth from which John Wesley gave a sermon, having been banned from preaching from a proper pulpit. A plaque tells that this occurred on Aldersgate Sunday, which is on May 24 or the nearest Sunday before that. Passing through gorse and a small wood, the walkers rejoined the canal at Pelsall Works Bridge. They then turned left past the site of the 2016 Festival of Water and back to Pelsall Junction Bridge, where repairs are being planned to replace stolen coping stones. A short walk then returned the group to their starting point.
Wednesdays July 5, 12, 19, 26 and Saturday July 8
Sunday July 9
IWA Lincolnshire Branch supporting Sleaford Navigation Trust: Volunteers meet on the second Sunday of the month to carry out a variety of tasks to maintain the navigable section of the Sleaford Navigation. 10am-3pm. To confirm date and location contact Chris or Steve Hayes on 01522 689460, workparties@sleafordnavigation.co.uk
Midlands
Sunday July 2 and Tuesday July 18
IWA Northampton Branch: Northampton Arm adoption, fortnightly work party 10am-2pm. Work includes a variety of tasks such as painting, vegetation clearance and litter picking. Location dependent on work completed at the previous work party. Contact Geoff Wood at geoff.wood@waterways.org.uk
Sunday July 9
IWA Warwickshire Branch supported by Warwick District Council: Himalayan Balsam Bash at Myton Fields, Warwick CV34 4QY, 10am-1pm. Volunteers are invited to help with this activity, families are welcome and children remain the responsibility of the accompanying adult. Work consists of pulling up the plants and disposing in bags provided. Contact: info.warwickshire@waterways.org.uk
South
Tuesdays July 18 and 25
IWA Oxfordshire supporting Banbury Canal Partnership: Meet at 9am, work until around 1pm. Contact Colin GarnhamEdge, bcpontheoxford@gmail.com
Saturday July 1 and Tuesday July 25
Thursday July 13
IWA North Staffordshire & South Cheshire Branch and the Caldon & Uttoxeter Canals Trust: Monthly work party on the Uttoxeter Canal at Bridge 70, Crumpwood. 10am-3pm. No parking at site so please meet at 9.30am at Denstone Village Hall, College Road, Denstone, Uttoxeter, Staffordshire ST14 5HR for a lift or, if on foot, meet on site at Bridge 70 at 10am. Contact Steve Wood on 07976 805858, steve.wood@waterways.org.uk
Thursday July 20
IWA North Staffordshire & South Cheshire Branch and Trent & Mersey Canal Society: Monthly work party on the Cheshire Locks, Trent & Mersey Canal. 10am3pm. Meet at Lock 41, which is situated adjacent to Hardingswood Road, just off A50 Liverpool Road East, Kidsgrove, parking at Kidsgrove Working Men's Club ST7 1EF. Contact John Brighouse on 0780 887317, john.brighouse@ waterways.org.uk
Saturday July 15
IWA Manchester Branch: Monthly work party at a venue to be confirmed in Greater Manchester, 10am-4pm. Tasks will include vegetation clearance, litter picking, painting and pulling rubbish out of the canal. Contact 07710 554602, secretary@ manchester-iwa.co.uk
Saturday July 29
IWA Chester & Merseyside Branch: Monthly work party in the Chester area working at various locations alongside the Shropshire Union Canal, 10am-4pm. Work will include painting and vegetation clearance. Contact Christine Fraser, christine. fraser@waterways.org.uk
For further information on any of these events please contact Katie Thomas, IWA’s branch support officer on 01494 783453 or email katie.thomas@waterways.org.uk Details can also be found on IWA’s website at www.waterways.org.uk
Trip boat returns to Chelmer & Blackwater ESSEX Waterways Ltd, the IWA subsidiary company that runs the Chelmer & Blackwater Navigation, is bringing the trip boat Victoria back to the waterway after the boat’s former operator ceased its use in 2016. The 48-passenger, 57ft widebeam has been acquired with the aid of a grant of just over £30,000 from European LEADER funds via The Rural Community Council of Essex.
The company will use the craft to promote the Chelmer & Blackwater Navigation, making charter trips along the waterway. David Smart, navigation manager at Essex Waterways Ltd, said: “Victoria was specially built for the Chelmer & Blackwater and has brought pleasure to many visitors for more than 40 years. “We’re excited that this distinguished
and popular boat is returning to allow more people to experience the delights of the navigation.” Victoria will operate from her former base at Paper Mill Lock at Little Baddow, near Chelmsford, and will be available for charter every day of the week, with trips available from two hours up to a full day’s hire. Enquiries are welcome at victoria@ waterways.org.uk
The Victoria tripboat at Paper Mill. PHOTO: ROY CHANDLER
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13
14 NEWS FOCUS
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Gardners galore at forum rally By Harry Arnold
Gleaming Gardners everywhere. Gary Fisher with his 1930-vintage Gardner 3LT in the 70ft boat Marie Babette, owned by Gary and his wife Denise, which they base at Braunston.
GARDNER Engine Forum events don’t just attract boats as the organisation membership encompasses anyone who owns anything driven by these traditional-style power units. The Forum’s 2017 rally – held over the weekend of June 3-4 at the Lichfield Cruising Club’s HQ at Huddlesford Junction on the Coventry Canal – attracted 23 boats, six road vehicles and five stationary engines. Entrants came from as far south as Surrey, and Gretna Green in the north. Some vehicles – that can only do about 40mph – had driven from the Lakes. Road and stationary entries were less
Rather large for a canal boat. This Gardner 3J5 was one of a pair that drove the motor yacht Cordelia in 1929. Its partner is in the National Waterways Museum.
than the organisers have liked, but several entrants did not turn up for various reasons. Boats travelled considerable distances from Nottingham, Weedon, Middlewich, Norton Canes and Stourbridge, some via the BCN. Among the really vintage entrants were two pre-1910 stationary engines; one of which is believed to be an example of only four in existence. The most impressive for us was the huge 1929 Gardner 3J5, one of a pair that drove the motor yacht Cordelia. You can see its twin at the National Waterways
Museum. It ran through the weekend on its bespoke lorry: Gardner powered of course. In the boats there was a huge range of gleaming Gardners (Mr Brasso did extremely well) as owners vied with each other to present the best image. Difficult to choose one to photograph but we had a good look at the 1930 3LT in Denise and Gary Fisher’s 70ft Braunston-based Marie Babette. I emphasise however – very difficult to choose. Evening entertainment was in Lichfield CC’s club house and bar, with a Saturday night hog roast
Visitors get a close look at the boats at the Gardner Rally. enjoyed by 80 of the entrants. In line with expectation – as it was essentially an enthusiasts’ gathering – there were about 150 visiting public.
Forum members were particularly appreciative of Lichfield Cruising Club’s preparation of the site, hospitality and support over the weekend.
Gardner engine-powered boats gathered on the Coventry Canal at Huddlesford Junction PHOTOS: WATERWAY IMAGES
NEWS FOCUS 15
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Abingdon Lock’s unusual ‘wildlife’ By Elizabeth Rogers
IF YOU go down to the riverside at Abingdon Lock you could be quite surprised at the local wildlife to be seen beside this stretch of the River Thames. For it includes a crocodile, a giant tortoise, and the latest arrival, a 14ft-tall giraffe. These wooden structures are the work of the lock’s own ‘River Banksy’, an anonymous benefactor who delivers his models under cover of darkness. Although lock keeper Richard Hawkins and lock keeping volunteer Frank Jordan are aware of his identity, they are keeping the secret of the man Frank describes as ‘the local Scarlet Pimpernel’. This assembly of creatures has been building up for the past two or three years. It all began when there was a regular sound of sawing going on nearby in the area beyond the river bank, and the team at the lock assumed that it was somebody cutting up some firewood. Then overnight a strange creature appeared – a crocodile, which was emerging from the waters of a stream on the backwater. His head and feet and part of his body appeared to be crawling on to dry land, while the reminder of his
body remained in the water – the rest of the fallen tree which had been River Banksy’s source of material. Soon the crocodile was not alone, being joined by a giant tortoise – large enough to make a convenient seat. A seat is part of the installation of Winnie the Pooh, so that the children can sit beside their favourite bear and have their photograph taken. It is well sited, for the photographs can include the sign with the name of the lock. The otter was at first regarded with suspicion, for its menacing look, but River Banksy turned him into a more friendly character by giving him a spoon and fork clutched between his paws, as
The crocodile was the first creature to appear.
A flowerpot man complete with tractor.
if he was patiently waiting for his dinner. Next to make his home at the lock was a 3ft-high hare. More furry animals joined him – a family of small rabbits. These proved so popular with the visitors – who were coming in increasing numbers – that they began to ask if they could buy one. River Banksy duly obliged, making more, and here his benefaction took on an extra bonus, for the proceeds of their sales contributed to the fundraising project by the Friends of Abingdon Lock to purchase a defibrillator. Abingdon is now the only lock on the River Thames to have its own defibrillator installed.
Latest arrival
Overseeing all this interest and activity is now the latest arrival, the giraffe, who has been named Geraldine by Richard and Frank. She had to be secreted in, in three separate parts, and now stands beside the lock house, her head to be seen above the trees. The lock at Abingdon is on a popular walking route and Frank Jordan finds that there is an enjoyable community atmosphere there. For this he gives the credit to his lock keeper, whose welcoming encouragement has brought
Abingdon Lock. PHOTO: JANET RICHARDSON
Volunteer lock keeper Frank Jordan on the seat which forms part of the Winnie the Pooh installation. PHOTOS: LIZZIE SPOKES
Geraldine the giraffe – the newest arrival.
UNLESS OTHERWISE INDICATED
this about, he says. Frank describes Richard as ‘our captain’. The Friends of Abingdon Lock is a very enthusiastic organisation, with a substantial membership. Frank has been an ‘official’ volunteer since just after this scheme was introduced by the Environment Agency about six years ago but he had been helping in what ways he could well beforehand. “It is a lovely way to spend a retirement,” he says. His commitment was recognised in the recent Oxfordshire High Sheriffs Community Awards with the presentation of a certificate of appreciation. Frank says he looks on this as an award for the whole lock team. So what may be next from that particular Friend of the Lock, River Banksy? He has not let his admirers down in the past, so they can hope that there may be another creature arriving in due course.
One of the rabbit family He does not limit his interest only to models however but spares a thought for the active wildlife. For the riverside birdlife he has constructed a series of bird boxes.
‘Yarn art’ on Whitchurch Toll Bridge Knitted canoes and kayaks on top of Whitchurch toll bridge. PHOTOS COURTESY GEOFFREY WEIR By Elizabeth Rogers
THE craftspeople of Whitchurchon-Thames – with others from much farther afield – created a gallery of ‘yarn art’ that was exhibited along and above the footpath of the Whitchurch toll bridge and its approach road. For two weeks, local residents and people travelling over the bridge were entertained by a vast collection of figures and panels in a variety of materials, all including yarn, which extended over a length of some 180 yards. The Thames Path Together project brought together members of community groups who meet and share in the organisation of the weekly
Art Cafe coffee mornings held in the hall adjoining St Mary’s Church, Whitchurch-on-Thames, and was supported by the company which owns and operates the toll bridge. Its aim was to be a celebration of life to be seen from the Thames Path and the bridge itself. Geoffrey Weir, a director of Whitchurch Bridge, said that careful consideration had been given to safety issues as the footpath is a narrow one, but no concerns resulted. The craftspeople displayed knitting, sewing crochet, collage and artwork among their variety of skills. Objects included kayaks and canoes with figures paddling their craft, illustrations of other river activities and
characters associated with the river. Toad of Toad Hall was among these for this stretch of the Thames, where the bridge links the Oxfordshire border at Whitchurch with that of Berkshire and the neighbouring Pangbourne – inspiration for Kenneth Grahame’s Wind in the Willows. From farther afield are the figures of Chelsea pensioners and three of them made the journey to see themselves portrayed in yarn. The project was also a successful fundraiser for the community groups and local charities with donations given by appreciative visitors and the proceeds of a silent auction. A number of the craftspeople donated their work to be sold for the good causes.
Decorated panels stretch across the bridge.
16 EVENTS ROUND-UP
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Crowds flock to Crick Boat Show THE main showcase for the inland waterways proved a great success for visitors and exhibitors when thousands of people flocked to Crick Marina for the annual boat show over the Spring Bank Holiday weekend. More than 1000 people enjoyed free boat trips along the Grand Union Canal and more than 2000 attended free seminars on boat ownership. Exhibitors reported very healthy levels of business, with boat builders securing good orders for boats and other businesses were delighted with the visitor numbers. The team from Towpath Talk gave out its full complement of 4000 copies during the three-day event, which was organised by Waterways World in partnership with the Canal & River Trust and Crick Marina. This year visitors could vote for their favourite narrowboat and widebeam during the show with the trophies, sponsored by Shawbrook, going to Bourne Boat Builders for narrowboat
Author Dan Clacher signs the latest Muddy Waters children’s book in the Midland Chandlers marquee. Threpence Ha’Penny and to Elton Moss Boatbuilders for widebeam Kingsley. Show director Peter Johns said
afterwards: “With terrific weather over the weekend it looks as though we may have had record attendance this year. We are still analysing the figures but Sunday was particularly glorious and the crowds flocked in, and as with Saturday we had to call our overflow car park into action. “Even the bit of rain on the Monday did not seem to dampen spirits with a good crowd continuing to enjoy the show.” Canal & River Trust strategy and engagement manager Matthew Symonds commented: “We are delighted that so many people visited this year’s Crick Boat Show, which offered a fantastic day out by the Grand Union Canal Leicester Line in the Northamptonshire countryside. Over 6000 visited the Canal & River Trust marquee over the weekend.” Next year’s show dates will be from May 26 to 28. For more information visit www.crickboatshow.com or call 01283 742950.
The working boats are always a talking point among visitors.
Charged with attracting visitors, there’s no prizes for guessing where the batteries are!
Canal & River Trust chief executive Richard Parry talking to Rob Forster of Fernwood Boats Ltd aboard their 62ft narrowboat Dovedale. PHOTO: WATERWAY IMAGES
Canal & River Trust chief executive Richard Parry with volunteers Mike and Marj McGriskin who were helping to man the trust’s marquee, which proved very popular with visitors.
A sign of the times: police patrolling the show site.
The sign says it all: boat trips run by LNBP Community Boating.
Historic Braunston pair Raymond and Nutfield.
Bourne Boat Builders’ Threpence Ha’penny was voted favourite narrowboat of the show by visitors.
PHOTOS: JANET RICHARDSON UNLESS OTHERWISE INDICATED
Queuing to take a look in one of the boats on static display.
EVENTS ROUND-UP 17
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Trailboats parade at Moira’s pectacularr sunshine sp A chance to see two of Britain’s most famous fighters together – the Spitfire and the Hurricane – in the flypast.
By Harry Arnold
YOU can always guarantee that the Ashby Canal Trust’s annual Moira Canal Festival is going to be a good event. This year it had the added impetus of also hosting the Inland Waterways Association’s National Trailboat Festival which necessitated a change of date to the two days of the Bank Holiday Weekend, May 27-28. It was in fact the same great event, organised by the same local team with very little noticeable IWA presence except for a single large banner and stand that was very efficiently run by stalwart volunteers of the local Lichfield Branch. The clash with the Crick Boat Show was unfortunate for enthusiasts
but as Moira is something of a magnet for support by the local populace, it probably didn’t matter. Visiting trailboats were an impressive 28, towed from many parts of the country. The backbone of the entry numbers was again the support and presence of craft from Wilderness Boat Club. It made for a spectacular daily boat parade – led by boat-horse Shreck – which also even had a sailing boat which had to lower its gear to pass beneath the Furnace arch.
The National Trailboat Festival awards were presented by Coun Sue McKendrick, Mayor of Ashby Woulds Town Council.
Unfortunately, Saturday night’s illuminated parade had to be somewhat static due to windy conditions, although the weather throughout the rest of the two days was generally sunny. The main activity on the water was the resident trip boat and the many canoes. Canoeing – with happy participation by visitors – is always a mainstay of this event. Plus, the popular daily fundraising Duck Race, was again a sell-out. One of the regular features of Moira is some sort of military or historic combat display. This year they didn’t
scrap over the bridge but re-enactors, costumed and armed as the 1815 Coldstream Guards, bivouacked on site and mounted lethal-looking bayonet charges. The assistance dogs of Canine Partners were again brilliant and other entertainment was provided by Master Magician Van Buren and Mr Juggler’s Punch & Judy Show. Emma’s Crafty Kids laid on fun for children and parents. Most musical tastes were satisfied by Liquid Brass, the Ivanhoe College Singers, Ukulele Central, the Grateful Dads and folk group Tangent. All the land-based site was again packed with display and sales stands and other attractions, the largest being a steam
Up guards and at ’em! The Coldstream Guards re-enactors demonstrate an 1815 bayonet charge. PHOTO: WATERWAY IMAGES
Boat-horse Shreck again led the parade of boats.
Mother Duck starts the annual fundraising Moira duck race. roller, but there were also vintage and veteran cars and tractors and more for the mechanically minded among the stationary engines. There were also train rides on the miniature railway. For the flypast this year we were again promised the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight Dakota, but what arrived overhead was even more thrilling. Two examples of Britain’s most famous Second World War fighter planes, a Spitfire and a Hurricane – a truly inspiring part of two very well-organised, entertaining days. Visitor numbers were about 3500 over the two days. A mini-survey did show that on average most were locals and came every year. Funds raised are not yet confirmed but the estimate is around £8000. The ACT will put it towards maintaining the Moira length and also to developing the project to rebuild the Gilwiskaw Aqueduct north of Snarestone, a key link in the progress of the Ashby Canal restoration project.
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Under blue skies at Beale Park
By Elizabeth Rogers
THE Beale Boat and Outdoor Show sets out to offer something for everybody, for families to enjoy a day or weekend out in a happy boating atmosphere as well as catering for serious boat owners, some with boats for sale.
Enthusiasts working on one of the steam boats. PHOTOS SUPPLIED
See It For Real, the company which was this year organising the event for the third time, had a day which well lived up to expectations with ideal weather and an attendance around 25% up on previous years. Ben Lane, a member of the family which runs the company, said that there was a slight effect on numbers as a result of the incidents on London Bridge on the Saturday evening. The show is held at a large lake on land adjoining Beale Park, the popular tourist attraction beside the River Thames, near Lower Basildon and Pangbourne. For narrowboaters, of whom there were 15 to 20, moorings were available on the river, close to the site. There was a well-equipped campsite that attracted the pitching of 80 to 100 tents. Trade stands and stalls, with a selection of refreshments and musical entertainment, ensured that there was plenty of interest during times not spent on the water. Particular attractions were the historic boats on display, some of which provided trips on the lake. They included a restored 1933 lifeboat which was one of the ‘little ships’ used in the evacuation of Dunkirk during the Second
Crowds enjoying the sunshine and colourful boats on display.
World War, the Caresana; 1898-built Consuta, a restoration project by the Consuta Trust of an original Thames steam launch once used by Henley Royal Regatta umpires and 15 boats brought by the Thames Vintage Boat Club which is a big supporter of the event. They all created much interest. During the Saturday afternoon Time and Tide Classic Boat Auctions, from near Henley, provided a display of fascinating crafts for sale. It included sailing, steam and electric-powered boats of all ages and at a vast range of prices. There were locally built Andrew Slippers launches, with their distinctive curved stern dating from the 1930s and 1950s, and Chris Craft launches from the United States, built during the 1940s to 1960s. Auctioneer Peter Sparrow was pleased with the entries, some coming from far afield, and with the outcome for the sellers. His company’s next auction is to be Chichester in September.
The Caresana – a restored 1933 lifeboat which was one of the Dunkirk ‘little ships’.
A selection of the boats beside the lake.
Some of the traditional boats on show at Beale Park.
NEWS EXTRA 19
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Canal trusts win Queen’s awards
TWO canal trusts are celebrating Queen’s Awards for Voluntary Service in 2017. The Chesterfield Canal Trust and the Shrewsbury & Newport Canal Trust have both been selected to receive the highest award given to volunteer groups across the UK. Work they both do for their local communities was ‘very much admired’
by the independent Assessment Committee, chaired by Sir Martyn Lewis. The award was created by the Queen in 2002 to mark the occasion of her Golden Jubilee, recognising excellence in voluntary activities carried out by groups in the community. It is the MBE for volunteer groups. Chesterfield Canal Trust chairman Robin Stonebridge said: “We hope that
Fallen trees block canal
everyone involved, and especially all our volunteers, feel immensely proud of the recognition that this award represents.” June 4 marked the 240th anniversary of the opening of the completed Chesterfield Canal, and this is also the 40th anniversary year of the founding of the Chesterfield Canal Society which laid the foundations for the trust. “What better year could there
be for the phenomenal work of the trust’s volunteers to receive national recognition,” Robin added. Describing it as a fantastic surprise, Shrewsbury & Newport Canal Trust chairman Bernie Jones said: “It is testimony to the hard work and dedication of all our volunteers who give so much to help the trust in its restoration work on these wonderful
canals, whether contributing to our social media, helping out at our stalls at local events, baking cakes and other fundraising, helping with administration and, of course, actually digging at our work parties.” The group will now look forward to an official presentation of the award by the Lord Lieutenant of Shropshire at a ceremony in the autumn.
Lightship Planet to be restored THE Canal & River Trust has announced that it has accepted a credible offer for lightship Planet from someone who will restore her and then make her available for sale. Chantelle Seaborn, waterway manager at the Canal & River Trust, comments: “We’re pleased that we’ve received interest in Planet and that she will be renovated. “While we’ve not had any interest from someone in Liverpool wanting to buy and return Planet to the city, hopefully there may be interest when the boat has been restored. The most important outcome is that she has a viable future.” RIGHT: Planet in Canning Half Tide Dock, awaiting restoration. PHOTO: WATERWAY IMAGES
Boaters in Bugsworth Basin at the head of the Peak Forest Canal were trapped for three days after several trees fell across the canal half a mile from the basin. Contractors are pictured removing the last of the trees before the canal was opened for weekend traffic. PHOTO: LES HEATH
Captain Jack wows show visitors WESTMORL AND County Showground was the canalside venue for the CountryFest show which opened in lovely sunshine, writes Frank Sanderson. This is a family show enjoyed by competitors and customers alike with plenty of interest to everyone. The canal was fully represented at the towpath entrance by Lancaster Canal Trust, Inland Waterways Association then art activities for children and the Owd Lanky Boaters, who had Captain Jack Sparrow as an added attraction and was mobbed by visitors. Captain Jack also officiated in the parade of vintage and historic cars and motorcycles, which was a very popular attraction.
Wapping co-operative wins Thames award By Elizabeth Rogers
HERMITAGE Community Moorings, a co-operative in Wapping which builds, owns and operates a mooring which provide berths for historic vessels, is this year’s winner of the River Thames Society’s award for a significant contribution to the life and well-being of the river. The Society Shield was presented by the PTS president Lord Owen at the annual meeting, held in Reading. It was received by Ann Wainwright on behalf of HCM, which also operates a visitor mooring and has a clubhouse which is used for a range of educational and recreational activities. Among other awards was the Durant
Cup, for an individual who makes a similarly positive contribution to river life. The winner was Jack Betteridge, the North Tideway branch’s vice-chairman, who is a great advocate on planning issues for respect for the river. There were also a number of Thames Heritage Trust Awards, the main award being presented to the Jubilee Riverside Centre in Slough. This is in recognition of its volunteer youth activities that benefit the river community and environment. The centre’s work in Slough provides accessible rowing facilities for young people with the support of British Rowing and Sport England. This is a financial award and the centre intends to use this towards the cost of quad riggers and blades.
Individual branches are also recognised in the trust’s awards. As a result of their success, Weybridge Rowing Club received a prize that will be used towards the cost of new equipment, as did the Hanningfield Sailability Project based at Thorpe Bay and Leigh-on-Sea and also Active 360, a paddle-boarding group based in Brentford. Peter Oldham, skipper and mainstay of the Kingston-on-Thames-based River Thames Boat Project, received the trust’s John Coleman Trophy for his work in developing a new boat and his contributions to volunteer training and other educational activities. Peter Finch has been re-elected chairman of the River Thames Society, and the vice-chairman is Les Jones.
FERRY FARCE ON THE LAKES By Harry Arnold
Captain Jack Sparrow at the Owd Lanky Boaters group stand.
PHOTOS: FRANK SANDERSON
Some of the canal-related stands.
A STORM has been brewing on the normally peaceful Lake Windermere over a change in the method of payment on the Bowness vehicle ferry. Tolls have always been personally collected in cash from vehicles and pedestrians by an attendant aboard this vessel, which is a historic shortcut across the lake. Last summer Cumbria County Council introduced shore-based ticket machines which have caused chaos, despite the addition of further machines this year. Local residents report long traffic queues, sparring matches and even physical aggression. Thousands of people have put their names to a petition demanding that the ticketing machines system for the ferry be scrapped. The council say the additional machines are easier to use, and has promised on-board payments will eventually be reinstated,
Windermere’s historic Bowness vehicle ferry. PHOTO: WATERWAY IMAGES but only via a contactless debit or credit card. But the residents’ campaign goes on and the petition calls for the reinstatement of a single, on-board payment scheme.
Comments accompanying the petition include such criticisms as “a fantastic, reliable service has been transformed into a slow, costly, inefficient farce.”
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Completed in 1779 by Abraham Darby III to a design by local architect Thomas Farnolls Pritchard, the Iron Bridge – the first arched structure of its type – is the central attraction of the site. PHOTOS: WATERWAY IMAGES UNLESS OTHERWISE INDICATED
Ironbridge Gorge Museum celebrates 50th anniversary By Harry Arnold
ONE of Britain and now the world’s most famous heritage sites, the Ironbridge Gorge Museums complex, celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. Based around the historic Iron Bridge crossing of the then navigable section of the River Severn, the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust (IGMT) was founded in 1967. Since then IGMT has acquired and restored many of the former factories, foundries, furnaces, warehouses and houses located in the Severn Gorge area and transformed them into museums or found alternative uses for them to ensure a viable long-term future. This year is also the 300th anniversary of the death of Abraham Darby I, first entrepreneur of local industry and widely recognised as the man who started the Industrial Revolution. The trust is the custodian of 36 Scheduled Ancient Monuments and listed buildings, and runs 10 awardwinning museums within the UNESCO Gorge World Heritage Site. It now employs more than 200 staff, who are assisted by more than 500 active
volunteers. IGMT is also a major tourism driver for the West Midlands, welcomes 500,000 visitors a year, which includes 70,000 student educational visits. One of the first major anniversary events was the reopening of the Coalbrookdale Museum of Iron in time for Easter, following a massive refurbishment of all its three floors. We were invited to a preview, during what was a pre-opening panic (been there, done that, and can sympathise) during which the staff were very tolerant of our presence. Obviously, I’ve been back to Ironbridge over the years but this was a rather special visit for me as 50 years before, when I lived at Norbury Junction, I had been co-opted on to the original committee as a supposed ‘canal expert’. I’ve been in at the inception of several projects but when we sat in a smoke-filled room at Priorslee Hall I was somewhat sceptical about the grand ideas we threw about. But they – and more – have all come to fruition. Although I was known to the current administration as a journalist, they were somewhat surprised to learn that my name was also that in the original minutes.
Complete history
The museum – in effect all-new – tells the complete history of the iron industry, from explaining how the geology of the gorge provided all of the raw materials needed for iron to be made there from medieval times, all the way through to the modern steel industry. A series of areas explain how the discoveries made in Coalbrookdale changed the world forever and also celebrate the lives of the different characters, including the Darby dynasty of ironmasters and ‘Iron Mad’ Wilkinson. Notable examples of the varied ironware made in Coalbrookdale are displayed, including a giant whaling pot, an anchor from a Napoleonic warship, and more locally one from a Severn trow, as well as intricate and beautiful statues, furniture and everyday household goods such as door stops, cooking pots and flat irons. In an imaginatively laid-out sequence the museum shows how iron became used for the construction of steam engines, machinery, bridges and buildings, and for the ships and railways which transported raw materials, finished goods and people throughout Britain and across the world, even being used for cast iron pipes which carried fresh water to keep these people alive. Also launched at the museum reopening was IGMT’s Coalbrookdale Masterplan, along with its associated fundraising campaign, the £15m Fund for the Future appeal. This ambitious 10-year development programme will see the transformation of Coalbrookdale through refurbishment and redevelopment of many key historic buildings and monuments throughout the Gorge.
Lottery grant Under the development plans a new building will replace this current one covering the first Abraham Darby’s Old Furnace.
The first phase will be the creation of a new destination cafe (autumn 2017) and conservation work to protect the Bedlam Furnace. Future phases will
The completely refurbished building housing the Coalbrookdale Museum of Iron. PHOTO: IGMT see the refurbishment of Enginuity, the National Design and Technology Centre, along with the creation of a new collections store, library and archive as well as further conservation to the Old Furnace and associated buildings. Ongoing conservation and restoration of Abraham Darby I’s Old Furnace – located opposite the Museum of Iron) – is constantly required. This year, the IGMT is also launching an architectural competition to unify the historic landscape and buildings in and around Coalbrookdale. As part of this, a new cover building will be designed to protect the Old Furnace, one of the world’s most important early industrial buildings. Since the museum launch IGMT has been awarded a £1 million National Lottery grant via the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) towards its fundraising. The grant is a match-funding scheme. Every pound the trust raises for this campaign over the next four years will be matched by HLF, to a maximum value of £1 million. Excellent for the George’s history, but somewhat tempered by the recent announcement that Aga Rangemaster is to close its foundry at Coalbrookdale, which could spell the end of the manufacture of iron products at Ironbridge.
Art in Iron. The Eagle Slayer statue – on loan from the V&A Museum of Childhood – greets visitors to the refurbished Coalbrookdale museum
An anchor for a Severn trow which was cast at Coalbrookdale. There are many events in this 50th anniversary year at all 10 Ironbridge Gorge Museums. You will need to revisit a number of times and instead of paying each time, a yearly passport covering all sites, at a range of prices, is the most economic. Full details from the Ironbridge Tourist Information Centre Tel: 01952 433424 or on www.ironbridge. org.uk. ● The central feature of the Iron Bridge Gorge complex is the River Severn, still with a legal right of navigation up to Pool Quay in Wales. Within the Blists Hill site it also has the last pound of the Shropshire Canal, with its final inclined plane, and three important preserved craft on display. We will look at these in a future edition of Towpath Talk.
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Getting on the water at Pilling’s Lock Marina By Janet Richardson
FREE boat trips proved very popular with visitors to the Spring Bank Holiday open weekend at Pilling’s Lock Marina. People were queuing in the warm sunshine when I dropped in on the Sunday on the way home from Crick Boat Show. General manager Paul Lillie told me that the three trip boats – Jo-Anne, Britannia and Jubilee – had already carried between 90 and 120 people. He said there had been lots of interest in the arts and crafts stalls and thanked the Leicester Sea Cadets who had been a great help with car parking. Visitors also had the chance to view a selection of narrowboats and widebeams for sale on the marina. Paul added that the Community Car Club is going really well with more than a dozen regular users of the electric-powered BMW and a van is now also available.
Green approach
A boater for eight years, Suzanne Sharp welcomed visitors on board her widebeam Layla which is the base for her new business River Sprite Events.
She has used pallets and recycled wood to fit out the 55ft x 11ft craft, built on a Martin Widdowson shell, which will be used for static events on the home mooring at the marina or skippered cruises. “I started building in March last year and have used mostly recycled materials with the rest coming from sustainable sources,” she told me. After having some woodworking lessons, Suzanne has done most of the work herself with a bit of help from her husband and stepdad. The interior can be set out for craft workshops with fold-out benches, celebrations and business meetings or, if used for boat trips, can carry 12 passengers and one of the future users, Amana Yusufzai, was giving mindfulness classes during the day. “We seem to be getting a lot of interest from specialist businesses and this weekend will enable us to carry out a bit of market research,” Suzanne added. “Every event is arranged with a customer’s particular needs in mind and packages will be available.” A website is currently under construction but in the meantime more information can be found on River Sprite Events’ Facebook page.
Trip boat Jo-Anne taking another group of visitors. PHOTOS: JANET RICHARDSON
Suzanne Sharp on board Layla which she has fitted out herself using reclaimed materials.
Trinity Village dream reaches next stage A PARTNERSHIP with Green 4 Architects will help Trinity Marinas realise the next stage of its ‘village’ dream. The brainchild of marina managing director Sharon Woodward and Green 4 partner Adrian Cox, it will provide a community of more than 90 cottage lofts, each providing 80sq m of luxury living space set within the marina grounds alongside the Ashby Canal at Hinckley. There will be the opportunity to secure a mooring and the development will also include a new facilities building for moorers and visiting
boaters with bathrooms, laundry, shop and cafe/hub. Plans are well under way to bring the Trinity Village project to fruition appealing to both the boating community and the public. It will also be a blueprint for other marinas which have land they may wish to develop to diversity their business and one-to-one consultations can be arranged. For further details call Trinity directors Sharon Woodward or Christine Dallas on 01455 896820.
Inside one of the widebeams for sale.
Fresh start for Fradley shop By Harry Arnold
FRADLEY Junction’s canalside shop has reopened since the takeover of the building by the adjacent Kingfisher Holiday Park, along with the dry dock and some moorings. The shop, next the Swan Inn, has been refurbished and refitted and is stocking a range of provisions, publications – including Towpath Talk – souvenirs and other items to suit the requirements of boaters, caravan owners and other visitors to the popular site.
Back in business: Fradley Junction’s canalside shop has been refurbished and restocked. PHOTO: WATERWAY IMAGES
City Cruises acquires York river boat company By Harry Arnold
Narrowboats moored at Trinity Marina. PHOTO: JANET RICHARDSON
Aqualine boats now available with DBS batteries BOAT builder Aqualine has announced an agreement to offer specialist marine batteries from DBS Energy to power its existing and new craft. DBS Energy is the UK distributor for Leochmanufactured batteries and is supplying three powerful marine batteries to Aqualine’s customer base: • SFL-110 DT – sealed maintenance-free leisure battery from Leoch’s Adventurer SFL range • LAGM-120 – absorbed glass mat leisure battery from the Adventurer AGM range
• GTP-12150 12V Gel Tubular Plate monobloc battery from the Powabloc GTP series Aqualine Marine managing director Jonathan Corker said: “We’re delighted to develop this relationship with DBS Energy and access their specialist marine battery technology for our growing customer base.” Henry James, managing director of DBS Energy, added: “Our range of specialist batteries are powerful, easy to fit and most importantly, longer lasting for UK boat owners.”
LONDON-based City Cruises has acquired Yorkshire River Ouse passenger boat company York River Boat Cruises. It will be rebranded as City Cruise York and the 20 current employees will continue to be led by York River Boat Cruises’ general manager, Jo Dykes. Sightseeing cruises in York will run from two boarding points at King’s Staith and Lendal Bridge and will grow to offer a similar schedule to those in London. New cruising options will include the early evening Sundowner as well as lunch and dinner cruises. City Cruise York will also operate the ever-popular Sail with Santa cruise and Christmas Night cruises throughout the festive season. Managing director of City Cruises, Kyle Haughton, said:
City Cruise York’s boats and base by Lendal Bridge on the Yorkshire River Ouse. PHOTO: WATERWAY IMAGES “Our objective is to grow the business beyond London and the new acquisition is a step towards achieving this. There are significant opportunities
to work with the trade in York and the success we’ve had packaging attractions with cruises is something we want to develop there too.”
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Crick launch for new Canaline engine ENGINES Plus Ltd used the Crick Boat Show to unveil the new Canaline 70T marine diesel engine which has been developed to comply with the new RCD 2 emissions legislation which came into force in January 2017. Replacing the Canaline 70, this engine is based on the Kioti block, whereas the original was Isuzu-based, and is aimed at the growing market for widebeam boats. The four-cylinder turbo-charged Canaline 70T is keel-cooled and produces 65bhp with a maximum torque of 190Nm @ 1600rpm. It has twin 75A and 175A alternators and a fuel filter with built-in water trap. Hedley Beavis of the Engines Plus sales team explained that although lighter and more compact, this new engine shares the same footprint as others in the range, making life easier from a boat builder’s point of view if an upgrade is required from one of the lower HP engines such as the Canaline 52 or 60. The Gloucestershire-based manufacturer built the first Canaline 70T engine late last year since when it has been on test with a customer and has proved very successful. It was sold to Collingwood Boats who fitted it into a boat with the same stern gear and propeller as the original 70 and performed exactly the same as the older engine. “This is the first time the new engine has been out in the public domain and people like it because it is quieter than the other variants,” Hedley added.
Launching the new Canaline 70T engine at Crick are Simon Nutley, Bob Cantwell and Hedley Beavis of Engines Plus. PHOTO: JANET RICHARDSON
Removing moisture from damp places AVAILABLE from Machine Mart Ltd, the new Clarke YDE20/YDE30 dehumidifiers with LCD display are designed to remove excess moisture from the atmosphere to help prevent damp, mould and mildew. An easily replaceable carbon filter allows for dehumidification and air purifying on a choice of three different settings – high, low and automatic. In automatic mode, humidity can be set from 40-70% and an on/off timer can be set for added convenience. Both models feature an internal drying function to prevent build-up of mildew, a removable easy clean filter and a removable collection tray of up to six litres with added water tank level and LCD tank full indicator. With up to a 30-litre extraction rate per day, these models include a drainage hose so water can be continuously drained or collected in the collection tank. They start at £179.98 including VAT. www.machinemart.co.uk
FOR many years I have carried a pair of binoculars with me whenever I have been out and about. From heavy black optics that wouldn’t look out of place on a ship’s bridge through to tiny pocket-sized binoculars. They’ve all proved to be very handy when trying to ID some animal or bird, but I’ve often found that the smaller the optics the worse the image. It’s logical when you think about it, if the lenses are only small then only a small amount of light can enter, making for a dull image to look at. That was until I had the opportunity to try out a pair of tiny binoculars made by Swarovski, a name many will be familiar with. The company has an enviable record of producing, among other things, some of the best optical equipment available and this legacy shows when you use the CL Pocket 8x25s made by the company. The first impression is ‘they’re tiny’
Small outside, big inside, the Pocket CL binoculars from Swarovski. PHOTO: PHIL PICKIN
TWO new compact gensets were among the range of generators exhibited by Fischer Panda UK at the Crick Boat Show. Available for the first time, the Panda 4000s Neo and 5000i Neo are the first to use the Dorset company’s in-house designed water-cooled FPE320 single-cylinder diesel engine which features integrated oil filter and synchronous alternator for lower running noise levels and reduced vibration. They are both ‘twin circuit cooled’ via an integral heat exchanger and treated sealed fresh water circuit. Marine sales and marketing manager Chris Fower explained they suit anything from a typical inland narrowboat to a Dutch barge whose owners are looking for independence away from marinas or shore power. “Space and noise are always important considerations and they are lightweight and much quieter than other portable sets,” he said.
Fischer Panda marina sales and marketing manager Chris Fower with the 5000i Neo compact generator which is part of the variable iSeries ‘Perfect Power’ range and weighs just 75kg. Rated at 4kW, it gives boaters scope to run domestic electrical equipment as well as keeping their batteries charged. PHOTO: JANET RICHARDSON
From boats to furnishings
AS WELL as exhibiting one of its bespoke narrowboats, Aqua Narrowboats launched its new furnishings store at Crick Boat Show. Aqua Furnishings specialises in furniture and soft interiors such as upholstered swivel chairs and bespoke Roman blinds designed specifically for narrowboats, boats, caravans and cabins. “All of these spaces have a number of things in common: space is compact and walls are never straight. We have years of experience in designing for these unique spaces and have found smart solutions to compact spaces that look great,” a spokesman said.
Swivel chairs and Roman blinds are among the interior furnishings from Aqua. PHOTO SUPPLIED
Tool to tackle stubborn hull fouling The Clarke YDE20 dehumidifier with LCD display. PHOTO SUPPLIED
Binoculars you can take anywhere Reviewer: Phil Pickin
Compact sets generate interest at show
and very light, but when you start to use them you see that their diminutive size seems to have no bearing on their ability to produce stunning results. As their website says, they’re ‘small outside, big inside’ or so it would seem. Finished in green, these foldable and very compact binoculars are very comfortable to use, and if, like me, you wear glasses you should find the individually adjustable twist-in eyecups make using the CL Pocket very easy. The big benefit for these binoculars is that their size ensures they can be with you frequently and, as Swarovski themselves say, be “part of everything that you do”. For me that’s the most important thing, that they can be with you in almost all situations without compromising the image you see. Quite how the company manages to get that much light in through 25mm lenses is beyond me but it does. For the boating community the compact size of these binoculars coupled with the fact that they are waterproof to 4m makes them ideal. All of this quality and design skill does come at a price, £560 to be precise but you get what you pay for and the build quality, coupled with the practicality of these binoculars, will mean that you are unlikely to need or want to buy any others in the future. So if you are serious about the quality of equipment like this, and you are looking for an investment, then I can highly recommend the Pocket CL. For more information visit Swarovski’s website at http:// uk.swarovskioptik.com/nature
The Scrubbis hull cleaner with its telescopic handle. PHOTOS: JANET RICHARDSON
A TOOL which can clean the hull while the boat is in the water was among the products displayed on Marine And Industrial’s stand at the Crick Boat Show. With Scrubbis, boaters can scrub the hull clear of fouling by using a purpose-designed, foam cleaning head on the end of a telescopic handle. It works by using its own 2kg positive buoyancy; the head pressing itself firmly against the hull to aid cleaning in hard-to-reach areas beneath the waterline. Since it first appeared on the market, the Swedish-designed Scrubbis has evolved, and for 2017 there are two new heads, a
new water line cleaner spray and a fouling indicator plate. Used in conjunction with an optional 0.5-litre Waterline Cleaner Spray, the two products combined provide a practical solution for regular cleaning and maintenance of the waterline, without the need to clean the entire underwater area. The spray is 100% water soluble, with no harsh abrasives or acid chemicals to harm the hull, or the environment around you. Distributed throughout the UK by Norfolk-based Marine And Industrial LLP, customers can find their nearest stockist by entering their postcode via www. marineindustrial.co.uk/chandlers an
Out the packet: the Scrubbis assembled for action.
The hat with an owner’s manual! Reviewer: Phil Pickin
IF, LIKE me, you are finding that the advancing years have resulted in a noticeable reduction in the frequency of visits to the hairdresser, you may have also noticed that your scalp now provides a feeding station for local biting insects. If all this is true then you need a hat! Over the years I’ve had a few hats, many of which have ended up floating down various canals, much to the delight of my kids, so when I recently invested in the 2017 hat I was intrigued by the claim that Tilley insure their hats for two years should you lose one. If you do they’ll replace it with a 50% reduction in the cost of the new one. The same goes if you destroy it too! As someone who often finds themselves looking through a camera lens, the need for some form of sunshade is very handy, and if that can also provide protection from the rain and UV so much the better. It seems (according to the owner’s
manual, yes this hat really has one) that the Tilley was invented in Canada by a keen boater, so although the hats are regularly seen on the heads of naturalists and other outdoor enthusiasts, its primary market was the boating community. Over the years the design has developed into what we see today which, in the case of the Wanderer, is an Aussie style which is fitted with press studs so you can fix the brim up or down for better protection from the sun and rain. The Tilley Wanderer has what’s described as ‘a distressed look’ and is made from 100% Cotton Duck - with enzyme wash finish. Not quite sure what that means but I think they look good. In addition to the insurance mentioned earlier these hats are guaranteed for life and will be replaced free if they ever wear out, fall apart, shrink or mildew. They have a sun protection of UPF 50+ and – ideal for the likes of me – an adjustable wind cord to keep the hat in place. The makers
The Wanderer has press studs so you can fix the brim up p or down n. PHOTO SUPPLIED
also claim that they repel rain and that they float, another feature of particular interest to me, given my track record! All in all these are nice, comfortable and lightweight hats that may not be cheap but, given the features and the guarantees, are a good investment and work well. I bought mine from Country Innovation who don’t sell low quality outdoor clothing, further assurance that this is a high quality item, ideal for the boating community for which they were designed. For more information take a look at Country Innovation’s website https://www.countryinnovation. com
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WHAT’S NEW A detailed overview of Britain’s waterway network Reviewer: Harry Arnold
THERE are a number of general guides to Britain’s waterways and this is one of the better ones. Subtitled ‘A Comprehensive Guide’, Canals of Britain by Stuart Fisher is indeed that, in both excellently researched content and a mass of illustrations. A previous edition has been reviewed in this newspaper and a cover quote from this is ‘a must for any waterway user’s bookcase’. This still very much applies, particularly regarding ‘bookcase’, as the term guide is often misused, which it is in this case. As it is about an inch thick and needs both hands to handle it, this extremely comprehensive volume is hardly suitable to have next to you as a reference when you are steering your boat. It is however a great cruise planner and one to whet your appetite for any canal or river you should plan to visit by boat or other means of transport. Apart from the main content – covering all aspects such as routes, engineering, architecture, wildlife and so on – I particularly like the details attached to specific waterway locations. Take one of my favourites, Liverpool. In addition to
its main attractions, no ot many waterway books teell you that it is the home of Dinky Toys, the Beatless, and various well-known n authors of fiction, alongg with detailed photograph hs of these collectabless and record albums and d book covers. This new edition updatess all the previous informattion, where required, so therefore presents a current detailed overview of Britain’s waterway network. There are also a number of new photographs of the same high quality as those of the previous editions, mostly again by author Stuart Fisher. It remains one of the few of a select number of general waterway books that I would recommend for your bookshelves. Perhaps expensive at £30, but you have to pay for quality. Canals Of Britain, 3rd Edition by Stuart Fisher is published by Adlard Coles Nautical (Bloomsbury) in softback, priced £30. 2-3 ISBN: 978-1-4729-2972
Towpath tales for children Reviewer: Kathryn Smith
AN ITINERANT lifestyle, new faces and places every day and evenings spent around a roaring stove; the link between boats and storytelling feels utterly intuitive. Hillingdon Narrowboats Association clearly thought so when it commissioned Beatrice Holloway to be their resident children’s storyteller, a project from which this book sprang. Hillingdon Narrowboats Association devotes its efforts to helping and supporting all members of the community using a boat with disability access to run training and trips, with one aim being to instil a love of canals in the younger generation. The three stories in Towing Path Tales follow the life of Bert, who is raised on a working boat in the early 20th century. The first is a series of encounters with a mysterious ghostly horse called Princess, who rescues Bert from a number of scrapes, including a wartime raid. The second details one of Bert’s rare appearances at school and a rescue from the canal and the final tale is an adventure at a Christmas market with the reappearance of an old foe. All the stories are accompanied by black and white
line-drawn illustration ns. The authenticity of thesse stories is both a strengtth and a weakness. On the one hand there is much historical colourr, old dialect words aree preserved and boatingg activities such as ‘leggingg’ are described. Howeverr, the casual violence meted out towards children and animals and liberal use of the dialect, without a glossary, might prove confusing so some parents may wish to read these stories with younger readers. Finally if you’re lucky enough to live near Harefield on the Grand Union then I suggest you might want to make a note in your diary now to go and hear Beatrice perform these tales on board the boat in December. More information about the work of Hillingdon Narrowboats Association can be found at http://www.hna.org.uk/ Towing Path Tales by Beatrice Holloway (paperback, 91 pages) published by EUPublishing. eu and available at £6.99 from http://bholloway. newauthors.eu/ ISBN: 978-0-9930619-1-2
The only guide you will need to the Lancaster Canal Reviewer: Les Heath
THINKING of doing the Lancaster Canal in the near future? Well don’t – not without a copy of the latest edition of The Complete Guide to the Lancaster Canal. Carrying a copy on your boat will transform an enjoyable canal trip into an amazing experience with absolutely everything you need to know condensed into 92 pages. After having cruised the canal on four occasions I tried but could not find anything that wasn’t covered in this sixth edition – not only on the canal itself but the towns and villages through which it passes. The guide also describes in detail the 14 miles from Tewitfield to Kendal, now the subject of the Northern Reaches Restoration Project. Sadly, the completion of the project is still years away but great efforts are being made to maintain public awareness and support. It seems ironic that this section between Tewitfield and Kendal, including the locks, took only six years to build back in the 19th century. But at the moment taking your narrowboat to the Lake District must remain a dream. Clear, detailed maps are a boon for boaters, cyclists, walkers, historians and ecologists who are all well catered for while colour photographs enhance each section. The Lancaster Canal Trust has its own slot with an appeal to readers to sign up and boost the fight
to reopen the waterw way to Kendal. My first visit to the can nal was on a hire boat in th he early 1970s and my la ast was two years ago whe en I was trapped for most of the summer at th he northern end followin ng a serious breach in th he embankment leading to o the Lune aqueduct. It was certainly one waay of getting to know the local ocal area but there is no doubt that a copy of this latest guide would have made the enforced stay more enjoyable. One important section for boaters is that which outlines the route to the canal via the tidal estuary and the Ribble Link – a nine-lock length, opened in 2002. Booking and preparation are necessary for this journey – the only way to reach the canal apart from access at Glasson from the sea. Although several books about the canal (mostly out of print) are listed in the information section this is really the only one you will need. Don’t go without it. The Complete Guide to the Lancaster Canal is priced £6.50 and is published by the Lancaster Canal Trust. The guide is available from local bookshops and tourist information centres or through the Lancaster Canal Trust website, www. lancastercanaltrust.co.uk.
Books, DVDs and other items for possible review should be sent to: Towpath Talk, PO Box 43, Horncastle, Lincs LN9 6LZ editorial@towpathtalk.co.uk
Dip in these pages to expand your horizonss Reviewer: Harry Arnold
BRITAIN’S Historic Ships is a nother lavishly produced and illustrated volume from Bloomsbury in what might be described as a similar style and page-size format as Canals Of Britain. Not as weighty, but also not as expensive; equally attractive though. Perhaps if you are just interested in waterways it may not appeal to you. But I’m an enthusiast for anything to do with boating and shipping so found it very appealing. Basically, it looks at 20 of our most famous historic vessels, such as the Mary Rose, HMS Victory and SS Great Britain, outlining their general histories. Each ship is illustrated by a highquality range of old and modern photographs and paintings. Also, p eeach has an outline specification. Most are in preservation and can M b visited. be The ships are covered in a
general historical date order but under chapter headings such The Sailing Navy, The Transition from Sail to Steam and The Second World War Navy. This chosen format emphasises each vessel’s place in Britain’s seagoing history. Author Dr Paul Brown is without doubt an expert on his subject, having had a lifelong interest in ships and maritime affairs which is apparent in his writing style. Adding to the historical information are some very relevant extracts from books on the lives of those who served aboard some of the ships. There are also some amusing anecdotes about incidents in a particular ship’s service, such as when submarine HMS Ocelet fired a torpedo in the Clyde area which finished up on a local golf course. The nearest it gets to waterway craft is Thames sailing barges,
puffers and a range of tugs, the Daniel Adamson appearing in its original guise of Sir Ralph Brocklebank. But I would recommend that you expand your horizons beyond canals and rivers and at the very least dip into the pages of this fascinating volume on Britain’s most famous ships. Britain’s Historic Ships, 2nd Edition by Paul Brown is published by Conway (Bloomsbury) in softback, priced £20. ISBN: 978-1 1-88448-66409-66
Truth can be stranger than fiction Reviewer: Elizabeth Rogers
CHRISTOPHER Winn’s book I Never Knew That About the River Thames is not a newly published book, rather a collection of facts likely to be newly coming the reader’s way. It provides plenty of River Thames-related historical and geographical facts and with the odd piece of fiction-related information, all in most cases quite new to me. The book is written in an entertaining as well as informative way, and follows the Thames from its source (or sources) in Gloucestershire to its arrival at its exit to the sea, a mile east of Leigh-on-Sea in Essex. The landmarks of the tidal section of the river are often less documented, but the final one is a landmark well worth knowing about. This is the Crow Stone, which stands on the north bank of the river, on a platform, reaching out into the water. It has an opposite number on the south bank, standing directly opposite. This is the London Stone, one mile east of Allhallows-on-Sea, the northernmost villages in Kent and the easternmost on the River Thames. It stands at the mouth of the Yantlet Creek, which separates Hoo from the Isle of Graia. But back to the beginning, and another marker stone – the reeling figure of Old Father Thames, now moved for safety from Thames Head to St John’s Lock at Lechlade. There is often dispute about whether the genuine source of the Thames is at the officially regarded Thames Head or at Seven Springs. But the author gives both a reference, although remarking that at Thames Head there is no water to be seen for most of the year. Seven Springs
is the source of the River Churn which feeds into the Thames; using this as the starting point adds four miles to the length, he notes – and it always has flow of water present. This flows under a road, and where it emerges a plaque erected bears an inscription in Latin which translates as ‘Here O Father Thames is your sevenfold source’. One of the villages through which the now free-flowing river passes is Ewen, where it once powered a mill. Here there is a 16th-century inn, The Wild Duck; Ewen is claimed to be the first place on the river where ducks are to be seen. Harking farther back in time, at Somerford Keynes in the early 13th-century All Saints’ Church nearby is the subject of a theory that its tower was built as a result of a benefactor’s gambling win, as on the ceiling is a carving of the four playingcard white symbols. This is St Sampson’s, at Cricklade. The author disagrees with William Cobbett’s description on one of his ‘Rural Rides’ that Cricklade was ‘a villainous hole’. He found it entirely pleasant. All this detail will be equally of interest to walkers along the Thames Path as to those journeying by boat to moor and explore. The Thames Path provides us with a claim that currently our European neighbours cannot change for us – unless a longer riverside path is established elsewhere, it is the longest in Europe. On more local Thames controversies, as to which is the oldest bridge over the river, the author comes down decisively on the side of Radcot Bridge, near Faringdon, making Newbridge near Standlake the second oldest.
Both B th claims l i h however will ill continue to be made. The most important prehistoric crossing point by a ford is some further miles downstream, at Goring-on-Thames. En route to Henley, the river passes Park Place, where the estate owner planted the first Lombardy poplars in an English landscape. At Richmond the poet Alexander Pope planted the first recorded weeping willow tree. Also at Richmond is Strawberry Hill, the Gothic mansion that was built by Horace Walpole in the mid-18th century. He was the son of Britain’s first Prime Minister Sir Robert Walpole whose portrait overlooked the recent famous documentsigning by Theresa May. But I must leave the many other facts for other readers to discover for themselves – except perhaps mentioning the only sculpture actually in the river; that of The Driver at Rainham Marshes. And then there is Toad of Toad Hall having been incarcerated in Reading Gaol and an Agatha Christie murder set beside the Thames, at Wallingford. But truth is stranger than fiction. I Never Knew That About The River Thames by Christopher Winn is published by Ebury Press (hardback, 168 pages) price £12.99. ISBN: 978-0-09-193357-9
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WHAT’S ON
Email details of your event to: jrichardson@mortons.co.uk or send details to: What’s on, Towpath Talk, PO Box 43, Horncastle, Lincs LN9 6LZ
Compiled by Janet Richardson
New boat show at Bristol THE organisers of the Northern Boat Show are launching a Western Boat Show at the heart of the Bristol Harbour Festival to be held in Bristol from July 21 to 23. This three-day consumer boat show will put sailing boats, power boats and marine products, systems and services in front of serious boat buyers and more than 250,000 visitors to the festival.
The Bristol Harbour Festival celebrates the city’s vibrant harbourside and sees the harbour filled with two miles of vessels, food markets, circus acts, live music and performers. The Western Boat Show will cover the offshore and inland markets with the latest sailing, canal, ribs and power boats in Bristol Harbour and a land-based exhibition alongside on Bristol’s
Brunel’s SS Great Britain in Bristol’s historic harbour area. PHOTO: JANET RICHARDSON
newly developed Hannover Quay. Richard Milbourn, event director of the new show, said: “It reaches an audience that is far away from the established boat shows and we’re looking forward to capturing another untapped market.” Bristol is one of the most easily accessible cities in the UK at the intersection of the M4 and M5 motorways. Because of its position
on the River Avon, it has been an important location for marine trade for centuries and was the second largest port in England after London. This maritime history is reflected in the Bristol Harbour Festival which has been running for more than 40 years and last year involved more than 240 vessels. Tickets are on sale at www. westernboatshow.co.uk
Dashwood Day on the Wey & Arun THE Wey & Arun Canal Trust and the National Trust are jointly celebrating the 150th anniversary of JB Dashwood’s adventurous journey down the River Wey along the Wey & Arun Canal towards the Solent. His mission was to see the Spithead Review in 1867 and he took his small boat Caprice from Thames Lock at Weybridge along the Wey & Arun Canal on his way to Portsmouth. Jarrett Bacon Dashwood was a schoolmaster in Essendon, Hertfordshire, at the time of the trip, which will be recreated starting from Thames Lock on the River Wey near Chertsey, on Saturday, July 8. The finishing line is at Gun’s Mouth, Shalford, on the Wey & Arun Canal and the start of a planned new connection. There will also be the official opening ceremony of the new canoe landing stages at Gun’s Mouth Island kindly sponsored by British Canoeing. Boats should arrive for 9.30am at Thames Lock, KT13 8LG, where there will be refreshments at Thames Lock for all boaters, canoeists, kayakers, paddleboarders, walkers and cyclists. There is a rail connection to Chertsey. There is no parking and canoes should launch via the public slipway in Walton Lane, KT13 8LU. Please book online at www.weyarun.org.uk – events or by email events@weyandarun.co.uk so that the organisers know the likely number of participants, however you intend to travel. If your are not a member of British Canoeing, a River Wey navigation licence is required; day or annual non-power licences are available at Thames Lock. Boaters and spectators are encouraged to wear their own interpretation of Victorian boating dress. A reprint of JB Dashwood’s 1867 book From the Thames to the Solent is available for sale through the Wey & Arun Canal Trust.
TICKETS TO FAIRPORT’S CROPREDY CONVENTION 2017 - 50th Anniversary!
Towpath Talk has teamed up with Fairport’s Cropredy Convention to offer readers the chance to win £445 worth of prizes!
2017 will mark Fairport Convention’s fiftieth year and Cropredy will celebrate the anniversary in style with a stellar line-up and musical guests. The dates will be
Thursday 10, Friday 11 and Saturday 12 August. Headliners for 2017 include three-time Grammy Award winner Petula Clark, whose string of Top 40 hits in the UK and around the world includes Downtown, I Know A Place, My Love, and This Is My Song. The festival will also feature the Trevor Horn Band, The Divine Comedy and Richard Thompson amongst many others.
1ST PRIZE
a pair of adult three-day festival tickets with camping if required, plus up to three under 12 child tickets
2ND PRIZElt
a pair of adu Saturday only tickets mp (ca ing is free)
Tickets are exclusively available from Fairport’s website: fairportconvention.com and ticket hotline: 0900 637 1644. To be in with a chance of winning, simply visit www.towpathtalk.co.uk and enter your details online before Monday, July 24, 2017. Terms and conditions apply. The winners will be the first two names drawn at random. There are no cash alternatives available.
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WHAT’S ON IN JULY
If you want your event listed in our free monthly What’s On section email your entry to pbatten@mortons.co.uk or use the events form at www.towpathtalk.co.uk/events. As always please check with organisers on the details of the event before setting out on your journey.
July 2
July 16
Titchfield Boat Jumble. Hound Hill Farm, Segensworth Road, Titchfield, Fareham, Hampshire PO15 5DY. Opens 10am, admission £4, accompanied children/ parking free. Chaddock & Fox Promotions 01329 661896/0777196295.
IWA Towpath Walks Society, London: Grand Union Canal: Kensal Green – Little Venice. Starts Kensal Green tube station at 2.30pm. Costs £10, £8 student/concs. Contact Roger Wilkinson 0203 612 9624.
Friends of Cromford Canal: Horse day and Leawood Pumphouse. Depart 11am or 2pm from Cromford Wharf (single or return), 12.15pm or 3.15pm High Peak Junction (single only). Booking advisable 07552 055455, sales@birdswood.org
July 19
Dogdyke Steam Drainage Station: 40th Anniversary Open Day from 12-5pm. Beam engine in steam, display and museum in old engineman’s house, 40th anniversary year. Tea and home-made cakes in grounds. Off the A153 Sleaford to Horncastle Road near Bridge Farm, Tattershall, Lincolnshire, along farm track. Entrance and parking free, donations welcome. IWA Towpath Walks Society, London: The Olympics, Three Mills & Bow Back Rivers. Starts Bromley by Bow tube station at 2.30pm. Costs £10, £8 student/concs. Contact Roger Wilkinson on 0203 612 9624.
July 3
Montgomery Canal Forum: Oswestry Golf Club, Queen’s Head, Oswestry SY11 4JJ. Public meeting open to all, 2.30pm.
July 7
River Foss Society: Five-mile circular walk Coxwold and Husthwaite. Meet Coxwold car park for 9.30am start. Contact Bob Jowett on 01904 76402, bob.jowett1@ btopenworld.com
July 9
IWA Shrewsbury & North Wales: Summer walk. Montgomery Canal area around Llanymynech, about seven-mile (or two 3.5-mile) walk. Some steep sections. Bring your own picnic lunch. Meet canalside at Llanymynech Wharf Visitor Centre SY22 6EA for 10am start. Sorry no dogs. shrewsandnwales@waterways.org.uk
July 12
IWA Warwickshire: Walk and picnic near Braunston. Meet at CRT Stop House, The Wharf, Braunston NN11 7JQ. NGR: SP 538 657. 6.30pm.
July 15
Herefordshire & Gloucestershire Canal Trust: Annual General Meeting. Malswick House, Newent GL18 1HE. Starts 7.30pm.
Dogdyke Steam Drainage Station: Open day from 5-8pm. Beam engine in steam, display and museum in old engineman’s house, 40th anniversary year. Tea and home-made cakes in grounds. Off the A153 Sleaford to Horncastle Road near Bridge Farm, Tattershall, Lincolnshire, along farm track. Entrance and parking free, donations welcome.
July 20
River Foss Society: 4.5-mile evening walk around Huttons Ambo. Meet by the village green for a 6.30pm start. Meal available afterwards at the Crown and Cushion, Welburn. Contact Anne Bednarski on 01904 764086.
July 22
River Foss Society: City centre litter pick. Meet 9.30am on Foss Islands Road at the footbridge opposite Halford’s. For car parking and more details, contact Barry Thomas on 01904 490081.
July 23
Erewash Canal Preservation & Development Association: Open afternoon at Sandiacre Lock Cottages, Lock Lane, Sandiacre (off Longmoor Lane) NG10 5LA, 1.30-4.30pm. Admission free but donations towards costs of opening appreciated. Due to the historic nature of the cottages, access for disabled people is limited. Contact Glyn Stenson on 07809 251441/0115 854 3306, glynstenson@hotmail.com
July 25
Derby & Sandiacre Canal Society: Elizabeth Holloway – Five Years on a Narrowboat. Wilmot Arms, 49 Derby Road, Borrowash, Derby. Starts 7.30pm. Admissions £2 (members), £3 (visitors).
July 29-30
River Canal Rescue: Electrics course with Howard Williams. RCR head office, Baswich, Stafford (by Bridge 101, Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal).Two-day course £150. Contact 01785 785680, enquiries@ rivercanalrescue.co.uk or visit www. rivercanalrescue.co.uk/rcr-courses/
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Beatlemania at Newbury! THE theme of this year’s Newbury Waterways Festival will be ‘Beatlemania’. There will be live music from the Acoustic Beatles Shambles, boat trips and a beer tent at the annual event held by the Kennet & Avon Canal Trust on Sunday, July 23. Admission is free and the public can enjoy a spectacular display of colourful and decorated narrowboats on the towpath while Newbury’s Victoria Park will be filled with stalls, activities and entertainment for all the family. RIGHT: The Acoustic Beatles Shambles on board Kennet & Avon Canal Trust trip boat Jubilee. PHOTOS SUPPLIED
The historic Mortimer’s Warehouse building. PHOTO: JANET RICHARDSON
Celebrating the history of the Driffield Canal A WATERWAYS festival will take place around the Riverhead Wharf at Driffield over the weekend of July 1 and 2. It will celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Act of Parliament to create the canal which bears the name of the East Yorkshire market town. The event will centre around the historic Mortimer’s Warehouse which will be open to the public Decorated narrowboats alongside Newbury’s Victoria Park.
for the first time, thanks to current owners Jayne Briggs and John Scholey, who are keen to see the building become a heritage centre and museum. It will host an exhibition, stalls and refreshments over the weekend. The celebration is being supported by Driffield Town Council which has given a £5000 grant towards the costs of staging the event.
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Gardening afloat in July More topical tips from Lee Senior. SPURRED on by good summer weather, our baskets and containers are now starting to look the part. The joyous riot of colour from hanging baskets, window boxes and containers really does gladden the heart. Window boxes are perfect for the roof of boats; a kind of self-contained mini garden, taking up very little room. Dwarf perennials can look good too; the likes of hebe, trailing rosemary, box (buxus) and even a dwarf conifer or two. There are lots more to choose from. They will add a touch of green and a little structure and backbone to any planting design. Whatever type of container you have, regular tasks of watering, feeding and dead heading will keep them going through the summer. Any rain is unlikely to sufficiently wet the compost for any length of time unless it is heavy and sustained. A weekly high-potash liquid feed diluted and mixed in the watering can will encourage a regular abundance of flowers. Meanwhile houseplants can be placed outside
These container-grown plants provide a riot of summer colour. PHOTO: LEE SENIOR at this time of year for instant colour and effect. It is a quick and easy way to have instant greenery on your boat and the plants benefit from the holiday too! Finally don’t forget fruit and veg can look great in hanging baskets and containers too. Strawberries work well, as do trailing tomatoes and dwarf runner and French beans. It is great to think a little outside the box to make maximum use of our smaller areas!
CANALSIDE GARDEN A SITE which adjoins the Bridgewater Canal has been given the green light as Britain’s fifth Royal Horticultural Society
garden, writes Geoff Wood. Planning permission has been given for the £30 million development in the grounds of Worsley New
Hall, near Walkden, Greater Manchester. Former Bolton schoolgirl, TV gardener Carol Klein, has been appointed as ambassador for the garden.
Chelsea gardens highlight waterways heritage By Helen Gazeley
TWO gardens at Chelsea Flower Show this year brought waterways history into focus. The Broadland Boatbuilder’s Garden, sponsored by Lowestoft’s International Boat Building Training College to promote their work in preserving skills that help shape the East Anglian wetlands, featured a three-quarter-size replica of a medieval boat uncovered along the River Chet, Norfolk, in 2013. College instructor Rob Harbord was delighted at the opportunity the project gave for understanding more about past techniques, preparatory to building a full-size copy. “It’s certainly helped with shapes and measurements,” he said. “It’s been lofted out – so drawn out full size on the loft floor,
with a lot of detail. Originally they would have cut planks and bent them to fit. It’s a mindset that goes against modern ways, and initially caused a lot of head-scratching.” With joints flush to the stem, rather than sunk into it, the boat was held together with wooden pegs and iron nails. “Those are driven through the oak and turned over – we’ve not used that technique before,” said Rob. The remains of the original, thought to be around 900 years old, indicated that moss was probably used to caulk joints. “Chances are that we’ll use pitch, and do it from the inside,” he added. In contrast, Walker’s Wharf Garden brought visitors firmly up to date. Designed by Graham Bodle, it was aimed at a couple living in a
Walker’s Wharf Garden, supported by Doncaster Deaf Trust. PHOTO: RHS/TIM SANDALL
The IBTC Lowestoft: Broadland Boatbuilder’s Garden. PHOTO: RHS/TIM SANDALL
Regeneration project improves gateway to Glasson Branch THE Canal & River Trust, which looks after the Lancaster Canal, has worked in partnership with Thurnham Parish Council to complete a £25,000 project that has transformed the gateway into Lancaster’s 230-year-old Glasson Dock. Once the largest port in the North West, importing cotton, sugar, spices and slaves from Africa and the Indies, Glasson Dock situated on the head branch of the Lancaster Canal has changed significantly since the harbour opened in 1787. Located on the 2.5-mile stretch of the Glasson Branch on the Lancaster Canal which opened in 1826 and provided the towns of Kendal, Lancaster and Preston with a link to the sea, today, Glasson Dock is a Scheduled Monument, protected by the Ancient Monument and Archaeological Areas Act 1979. Glasson is a quiet village with a marina and a small, active port and the Glasson Branch of the Lancaster Canal has swapped cargo for leisure boating. Thurnham Parish Council successfully secured a £17,280 Landfill Communities Fund grant from the Lancashire Environmental Fund along with contributions from the Canal & River Trust to carry out the transformation. New shrubs, trees and a grassed area were planted to replace overgrown
vegetation and broken and uneven paving. A new bench now offers a viewpoint to enjoy the renewed space and look out on to the dock and cycle racks have also been installed nearby via Morecambe Bay Partnership. Nick Smith, enterprise manager at the Canal & River Trust, has been leading on the regeneration project with Thurnham Parish Council. He said: “We’ve worked with the local community to improve the main approach into the village, changing an area that had become an eyesore into a much more open and inviting space. It’s brilliant to help make a positive difference to this community and to provide a much more fitting welcome to the Lancaster Canal
Gardeners Frank Ford and Christine Rowland at work. and help create a space people can feel proud of.” CRT education co-ordinator Katie Hutchinson added: “As part of this regeneration project we have visited Thurnham Glasson C of E Primary School to deliver a water safety talk to children from the local community and help them to understand more about the history of the Glasson Dock Branch and the Lancaster Canal through a hands-on canal building workshop.”
Celebrating the completion of the project are, from left, Christine Milligan, Anne Kingston, Nick Smith, Christine Rowland, Frank Ford and Maggie Stainton.
Adding to the detail on The Broadland Boatbuilder’s Garden are woodworking tools handmade by Rob and his students, and a toolbox based on a Viking original. PHOTO: CHRISTOPHER BELL converted warehouse on a disused wharf. “I was inspired by wharfs along the River Trent in Yorkshire, especially Gunness Wharf, Scunthorpe,” said Graham. Using an old crane from Walkers Nurseries, Doncaster, originally used to lift peat, Graham also included industrial curiosities to add interest. “It looked like a scene from Mad Max before I planted it,” he added. Conifers and pines with plenty of character softened the lines. After the show, visitors to the nurseries can see the drawbridge and crane featured in a plant border, while plants from the Boatbuilder’s Garden have been given to the Nancy Oldfield Trust, Norfolk, which provides adventurous days out on the Broads for disabled and socially disadvantaged people. Both gardens were awarded Gold by RHS judges.
Industrial equipment adds interest to the borders. PHOTO: CHRISTOPHER BELL
The newly landscaped viewpoint at Glasson Dock. PHOTOS: STEPHEN GARNETT PHOTOGRAPHY/CRT
This month’s seasonal recipe from Anna Pettigrew
Lentil burger with red onion
RECIPE
A delicious and light vegetarian burger, perfect for enjoying al fresco. It is really simple to make as you throw all the ingredients in a food processor. No chopping required! SERVES 8 Preparation time: 30 minutes Cooking time: 30 minutes ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●
125g/4.5oz red lentils 1 large red onion 1 egg 1 tbsp tomato paste 1 tsp cumin 1 tsp turmeric 1 tsp chilli flakes 6-8 tbsp oats 1 handful flat-leaf parsley Sea salt and pepper Coconut oil for frying
Cook the lentils according to the directions on the packet. Drain, and put them in a food processor together with the other ingredients and pulse until just combined. If the consistency is too wet, add a few more oats. Refrigerate for 15 minutes. Form eight patties from the mixture and fry them over medium heat in plenty of oil about five minutes on each side, until golden and crisp. Enjoy straight away, or reheat on the barbecue for extra smoky flavour.
For more of Anna’s seasonal recipes see our sister title Kitchen Garden. To take advantage of a special subscription offer of three for £5 plus 20 free packs of seeds followed by £20 for six issues, call 01507 529529, quoting KG160, or visit classicmagazines.co.uk/kg160
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FOOD & DRINK urants ta s re & s b u p e id ls a Can ... to satisfy all tastes
New trip boat and cafe venture at Froghall Basin
A FORMER canal wharf at Froghall Basin on the Caldon Canal in Staffordshire has been brought back to life, thanks to a partnership between the Canal & River Trust and a local entrepreneur. Sarah Hirst and Peter Moore from the trust have worked hard to upgrade the area and find a new tenant for the former corn store warehouse. Cafe owner Emma Atkinson saw the potential of converting the attractive heritage building into a cafe
and gift shop, with holiday accommodation for rent upstairs. She has also arranged for a new trip boat to operate from the wharf, making the whole area into an attractive visitor destination. It’s a real family affair – Emma has named the cafe after her 92-year-old grandmother Hetty and her mother will be running the gift shop. Emma explained: “My nan Hetty is my recipe for success so I have named the tea shop after her. I found out we had secured the lease about 15 months ago and since then we have worked hard with the trust, architects and surveyors to get the building ready to be open in time for Easter this year. “My vision was to be sympathetic to the original building but at the same time incorporate stylish, modern furniture to give the interior a warm, cosy feeling for visitors.
Hive of industry
Hetty’s Cafe owner Emma Atkinson enjoying a cup of tea inside the former corn warehouse.
“Froghall Wharf was once a thriving hive of industry. You can still see evidence of the lime kilns and a railway track. “I have long admired the place and it is wonderful to be instrumental in making it into a buzzing tourist destination.”
Sarah Hirst, left, and Peter Moore from the Canal & River Trust with Hetty’s Cafe owner Emma Atkinson at Froghall Basin, Caldon Canal. PHOTOS: MARK SCOTT, CRT Sarah Hirst, property surveyor with the Canal & River Trust, said: “Emma has done a fantastic job of creating a modern, attractive cafe, shop and holiday accommodation. The transformation has been incredible. The trust works hard to make the most of all our unusual canalside buildings. “We have worked closely with her every step of
the project, including creating a new pathway to the building. This was very much a collaborative project and we wish her the best of luck with her new business.” Hetty’s Tea Shop opens six days a week, Tuesday to Sunday and the trip boat will operate on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays.
CANALSIDE PUB BANS PLASTIC STRAWS THE recent Earth Day provided pub chain Oakman Inns, which owns The Navigation at Cosgrove, a topical opportunity to ban plastic drinking straws. When the company was founded 12 years ago by its CEO, Peter BorgNeal, his vision was that he would not only create a successful business but that Oakman Inns would be a sustainable organisation that would contribute to its local community rather than exploit it. Declaring ‘we believe straws suck’, the company decided to launch its own ‘ban the straw’ campaign. It has been using more than 100,000 plastic straws a month across its 17-strong group and while the company is highly rated by the Sustainable Restaurant Association for its many green policies, the sheer number of straws consumed
Customers enjoying the sunset overlooking the Grand Union Canal at Thrupp Wharf, Cosgrove. PHOTO SUPPLIED had begun to be a concern. Peter said: “It sounds ridiculous, but it is entirely accurate to say that every plastic straw that was ever made, still exists today. They pollute landfills, rivers, roadsides, sewers, beaches and of course oceans and
this relatively small amount that this pub group is taking out of circulation needs to be repeated by every one of my colleagues across the hospitality industry.” If customers ask for a straw, they are being offered an eco-friendly alternative.
FOOD & DRINK 79
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New micro pub is exactly what it says on the sign! By Les Heath
BOATERS passing through Sawley on the River Trent now have a new treat in store – the Lock Keeper’s Rest. Former lock keeper Dave Parrott, a familiar face on the electric double locks for the last 12 years, has turned the former lock house into a micro pub, opening to the public for the first time prior to Spring Bank Holiday.
Dave Parrott – from lock keeper to licensee. PHOTOS: LES HEATH
Dave, himself a seasoned boater, has lived in the house since starting work with British Waterways and bought the property in 2012. He took early retirement in March this year. After an extensive renovation programme a lock side tea room was opened by Dave’s partner Kathryn (Towpath Talk December 2014) and this has gone from strength to strength. It will continue to operate alongside the micro pub. Dave said: “The outside seating at the tea room will become pub seating after the cafe closes but when the pub is open it will be a strict over 18s policy inside and out. “Children will not be allowed even if they were at the tea room earlier. The Lock Keeper’s Rest is strictly for adults.” Starting off with four different beers, Dave has so far been opening on four days a week – from 4pm to 9.30pm on Thursdays, noon to 9.30pm on Fridays and Saturdays and noon until 4pm on Sundays. So far he has been supporting local micro breweries – a policy he hopes to maintain while still keeping an open mind on suppliers from further afield.
One of Lime Kilns’ signature pies – this is beef, stout, Stilton and mushroom. PHOTOS: JANET RICHARDSON
The bar and dining area at the Lime Kilns – you can also pick up your latest copy of Towpath Talk.
Just the job after a busy day at Crick show.
Pies and pints beside the Ashby Canal HUNGRY from a busy Saturday at the Crick Boat Show, the Towpath Talk team made the short journey along the Watling Street (A5) to the canalside Lime Kilns pub at Burbage, writes Janet Richardson. It is just as easily accessible by boat, lying beside Bridge 15 of the Ashby Canal. Gary and Jill Buswell are mine hosts at this real ale and cider pub, voted Hinckley and Bosworth CAMRA pub of the year in 2016. With the car park and beer garden down by the canal, you ascend a short staircase to the pub’s bar and dining area overlooking the canal. There is also disabled access from footpath level.
Home-made pies are the speciality with the board listing more than 15 variations, including vegetarian options. One of our party plumped for the chicken pie with bacon, barbecue sauce and cheeses while I opted for the beef, stout, Stilton and mushroom. The others chose steaks from the grill menu. Served with accompaniments including chips or new potatoes, peas and salad garnish, there is also a choice of cask ales and ciders for those wishing to have a drink with their meal. Food is served every lunch from noon to 2pm and Monday to Saturday evenings between 6pm and 8.30pm. www.limekilnsinn.co.uk
Top Lock reopens with new licensee after upgrade A POPULAR canalside pub in Whittle-le-Woods near Chorley has reopened after a two-month closure for the upgrading of the building, writes Geoff Wood. At the The former lock house – now a tea room and micro pub.
A welcome sign for boaters.
Top Lock pub on the Leeds & Liverpool Canal, new licensee Mike Hales has taken the helm, along with Curtis Lant as manager. Mike said: “Top Lock is a beautiful pub in a
delightful setting beside the canal. I remember many happy days here as a small boy with my family but I never dreamed that one day I would be its licensee.”
80 HOLIDAYS
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HO LIDAYS Canal breaks and river cruising in the UK, Ireland and Europe
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ABC Leisure increases day boat hire fleet By Harry Arnold
MULTI-based hire fleet and marina operator ABC Leisure has recently increased the number of day-hire boats available from a number of its locations. New purpose-designed craft have been launched at Alvechurch, Whitchurch, Blackwater and Gayton marinas. Others are available at their Aldermaston, Anderton, Hilperton and Goytre bases. Full details of day boats at all eight ABC sites can be viewed at www. abcdayboathire.com
One of ABC Leisure’s latest day boats based on the Llangollen Canal at Whitchurch Marina. PHOTO: WATERWAY IMAGES
Slow down and enjoy yourself so much more LOOK at hiring a narrowboat for your holidays and you will read much about which ‘canal rings’ can be completed from this or that hire base but one hire firm is urging holidaymakers to take a different approach. Despite being sited on the four counties ring, Norbury Wharf’s managing director wants people to slow down and enjoy themselves more. Simon Jenkins said: “I think most people would get so much more from their holiday if they slowed down and enjoyed the areas around the canals. “If people who hire boats learned to slow down and take in more of their surrounding environment
they would end their holiday so much more relaxed. “Before I owned boats or a boatyard, I remember once taking a trip on a narrowboat that took me from the centre of Birmingham down the Shroppie to the Anchor pub and then back again. “It was a trip that should have taken just four days but it took me two weeks and I thoroughly enjoyed it too. I relaxed that much that my two weeks seemed more like two months and when I returned to my day job I was suitably stress free. “So my advice to any hire boaters, and especially our customers, is slooooow down and chill – don’t try and do too much, try and take in some of the surrounding villages, and pubs, of course.” And you will enjoy a canal holiday so much more if you go equipped to fit into the canal atmosphere. “The essential thing is sensible clothing, not like some people who take full evening wear as though they are expecting to go to a ball or posh restaurant. “On the canal casual is best, sensible footwear – mainly flat shoes and wellies, or boots. If you have some waterproofs then they are well worth taking although some hire companies do supply a set with the boat.” Simon added: “Finally don’t forget a map of your intended route. These can usually be bought on line or by contacting the hire company, as they will sell them too.”
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Selling your boat is FREE for private readers of Towpath talk
For sale
BITTERN 2 berth GRP cabin cruiser, marina 20 by Hemming and Morris c1980, 20ft x 6ft 10” beam on single axle trailer with 9hp 4-stroke Honda outboard, porta potti, 2 ring gas hob, fenders, mooring spikes, ropes, BSC 2019, oiro £3800. Tel. 07784 524437.
DREAM CATCHER 65ft trad narrowboat, 2004, 65ft beam, 6ft 10”, 3 berth, Beta marine 43hp engine, 250 ltr fuel capacity, 250 ltr water capacity, built 2004 by Fox Boat yard in March, Cambridgeshire as a sail away, BSC till next year, dry docked last year, hull blacked and anodes checked, bow thruster tube built into her hull but we’ve never had the need to fit the thruster itself, a true residential boat, bedroom with 4FT 6” fixed bed with storage under, Thetford toilet, shower cubicle in bathroom, kitchen with eye level oven microwave, fridge, s/s 4 burner hob, and units and worktop large lounge, 2 year old cratch cover, £55,000. Tel. 078830 19334 to make arrangements. Derbys.
Wanted
MILLIE ANNE 62ft trad, 2005, 62ft, 4 berth, Beta marine 43hp engine, 150 ltr fuel capacity, 560 ltr water capacity, wide hatch which allows for two at the stern. Constructed by Nick Thorpe Boatbuilders and fitted out by the owner to a good standard, interior cabin is light ash panelling with a hardwood trim, equipped with living aboard in mind the boat has both a 2.5Kw combi inverter and a 3.5Kw Travel Power generator, LED lights, Hoover w/machine/dryer, Jabsco pump-out wc, Webasto diesel central heating and a Kabola diesel stove. Essentially designed for two people with a further two using an L-shaped dinette the 62ft hull feels spacious and would be perfect for long term cruising, £54,995. Tel. 01270 525 046.
JAMAICA 40 cabin cruiser, £25,000 ono. Tel. 07950 676337. N Yorks.
MOONRAKER MOTOR CRUISER 1970, 30ft long, 10ft beam, 3 cabin, 7 berth Moonraker motor cruiser, Mercedes diesel inboard shaft drive 43hp, boat and engine in good condition, lots spent on maintenance and improvements, ready to cruise, make good live-a-board lots of kit e.g. oven, fridge, gas cooker, toaster, TV, 2 radios, 240v, portapotti toilet, Danforth anchor locker davits, 3 fire extinguishers, fire blanket, 4 life jackets, prior owner had out of water in dry storage for 13 yrs. Cruised 5 years, £16,000. Open to offers. Tel. 07552 408806. Sharpness.
MAYFIELD SAFARI 21ft, 1996, Suzuki 9.9hp outboard, electric start engine, 2 double bed or one double, 2 singles, 2 ring gas hob and grill, 12v water pump, new rear cover 2016, BSS boat safety 17/4/2021, comes complete, ready to sail, £5000. Tel. 07982 247528. Staffs.
BLUE PETER 8ft GRP sailing dinghy, sail no 367, in good used condition, £100. Tel. 01353 862742. Ely, Cambs. INFLATABLE SEAGO 2.3m inflatable deck with paddles and pump, also two new Seago 175N life jackets, new, still in packaging, not used, £250 ono. Tel. 07593 175498. Notts. HISTORIC INTEREST 15ft end of BCN Joey Hull iron rivet construction, over 100 years old, build into a classic shell, delivery possible, £500. Tel. 07710 270380. Derbys.
RANWORTH BREEZE BOAT SHARE 2001, 34ft long, 10.6ft beam, 2 berths, Yanmar engine model, 210hp engine power, currently have two standard shares for sale on the Ranworth Breeze Boat Syndicate, 20 owners in the boat syndicate each having a 5% share that gives two weeks allocation each year, Ranworth Breeze is a 2001 Birchwood 340AC that is moored at the Tingdene Marina at Brundall,Yanmar 210bhp diesel engine, trim tabs, bow thruster, full canopy (new in 2010) that can be partially or fully let down for bridges or cruising, dual controls are standard, aft double cabin with en-suite toilet/wet room, lounge with seating for 6 to 7 people, forward toilet/wet room a fully fitted galley that includes inbuilt gas oven and grill, gas hob and sink, 12v fridge, forward seating/dinette converts into another d/berth, Share 1 is for sale at £3650. Tel. 0114 247 0242 work; 0114 265 0934 home; 07768 342075.
RIVETED BOAT 100% aluminium, was used as a landing craft back in 1948 (badge saying ‘1948 Commando Boat’, inside), 18ft long, 6ft wide (without outboard engine), double skinned it can take up to 4 men to lift this boat, watertight, with a traditional bow, c/w an 18ft long 4-wheeled trailer, both items are in good condition, but will need tidying up, both to be sold together, £750 ono. Tel. Steve 079641 51552. ste. bingham@talktalk.net W Mids.
SENIOR 27FT restoration project, hull and deck looks ok, needs complete new interior, no diesel engine, no prop or shaft trailer not included, £500 ono. Tel. 07850 851021. Berks.
TUG-STYLE NARROWBOAT 1992, 49ft long, 6ft beam, 4 berth, Russell Newbery DM4 engine, 44 hp, built by Keelkast c1992, trad boatman’s cabin, powered by Russell Newbery DM4 engine, full refit and repaint with full BSC. More pictures available on request, £45,000. Tel. 07956 656887. W Mids.
WEDGWOOD NARROWBOAT 49ft cruiser style, 2009, 49ft long, 6ft 10” beam, 2 berth, Isuzu 35hp engine, 2+2 berth, fixed double plus bespoke sofa bed, light oak fit thr’out, large kitcken workspace with breakfast bar. Sep shower room, ample storage, Webasto c/h and multi fuel stove. 4 speaker sound system, inverter, elec immersion for Shoreline, fridge and gas cooker, s/s water tank, cratch and full stern cover, Isuzu 35 engine approx 640 hours, beautiful, £52,500. Tel. 07732 789340. Leeds Liverpool canal.
WILSON TRAD 60ft, extra headroom, oak fit-out, built 2014, 6ft 10” beam, 2 berths, Barrus 45hp engine, 159 ltr fuel capacity, 300 ltr water capacity, superior oak fit-out, v roomy and light, extra large portholes with integral shutters, 6 x 2v cell batteries, 3kw Victron invertor/generator, 12v and 240v multi fuel burner with oven and gas oven, Shoreline fridge, solid oak cupboards, king size bed, utility room with w/machine and freezer, cratch cover with window panels, solar panel, s/s water tank with filter, solid oak and much much more, fully kitted out for live aboard, £99,950. Tel. 07454 759228. Kennet and Avon currently Newbury. INFLATABLE RAFT 2.3m, inflatable deck with paddles and pump, also two new Sedge 175N life jackets, new, still in packaging, £225 ono. Tel. 07593 175498. Notts.
WOLVERLEY NARROWBOAT “...in a new, private, totally non-profit, 12 share ownership club. Secondhand, 60ft, Reeves/Milburn semi-trad boat with rev layout, 6 berths (one fixed double (extends to Kingsize), one make-up (dinette) double, 2 singles that can make-up as a Super King double), roams pre-determined region during the season with handovers at 5pm on Sundays, owners need practical skills and willingness to be ‘hands on’ in looking after the boat and running the Owners’ Club, buy-in cost £3500 for 1/12 of the boat + £500 towards mods/upgrades, set-up and operating costs for 2017 season. Future contributions payable monthly from November at around £45 pcm. For further details and contact go to www. sharewolverley.org.uk HARBOROUGH STERN NARROWBOAT 1979, 59ft, 3 berth, Lister SR3, 30hp engine, 250 ltr fuel capacity, 500 ltr water capacity, Lister engine SR3 air-cooled, regularly serviced, Lister gearbox LH150 hyd gearbox, recent gearbox overhaul (March 2017), blacked and 4 new anodes fitted in March 2017, BSSR Safety Certificate (completed March 2017, valid til March 2021), overplated with 5mm steel, hull survey completed March 2017 and available, all necessary remedial repairs carried out, £30,000. Tel. Mark 07722 416986 to arrange viewing. London. ‘LES ALLEN’ Classic trad 46ft, 1986, 46ft long, 7ft beam, 2 berths, BMC 1.5 engine, blacked in May 17, BSS to April 2021, calorifier for hot water and bathroom radiator, diesel c/h, twin alternators, 2.4Kw inverter and Shoreline 240v, d/bed, shower, cassette toilet, fully fitted kitchen, lounge with Morso stove and occasional d/ bed for guests, currently cruising to Huddersfield then back south to K & A, full cruising inventory, travelling to and from Huddersfield. £38,750. Tel. 07836 222477. MIDLAND CANAL CENTRE 32ft, all steel, 3-berth, Lister water cool surveyed, history, calorifier, cooker, fridge, BSC 2019, stern cover, new full inventory, inverter, hull checked and paint ready to go, £19,950. Tel. 07808 407073. Stoke-on-Trent.
BOAT FINDER WANTED Looking for professional boater to help me buy a narrowboat, will pay daily rate and expenses subject to experience. Tel. 0742 1019918. Midlands. FLOATING JETTIES WANTED approx 292 metres required. Tel. Jim on 07843 967531.
RENTING A BOAT TO LIVE ON, OR HIRING OUT YOUR OWN BOAT?
Our important message to both groups is to do careful homework first and not to either hire out your boat or rent a boat that isn’t properly licensed for this use.
Please visit www.canalrivertrust.org.uk/boating/aboat-of-your-own to avoid any difficulties with legal and safety issues
Engines
ARMSTRONG SIDDELEY AS2 1969, AS2, 22hp engine, AS2 coupled to a Parsons type D box, recently removed from noted boat, is in very good order, history known, this is not a Merganser, hand start only, open to close offers, £800. Tel. 07721 939763. Monmouthshire. PETTER AVA2 1945-67, engine model: AVA. Engine power: 6.5 bhp @ 2000 revs, 2 cyl water cooled Petter AVA2, B.M.C. rev gearbox (one of the first engines fitted in B.W. craft), plus lots of spares for engine and box and manual, can be seen running, no starter motor but has starting handle, needs tlc, has given me 16 years good service on my boat, deliver for cost of fuel if you have lifting gear, £200. Tel. 078910 74462. Staffs. RUSTON HORNSBY 2YWA, aircooled diesel engine with PRM gearbox, 20hp, will turn 20” prop, can be seen running, £2700 ono. Tel. Chris 07523 647073 for details. Lancs.
SAAB MARINE ENGINE Model GG, with reverse gear, fully rebuilt, inc propeller and drive shaft, all fully painted and polished parts as required. Also Saab marine engine, model 2H, controllable pitch propeller, fully rebuilt and includes drive shaft and propeller, a beautiful sounding engine. Tel. 01254 202341. Lancs.
Parts for sale DANFORTH ANCHOR 14kg Danforth anchor c/w 2 metres, 13mm linked drag chain and 12 metres of 20mm rope warp, £100 ono. Tel. 01925 413190. Cheshire. JABSCO WATER PUMP 294702231C, new impeller fitted, fits Watermota and Volvo AQ, vgc, £130. Tel. 075000 51587. Cheshire. JERRY CAN for sale, 20 ltr, £7. Tel. 01327 700219. LOFRANS ‘ROYAL’ manual anchor winch, 6mm chain/rope gypsy, unused, new, suit 6-10 mtr cruiser/ sailboat, £300. Tel. 07812 370681. Mid Staffs.
Parts wanted WANTED 18 X 12.5 L/H prop, 1 1/2 shaft, for SR2 Lister. Tel. John 07936 698237. Man.
Miscellaneous
BOSUN’S CHAIR Brand new Bosun’s chair never been used however there are a few slight marks due to being stored for over a year. Buyer collects either cash on collection or via PayPal. £40. Tel. 07884 152207. Cambs.
PRAM COVER By luck I have a “Kinver Canopies” pram cover and frame, now make it your luck, 4ft wide approx 40” long, 31” high, burgundy cover, £1000 ono. Tel. Dave on 07745 406560. BOAT ACCESSORIES Anchor Danforth, large plastic petrol tank, sea toilet, plastic steering wheel, three chrome deck fittings, reasonable offers, buyer collects. Tel. 01992 763912. Middx.
TECHNICAL 111
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What’s lurking below your sole boards? Ben Sutcliffe-Davies has more than 35 years’ experience in the marine industry, including boat building in timber, GRP, steel and aluminium. An accredited member of the Yacht Designers and Surveyors Association (YDSA) and an associate member of the International Institute of Marine Surveying (IIMS), he is also a full member of British Marine and the Inland Boat Builders Association.
AN AREA of just about every boat I survey that seems to be very neglected is the craft’s bilges. It’s almost ‘out of sight is very much out of mind’; in a GRP
vessel the issues caused from water standing in a section of the bilges is potentially nowhere near as catastrophic as in a craft built of steel.
Water damage caused by a leaking bath pump.
There are several areas that are quite vulnerable in narrow or wide beam craft. The regular culprits are typically the gas locker fit-out and the engine compartment; both of these are normally reasonably easy to access and check the internal plating. However on most steel vessels it’s very common to find that the accommodation areas have little or no access to check what’s going on below in the bilges, and this over time can become an almighty nightmare. Very often minor incidents like a leaking water pump or window seals go unnoticed and over time will often cause serious structural damage to the internal fit-out of the craft. For as long as I care to remember a small number of professional builders and certainly a large proportion of DIY fit-outs have never protected the internal steel hull or the underside and end grain of the plywood at fit-out. While I understand it adds around £500£1000 at build, the real costs of stripping out when problems are found are a fraction of the cost to reinstate the failed linings. Very often one of the main problems found at survey or an insurance claim on a failed fit-out is the poor quality selection of materials used for the craft’s sole (floor) boards that were initially fitted without long-term thought and most often as a cost saving.
Water damage
When attending insurance claims from failure of the sole boards caused by water damage very often I discover that chip board, MDF or OSB boards have been used. All are not ideal for use in a boat, especially where there is a high chance of damp or water standing in the bilges unchecked for periods of time that will inevitably occur. When investing the amount of time and effort of labour to fit out a narrowboat it does seem ridiculous to use a product that in real terms is only around £5-10 a square metre less than WBP plywood. On one recent inspection I attended, the cost from waterdamaged chipboard was going to amount to more than £30,000 to strip out the whole of the inside of the craft and fully refit as a result of water contamination that had gone unnoticed for a number of months! However even some WBP plywoods can break down over long exposure to damp if not properly sealed. Whenever I’m involved in a refit or overseeing a new build I believe it’s important to invest in good foundations for your internal fit-out; this will in time make financial sense. The use of marine plywood that has a proper stamp on it with BS 1088 is a good start. It is almost double the cost of WBP ply if it is of good quality but is a very prudent investment. Before laying the sole board, I always recommend cleaning the bilges out and ensuring either a couple of coats of an epoxy tar or a good quality wax oil throughout the bilges is applied, for any ballast laid in the bilges that is rested on felt or other insulator material that doesn’t hold damp. The coating of the underside and exposed end grain edges of
Rotten floorboards in a boat. PHOTOS: BEN SUTCLIFFE-DAVIES
These leaking holding tank hoses went unchecked for several months. the plywood with a good quality paint or epoxy coating will not seem very important at fit-out but will ensure good reliability of the plywood in the future. Once fitted, try within the layout to provide a few sensible sized access hatches so regular checks to the bilges can be done without too much effort. To the
rear of the accommodation, fitting a small auto bilge pump with an alarm is also a great insurance to ensuring that if the bilges start to accumulate water you will know about it before irreversible damage is done. That old motto ‘a stitch in time’ will in this case certainly save nine!
Do’s and don’ts for solar on boats Leigh Naylor, managing director of Loryan Micro Renewables, has 10 years’ experience installing solar panels. He offers boat owners with an interest in renewable energy this practical advice:
Four LG 285 watt solar panels make up this 1140 watt system.
• Do choose high efficiency solar panels from a trusted brand such as LG, which are up to 40% more efficient per square centimetre than some cheap alternatives. • Do choose mono-crystalline instead of poly-crystalline solar panels. Mono-crystalline solar panels work better in low level/ indirect light, so are much more suited to the UK climate. • Do check the warranty on your solar panels (LG offers 25 years warranty). Panel manufacturers offering warranties of 3-5 years cannot guarantee the longevity and performance of the panel. • Do mount your solar panels flat on your boat roof. This will offer good all-round day performance and you will not need to worry about which way your boat is facing. Mounting panels flat will only lose 8% of annual generation. • Do keep the solar panels clear of tall objects such as flues, chimneys and aerials. Shading reduces a panel’s efficiency including those wired up in a series/sequence, even if those panels are not affected by shade.
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• •
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Trees and buildings also need to be considered when mooring your boat. Don’t drill the frame of your solar panels as your warranty will be voided due to change of the original product. Use a professional solar clamp system, which enables the panel to be removed easily for maintenance and cleaning under the panel. Do keep the solar panels clean from dirt/dust and leaves to ensure maximum efficiency. Don’t use AC cables to wire up your solar panels as this reduces the panels’ lifespan. Instead use solar TUV rated cable and correct parallel connectors. Don’t settle for the first quote you receive. Always receive a few quotes so you can compare. Don’t think that solar panels won’t work for you just because you live in a cloudy climate – they still work, even when raining. Do use an MPPT controller to maximise the amount of power converted from your solar panel into your batteries. MPPT controllers are 20% more efficient than PWM controllers.
Two LG 285 watt solar panels provide a 570 watt system. PHOTOS SUPPLIED
• Do test your batteries before installing the solar system and replace if needed. Know what type of batteries you have so the controller can be programmed accordingly. Now you know the do’s and don’ts of solar panels on boats, you are ready to start your solar panel adventure. To find out more see the advertisement on page 47, call 07974 576823 or visit www. loryanmr.com
112 ON IRISH WATERS with Alison Alderton
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New bridge and Greenway proposal for Ulster Canal THE Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Heather Humphreys TD, recently visited the construction site on the Ulster Canal at Derrykerrib Bridge, Co Fermanagh in the company of Waterways Ireland chief executive, Dawn Livingstone. Construction works in this flagship cross-border project consist of a new bridge and canal cut allowing navigation up the Finn River from Upper Lough Erne to Castle Saunderson, County Cavan. It will allow navigation to bypass the low span on the existing Derrykerrib Bridge. Based on Derrykerrib Island, the project is a considerable technical challenge due to the poor ground conditions, frequency of flooding and need to maintain access for residents at all times. Designed by Waterways Ireland technical services staff, it takes into account the technical difficulties
and will be sited north of the existing Derrykerrib Bridge with an arch profile resembling an old canal bridge. In line with planning conditions, the bridge will have a modern finish. The canal cut will be 250m long and run parallel to the existing river. The contract has been awarded to the Carrickmore-based contractor Fox Contracts Ltd at a tender value of around €1.8 million. Minister Humphreys said: “I am pleased that the contract has been signed by Waterways Ireland to allow for this important work to get under way at Derrykerrib Bridge. This is the next phase in the restoration of the old Ulster Canal and follows on from works completed in 2016 to dredge the channel from Lough Erne to Castle Saunderson, making it ready for navigation. “It is my hope that the works can progress without
delay so this section of canal can be restored for the benefit of people in surrounding areas and indeed visitors from further afield.” The Ulster Canal closed in 1931 after 90 years of operation. Linking Charlemont on the River Blackwater with Wattlebridge on the River Finn, the canal made it possible to travel from Lough Neagh to Lough Erne, through Blackwatertown, Benburb, Caledon, Middletown, Monaghan, Smithborough and Clones.
Consultation
In other Ulster Canal news, Waterways Ireland and their project partners propose to develop a longdistance Greenway in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, linking Castle Saunderson in County Cavan to Charlemont in County Armagh mainly along the route of the disused Ulster Canal
and using sections of disused railway infrastructure. The proposals for development of these Greenway sections are provided within the Ulster Canal Greenway Development Strategy which is now open for public view and feedback. Comments and feedback on the draft Ulster Canal Greenway Development Strategy and associated environmental reports are welcome on or before July 21, 2017. Draft documents are available for inspection at the project partner offices and websites including www.waterwaysireland.org. Feedback on the proposals and reports should be sent either by email to cormac.mccarthy@ waterwaysireland.org or by post to Ulster Canal Greenway Development Strategy, Cormac McCarthy, Environment & Heritage Section, Waterways Ireland, Dock Road, Drewsborough, Scarriff, Co Clare, Ireland.
Survey of heritage boats on the Shannon waterways DO YOU own, crew or know something about a heritage boat on the River Shannon’s waterways or the ShannonErne Canal? Maybe a canal boat, a barge or a workboat? Or something smaller, perhaps a wooden gandelow or angling lake boat, a Shannon One Design dinghy or cliath hulca rush raft? If you do, researchers from maritime heritage group Meitheal Mara would like to hear from you, so the boat can be included in the 2017 survey of traditional heritage boats being carried out along the Shannon this summer. The survey team is a partnership between the Inland Waterways Association of Ireland, the Heritage Boat Association and Meitheal Mara, on behalf of Waterways Ireland, and is an initiative of the Waterways Ireland Heritage Plan 2016-2020. A heritage boat is defined as more than 25 years old and of significance because of the way it is constructed or because of its historic connections or other heritage interest. This survey of the Shannon and Shannon-Erne follows on from a similar exercise in 2016 on the Grand Canal, Royal Canal and Barrow Navigation. A total of 183 heritage boats or boats of heritage interest were recorded on these three waterways. Canal boats, barges and workboats of commercial and industrial origin were included, along with more recent
The east pier at Dún Laoghaire Harbour. PHOTO: ALISON ALDERTON
Dún Laoghaire Harbour celebrates bicentenary Examples of Irish heritage boats. PHOTO: ALISON ALDERTON
examples such as motor cruisers and narrowboats relating to tourism and leisure use, and more unusual items such as the fleet of DUKW amphibious vehicles from the Second World War at the Grand Canal Dock. The heritage boat survey team can be contacted via Meitheal Mara’s office at +353 (0)21 4316813 or by emailing projects@meithealmara.ie. To discover more about the work of Meitheal Mara, visit www.meithealmara.ie
Irish President attends Royal Canal’s bicentenary celebrations
President Michael Higgins addressing the crowd. PHOTOS: WATERWAYS IRELAND
President Higgins with members of the Royal Canal Amenity Group.
THE President of Ireland, Michael D Higgins, recently commemorated the Royal Canal’s 200th anniversary in Clondra, Co Longford, where following the unveiling of a plaque, he addressed more than 300 people. This event took place on the anniversary of the canal’s completion to the Shannon in 1817. During its heyday, people, coal and crops were moved to Dublin from Arigna Mines, farms and rural communities all over the North West, and people and goods returned. The Royal Canal closed in 1960 and remained so for 50 years. Following lobbying and volunteer work by the Royal Canal Amenity Group and Waterways Ireland it was reopened in 2010. In its 25th year of operation the Royal Canal also saw the mass exodus of people escaping the famine by walking the towpath to Dublin to take a boat to the new world. The largest known group of 1490 people left the Mahon Estate at Strokestown House to walk to Dublin, along the Royal Canal, 175 years ago.
The president with the costumed famine walkers.
They were also commemorated as part of the ceremony when President Higgins reviewed a newly installed plaque and bronze sculpture of the shoes given to the 1490 for their journey to Canada. Speaking about the role of the volunteers in the restoration of the canal, Matt Kennedy, chairman of the Royal Canal Amenity Group, said: “This 145km linearparkway owes its existence to the perseverance and hard work by volunteers from the Royal Canal Amenity Group and staff from what is now Waterways Ireland. “And as the Royal Canal moves into its next 100 years we look forward to working with Waterways Ireland and indeed all those who are committed to further developing and promoting this wonderful amenity as it moves to link up with walking and cycling routes across Europe.” Dawn Livingstone, chief executive, Waterways Ireland, said: “The Royal Canal is a wonderful recreational amenity free for all to use. Our partnerships with the local authorities, the boating groups including the Royal Canal Amenity Group, Fáilte Ireland and organisations such as the Irish Heritage Trust are working to deliver new and exciting visitor experiences along the Royal Canal as such as the Blueway and the National Famine Way. “These developments will deliver step change for tourism and the local economy in these areas.”
THE harbour at Dún Laoghaire is celebrating its bicentenary year with a full programme of events including art exhibitions, food markets, visiting boats and much more. Constructed by Scottish engineer John Rennie, it is considered one of the finest artificial harbours in the world. It took 42 years (1817-1859) to complete the harbour, which is noted for its two granite piers. The volume of stone used was massive – both piers stretch for 1.75 miles with a foundation width of 300ft and depth of 24ft
below low tide mark. A funicular railway was constructed to bring stone from the local Dalkey Quarry to the waterfront. Up to 1000 workers a year laboured on the project, which was a huge and dangerous undertaking. A major marine tourism gateway to Ireland, Dún Laoghaire Harbour remains one of the largest in the country, contains a ferry port, a 5 Gold Anchor rated 820-berth marina and is home to many prestigious boat clubs and organisations. For a full list of events and more about the harbour, visit www.dlharbour200.ie
An Irish Coastguard helicopter. PHOTOS: IRISH COASTGUARD LEFT: The Condolence Book following the tragic deaths of crew members, from left, Captain Dara Fitzpatrick, winch operator Paul Ormsby, winchman Ciarán Smith and Captain Mark Duffy.
Coastguard helicopter rescue ends in tragedy IRISH Coastguard Rescue Helicopter 116 was providing back-up for the rescue of a fisherman when it crashed near Blackrock Island, Co Mayo in March. After successfully assisting with the rescue, radio contact was lost with the Sikorsky S92 helicopter while making its final approach to Blacksod Refuelling Depot – however no mechanical issues were reported prior to its impact with rocks at the western end of the island. The aircrew of four all lost their lives in the incident. Captain Dara Fitzpatrick, a 45-year-old mother of one, who had more than 20 years’ experience in the Search and Rescue Service, was lifted from the sea but later died in hospital. The body of Captain Mark Duffy was also recovered from the wreckage. However the bodies of winch operator Paul Ormsby and winchman Ciarán Smith remain missing. The recovery of the wreckage, which was lying in 40m of water, was initially hampered by bad weather but it was
successfully removed later. There has been overwhelming support in the ongoing search and recovery mission; in late April more than 100 fishing boats and 70 divers trained in search and recovery took part in a co-ordinated sea search in the hope of bringing home the bodies of Paul Ormsby and Ciarán Smith but to no avail. It was one of the largest sea searches in Irish maritime history. The Air Accident Investigation Unit’s preliminary report indicates Blackrock and its lighthouse was not included in the obstacle and terrain databases for the helicopter’s Enhanced Ground Positioning Warning System. However, investigations into the cause are ongoing and members of the public are requested to report any sightings of debris on beaches or at sea. Following the incident messages of condolence have been received from hundreds of organisations, associations and members of the public, including the Inland Waterways Association of Ireland.
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Do it your way on a Blueway From paddle boarding to pedal cycling, these recreational trails offer activities for all the family. Alison Alderton reports.
THE Irish Blueways have been the subject of many news items and features over recent years but what exactly are they and why are they proving so popular? A Blueway is a new form of multi-activity recreational trail based on or alongside water; lakes, canals, rivers and the sea. They can be enjoyed by boaters, canoeists, walkers and cyclists, are open to all, can be experienced with or without a guide and be as active or laid back as you wish. From a full-blown on-water experience perhaps incorporating canoeing and paddle boarding to a more sedate walk or cycle ride, they cater for all. Their versatility is a main feature, enhancing their appeal. It’s a chance to get active at your own pace while following a scenic route into the heart of rural Ireland. The slogan ‘Blueway, do it your way’ has been adopted to reflect their accessibility and diversity. The Blueways currently in existence are based on and alongside the River Shannon, Shannon-Erne Waterway and the Royal Canal. Opened in 2014 by Minister Heather Humphreys TD, the Shannon Blueway was the first of its kind in Ireland. More than 300 paddlers and walkers attended the opening celebrations and experienced the guided and unguided, safe and easy-to-use paddling and walking trails along the Lough Allen Canal and the River Shannon. Earlier this year a further 50km of paddling trail stretching from Carrick-on-Shannon to Lanesborough was added to the existing Shannon Blueway. This addition provides a total
Exploring Blueways by bicycle. Norma Herron: A ‘slow tourism’ experience.
Blueways offer versatility.
paddling trail of 80km with yet further developments planned on the Boyle Waters and on Lough Allen. By working in partnership with other organisations such as the National Trails Office and Canoeing Ireland, Waterways Ireland (the lead agency) has been able to bundle together a wide range of outdoor activities. This makes it possible to create some diverse days out or longer breaks as well as the opportunity to sample something new such as paddle boarding, the fastest growing waterbased activity in the world. On the Shannon-Erne Blueway it is possible to embark on a guided stand-up paddle boarding safari with the Leitrim Surf Company. With its 20 years’ experience in water sports and outdoor adventure, clientele are in safe hands. If that sounds too sedate, for the more experienced canoeist, adventurist and groups under qualified supervision there is a Grade II white water course situated alongside Lock 2 at Ballyconnell. Canoe Ireland can provide all the details (see information panel on this page.)
Slow tourism
Norma Herron of Waterways Ireland told Towpath Talk more about Blueways and why they are so successful: “In terms of the success of the Blueways, I would say that this has been influenced by a trend towards improving physical health and mental wellbeing. “Consumers increasingly want to enjoy outdoor recreation – the Blueways network of trails provide multi-activity opportunities in some of the most tranquil and scenic natural locations in Ireland. The restorative and relaxing benefits of being close to water are well-documented and the uniqueness of Blueways trails is that they are on or alongside rivers, lakes and canals.” She continued: “The Blueways initiative is a ‘slow tourism’ experience; a chance for families or friends to spend time together, trying out a new activity like stand-up paddling, a guided Canadian canoe trip, or even electric bikes – opportunities which can be enjoyed by all, regardless of age or ability and which are alongside Ireland's most beautiful waterways.
Paddling in a Canadian canoe. “Blueways also provide the packaging element that the busy consumer expects, creating bite-sized visitor experiences, combined with excellent accommodation and access to visitor attractions in the local area. A ‘Hidden Treasures’ feature offers insights into fascinating history, art, and culture; quality and artisan food; and a myriad of delightful ways to spend time together on a Blueways break. The Blueways network is constantly evolving – the most exciting upcoming development is the creation of a floating boardwalk around the perimeter of Acres Lake. This iconic structure will literally allow the visitor to walk or cycle on water!” The future appears bright and certainly blue. As well as attracting more people to Ireland’s existing inland waterways, many now believe Blueways can be a useful tool in the preservation and/or further restoration of currently lost or underused inland navigations and canals. A useful addition to the restorer’s toolbox and perhaps one that other countries may wish to explore?
Activities for all ages.
Enjoy a family day on a Blueway.
Acknowledgements
My sincere thanks to Norma Herron and Katrina McGirr of Waterways Ireland for their input and use of photographic images.
➔ Usefulinformation
The new bridge site on the Ulster Canal.
PHOTOS: WATERWAYS IRELAND
Taking a canalside stroll.
To find out more about Blueways visit: www.blueways.ie For detailed information on white water courses visit Canoe Ireland at: www.canoe.ie Interested in stand-up paddle boarding (SUP) safaris? Visit: www.leitrimsurf.ie Waterways Ireland: www.waterwaysireland.org
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Canalside inns The heart of the canal community Words: PHILLIPPA GREENWOOD Images: MARTINE O’CALLAGHAN
The Shroppie Fly on the Shropshire Union Canal at Audlem.
The Admiral Nelson on the Grand Union Canal at Braunston.
CANALSIDE pubs and inns are the bricks and mortar of canal heritage and, at the same time, the beating heart of today’s canal community. It’s the place where boaters gather at the end of a day cruising, a watering hole for cyclists, a chance for walkers to pull off their boots and take time over lunch, a meeting place for landlubbing locals and a vital hub for an entire canal community. Oddly, even before the canals were built, pubs were at the centre of canal life. Meetings between engineers, financiers, landowners and other parties interested in the arrival of new canals would often take place in the meeting rooms of an inn. And when their project was approved by an Act of Parliament, the canal companies could begin building the canal, and then build more pubs all along the routes for navvies and boatmen to use.
Canal & River Trust head of heritage Nigel Crowe wrote in 2012: “Historically, canal pubs came in all shapes and sizes. A few were rough hovels serving rough ale, others were characterful farmhouse kitchen types and some were busy inns with wharfage, accommodation and stables. These inns were usually purpose-built to serve their waterway and often formed the focal point of a settlement. There are good examples at Hawkesbury Junction (Oxford & Coventry Canals), Honeystreet (Kennet & Avon Canal), Braunston and Stoke Bruerne (Grand Union Canal), and Garthmyl (Montgomery Canal). “Others can be found standing at canal junctions or alongside lock flights like the Three Locks at Soulbury on the Grand Union Canal. “It is fascinating to discover through old photographs how canal inns have changed over the years. In the 1950s many still looked the same as they had in the 1890s when they were frequented by working boatmen. Modern demands have led to changes involving facelifts, extensions and redesigned interiors. Sometimes only the name remains
The Jolly Boatman on the Oxford Canal at Thrupp.
The Canal Tavern on the Kennet & Avon Canal at Bradford-on-Avon. unaltered although old-fashioned examples like the Spotted Dog, the Mermaid and the Sun, Moon and Stars are no longer common. Simple names like the Boat, the Anchor, the Swan, the Wharf Inn and the prosaic Canal Tavern are more popular now. Today’s canal inns attract visitors to the waterways out of their cars as well as serving thirsty walkers, cyclists and boaters.” Canal pubs today seamlessly harbour shoulder-rubbing where differences (that might matter more in another parallel world) are diluted by the balm of canals. For over 200 years the canal pub has served boaters and adventurers, and passing strangers are always welcome. Bar stools that wobble on flagstone floors have propped generations of tales, and the secrets of the waterways still hug around the real fires, real ale and real atmosphere of a waterside pub. The cheeks of the water traveller are kept rosy in summer with long lazy days gongoozling from a beer garden, and in winter huddled around a cosy open fire in the bar. Almost anywhere along the canals of Britain, at any time of year, the genuine welcome from licensees of canalside pubs can dazzle us with the warmest living heritage of all; an essential treasure of Britain’s canals.
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The Towpath Angler Our monthly look at the angling scene
The Swan on the Trent & Mersey Canal at Fradley Junction.
ISSUES around boat moorings seem to appear on my desk all too often with reports of problems from right across the network. In truth a fair number are simply anecdotal comments but some are clearly more fact based. Sad to say these issues frequently degenerate into confrontations on the bankside and, worse, sometimes lead to a more prolonged hostility, neither of which do anyone much good. Even though the majority of the ‘issues’ are pretty universal there is certainly no ‘one size fits all’ solution generally because activity, and so the demands on each waterway, varies so much. The root cause of the majority of these issues is the almost total lack of engagement between users. Something has to happen. Currently too many users feel disenfranchised and so choose not to even attend the twice-yearly user forums organised by their waterway team. Straight away I must say that these forums take place in the evening and usually have a sizeable agenda including reports from the Canal & River Trust plus issues raised by some users.
User forums
The sign at the Boat Inn, Stoke Bruerne.
The Kings Lock on the Trent & Mersey Canal at Middlewich. Adapted extract from Britain’s Canals, A National Treasure in 100 Must-See Objects by Phillippa Greenwood and Martine O’Callaghan – published by Coolcanals July 2012. www.coolcanals.com
The Barge Inn on the Kennet & Avon Canal at Honeystreet.
For a long time now I have been of the view that user forums, or whatever name they may have, should have a much more targeted and, even, strategic agenda covering real user-related issues. This could then feed upwards to national level. With this format everyone would see that they had a genuine input to the debate and feel much more comfortable that their views were a matter of record – at least! So I strongly believe that the answer to these recurring issues is continuous ongoing engagement between all users promoted at waterway level and that this has a direct link to national level. Fundamentally for me the idea that any one user sector has absolute priority has no place in the present day Canal & River Trust assuming, of course, that we all want the same thing, i.e., to see our waterways flourish and play a vital role in today’s world. For it to really work it would, of course, require sacrifice and compromise all round but it is perfectly doable and I think the outcomes would be worth it. There are so many genuine canal enthusiasts around with a massive array of skills, knowledge and, importantly, time – so to not harness this in a really positive way seems such a waste.
Angling museum
One item discussed briefly at the last meeting of the Angling Advisory Group which I omitted to mention last month was the possible setting up of a national
David Kent
angling museum. This could be a completely separate entity or, perhaps more correctly, be part of CRT’s waterway museums. Apart from recognised collectors there must be thousands of anglers who have tackle their grandfathers used such as greenheart and tank aerial rods, Wallis Starback reels plus cork on crowquill floats. The list is endless. It would become a really interesting component of our waterways heritage displays.
Warmer weather
Competition-wise things are progressing well with both the AT/CRT Canal Pairs and Stillwater Championships ticket sales continually creeping up. It is vital though that more anglers support these events which provide tremendous opportunities to qualify locally for a national final and to fish alongside some of the top names in the sport and where the winner’s purse is quite substantial. At long last we are seeing some warmer, more seasonal weather. This has, in some cases, lifted water temperatures sufficiently to start the fish spawning. Last week things were pretty hectic in this regard at a number of venues I visited. Where the spawning has ended it will not take too long for the fish to return to normality and begin to feed. Already I have heard of some great returns on canals, including some top weights in excess of 20lb, and stillwaters, particularly in the evenings. Once again I have not been told of any ‘killer’ bait so stick to whatever you have confidence in or would like to experiment with. Best of luck.
Shroppie reels in national championship TOP anglers are set to descend on the Shropshire Union Canal this summer for the Angling Trust Division One National Championship. The Canal & River Trust will be working alongside the Angling Trust and Hodnet Angling Club to host this major championship The Turf sits at the end of the Exeter Ship Canal.
FACT FILE Gongoozling Gongoozling is the term for onlookers watching boating activity and is usually a passive sport, but at a canalside pub, everyone in turn becomes part of the spectacle. Sitting in a beer garden alongside the canal, you’ll be gongoozling people as they arrive by bike or on foot, watching others moor up their narrowboats or drag their canoes in and out of the water, and occasionally dogs leaping about in the water.
By bus Traveline 0871 200 2233 On foot Canal towpaths are now easy routes to cycle and walk, many being part of Sustrans National Cycle Network or long-distance walking trails. www.sustrans.org.uk www.ldwa.org.uk Moorings There are plenty of visitor moorings available along Britain’s canals.
Location On canals throughout Britain. The canals are open all day every day – just find your local canal.
Local Tourist info Canal & River Trust/Glandwr Cymru Use the Canal & River Trust website to find specific local canal information. www.canalrivertrust.org.uk Listings of canalside inns in Britain can be found in our online directory. www. coolcanals.com
How to get there By train National Rail Enquiries 08457 484950
Angling on the Shropshire Union Canal. PHOTO SUPPLIED
along the Shroppie in Market Drayton on Saturday, August 19 – the largest single one day event in the angling calendar. Up to 500 anglers will be congregating along a 15-mile stretch of towpath. It is the first time the competition has been hosted entirely on the Shropshire Union Canal and with some 50 teams, each fielding 10 anglers, plus a number of advance practice matches, the contest promises to give a major boost to the local economy. The winning team will be the club with the greatest number of points at the end of the contest. Prizes include trophies and medals for the top three teams and most successful individual with the highest weight. For more information about the National Angling Championship, practice matches or getting started in fishing along a canal, visit www.canalrivertrust.org.uk/ enjoy-the-waterways/fishing
New faces on National Angling & Fisheries Advisory Group THE Canal & River Trust recently announced new appointments to its National Angling & Fisheries Advisory Group (NAAG). Ian Trayer is replacing David Kent as chairman, although David will remain as a group member. Rod Bracey and John Johnson step down in July with Kye Jerrom and Andy Strickland replacing them.
The roles are three-year terms. NAAG meets three times a year and will be looking at how CRT can encourage a new generation of anglers through its Go Fish campaign; examining the issue of non-native invasive species and improving the environmental appraisal process to better serve both fisheries and angling clubs.
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The Wet Web
Helen Gazeley seeks sightings of beetles that glow in the dark. LONG summer evenings along the towpath must be one of the great pleasures of narrowboat life, and humans aren’t the only creatures enjoying them. June and July are the best months to spot glow worms, the misnamed beetles that light up so enchantingly. Towpaths can provide ideal habitat, and along the Kennet & Avon, where glow worms have been spotted, efforts are being made to make them happy. “Glow worms need tall grass at the base of hedgerows,” explains Laura Mullholland, ecologist with the Canal & River Trust. “With regular towpath maintenance, we try to cut the absolute minimum width, only half a metre either side of the towpath, leaving taller vegetation at the back, under hedgerows, where it gradually becomes
A glow worm shines a light. Join the Glow Worm Survey at www.glowworms.org.uk. PHOTO: ROBIN SCAGELL
bushier. On the Kennet & Avon, we’re pushing back hedgerows more drastically, so we have greater width of tall grass along the towpath.” Although Laura hasn’t had any new reports of sightings for a while, Robin Scagell, in charge of the long-running Glow Worm Survey, thinks towpath populations are remaining steady. He now has almost 30 years of data of glow worm sightings and is welcoming reports once again this summer. A fascinating correlation has emerged over time. “There is a strong link between sightings along towpaths and presence of nearby railway lines, used or dismantled,” he says. “This is mostly because canals and railways often share the same routes, but even so, there are very few sightings in areas where there is no railway nearby. The same thing applies to glow worm populations in general, where about a third of the sightings are within a few hundred metres of a railway.” As he points out: “One advantage that canal users enjoy is that they are more likely to see them than are most people, when returning to their moorings after dark.” If you see any, please don’t be tempted to capture one to take home or elsewhere. “The males can only fly short distances,” says Robin, “so won’t find the glowing
females if they have been taken to someone’s garden or even to another part of the canal.” His website (www.glowworms. org.uk), where you can submit your sightings, has lots of information, including a list of glow worm walks taking place around the country in the coming weeks, as well as sightings in recent years.
Daylight challenge
If you prefer a daylight challenge, the Freshwater Habitats Trust is running a survey on the variable damselfly in conjunction with the British Dragonfly Society. The variable damselfly – named for its variable appearance – is found around well-vegetated ditches, canals and ponds, and is known along the Grantham Canal on the Leicestershire/Nottinghamshire border, and Tennant and Neath Canal in South Wales. But is it elsewhere, and does water quality affect its distribution? Alex Berryman, in charge of the project, explains: “The data we’re collecting is two-fold. Any contributors are helping to improve our knowledge of variable damselfly distribution, and helping contribute to a dataset recording water quality/nutrient pollution levels in Britain's freshwater habitats.” Putting these data sets together will ultimately help scientists discover a potential link between the two.
The variable damselfly. PHOTO: ALEX BERRYMAN
“It's all marvellously straightforward,” says Alex, “and anyone wishing to take part should drop me an email at A.Berryman@uea.ac.uk.” More information is available on the BDS website, british-dragonflies. org.uk/node/7248. In fact, it’s a busy time all round for the British Dragonfly Society which is, this month, running the Dragonfly Challenge from July 15-23 (british-dragonflies.org. uk/node/7284), asking people to go out and count them on one of these days. If you miss these dates, their ongoing Dragonfly Watch offers a chance to update the picture. The aim is to create a State of Dragonflies report in 2020, following up on trends that emerged in 2014. Times are changing for dragonflies as not only are they redistributing themselves dramatically, but
a number of species are newly colonising and spreading at an unprecedented rate. They are also an excellent indicator of freshwater health, so are useful as an indicator of the state of other wildlife. The survey offers various levels of contribution, including for expert surveyors, but for beginners no prior knowledge is
necessary, and there’s a handy app and ID sheet available from the website. Talking of apps, don’t forget our own app for Towpath Talk. Available for iPhone and iPad, Android phones and tablets, and Kindle Fire, it provides all our news and features every month free to your device.
Do you have a favourite blog or website? Email Helen at helengazeley@aol.com
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TALKBACK
Your chance to write to us on any Towpath topic: Towpath Talk, PO Box 43, Horncastle, Lincs LN9 6LZ editorial@towpathtalk.co.uk
Does anyone know where our Matilda, built 80 years ago, is now?
Matilda, built in 1937 as an iron butty and later converted by Allens of Oldbury, was 71ft long with a slow turn of speed despite a 20hp Lister diesel which improved with the addition of a counter stern and a redesigned rudder featuring a shiny brass tiller. Back in the early 70s when Harborough Marine was setting new standards in design and comfort, Matilda was not the prettiest boat afloat. Her black, riveted iron hull was slab-sided and box-like. The cabin was fashioned from tongue-and-groove boarding covered in blue canvas and inside, hardboard panelling covered in wallpaper had developed a wavy look. Blue-bricks provided the ballast and the square steel-framed windows – the kind you would find in a garden shed – reopened outwards which, as experience soon showed, was a distinct disadvantage if left open when entering a lock. lock
Back in the day: Janice and Peter Laud at Tardebigge
CUTNOTES
Matilda had a three-quarter bed, two camp beds, a small hinged table and a plastic bath at waist height suitable for washing the ship’s cat and very little else. But despite all these obvious failings it was love at first sight back in October 1971 when I first spotted Matilda at Worcester’s Diglis Basin up for sale with an asking price of £1000. The agent was shipwright Johnny Luxton, then a fixture at Diglis, and after a brief negotiation we settled on £950. Clambering aboard for the first time I discovered my £950 also included: a full set of cutlery and a pile of chipped crockery, a spice rack, a couple of damp green sleeping bags, a silver ashtray, a marble pestle and mortar and a small collection of books including All Quiet on the Western Front which, almost half a century later, is still in my bookshelf on the other side of the world. In time and after a slow and nearfreezing three-day trip from Diglis, and up through Tardebigge and the dripping delights of the Kings Norton tunnel, Matilda and I found a home at Warings Green on the northern Stratford-uponAvon Canal, a stone’s throw from a Bulmer’s cider house called the Blue Bell and there we remained, snug as a bug, for two years. At night, when the last of the Blue Bell revellers had gone, I’d sit on the cabin top for a last smoke listening to the water rats navigate their way to the far bank and appreciating the stillness of a spot barely 25 minutes by car from Birmingham city-centre. In the winter the crew of a BWB ice breaker would
stop and come aboard for a coffee e and a chat and a warm beside the coall stove in Matilda’s lounge and talk off the plans that Sir Frank Price, one off the heavyweights on Birmingham City ty and BWB chairman at the time, had forr the canal system. None of us gathered d around the stove on those ice-bound d mornings could have envisioned a futuree of £60,000 cruisers and an explosion in n canal restoration. My girlfriend, and later wife, helped d reblack the hull at Tardebigge dry dockk and kept boat engineer John Pinderr in sandwiches and coffee while he e refashioned the stern and replaced d Matilda’s barndoor of a rudder with h something more efficient. We made slow journeys down the River Severn to Gloucester and explored the River Avon to Evesham, then the limit of navigation. We cruised up and down the northern and southern reaches of the Stratford-upon-Avon canal rally and then in a change of plan took the boat back down Tardebigge to Worcester again and then back to Birmingham when, after five years, a lifestyle change determined a change of ownership.
Next stop Antarctica
Now we live beside a different waterway, the d’Entrecasteaux Channel, south of Hobart, Tasmania, in the coastal community of Kettering – turn right after leaving the marina and Antarctica’s the next stop. It’s a long way from Warings Green and the boats are different – sloops and ketches and yawls, some of them with
Where is Matilda now? PHOTOS: PETER LAUD the world’s oceans beneath their keels. On a recent visit to England I wandered again around Diglis and felt that familiar canal tug – of locks and winches and side ponds and water rushing through the paddles. But the boats at Diglis, and doubtless elsewhere too, this time were different. Sleek and black and beautiful and often expensive. The ads for those up for sale promised designer kitchens, Wifi, central heating, bow thrusters and much more. Matilda with her canvas top and hardboard panelling would have been out of place. And I wondered whether the boats now were somehow less interesting than almost half a century ago when there were cruisers from Norman and Dawncraft and budget-boaters could happily get afloat on ex-army pontoons powered by pull-start Seagull outboards which, when converted, looked like
floating sheds. There weren’t too many of those at Diglis. We sold Matilda for £5000 and with the money bought a smallholding in West Wales, the first stage of a journey which has ended with a small farm – and a 20ft sloop – in southern Tasmania where there is but one short canal with neither a lock nor a hump-backed bridge. But the memories refuse to go away – Warings Green, Diglis, Gas Street – and I wonder where our Matilda is now. Is she, perish the thought, lying derelict in some forgotten waterway? That surely could never be her fate and in my mind’s eye I see her now – chugging along with purpose, her brass tiller flashing in the sunlight, along a waterway that never ends. Peter Laud Kettering, Tasmania
The consultants said it was okay Comment & Recollections from Harry Arnold
LOOKING at the picture of Hayhurst Swing Bridge reminds me of a story I was told about this structure. You will have read about the work that is nearing completion on Acton Swing Bridge and how it is the end of a comprehensive refurbishing programme on all the River Weaver’s major swing bridges by Canal & River Trust and British Waterways before them. The start of this was with Hayhurst which is right next to the current CRT (then BW) offices. Brian Haskins, the then BW area engineer, had the office that looked right down on to the bridge. A consultant’s report had been commissioned on the state of the bridge which apparently said that the deck supporting the road was in reasonably good condition. As the report was sitting on his desk he heard a noise and looked down to see the front wheels of a bus drop through the deck. Perhaps the consultants of those days were just as inexpert and overpaid as some are reputed to be now?
Taking the odd snap?
A traditional tragedy
THINKING about old friends who have sadly passed on, I am often reminded of things they have said to me, particularly those that might be termed ‘friendly insults’. Readers may have noted from my linked library credit of WATERWAY IMAGES by the pictures that I am a bit of a waterway photographer. One of my late friends was Andy Millward, who was also very involved in the early days of setting up The Boat Museum at Ellesmere Port. Andy was standing – casually, hands in pockets – on top of the cabin of his ex-Fellows, Morton & Clayton steamer Monarch when I came around the corner of the Toll House weighed down with all the photographer’s paraphernalia that was then required – namely three cameras with various types of film and all the accessories. Andy spotted me and in a loud voice, he laconically said: “Taking the odd snap, Harry?” It is an expression I have used from that day to this. When anyone asks me what I’m doing, I simply reply “Taking the odd snap”. Although, today
IT IS with considerable personal regret that we have had to report on the closing of The Waterways Craft Guild earlier in this issue. I have always backed its activities, if only on the basis that there should be an organisation that supports and – if possible – attempts to regulate the practising of traditional canal arts and craft. Even as a Liverpool College of Art trained artist I vowed never to get involved in painting ‘roses and castles’, especially after meeting, working with and becoming friends with expert practitioner and author Tony Lewery early in my canal career. I have however researched, recorded and become a bit of a know-all on the subject over the years. I have also been lucky enough to meet and spend time with such early boatyard-trained exponents as Isiah Atkins and Ron Hough. Also, friends with those might be termed modern experts such as Phil Speight, Dave Moore and others involved with the WCG. On one occasion,
Andy Millward proudly holds the trophy for the best turned out working boat at the 1979 IWA Northwich National Rally as Monarch passes under Hayhurst Swing Bridge. I generally carry just one camera and a compact designated the ‘happy snapper’, which although limited in some ways, produces pictures of a very high definition. At least two front covers for this newspaper have come from this. I defy you to decide which ones. Anyone who bemoans the passing of film and the arrival of digital doesn’t really understand the life of a professional photographer.
Boats pass through the refurbished Hayhurst Swing Bridge at the official reopening on November 3, 2004.
when searching rooms for chairs for a meeting, I accidentally burst in on one of Dave Moore’s classes. He immediately said that I was an acknowledged expert and I had to go around commenting on each student’s work. Thanks for the compliment (and the embarrassment) Dave! Earlier I used the word ‘regulate’. Perhaps that sounds a bit strong? I would defend anyone’s right to have a go at canal crafts. Indeed, we need this to keep them alive. But I have seen some dreadful rubbish in my time. So, for goodness’ sake – before you have a go – study early good examples of boatyard and some boatmen’s work, read the right books (I won’t say which in my opinion are the wrong ones). But ideally go on a course run by one of the acknowledged experts. I also said that I wouldn’t get involved. But I have done a few roses as artwork for brochures and, in a needs-must situation, a bit of boat decoration. Early on, when involved with the hostel-boat, in a typical
A unique example of HA traditional boat decoration. PHOTOS: WATERWAY IMAGES
boatyard panic finish-painting situation (the passengers were arriving that day) I decorated the fore-end of the newly converted butty Aston. I also did a bit of fast basic signwriting of the name. It was all done very quickly, which I can claim was ‘in the tradition’, as I understand boatyard painting was slickly executed. Also, approved by our skipper, boatman Jack Roberts, which was something of a pat on the back. It didn’t last long as the top bends were basically rotten and had to be planked over. Perhaps a good thing?
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CRACKER’S CHAT
More towpath ramblings straight from the horse’s mouth “Hogwash, Pugwash, fools and horseflies”
AS YOU know, I’m not a political animal, but sometimes I can’t resist commenting on some of the more ridiculous things my human colleagues come out with. For example, with the pending general election (which will be all over by the time you read this), I overheard the following conversation between a couple of my older acquaintances: “Well, to do my civic duty to society and to avoid the Alzheimer’s Tax, I’ve asked my doctor for some tablets to increase my blood pressure, some more to raise my cholesterol and an injection to lower my libido. That way I won’t live too long and put a burden on the care home community.” The response, after due consideration, was: “I can understand the first two, but, at your age surely your passionate urges are all in your head?” “Yes,” came the reply, “that’s
why I want them lowering!” Hay Ho! As a long-standing gelding, I didn’t really get the point! Also, in the 1960s, a popular children’s programme was Captain Pugwash. His arch enemy was Cut-Throat Jake, and he sailed the seas in his trusty ship the Black Pig. Crew members consisted of Tom the cabin boy, Master Mates and Seaman Baines, not respectively Roger, Bates and Staines as was widely reported at the time! The point of this anecdote is that words, phrases and intentions get modified to attract attention to the subject being promoted. Whether intentionally malicious or for subjective fun remains a subject for debate. The same happens in the canals and rivers community. Publications like The Floater concentrate their efforts towards commentating on the
actions of the Canal & River Trust in administering their responsibilities for the inland waterway system. Social media, in the form of Twitter and Facebook, injects its comments via short and often sharp barbs to all and sundry. And finally, there’s ME! I clomp, chomp and champ my way through life, and all I ask is to be left in peace to pull Countess to and fro along the Monty. And yet, even I get trolled by cretins! A recent response to one of my tweets was: “I hate horses!” To which I wanted to reply: “Surely, the boot should be on the other foot?” Mankind (an oxymoron if ever I heard one) – since when has man ever been kind to horses? Humans have exploited us equines for millennia; in wars, down mines and pulling all manner of horse-drawn vehicles. However, we don’t complain and, as there are very few of us ‘barge horses’ left operating, perhaps we ought to keep schtum in case someone decides that they can do without us altogether!
No-shows
Refuelling on Canal Central tea and scones after a relaxing cruise in the company of Cracker and friends.
Thankfully, my intrepid crew and I soldier on through the vagaries of the British weather, and against all the ‘odds and sods’ thrown at us by the visiting and absent public. Climatic changes I can understand, but what I can’t tolerate are people that book and then don’t turn up! Again, I
can sympathise with folks that, on the day of their pre-arranged trip, discover that it’s ‘persisting’ it down, or they get held up in traffic, or their budgie dies! But what I simply cannot comprehend is why they don’t have the manners, gumption or common decency to phone and let us know! I was under the impression that the ubiquitous mobile phone had replaced carrier pigeons, semaphore and jungle drums! Many a time we stand around like lemons, waiting for these ‘no-shows’ to turn up, wondering if it’s us that have got the wrong time and/or day. I’m quite confident that our booking system, although not as sophisticated as, say, an airline, in the event of a ‘glitch’, doesn’t shut down for days on end, misdirect passengers’ luggage to far-flung corners of the world and we’ve never been in the embarrassing position of having to forcibly ‘bump’ a customer off due to the boat being oversubscribed! Right, I’ve vented my spleen over the Government, TV, airlines and finally Joe Public. The only one that I can influence, and indeed care about, is the last one – our fantastic customers. While not exactly descending in droves, they represent the true nature of the vast majority. Whether it’s a handshake, appreciative comment or a more formal posting on TripAdvisor, they invariably leave a warm glow of affection in their wake. An appreciative pat, a proffered carrot and a friendly, departing wave go a long way to restoring my faith in human nature.
A contented family group with yours truly. PHOTOS SUPPLIED A long-running TV programme of independent traders claimed to attract customers from New York, Paris and Peckham. Well, not wishing to boast, because you know what a modest horse I am, in the last month we’ve had enquiries from Australia, Canada and Yeaton (you may need to Google the last one)! We are indeed an international business, but with a local, caring perspective on heritage, history and customer care. So, why not come and see us? The summer hols are almost here, travel firms will be hiking their prices, baggage handlers will be refusing to unload your aircraft and foreign bugs will be queuing
THIS month the Canal & River Trust announced that the mile-long Foulridge tunnel will be open to canoeists, enabling them to paddle under the Pennines for the first time. This is an exceptionally long, dark canal to canoe through safely, regardless of the movements of canal boats added to the mix. It has always been CRT’s policy that canoes should not use locks but in the last month I have seen two pictures posted on social media of groups of canoeists in locks, one assisted by volunteer lock keepers; these were not pre-booked trips. On two recent occasions the crew of the Rose of Hungerford, the trip boat of the Kennet & Avon Canal Trust, had canoeists seeking to share the locks with them. On both occasions they refused and suffered verbal abuse as a consequence, being told that the canoeists had received permission from CRT and the British Canoe Union. One even had his own lock key. NABO supports the use of the canals by all but is concerned that the increasing use of locks by canoeists could lead to greater risks of injury.
Cracker
● If you would like to comment on any of Cracker’s remarks, please get in touch on 07841 429980, via email at hello@ bywatercruises.co.uk or on Twitter @bywater_holiday or follow him on Facebook under BoatHorseCracker. www.bywatercruises.com
What is the Canal & River Trust’s policy regarding canoeing and locks? Mark Tizard, vice-chairman of the National Association of Boat Owners (NABO), looks at more topical issues.
up to give you ‘gippy tum’. On the other hand, we at Bywater Cruises keep our prices the same. We will not only help you load your cool boxes and picnics on board, but also help you to consume the contents, and the worst you can be attacked by are horseflies, which, by the way, are no friend or relation to me! The photos are of two groups of happy customers, who have promised to recommend us to their friends and family. The team and I look forward to meeting them. Until next time, may your bucket be full of carrots.
However, I am surprised at the timing of the announcement; after all we are bang in the middle of a consultation exercise where all aspects of licensing (presumably including renting) are up for discussion. Does this mean that CRT has already decided on the outcome of the consultation in other areas?
TOWPATH TITTER CONTINUING our light-hearted look at life on the cut with another contribution from Harry Arnold of Waterway Images.
Outsourcing enforcement
We urge CRT to make clear what its policy is regarding small unpowered craft and lock use.
Licence consultation
CRT has announced a new licence to cover rented boats. Whether this will have any impact on the growing demand for renting boats in urban areas is very debatable. As this only applies to permanent residential moorings how many are there in London or the western K&A who will be interested in this new licence?
At a recent meeting of the Navigational Advisory Group (NAG Licensing and Mooring) it was suggested that CRT was considering introducing a £150 fine for boats that moored in the new Olympic Park waters and that this was likely to be outsourced to a collection company. We were told this was a one-off special case for security reasons and still the majority were unsure whether it was appropriate. Now it appears that CRT has announced a three-month trial of this among 16 long-term mooring sites; £150 fine if you moor without permission, reduced to £75 for quick payment – again outsourced to a third party. How long before this is introduced across the network once your 14 days are up on the general towpath or 48 hours on a visitor mooring? Mooring on a lock landing could be costly in the future. Is this a picture of what boating might look like in the future or is it a sledgehammer to crack a nut as is so often the case? As always, I would welcome your comments at mark.tizard@nabo.org.uk
Heard of one of these on Loch Ness. But on a narrowboat? If you have a suitable anecdote or photo we can share with our readers, please send it to Towpath Talk, PO Box 43, Horncastle, Lincs LN9 6JR or email: editorial@towpathtalk.co.uk
And don’t forget you can also follow us on Twitter @ towpathtalk and on Facebook
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