Wolds Waters – April 2013

East Yorkshire Branch

WOLDS WATERS The newsletter of the East Yorkshire Branch

APRIL 2013

Hull Bridge, Tickton on 1st April 2013

From your Editor What’s in a name?

Had you noticed? Your newsletter now has a name! Looking at the list of Branch publications on the IWA web site we became aware that we were the only Branch which hadn’t given a name to its newsletter. We discussed this at the AGM and at the recent Committee Meeting, looking for a title which linked in with our local waterways. So ‘Wolds Waters’ was chosen. Hope you approve and will want to be the next member to come forward with an article. We must make it our ‘Wolds Waters’.

Fancy some local cruising?

Three ways in which you can take to the water locally during the summer:‘Syntan’ will be cruising from Beverley Beck to Hull and the Humber. For details contact Beverley Beck Barge Preservation Society via Iain Campbell, ‘Sobriety’ will be cruising from Goole into the Ouse and Humber from April through to September with four dates per month. The cost is £28 per person.

Contact Yorkshire Waterways Museum on 01405 768730, ‘New Horizons’ will be cruising from the Melbourne Arm on Sundays and Bank Holidays from April to September. Longer charter trips are possible on the long summer evenings. Contact is 07524 978645 or Alistair Anderson.

Annual Beverley Beck Litter Pick Once again we are joining with members of the Beverley Beck Boating Association to tidy up the towpaths and waters of Beverley Beck. The members of BBBS will be in boats clearing litter from the water. The date is Sunday 28th April, the time is 1.00pm, the venue is the Foresters Arms at town end. Please bring gloves, pickers if you have them and one or two garden rakes would be useful for litter caught in the reeds. Tea and biscuits will be provided by BBBS members at the end of the afternoon.

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Inland Waterways Association East Yorkshire Branch Committee Members 2013-2014 Chairman: Roger Bromley 40, The Dales, Castle Park, Cottingham, East Yorkshire, HU16 5JS. Tel: 01482 845099 roger@roger.karoo.co.uk Deputy/Social Chairman: Paul Waddington Church House, Main Street, Hemingborough, Selby, North Yorkshire, YO8 6QE Tel: 01757 638027 paul@gooleboathouse.co.uk Treasurer: Jack Wootton, 1, Castle Row, Brayton, North Yorkshire, YO8 9TB jackwootton22@hotmail.com Secretary: Mrs Chris Stones, 41, Keswick Gardens, Inglemire Lane, Hull, HU6 8TB Tel: 01482 875894 chris@stones45.karoo.co.uk Membership Secretary: Dave Stones, 41, Keswick Gardens, Inglemire Lane, Hull, HU6 8TB Tel: 01482 875894 dave@stones45.karoo.co.uk Web Manager: Alistair Anderson, 40, Oxenhope Road, Hull, HU6 7BZ, Tel: 01482 801825 alistairanderson@pcas.karoo.co.uk Programme/Publicity Officer: Roger Bromley (see above) Planning Officer: Iain Campbell, 286 Hull Bridge Road, Tickton, Beverley, HU17 9RT Tel: 01482 871282 Iain@campbev.wanadoo.co.uk Other Members of the Committee:Barry Robins, 90, Carr Lane, Willerby, HU10 6JU Tel: 01482 658254 bandrrobins@gmail.com David Hamilton (Driffield Navigation), Barn Garth, North Back Lane, Kilham, YO25 4SD Tel: 01262 420271 Dhamil2829@aol.com R.N. Huntsman (Bob), The Old Post House, Cherry Burton, Beverley, HU17 7RF Tel: 01964 550320 3

Inland Waterways Association Minutes of the Annual General Meeting held on Friday 15th March 2013 At Cottingham Methodist Church, 8p.m.

Present: Roger Bromley (in the chair), Jack Wootton (Treasurer), Chris Stones (Secretary), 11 members and 4 non members.

Apologies: Peter Scott (Region Chairman), Elaine Scott, Bob Huntsman, David Hamilton (Driffield Navigation), Maureen Bromley and Howard and Hilary Anguish.

Minutes of Previous meeting – 16.3.2012: These had been circulated before the meeting. Proposed as a true record by Alistair Anderson, seconded by Barry Robins, then signed accordingly.

Report of the Chairman: This had been printed and given to those members present at the start of the meeting. An opportunity was given for members to comment. Acceptance of the report unanimous.

Report of the Secretary: This was shown on the screen as well as been circulated. An opportunity was given for members to comment. Acceptance of the report unanimous.

Report of the Treasurer and presentation of the accounts for 2012: Jack Wootton went through the accounts that had been put on the screen and also circulated. Balance was £3071-18 surplus on the year of £409-22. There were no questions from the floor. Proposal to accept the accounts made by Paul Waddington and seconded by Joan Muspratt. Accepted unanimously.

Our thanks to Jack.

Election of Committee members: Paul Waddington and Bob Huntsman were retiring by rotation. David Hamilton who had been previously co-opted onto the committee were to be re-elected. All re-elected en-bloc.

From the floor Iain Campbell put his name forward for election to the committee. Proposed by Roger Bromley, seconded by Chris Stones.

Accepted unanimously.

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A.O.B: None.

Address of Region Chairman: Peter Scott had sent his apologies.

Date of Next Meeting: Friday 21st March 2014 ( We were pleased when our Region Chairman joined us later having sped to us from the North Riding AGM. At the end of the talk Peter gave us news from IWA nationally and answered questions. Thank you Peter)

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Fund raising It is the time of year, with the approach of summer and all the fairs, shows, galas etc when we can make use of the Branch display to raise funds.

Your committee would like to give support to the increased accessibility and use of the waterways in our Branch area. The Market Weighton canal needs to become a focal point and amenity; both the Driffield Navigation and the Pocklington Canal need substantial funding if more progress is to be made. The Branch display can help raise funds and make people more aware of waterways nationally but our local waterways in particular.

To fulfil either of these aims we need to be aware of possible opportunities for using the display and for volunteers to staff it. If you have a love of the waterways than pass this love on to the people who look round the display. Let your enthusiasm make them aware.

Please give dates, venues and offers of help to Dave Stones or Roger Bromley.

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Visit to the River Tees We have been invited by our friends in the North Riding to share with them in a full-day visit to the River Tees. This will include a guided tour of the Tees Barrier and the Water Activities Centre followed by a cruise on the River Tees to Yarm and back on the ‘Tees Princess’. We are awaiting the sailing timetable. When this is available we will be able to fix the date, hopefully by the April or May social meetings.

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Life on Rix barges We are grateful to Matthew Finn for the following article on life aboard Rix barges.

We have all seen them on the Humber and local waterways. Perhaps we wondered what life was like for the crew. Well, we can read and find out.

Life on board the Rix barges When I was young I always had a passion for the waterways, the ships, the barges and the docks. I was brought up in a Merchant Navy family with both my mother and father’s side of the family working on the water.

My father worked for Crescent Shipping who regularly ran to the Old Harbour in the River Hull with grain for Rank’s and Spiller’s Mills. Also on my father’s side of the family was my grandfather who, after his deep sea career with British Tankers, came coasting for firms such as Hull Gates, Metcalf, Everards and finally Rowbothams. He was Master at Rowbothams tankers for eight years and traded regularly into Immingham, Gunness Wharf and the River Hull with fuel imports to Ann Watson Street and for drydocking behind Hull College. Rowbothams regularly had ships built at Yorkshire Dry Dock in the 1960s of which the MT Leadsman in 1968 was his final command before becoming a Trent Pilot.

My Uncle George on my mother’s side of the family worked on the barges and was mate on many a barge to and from the Old Harbour including working with a wellknown barge master, Les Hill, whose two sons, Terry and Dave, I worked with at Rix. Listening to the techniques used as a boatman on the barges was excellent even though it was run-of-the-mill back then.

Throughout my childhood I spent many an hour at Minerva Pier watching the ships and barges go by, even better was if a barge tied up to the pier awaiting water.

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Rix Falcon, Eagle and Kestrel in 2004 at the pier In May 2004 as a 15-year-old I spent one week on work experience with Hull City Council Bridge Department. Due to insurance reasons nobody could work on the water so the bridges were good enough for me. I learnt a lot from the bridge men and the Harbour Masters even having a go at swinging or lifting a bridge with the tide times being spot on that week.

One of the days included working in a shipping office of one of the biggest River Hull carriers, Rix Shipping based, at the time, on Alex Dock.

My knowledge of their vessels paid off in front of the management and it was an experience learning how bunkering jobs and vessel allocation was all planned out. Following a successful day I kept in contact with the Rix Management regarding a job as they did offer me a deckhand’s job if one became available. The transport manager, to my delight, offered me a trip on board Rix’s new barge the Rix Owl in summer 2004. I joined at Fountain Road Depot and sailed to Immingham to load DERV and Gas Oil for Castleford. I enjoyed this experience and it was certainly an eye opener for me as a young 15-year-old.

In the final year of school I still had confidence in my future plans of working on the barges even though it was a long shot. In July 2005, just two 7

days from officially leaving school I was offered a trip on board the coaster Rix Condor. I joined in Alex Dock (23 shed North) in Hull, sailed to Immingham to load heavy fuel oil for a bunker job in Redcar and return back to Hull. The three day trip was excellent experience for learning navigation, cargo handling, steering and how life was on board.

Within days of returning home I received a phone call from the Rix Management offering me a deckhand’s position on board the 1960 Knottingly built barge Rix Falcon. Seven days later I started full time joining in Alex Dock on bunkering duties.

Between July and December 2005 the Rix Falcon traded regularly up and down the Humber bunkering ships. It was not easy, constant changing of orders and working around the clock proved hard-going during the winter nights, especially climbing up the side of a bulk carrier at Immingham Bulk Terminal at 3am with coal dust blowing down into your face as you climb. I did enjoy talking to other ships, crews and going on board the different ships. However fitting the bunkering connections was not fun if a leak appeared.

In January 2006 the Rix Falcon transferred onto other Humber duties including River Hull work, canal work, occasional bunkering and Immingham Jetty transfers. With a change of skipper brought a change of knowledge but the basics remained the same. I learnt a lot from these barge men in the art of basic seamanship, boat handling, cargo work, navigation and how to look after a barge with a small body of men.

I regularly used to steer the barge down from Goole to Immingham and sailing between Brough and the Whittons could be an eye opener on a fast spring ebb tide. Not forgetting reaching the Apex where the River Trent and Ouse meet and the tide is pushing you across towards the North Bank.

However the art of steering to counteract this movement came into play.

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Another steering test for me was the Aire and Calder Canal. I often used to get set across the canal in a cross wind when the barge was in ballast and when loaded used to hug the bank (or so it seemed). This was all very well apart from when needing to line yourself up for one of the many bridges.

Thank god for electric tiller steering and not the wooden ship’s wheel.

However I soon mastered the skill after some rollockings from the skipper.

Steering down the Aire and Calder The barges were big for the canal, the equivalent of the P&O ferries leaving King George Dock in Hull. It was interesting when lining up for one of the locks particularly if one of the by-washes was in full flow. A technique I admired was ‘running the bridges’ in which we would sail at Full Ahead towards a low bridge, bearing in mind the Rix Falcon had a small forward generator and the exhaust had to clear these bridges as well. Just before the bridge we would stop engines and go full astern on the engine.

The effect of Squat and stern gear would cause the bow to ‘dip’ under the bridge. Allowing for transverse thrust effect we would go Full Ahead to make the stern squat down thus clearing the bridges. It was a good test of confidence as a 17-year-old.

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‘Running the bridges’ In September 2006 the Rix Falcon was decommissioned and replaced by the new barge Rix Phoenix built at Paull Shipyard. In the meantime we double crewed with the other barges, Rix Owl and Rix Eagle and worked during the night loading or discharging ready for the next crew to take over on the same or following tide.

On the slipway at Paull Shipyard 10

In January 2007 the Rix Phoenix passed all her surveys and was put into active service. She took some getting used to at first. However she did have a telescopic wheelhouse so running the bridges was not an issue. The Rix Phoenix along with the Rix Owl and Rix Eagle are still going strong on the river with the ‘Owl’ and ‘Phoenix’ trading regularly on bunkering duties.

In July 2007 I left Rix to study for my Officer Of the Watch (OOW) ticket.

Using my experience as a deckhand in September 2007 I joined Maersk Line as a deck cadet working on some of the world’s largest container vessels and tankers. Qualified in November 2010 as an officer I regularly spend months away at sea navigating.

However I will never forget the barges or the people I worked with, both in the Rix Management and onboard the barges. I owe a great thanks to Rix for allowing me such a chance in my career to experience a childhood dream.

I still keep my hand in on the barges during my leave, helping out with the Beverley Barge Preservation Society barge Syntan which I enjoy greatly.

On board the Syntan heading down to the Humber

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BRANCH PROGRAMME and other waterway events Spring 2013 Venue (unless stated otherwise) Cottingham Methodist Church Hall, Hallgate, Cottingham HU16 4BD 8.00-10.00 pm. Use entrance down side of church.

2013 Friday 19th April

Talk by Laurie Dews and David Lewis.

‘The Last Selby Bargemen’

Sunday 28th April

Litter pick along Beverley Beck with Beverley Beck Boating Assn.

Meet at Foresters Arms at 1.00pm. More details inside

Friday 17th May

‘Our Historic Narrowboat Fleet’. A talk by Alison Smedley

Friday 21st June

An evening walk along the Leven Canal (tbc) Book with Chris Stones or Roger Bromley

Sunday 21st July

Our annual day out. A visit to Grimsby Heritage Centre (with fish and chips?) Book wth Chris or Roger

July / August

Visit to Tees Barrage, Water Activities Centre and cruise on Tees to Yarm. Combined meeting with North Riding branch.

Contact Chris or Roger in May for more details.

Friday Talk by Chris Sherburn about the 2012 Jubilee Parade of Boats 20th September Don’t forget walks along the River Foss through April to September. Call Peter Hopwood on 01904 768071 for details.

Other dates for social meetings are 18th Oct, 15th Nov, Dec (Christmas meal to be announced), 17th Jan 2014, 21st Feb, 21st March (AGM).

For more information about the Inland Waterways Association use the website www.waterways.org.uk or contact Barry Robins on 01482 658254 or 07885941983. For more information on the above meetings contact Roger Bromley on 01482 845099. The Branch email address is roger@roger.karoo.co.uk This newsletter is edited and produced by Barry Robins, 90 Carr Lane, Willerby, Hull HU10 6JU, tel. 01482 658254 Note: The views expressed in this newsletter are not necessarily those of the Association and should not be construed as such unless so stated.

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