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Public footpaths and bridleways aren't really funded through taxation. They're funded by the landowner who owns the land they cross. The county council has a small number of obligations - the two that spring to mind are putting up a sign from the public highway saying "footpath this way" (in some authorities, that's just a nailed-on plastic roundel), and co-ordinating the legal palaver when someone wants to reroute a path. But the principal maintenance obligation is on the landowner. C&RT will of course still be partly funded through taxation. There's an annual grant (bigger than the Government originally wanted to give, smaller than C&RT itself wanted) for at least the next 15 years, and I suspect it'll continue beyond that. What really struck me when writing the "history of BW" series for WW was that the Government has constantly tried it on with the grant. At pretty much five-yearly intervals back to 1968, there's been a panic as the Government has decided it's going to lop £10m off BW's budget, and BW has reacted by (1) cutting maintenance, (2) hiking the licence fee. There are certainly challenges and/or problems for C&RT, depending on your level of optimism, but having most of your funding subject to the three-year Comprehensive Spending Review is no panacea either. In an ideal world we would indeed have properly state-funded waterways; unfortunately, the world we live in has a state run by people such as Michael Gove and Andrew Lansley.

been torrential around Barrow-upon-soar. It went really dark late morning...we went outside as it was dry, and it was like dusk, walked down the towpath a short bit then saw IT....a solid curtain of rain coming up the cut towards us....we ran faster than fast things back to the boat!! We then got caught out again during the lunchtime/early afternoon major crackling storm...whilst waiting to lock a fellow forumite up Barrow deep. We were waiting in sun for him by the lock, then it started to rain, then it was crackling thunder and lightening, then came the hail....at which point we saw him hovering under the bridge sheltering, about 3 boat lenghts from the lock approach, where he stayed till it died down...took a while...and we locked him up in 'just' some rain.....Barrow deep now has the red light on, and above rose by around 8"...had to do a rescue for one boat left unattended that was tilting badly...if you have an old green boat above Barrow deep...she is now back level!!

As you and MB headed off to the pub on Sunday with Reginald and 'passengers', both Alan and I were packing up so that I could go back to work on Monday. We looked back and saw you all chugging into the evening glow - in just about the same position as you are in this photo, and both felt a real pang of, not jealousy, but wistfulness. I have to echo the comments of others. We 'long term members' (I post so rarely in the 'real forum' rather than the virtual pub, that I am still not a 'long standing member' after nearly 7 years!), have seen so many people arrive full of 'getting a boat and living on it', and then disappear(sometimes acrimoniously), never to be heard of again. I'm sure that many of us would not have been surprised if you had been another. You have not only embraced boating, but historic boats too, and shown yourself to have a considerable sense of humour and ability with words. You've stood your ground in debates, and not been bowed by the 'forum mafia' *. And, whatever my OH says, I'm sure that your hair colour is as natural as mine.

Hi All,We are doing the 4Counties over the next couple of weeks in a clockwise direction.This means we will heading thought the Harecastle on Saturday. Our boat has a large air draft & the front corners of the cabin are always near the sloping edges of the lower sections in the middle of the tunnel. Does anyone know if the levels are much above the normal after this months rain ? I will phone them but thought I would ask here first. Ta ever so,Mark

Hi, My little cruiser just failed it's BSS due to falling gas pressure - a fault tracked down to a probably faulty 2 ring burner camping stove in the cabin. If I have to replace it i apparently now need one (if fitted after 2000) with a flame safety (cut off) device fitted to the burner rings. Problem - they seem horrendiously expensive from chandlers and I can't find a 2 ring camping stove with such a safety feature fitted....do they exist at a reasonable price - if so where from? Alternatively, if I removed the stove, gas cylinder and flexible hoses (but left the internal rigid metal piping in place) would it then pass as "not fitted"? I'm quite happy to use a little camping stove on the bank when we moor up as we never travel far or for long. Jez

Yes, bring back British Waterways. We never had any problems when they were running the show.

Hey! B*gger that for a lark:

Incl 19% tax ?? How does that work, then ??

Back in the days when I used pen and paper I used to use capitals all the time because it made my handwriting change from "Crippled spider walking across the page after standing in an ink puddle" to "barely legible". Perhaps that was why I was always being called an "angry young man".

As your boat (presumably) floats, can you not attach your keys to that?

We're very fond of our boaty dog, Millie. She's a corgi / JRT cross with the short legs and stout body of a corgi and the head of a JRT. Yes, she does get underfoot all the time and trod on occasionally but she's a good size for carrying to and from the boat when we're not close to the bank and hoiking out of the water when she falls in (three times so far). She has a proper dog bark as well, not a yap, which is good because I hate yappy dogs! I'm not sure how good she'd be as a guard dog as she hasn't been tested, but I've seen the state of bones that we've given her and she has powerful jaws. Even if she can only reach up to your knees she'd hurt your lower legs I'd second the motion for rescue dogs - I could never pay for a dog when I know so many are wanting good homes (apart from a charitable donation of course). I'd always prefer to have a cross breed or a Heinz. In the end there's no rights or wrongs just personal preference. Giving the hound a loving home and recognising when you take it on that it's your responsibility to look after it till the end of it's days is the important stuff.

Well done you for giving George a chance. There are far too many staffies in dog homes A very good friend of mine has a young staff pup, she is very energetic. She also loves the water, she can't swim that well though & often sinks What is it with dogs getting up so early on a boat???

Our bully makes a fab boat dog. She is very lazy & laid back 90% of the time & will happily sleep on the deck/tow path all day. She's not too big, not too small & has a burglar deterring woof. She would let anybody on board though & probably help them carry out the valuables! Anybody who knows EBTs know they like to tear around in circles like a mad thing occasionally, ours is no exception but she hasn't in the boat yet, preferring the fields. At home she sleeps in all morning but she gets up very early on the boat, shoving her cold wet nose under the sheets to see if I'm getting up for breakfast.

Same here in Sawley Marina. Some moorers here should live in a pigsty and leave the showers/ toilets for those that leave them clean.