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I've heard they have new plans for the basin to really engage the public next year

You could have it delivered to Middlewich Wharf Chandlery. If you need it bringing up northwich way then we can Bob it up in the van (if you'd like buy from us some coal, logs, Kindling, gas etc at the same time wouldn't be a wasted journey for us and would be appreciated - virtuous circle of life and all that ?).

As it's only advice, it doesn't matter that it's not defined, because it just doesn't matter. Anyway, barristers and solicitors love woolly laws, that's how they get rich. The trick at the moment is to do one's best to stay alive and healthy until vaccinated, and that's all. Poncing about the canal in a tin box on one's own isn't going to hurt anyone, nor is staying out of everyone else's way. As I suspect most of CRT's staff are laid off, who's going to care what any of us do apart from us?

Is it just me, or do others see a large blue cartoon style ducks head, with a big round eye and an orange beak...?

You "think". Pity our lords and masters can't be bothered to define such an obvious thing. I can't decide if CRT is a victim off, or party to, the conspiracy to make the rules so opaque and ever-changing that no-one can possibly obey them, thus transfering blame from the government to the people for subsequent events. MP.

Not many canals down here in my part of the world, but we do have the Tavistock canal, built in the early 1800's to connect Tavistock to the River Tamar, to transport various metal bearing ore in both directions. Although it's not exactly the most impressive looking canal ever built (it's only 3 foot deep, generally), it is still in water, as it serves a hydro electric plant these days - it was intentionally built with a very slight "downhill run" - and it does have a 2500 yard tunnel (no access by foot unfortunately), an inclined plane and an aqueduct along the route. As it was a nice day today, we thought it was a good time for an end of lockdown walk. "Arty" type sign attached to bridge : Approaching Shillamill viaduct, the now disused double track main line which used to run from Plymouth to Tavistock and which crosses the canal. Lift bridge and sluice, which leads to someone's garden ! Culvert carrying the canal over farm track. Even in rural Devon, in the middle of nowhere we still have the obligatory "tagging" graffiti !

Absolutely, I can't criticise the authorities to be honest as they are in a no win situation,and why should the police go anywhere near these idiots, who are the type who would spit in their faces? It costs money, diverts resources, and risks the lives of police officers, and colleagues, and their families.

I've no idea Athy, but I can guess they are the same type who demonstrated bywalking en mass to demonstrate against wearing masks in shops. The answer is to put them all in a warehouse, and leave them for four weeks to fester, those that get the disease and need the NHS will be given a respirator, and a body bag. They will all have to vive their benefit payments back to the taxpayer, if they don't accept one pety rule, they are not entitled to any benefits Those that don't die will be tagged and sent home, 24 hour curfew until the rest of the Uk is vacinated.

To quibble slightly pedantically, it's not against the spirit of the law, it's against the spirit of the guidance. Bit like tax avoidance and evasion. And, to be honest, if anyone regards any of the advice given by the shower of incompetents handing it out as having any value, I'd be amazed. For a start, what the hell's your area? CRT have been trying to define that for years... Me, I'll just carry on being pragmatically antisocial. As I talk to myself most of the time as I walk along, due to too many solitary years, most people cross the road when they see me coming anyway. Either that, or they've heard about the trombone.

mystified, but please don't try to explain tx

This is the boat that we lived aboard and cruised around eastern North America for the past couple of years.. Our next boat is going to look like one of those long skinny things in everyone else’s photos.

Translated as ... Please keep moving....our T&C you signed up to says you should, and we have people who have paid good money to stay still for 4 months so dont want to pi€€ them off by letting you stay where you are any longer.

Not too late, the race is on, 'pandemics' are great for the environment, a few more to manufacture and the tide can be turned.

But is Walsall Basin deep enough?

Yes

If you are stuck, I could take delivery for you, we are 8 miles from Northwich, and fetch it to you in our car. PM me if you need help.

One for the starter, one for both leisure, one spare. It needs to be permanent. Croc clips will fail a BSS exam. There will need to be suitably sized fuses between the batteries and the charger in the positive wires. A suitably rated plug and socket can let you remove the charger in summer. No conflict. One will supply the charge in preference to the other. Which one that is depends. Jen

I often wonder when the human race will realise that if it is to survive everyday life will need to change in many many ways.

If letting you take an experimental vaccine first because the risks are unknown makes me a freeloader then so be it, don't have a problem with you thinking that, if you are prepared to take the risk first then you sir are a top man.

Ah, I can say otherwise. In Morrisons Blackpool, that epicentre of middle,upper class intelligence, I was taking my Mum shopping last Saturday. Entered an aisle, cant remember which, but there was a 6'6" bloke at the other end with a trolley. He started to sneeze into his mask, and did so several times. I turned Mum around and we went elsewhere. His mask saved most of the people in the aisle from his germs, some carried on past him, others retreated. If nothing else, masks create a barrier on your explosions. ....helping everyone else. Ah yes, brandnewtube...527 views.

One of my close friends and colleague messaged the other day to ask "what do I think about all this Covid stuff". Turns out she's a conspiracy theorist about it all. Quite the shock as she's well educated, successful professionally (aerospace firm) and doesn't hang out in weird circles (well I am weird but I'm not a circle). I've quite enjoyed constructive discussion and reasoning things out. But yeah, not related to IQ at all. This lass has been influenced by other friends forwarding utter shite on whatsapp; like a video by that complete cunt Mike Yeadon, he's made a 30 minute video that's extremely time consuming to fact check and disprove. Anyway. Yeah 14 day rule, mid winter, mid pandemic, seems a bit daft to me. But then I'm a CCer so it benefits me, normally I'm moving in the dark and cold this time of year.

I disagree. I read the area as being the tier area you are in, not a CRT defined area. What they are saying is if you are near Chorley in Lancashire (a tier 3 area) do not travel into Wigan (also a tier 3 area) or Blackburn with Darwen (also a tier 3 area) but keep cruising in the Lancashire area. I think they are asking us to stay in the same area the tiers are defined as, which varies around the country, and not move into other areas even if they are in the same tier.

NB 'Arrested' does not necessarily imply 'charged' or 'fined'. Esp if helping a celeb or pop star to celebrate a birthday . . . Nice to see such liberal, thoughtful views being expressed on a boating forum where no-one necessarily has to depend on anyone else!

If the gasket is on incorrectly then you will have no oil to the rockers so if there is some oil it won't be that. Run the engine with the cover off and look at how much oil leaks from between the rocker and shaft, if its trickling then its too much. Yes, no lubrication will wear the cups, screws or both. After all they push at half engine speed with a high loading because they need to open the valves PDQ. However i would expect squeaks.

On that basis you could forget most of the canals that have been abandoned over the years. K&A, Huddersfield etc.

I suspect it will, after all it will only be 20 years old and will be on about 200k miles. My previous car is still in the family at 15 years old and 220k Skoda reliability.?

It’s at the Snarestone end. Stop planks in at Marston Junction tho. Pictures pinched from face book.

Whilst there are several examples of successful serial hybrid-powered narrowboats currently navigating the inland waterways, the technology is still in its infancy and the reality is that for many years to come the diesel engine-powered craft will continue to rule supreme. After all, who in their right mind is going to ditch an engine with 20 – 30 years useful life left in it and replace same with an expensive, retro-fitted hybrid installation? First generation biodiesel (of FAME fame) is not compatible with the marine environment and by 2024, when the Government objective of B12 has to be met, this will no doubt have become all too apparent. At about 86% carbon neutral this will have once appeared, upon casual examination, to have been an attractive solution. It certainly was to me when I first started using it in my own vehicles 17 years ago. Since then I've experienced all its shortcomings and suffice it to say it has never been near my boat (or its engine). However, second generation biodiesel is now well and truly with us in the form of Hydro-treated Vegetable Oil (HVO) and this is what David refers to as being trialed in a fleet of tugs operating on the Thames and its estuary. It carries OEM approvals from pretty much all the main diesel engine manufacturers in the world and is superior in performance to dino-diesel (the mineral stuff). To pick two random examples, it has a shelf life of of 10 years (so diesel-bug is a thing of the past) and in recent trials in a 24-tonne Land and Water swing shovel, fuel consumption improved by 10-12% while NoX decreased by a similar amount. At approximately 92% carbon neutral, it is clearly the drop in fuel for the above-mentioned parc of diesel-engined inland waterways boats, with just price and availability being potentially one of the short- to medium-term stumbling blocks.