Alway Swilby

I went on a Hurtigruten cruise back in 1997. All the way from Bergen to the very north of Norway, nearly to Russia at Kirkeness and back to Bergen in 11 nights. It wasn't a proper "cruise", more of a glorified ferry. The food was nice though. It stopped at many towns and villages on the way to deliver the mail as well as stopping at the major places (Trondhiem, Tromso, Hammerfest etc.) for a few hours. They would announce the exact time they were going to cross open sea between fjords and islands and explain that today it might be a bit rough between 1600 and 1625 but the rest of the time sailing on fjords it was smooth. It was a most enjoyable holiday. I suspect it has gone a bit upmarket now.

The pub at the Rawcliffe mooring has closed but there are still 14 day visitor moorings there. The Waterways Museum has closed and is now an auction centre. I think they have paid for moorings which include electric hook up. There are bankside moorings opposite these moorings on the north side of the navigation. People do leave boats there but we know of people who had their boat broken into there. Goole Boathouse Marina has changed hands and likes to call itself Goole Marina. They probably have short stay moorings available. Has a nice cafe and bar by all accounts. There are CRT 72 hour visitor moorings nearby. Viking Marina is probably still full but it's a nice friendly place. It's still good fun watching the ships come and go through Ocean Lock.

Well.... If they had a mooring on the Thames they wouldn't need a CRT licence. Perhaps I'm missing some irony here or something.

But Meadow Lane lock in Nottingham is shut from 30th October to 22nd December. So that is the sticking point. I think the OP is snookered unless Wigan opens soon (due by 27th October) and they can get through Bingley and Dowley Gap before the 6th November.

Also it's on the Thames so won't be on the CRT list.

The Nene Valley Railway at Wansford. The station is a short walk from the River Nene visitor mooring pontoon.

Every time I go through the Bascote staircase on the GU (Ham Baker paddle gear) I try to work out how the disused side ponds would have worked. Every time I fail to work it out. This staircase has "proper" side ponds and is a "proper" staircase. I get how proper side ponds work as at Hanbury, Hanwell, Bosley etc. but Bascote always defeats me. Actually the side ponds at Hanwell are also confusing because they have three different levels.

I would like to hear the company's version of events before making such a decision.

You can block emails too. So that only leaves a written letter. Difficult when you haven't got an address.

I couldn't possibly comment 🤫

No claim was required for the recent fuel payment. The voucher turned up in email inboxes automatically if your boat was listed as not having a home mooring. I don't see how that could be defined as fraud.

Nowadays we take a marina mooring for a few months in winter. It's not always the same marina although we do have a prefered one in Goole. We might be there for 3 months, sometimes 4. When we leave the marina we stop paying and leave. I notify CRT that we no longer have a home mooring. The following winter we check in to a marina again and inform CRT accordingley. We can't be unusual in doing this. Our licence expires on 31st December when we are always in a marina somewhere and so will have a home mooring at renewal time. I wonder whether we'll have to pay the CC surcharge.

Is this still the case now that the bottom gates can no longer be independantly operated but have to be operated together?

On Monday the lock keeper at Torksey had a pc in his office that he was entering data on.

Viking Marina in Goole has lift out facilities and has cruisers stored on the shore.

Our boat is also a Tyler Wilson shell (and fitted out by Finesse as it happens) and has the chute arrangement. I like it a lot, it's not difficult to reach the prop whilst lying on the deck. We have a propmate ( https://www.miracleleisureproducts.co.uk/prop-mate-c9.html ) which means you often don't need to get your hand wet. The chute arrangement means that I often don't bother to tighten up the weed hatch at all.

Bollington Wharf must have facilities. They run day boats and NB Alton does pump outs so must have somewhere to empty their tank. They may of course charge but I doubt if it is much.

When winding our 58'6" boat in a 70' winding hole I often think "Thank god we haven't got a 70' boat".

On the Leicester Line. Kibworth top lock. https://hendersonconnellan.co.uk/market-harborough/property/wistow-lane-kibworth/

There are plenty of visitor moorings in York, most of them marked as 48 hours. Favoured ones are alongside Museum Gardens on the right after you have gone upstream under Lendal Bridge. There are other moorings at King's Staithe and Queen's Staithe either side of the river before Ouse Bridge. There are however no flood safe moorings available for visitors, they are all occupied by the trip boats. If a flood is likely (keep an eye on the weather 30 or 40 miles away in the Dales) you'll need to run away downstream to Naburn Lock or upstream to Linton Lock (quite a long way). There is a water point near Lendle Bridge but it is where the trip boats pick up passengers all day long so you can only use it early in the morning or after the boats stop in the evening.

Today the bungalow looks like this.

I think it has a summit pound.

Going back to the Upper Thames: every gate has a long pole and hook resting on hangers that you use to open or shut the opposite gate. If CRT equipped all their wide locks with such poles they'd all be nicked within about a week.

We got told off by a lock keeper for only opening one gate at one of the Upper Thames locks above Oxford. After that I did notice that there was minimal mitre leakage at all the Upper Thames locks.