Scholar Gypsy

Well I would have chatted with you, if I had spotted your boat! I was crewing on one of the boats that went down to the barrier today. It was an "interesting" trip - blog and photos to follow. We heard HMS OCEAN (moored at Greenwich) sounds its hooter at 1100 as part of the VE day commemorations. (see here)

EMERGENCY CLOSURE NOTICE Section 15 Anglian Water Authority Act 1977 RIVER: Nene DATE: 13 May - 14 May 2015 (inclusive) LOCATION: Titchmarsh Lock DETAILS Please be aware the above closure is required to enable the repair of the broken left hand lock paddle. We are working to rectify the issue as soon as we can. For further information please contact our River Inspector Ian Cook on 07920 087741. The Environment Agency apologise for any inconvenience caused. You can also contact us at the Environment Agency on 03708 506 506 between 9am and 5pm Monday to Friday and ask for the Waterways Team in the Anglian Region. Irven Forbes Waterways Manager 8 May 2015

Here's a picture of a skin fitting. http://www.canalworld.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=75838&hl=%2Bskin+%2Bfitting#entry1563138 Midland Chandlers, and of course others, sell them in a variety of sizes. I drilled a 16mm hole last winter through an internal steel bulkhead, with a new bit, and my rather old (mains powered) drill started smoking after a while.

The quotes in the two pieces are rather different "It was stuck on the bank right in the middle of the river. If shipping or other traffic came past, it could have been dangerous." and "I have never seen a boat stuck like that, he was on the sandbank in the middle of the river, and could have been dangerous to passing shipping" The former seems more likely eg a big ship making lots of wash...

Ah right! I'm pretty sure I am the only one. As the boat says "Oxford" on the side I regularly get heckled by the rowers.. Yes I've spotted (& printed) that curve, which also explains why the datum is below LAT (being measured from the cill of the dock), so the depths are always 2m more than the chart depth, which is reassuring!).

Not quite - more so I can decide if it is too windy to light the BBQ..... I hope to give it a go at the weekend - I am crewing on another boat on the St Pancras trip Limehouse .-> Margartness -> Teddington. The forecasts at the moment look a little iffy (westerlies 17mph gusting 36 on met office, 26 gusting 39 on metcheck, 17 gusting 25 on Windfinder): fingers crossed. I think Shipsbiscuit has me about right. I'm not going to Wisbech until August. I do enjoy gadgets, and planning, but that will not distract me from the basics such as checking the fan belt and keeping a good lookout.

Walked past the sailing shop today near work. In a moment of weakness - well it was after an 8 hour meeting - I bought a handheld wind gauge. Goes up to 93 mph, which will be more than sufficient ....

Thanks - all helpful stuff. There now seems to be two choices for the route into Lynn, with the newly marked Tango channel (rather shallow in places - 0.1m above datum, according to the latest chart). I don't intend to try that, will stick to Bulldog instead.

Here's a simple grid for converting distance and time to speed (start in left column, work along until you get the right time, and then look up). I decided against calculating to the nearest second, given what it is for (use on tidal waters, to give you a clue when you should expect to arrive at the next marker). It shows nautical miles and knots, but works fine for miles and mph of course.

Er, for both the Kings Lynn and the Wisbech approaches there is a section of the route where the buoys move frequently and are not marked on printed & published charts (eg Imrays, where I have the latest Nov 2014 edition). The latest Lynn chart from the HM is here (just over a week old), and the exact positions are here (with one error, that will be corrected shortly). Ideally I would like to find the equivalent position data for the route into Wisbech, although that looks a bit more straightforward (but the penalty for getting it wrong is being shot at by the RAF....). I probably won't need any of this of course - Daryl the guide knows his way around - but I am just enjoying my researches....

Not really inland waterways, but I am enjoying the series on BBC4 about the wide variety of things that go on in the Channel. This episode has the EA in action building sea defences. And this one shows what it is like to skipper a tug. Series website here:

I'd be really interested if Norman could point me to the locations of the buoys on the approach to the Nene. I've found this chart, but (to program them into my GPS) I would quite like the lat and long. Many thanks!

Plan A seems to be back on, as I can now find someone with a JCB to dig an inspection pit for me to use ... http://www.canalworld.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=75795#entry1564090

And access to the foredeck, for mooring etc, and also controlling ropes when you are in big river locks etc (when IMHO you want to be inside the boat not standing on a small foredeck.

.. and please see the "Can you help" banner at the top of every page.

See other recent thread on galvanic transformers. The neutral and earth on electrics within a ship/boat should be bonded to the hull. If the ship is moored then you need to be careful if you connect that earth to the landside earth connection.

In theory, yes: Grand Union to Brentford Tidal Thames to Teddington Thames to Reading Kennet and Avon to Bath Avon to Bristol and Avonmouth (tidal) Bristol Channel and Severn Estuary to Sharpness Gloucester and Sharpness to Gloucester The penultimate segment is feasible, probably, but quite a challenge. Tide of 15 knots plus. The alternative route is to wait until the Higher Avon link is constructed, from Warwick down to Stratford.

some good moorings between Edgbaston tunnel and University station.

I've added quite a bit to my page of guidance for the Wash crossing. I'd be grateful for any comments and suggestions. https://nbsg.wordpress.com/washing/ I am just putting the finishing touches to my timesheet, for the segment from Kings Lynn to the Sea, and will add that shortly.

Thanks Tim - my mind is moving that way. Looking at some reasonable price surface mounting compasses it does appear that their ability to correct is (as you say) limited. Fluxgate units look quite expensive, though I do have a decent mast (about 2.3 metres from memory). In addition to the Mark I eyeball, my GPS, and Daryl's GPS, my final fallback is to throw one of the boys in the sea, make them swim a decent distance away from the boat, and take a bearing. We could even tow them behind us....

I've been assembling a page of useful / mad links for the Wash. Here it is - please email or PM me with any comments or suggestions for additions. https://nbsg.wordpress.com/washing/ The other task today (the weather here in Pembrokeshire is awful) has been to load up the waypoints, and the current positions of the various buoys on the way out from Kings Lynn (they move around a bit!). One of them is 1' East (0.61 nautical miles) of where the Kings Lynn Harbour Board website says it is, so that was worth checking!

Perhaps worth adding that last summer the water was so high that both the gates at Brownshill Staunch were fully submerged. (EA notice here). There is a rail that sticks up in the air, but I gather one boat did not see it and assumed that both gates were open ... if you do moor at the pub at Earith, do check there is enough water - it was a bit shallow when I went there in August.

I must say I have never found seeing them to be a problem ... http://www.pla.co.uk/assets/m29of2015-flashinglighttrail-londonducktours.pdf

Pinkhill may have some space (Black Prince). ETA: sorry I meant Oxford Cruisers: http://oxfordcruisers.com/Oxford_Cruisers_Boatyard/Welcome.html

Thanks, yes I've read that bit of the instructions (and also the very clear and well written RYA book on navigation more generally, which tells me much more than I think I will need). The problem is that I don't yet trust the hand-bearing compass I've bought, as it is not giving sensible or robust results when I am standing well away from the boat and taking a bearing for Ely Cathedral. The GPS gives COG, of course, when you are moving, and the pilot will bring his own GPS as well.