Richard Fairhurst

More specifically, I believe this was to help boaters when calling BW, e.g. "there's a problem at Bridge 5 on the Llangollen" - "which one?" - "um...". Internally, BW (and now CRT) don't really use bridge numbers per se. Rather, everything is identified by a Functional Location - a longer code along the lines of LL-012-005, with one assigned to every single structure CRT owns. That example would (roughly) translate as "Llangollen Canal, kilometre 12, asset 5".

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Definitely looks like Icklingham: http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/667694 I remember the Imray system map used to show Icklingham as "isolated but navigable" for many years.

It's not that bad! We had a decent enough pizza there the other month. Yes, it's a bit blingy but you can at least sit and eat close to the bar without booking, which isn't the case for a lot of gastro places. Given the abundance of pubs like the Hopwood House on the Midlands canals (not that the HH is bad, but it's a bit generic) the Queen's Head is a pleasant change.

Quite - it certainly wasn't done by someone who then tried to operate the lock! Here's what the gate looks like: Imagine that you've opened the gate and you're trying to wind the paddle down. You can't use the spindle on the left because the road bridge is in the way, so your windlass is on the spindle on the right. But the pawl stop is on the left. So you have to keep the stop lifted with your left hand and stretch your arms fully so you can still wind the paddle down. I guess you could wait until the gate is closed and then use the spindle on the left, but that's not ideal, especially if you've just descended and you're handing the lock over to an incoming boat whose crew might not realise/remember what you've done.

Grindley Brook still has hydraulics (the very first) - not sure what spindle size. Don't remember where I read it but the Ham-Baker paddle gear at Hatton was reputed to be a delight to operate when first installed. (While on the subject of paddle gear, I didn't think it was possible for Maidenhead Road Lock 53 on the Stratford - the one with the right-angled balance beam by the road bridge - to get any nastier to work, but the addition of a pawl stop has achieved that. You have to lift the stop with one arm outstretched and wind the paddle with the other. As yet there doesn't appear to be a requirement to stand on your head while winding the paddle but it wouldn't surprise me.)

Stourport! I'd be impressed if anyone moored on the river in Stourbridge.

Last time we were in Stourport we were surprised how empty the moorings were.

I did wonder about that but I think a commercial skipper would have a hard time arguing it. The bylaw in question is effectively talking about moving laterally (i.e. to another, shallower part of the channel) - it doesn't place any requirement on the pleasure boat to impede its progress along the waterway. There's also a group of bylaws following this one which are specifically about locks and bridges, and it's not mentioned there: I'd expect any such bylaw to be in with the rest of the ones about locks.

I don't recall ever seeing "wild mooring" on the Severn above Worcester, but I've seen it below Worcester a few times, and I've always wondered whether it'd be possible to tie up at the Pixham Ferry site. But for "laying out on the grass" the Camp House is pretty good as it is!

Indeed, there might be a case for it, but them's not the rules. As nicknorman says, if there were any rules for priority at locks they'd be in the bylaws, and they aren't. Commercial vessels do have first claim to the navigable channel when "meeting" (i.e. head-on), "overtaking, or being overtaken", though.

Fully agreed. In theory I see no reason why the Lowland Canals couldn't be as popular for hire-boating as another isolated waterway, the Mon & Brec. Ok, perhaps the scenery is less wonderful, but there's more to do - the Wheel, the Helix, and Edinburgh itself. Yet there are (IIRC) five hire-fleets on the Mon & Brec, and just one on the Lowlands - soon to be zero. To make a success of the Lowlands, SC would have to win the enthusiasts over first (whether local or England & Wales-based), whose recurring custom then provides the seed for a mass-market operation. That's pretty much how the canals south of the border became popular, after all. But that hasn't happened, for the two reasons you cite: few enthusiasts want to boat a waterway where all the locks are operated by someone else at a pace not of your choosing*, and promotion has been pitiful. To be fair, this started before Scottish Canals was set up and is by no means exclusive to Scotland. Dave Fletcher and, particularly, Derek Cochrane were emphatic that getting the Millennium restorations to work would require sustained effort: I remember Cochrane making that point about the HNC and Rochdale several times. But then BW's management changed, and the attitude became "we've been lumbered with these restored canals" (closure of the Rochdale even being considered) rather than "let's make a success of them". I do think CRT is heading back in the right direction, as per the mooted HLF bid for the Rochdale and Calder & Hebble corridor; it's a shame if Scottish Canals aren't. * Ok, there's the Thames, but that's a different clientele and I doubt you're going to get many Thames boaters signing up for a holiday in Falkirk...

Configuring the new content stream is one thing, but even then, there's so much white space that I find it difficult to skim the list as previously. It doesn't help that the authorship information is now the same font size as the thread title, so the eye doesn't skip over it as easily. I use a browser extension called Stylish which lets you supply your own stylesheets for other people's sites. A little tweaking, and the New Content view looks like the attached pic, which I find much easier. The same stylesheet can also disable some of the extraneous clutter in threads themselves, such as profile pics (I'm sure everyone's lovely, but I could really do without close-up eyes staring straight at me in every other post). In case it's useful to anyone else, I've uploaded the altered style here: https://userstyles.org/styles/139567/canal-world-compact

Absolutely! It would be like A1 Tornado - a historically-planned evolution of a successful working design. I'd love to see it happen.

No, it isn't. IWA is a charity and therefore it's supposed to fulfil its charitable objectives. Those objectives are:

Interesting view. The Wilts & Berks to Melksham might fall into that category, too.

Fully echo Jim Riley's posting - the Rochdale is a magnificent canal and you can take the rural sections at your own pace. If you wanted a real adventure you could always go to Liverpool, cross the Mersey to the Ship Canal, then onto the main system at a place of your choosing (Ellesmere Port for the Shroppie, Frodsham for the Weaver, Pomona Lock for the Bridgewater). Lots of paperwork, you'd want a pilot, and neither the Mersey or the MSC are to be trifled with. But on a calm day and with compliant tides it's very doable. There have been some useful threads on this in the past, e.g. http://www.canalworld.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=39772&p=730379 .

An hour, and no apologies for lack of distance because we do it by train. Direct from here to Worcester Shrub Hill, then it's just a ten minute walk down the towpath. So much less stressful than driving and we can enjoy Worcester's excellent pubs too...

Though note that since the original 2009 postings the Star in Talybont has been sold, sadly. I haven't yet tried it under its new ownership...

Yes. I think the engineers nicknamed them "go-faster hulls" as a result.

It has got quite a lot easier to moor at Upton this year, thanks (I think) to CRT enforcement work. Several times we've passed and there have been spaces on the moorings.

From Ross to Gloucester, M50 then B roads via Newent is quicker than following the A40. Curse Beeching for closing the rural lines...

Indeed - the only one of the MMN locks to have completely been destroyed. But you can still see the site of it.

Sounds like a good excuse to see if you can make it up to the site of Syston Mill Lock!

From my point of view, it's more that they're pretty much the only place you can rely on serving a good cider, particularly in the northern Midlands and the North.