Peter-Bullfinch

I too was born in Ormskirk hospital. The son of a tea taster. I was brought up in the farming community though. We have ranged far and wide in Lancashire in our lives from the balmy south in Maghull via the flatlands of Croston to the gritty reality of Leyland then on to the highlands of Blackburn. We have finally washed up in leafy Chorley after a quick foray into Bolton almost fifty years ago to find a wife.

I understand they were put in simply as a set of markers between the wide grass path and the canal side. Every so often a gang mower drives along this path to cut the grass. Some have been burnt away over the years by folks having small campfires around them. This is public open land but I believe it is local authority land and not belonging to the Canal and River Trust.

Thank you so much. I have taken the liberty of posting your responses back to this local Chorley "then and now" group.

This was posted on our local "Then and Now" site. I presume it is at the top of Johnson's Hillock. I wonder if anyone can identify any more of the boat and scene?

Why not consider a Sabb or a Bukh? Much cheaper. Our 22hp Sabb copes very well on rivers and the link tidal bits.

If you moor outside the old CRT offices , yes the gate is locked now but it's extremely easy to step around the end of the fence. Even my cautious wife finds it no problem. The tap is handy too. Lots of folk moor opposite, below Henhurst Lock with no problems.

Since March the only visits to my weedhatch have been precautionary ones on the Ribble Link and after a rather over enthusiastic foray a bit too far into the flash at the end of the Weaver. None of these trips down the hatch resulted in any debris being found. We have had many fewer items caught round the prop in the last year or so. Are we just being lucky or is the plastic bag charge scheme helping us out? We are travelling many hundreds of miles each year in both urban and rural parts of the system so we arent confining ourselves to the nice clean leafy bits.

I have a Tracer-2210RN/2215RN with remote meter MT5. We have 2×100w panels and 4×110 domestic batteries. The MPPT manual says tbe float voltage is 13.8v. Is there a way of adjusting this with this type of controller? Do I need to? In a few weeks we will be back at our marina base and the solar is only used for the next four months or so over winter to keep the batteries charged.

It just asked if we would keep the place clean for the next person if I recall from only nine hours ago!

Thanks for that Liam. We were told about this tap by a club member but we haven't actually used it.

Opening the black door behind the steps in the car park of the Golden Fleece in Lymm revealed this today. It was clean and tidy but didn't look that recently used. A couple of crisp packets had blown in. There is no lock on the door, just a slide bolt. I imagine calling for a drink in the pub might not go amiss if this is a private Elsan sluice. The pub was closed this morning and I couldn't find anyone to ask. This facility is not listed on the Bridgewater Canal web site listing the facilities available. The water tap and a piece of hose are there to rinse your container. One other water tap for boaters passing is on the west wall of Marsland Road Bridge (34) in Sale just before you reach the Sale Cruising Club site. Its reasonably easy to tie up there.

Glasson is wonderful. This was us there this May. The locks aren't really any more difficult than many others around the country. Just take your time. We have been here quite a few times over the years. Maybe more should visit. A good cycle path on the old rail track is a good way to wander into Lancaster.

Had a look around the Golden Fleece but couldnt really see an obvious Elsan for Lymm. I chatted with my namesake Peter who lives opposite and he didnt know of one. The young person behind the bar just looked rather confused by my enquiry. Peter thought there might have been such a facility possibly at the old wharf now the Lymm Cruising Club in times past.

Hire a narrowboat for all the canal system. Buy a suitable boat for the sea passages.

We have solar panels on our roof at home. In the garage there are three lead acid batteries, an inverter, battery charger, timer and a changeover switch. The charger comes on for a few hours mid day and the batteries run all the house light circuits. Works really well for the past three years. All this kit was donated by boating and electrician friends. It's not cost effective if you had to buy it all new but it's fun to own and a bit of a talking point. All our house lights are led and when we have guest staying over winter and every light gets left on the inverter sets up a shrill buzz and so go round and have to turn a few lights off.

Isn't the Norwegian Sabb engine range a "true" marine engine? The company still exists. The single cylinder 10hp was widely available and often used in small lifeboats, fishing boats and yachts. The larger twin cylinders were often for lifeboats, fishing boats and bigger yachts. They came in a small range of sizes from 22hp up to around 30hp. These engines were supplied in either a raw water pumped version or enclosed keel cooled versions. The firm Sleeman and Hawkins still supplies spares for the range. These engines typically have both handstart and electric start options and also an alternator . Many came as a complete package with a matched prop, gearbox and engine. The engines come with oil and fuel filters and alternator belts of a standard common design easily obtained from any motor factors.

You've been very unlucky. We spent 6 weeks up and down the Lancaster including the Glasson branch earlier this year and didn't have one trip down the weedhatch. In fact, thinking about it, I haven't been down the weedhatch at all this year other than to check for the Ribble Link. Our trip has included the Leeds and Liverpool, Llangollen, the Shroppie, Montogmery, Trent and Mersey and the Weaver.

Most of the long stretches of canal covered by bridges would appear to be the more modern wider ones taking motorways and dual carriageways. I wonder if the Trust puts the lengths down on any of their published maps of the system. I suppose to answer Ditchcrawler's note about the HS2 proposed bridges, the length of canal to be covered must be in the published plans somewhere or other.

Many of the boats from, I think the Lymm Cruising Club on the Bridgewater, seem to have gloss painted hills. Few locks in this area though so maybe they get k ocked around less.

Car horns from scrapyards are relatively cheap. I got ours about ten years ago, a Jaguar one, with a quite pleasing note. We use it fairly infrequently. A tiny peep means if you have a moment please can you pop to the steering position. A long firm toot is for blind corners. A loud prolonged blast in a lock means please drop the paddles as quickly as you can!

Galton appears to be 122yds long. I had no idea the restoration of Preston Brook involved cut and cover. We have been under it many times and I shall look with new respect at that middle section.

Another variation is the Asda store built over the start of the Huddersfield canal in Ashton Under Lyne. This created a 'tunnel' 166yds long. If I recall it is illuminated but has no towpath. I may be wrong because it was last summer we were last there. No one has suggested the longest tunnel formed by a bridge yet. I would imagine Birmingham must have a number.

The Aldi is only a short walk away from that bridge plus a Chinese take away, a chip shop and a couple more outlets. There are good bus links from there too. This is a spot that could benefit from a few more rings on the concrete edge. There is "armco" type piling quite near.

I didn't find anything helpful!!