nebulae

The swing bridge at the entrance to Weston Point Dock prevents the pasage of a narrow boat. If Weston Marsh Lockl is out of action,can boats enter the Ship Canal through the dock?The bridge does not look in good shape.I Eddy Stobart now owns the dock estate,do they own the water? If so what would their response be for a request for through navigation? I am aware that there is no right of navigation on the canals. Would the dock be part of a Cruiseway,like the Weston canal. I am not aware that there has been any legal process to close the dock to navigation? Obviously,it makes sense to use Weston Marsh Lock in normal conditions,but it is a shame if the alternative route has been lost. If the old lock down to the river at Frodsham were still operable,then the problem would not arise.

From memory,Isuzu marine engines were built by HPI on Babcock Airfield Industrial estate. HPI were (I think still are) importers of Hitachi excavators,which use Isuzu engines.THey formed the marine division to build boat engines(and generators). Most of the staff were ex Lister. When the parent company decided to move the operation(to Doncaster?) The staff refused to go.That was the end of the marine division. Pretty sure Black Prince used a lot of Isuzu. I believe engine spares are no problem,gearboxes were PRM?.I am a bit hazy about the details,but I think I am correct.

Some years ago,I called in at Stanley Ferry boatyard,to buy a handspike. They had no idea what I was talking aboat? The timber yard fixed me up with a serviceable piece of wood.

I had an ex GPO J2 van. On one memorable occasion,I wound it up to 40mph. Probably fast enough for the postman. From memory,they were not a particularly robust engine. Crude dieselisation of an Austin(BMC) B series. The 1500 was fitted to a Leyland 154 tractor. The Nuffield version of this tractor had a diesel version of the 948cc Morris Minor/A35 engine.When did you last see one?

My next door neighbour"s grandfather bought a farm in what is now Central Milton Keynes,to rest/ breed boat horses. He had a rubbish contract in London(dayboats?) I think the family name was Clarkson.

Under the wall is very handy,but the access to the wall above the mooring seems to atract a certain type of transaction involving illegal substances. O.K. during the day.

In the mid 1970"s I was involved in some work on the Sprinch Yard site. While the digger was on site,conecting the dry dock to the main Runcorn sewer.I got the digger driver to excavate the arm which now leads to a slipway,also part of the little packet dock on the Big Pool side of the Sprinch. The origional gates to all the docks were still in place on the bottom of the canal. These gates lie flat on the canal bid and are winched upright. I think there were other gates like this on the Bridgewater(but on the main line of the canal) The culvert to drain the dry docks were(are?)brick lined and go underneath that part of Runcorn,presumeably draining into the Ship Canal. They were considered to be life expired,which is why the conection was made into the main sewer. The first time the dock was used with the new connection(with a Claymore hire boat),live fish appeared at the sewage works. In mid 1974, I remember the gate to Simpson Davies yard still had their name on it. The Bridgewater Motor Boat Club had a slipway into Big Pool for many years. All buried now.

I remeber driving one of those Ford lorries for miles in third gear,looking for another gear. The diesel was a Fordson Major engine,the V8 petrol was from a Ford Pilot car.

Keep your speed down and ask for plenty of warning before stopping at the adits ( to report to control) .I have scraped the front corner of the roof a couple of times. My favorit canal.

Thanks for the reply. Nice to think the can may have been painted by a giant of the restoration movement.

Hope these pictures might give a clue to the painter. I think the can is tin plate as it is lighter than my other cans.

I bought a Buckby can from a W.R.G. fundraising stall,probably 40 plus years ago. Dont have a photo at the moment. It is signed W R G on the bottom. Anybody know who might have painted it? I presume it was a new can,painted as a fund raiser.

I seem to remember that the R.A.Lister site in Dursley covered 75 acres and had its own railway branch. Quite a lot about the factory on the web.

We have been cruising the canals for the last 40 years. We have experienced proper winters. Am I a newby? We have sold our boat. I dont feel negative about the Canal system in general or Cart in particular. I do feel that some of the exitement has gone. I also feel that Cart has a lack of focus. Staff are a major expence for any organisation,but I believe bankside staff have been cut back to the point where they are just roving trouble shooters. This year on the Peak Forest Canal we were stopped for a couple of days due to a fallen tree. Contractors who very efficiently cleared the blockage had to manage very precariously with a small dinghy. A CaRT workboat was nearby,but there was no CaRT staff available to use it. The clutch on the contractors Ford Transit would never be the same again.

Thanks for the replies. It was definately a "loft" aproached by outside steps. Interesting that Abels were listed as sailmakers. No reason to assume that the sail loft was at Castle Rock Boatyard. It could have been the same firm. I suppose lorry tarpaulins and cloths for narrow boats might have kept them going. I took in a sail for a dinghy,which must have been small fry for them. It must have been 1964 or 5 when I visited them. I wish I could remember more detail.

Does anybody remember the sailmakers loft near Top Locks in Runcorn. I am sure I took a sail in there about 50years ago for repair. It was a proper loft with a door that self closed by hanging a huge shackle on a piece of string. The loft had obviously been there for a long time, Was this a place where sails were made and repaired for the sailing flats? If so surprising it had survived. When was the last sail made or repaired for a sailing flat? I also remember an ornate cast iron urinal nearby. Handy for boatmen?

I understood that the origional paddle gear was on the gate and was in such a position that it would have been dangerous to operate by inexperienced crews. The new design has to be a compromise between safety and heritage. In my opinion,free running paddle gear is a safety bonus,having come close to losing two boats on the Wigan flight,this year(heavily geared bottom gate paddles very slow to close)

Pass test before 1st Jan 1997 8.5 tonne MAM. After 1st Jan 1997 Trailer over 750 tonne,total MAM 3.5tonne. i.e. Pass test after 1st Jan1997 LR Discovery Max trailer 1,500tonne approx.Manufacturers can de rate a trailer to reduce MAM ie 3,500kg trailer could be de rated to bring MAM within limits. Dont forget that when you reach age 70 and renew your licence, unless you make application to renew under HGV rules and have a medical,you will lose grandfather rights for towing.

No linear moorings on the Stroudwater. Cant see anything wrong with stimulating new housing, if the area was a dump before. Depends on the quality of the development.

I enthusiasticaly support the Cotswold Canals restoration(From an armchair). We have walked the Stroudwater Canal and Thames and Severn Canal as far as the tunnel,several times. The length now restored is one of my favorite walks. Much new housing stimulated by the restoration. The key to the restoration is the partnership of promoters,particularly Stroud District Council. The re instatement of the canal canal below Walbridge Upper Lock is one of the wonders of the waterways,in my opinion.

BE VERY CAREFULL AT DIGLIS. When you come down the river,you will have to go past the entrance to the Wand B Canal. Do NOT try to turn by the pontoon opposite the orange barrier. Go past and turn near to the lock. Then motor safely up to the pontoon.

The river section can be a bit hairy. Went down once when it was bordering on red.Fastest our old boat had gone. Watch the gauge at the tail of the lock. Level can drop quite quickly.