NBnutter
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Posts posted by NBnutter
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If you want a 'Hudson' shaped hull (there is nothing special in it shape wise to give a boatbuilder a headace anyway!) ask Graham Reeves as he I believe has already built one or is about too for a customer.
Steve's earlier craft were shaped differently from the style you are thinking of.
so the boat i am tracking down as to whether it could be a S M Hudson could be one of his really early ones? hmm food for thought there. thank you i will look at Reeves.
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Updated
Lots for the likers and lots for the knockers, just added around 250 new images... details of update on original link or to go straight to the sets http://www.flickr.com/photos/50005139@N08/sets/
when i go to this page it says its not there!! i would love to be able to see these images.
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we were gutted on Steves death as had planned a boat to be built by him for us. We love the Hudson shells. I am at the moment trying to trace qwether a boat built in approx 1976 was built by him. It says it was built by Hudson homemade crafts, but cannot find a builder of this name and thought maybe uit was what Steve called his original boat building business. I love the way his bows swim in the water and make the boat so easy to handle. If any one has a 65-70 foot tug Hudson then by gimmeny we would have it like a shot!!
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oh you wide beam ppl are so touchy!! I actually have nothing against widebeams, they are great boats. I just prefer the narrowboats x
oh and yes will but that book as will add to the many I already have x
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If a widebeam is simply based on the design of a narrowboat and broadened across its beam without any thought for increasing its stiffness then the end result will be a weaker boat. Most narrowboats have no frames on the baseplate running fore-aft and instead rely on the hull sides for longitudinal stiffness, but once you take that design and widen it significantly the boat should have some frames running the entire length of the boat.
A weaker structure will be fine on a canal or other still water, but once you encounter some waves it will flex and this was what my pilot was talking about.
My widebeam has 2 sets of longitudinal frames about a 3rd of the way in from each side, running the entire length of the baseplate. Unfortunately the large uxter plates on my boat are only 6mm thick and don't have any additional stiffeners so you can hear them flexing in the waves. Since the engine hole is uninsulated and unlined It should be simple enough to get some 2 or 3" angle iron stitch welded onto these areas to provide some support.
Which part of this thread did you miss? Widebeams only need to book through tunnels which you can't see out the other end.
As for which boat is "best" you obviously don't have enough experience to realise that all boats are a compromise. A narrowboat may be best for you, but having lived on a narrowboat for several years I know it wasn't best for me.
Anyway, judging by the number of narrowboaters who've looked around inside my boat and then emerged either speechless, full of praise for the amount of space, or jusy bitter with envy, I'd say a narrow boat wasn't necessarily best for them either.
I did not miss any thread!
I now know that widebeams have to book to go through tunnels that as you say you cants see the other end of..which in my case I was asking about Braunston...
I have experience but for me personally as it was my question asked, the narrowboat is best, canals weren't built for wide barges but narrowboats pulling buttys....maybe you have never read a history book on the origins of canals!
if you dont want to have a boat that encompeses the origins then that is fine, I dont want space, if I wanted space I would have not have embarked onto leaving my nice spacious house!
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zah ha!! so after much amusement reading all the names you lot call widebeams, I think I finally have my answer....
widebeams need to book to go through
there is someone at the other end stopping boats from going in
having a narrowboat is best!
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well seems that there is a booking system, but he said he was going through the tunnel in the morning so how does the booking system work? How does a narrowboat at the other end of the tunnel know that there is a wide beam coming through??
I for certain would hate to meet one in a tunnel, and if I was more than halfway through, who would be the one to have to back out??
Dont think so sonny
Tim
As others have said they should book a passage at braunston, however given that some owners seem to have difficultly with steering and operating their boats in general I do wonder if they know you have to book...I don't reckon it will be too long before one causes mayhem in a tunnel....mind you if they meet me I know who's going to reverse!
Cheers
Gareth
(I'm not keen on floating flats...!!)talking about steering...omg there was a boat out on sat that I was in stitches watching, it zig zagged all down from the tunnel, floated sideways across the canal whilst deciding oif to risk doubling up in the lock, and with a bit of persuasion went in first, promptly failed to keep boat to one side, second boat rammed it as couldnt stop in time and then proceeded to bang its way in!!. I dont think they shared another lock!!
thank god they were in a narrowboat not a widebeam!
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Just a stupid question but one that has baffled me since seeing the 'stealth boat' today at Braunston........what happens when you meet one of these in a tunnel? She was going to go through the tunnel at Braunston and I just got to thinking I would hate to meet a widebeam in a tunnel!! I mean who has to reverse? Or is there a unwritten rule to taking a widebeam through a tunnel???
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OP :
I think the posted responses have given some excellent ideas - - (I can't see your kids being bored)
Just one further suggestion...
With all the photo's., logs, lists, samples (etc) that the chillen will be creating - have you considered the youngsters assemble all this material and create a 'project' for their school/classmates
Ooh Yeah!
"What I did on my holidays"
Should be a cracker
Thanks for the idea the kids have been and bought scrap books to make a visual record of their adventures aboard!! Im sure it will get well looked at at school and everywhere else they take it!!
a quick update......the kids now are proud owners of baseball hats with the word CREW sew on to wear on the holiday and have canal art to colour in, Mucky waters books to read and have even bought a canal DVD to watch!! they have gone narrowboat crazy!!
All I have ot do now is guess the weather for that week and try to pack enough clothes but not too much!!
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Someone with FAR more knowledge than me will be along soon, but as nobody has answered yet i'll have a go.
I think CaRT normally designate a certain length on certain Visitor Moorings for the purpose of winter moorings during the months Nov-Mar. I'm not sure what the rules are for applying for one though. I'm not sure if you have to have declared a CC'ing to apply or wether you could for example have a non-CaRT mooring for the rest of the year and then purchase a CaRT WM for the winter months. Some else will have to answer that bit.
If you go onto the auction site, they still have the link up for the 2012 winter moorings. You can do a search for area's you are interested in and it will also tell you of the price for that mooring. I don't know when they will start to think about WM'ings for this coming winter.
as an interested party wanted to know where I find the 'auction site' you are on about?
we too are hoping to become liveaboards in the next few years if our plans go right and this would be of interest to us x
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True, called 'Gongoozlers Rest' it has changed hands recently (last year ?) had a re-fit and the service/food is just as good.
yes this is a fabulous boat and we frequent it loads, food is excellent and they are so helpful to answer any questions. They seem to do very well trade wise and would be worth getting in touch with.
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Its a pleasure.
Actually the game using points for colours and types of vehicle came from the long journeys my family made when I was a child and we drove from Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire to Cornwall in an old Dormobile caravan that cruised at 50mph. We used to make words out of car number plates too
the kids have decided they want to try to spot the 3 different types, trad, semi trad and cruiser. plus will be trying to write down boat names to see if we can look them up and if they blog!!
When I was a nipper on boat holidays, we would spend the weekend before we went making small woooden boats out of off cuts of wood, we'd then tow them alongside the boat when we went, quite old fashioned, but fun.
The "spotting" thing is well worth it, boats with the same name as members of the family etc. One that I still do now in my canoe is tennis ball spotting. See how many you can spot in a day (the Medway is a hotspot for ball spotters).
I'm also going with Excellence Afloat, weekend of 17 - 20th May on their little one. I'm glad to have read so many positive things about them.
Have fun!
you will really enjoy the week on their boat, they are well fitted and clean and so easy to steer.Have a great weekend and let me know how you get on!! Where are you planning on going?
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I have no doubt they have done the trip in the allotted time before but have they done it in the allotted time and allowed time for the young ones to visit/take part in activities off the boat to prevent boredom?
A number of posters have pointed out the need for visiting parks baths etc.
my kids have always been bought up in the countryside so I have no doubt that they will find things on the towpaths to keep them amused, we have scheduled a couple of stops at parks.
I've got young kids the same age. They rarely help with locks....preferring to stay inside the boat until we stop. Once we've stopped they jump out and find things on the towpath to play with. If it wasn't for the things we have on the boat they would get very bored. They've got books, colouring stuff, toys, balls, lego, etc. We've also got some throws on the boat which I use to make little dens for them. We've got all the tech stuff as well but we have usage limits at home so they don't expect any more on the boat.
The main thing we've found with the kids is that 8am-6pm cruising is out of the question. We tend to set off at about 10am and finish at around 4pm (actually that's a long day for us). It probably sounds like a hardship to do such short days but we've come to enjoy them as much as the kids.
If we get good weather then the kids love ice cream. They normally follow that with a good session with some bubble machines on the front of the boat (outside). Picnics and BBQ's go down very well. Despite all the non boat type things we do they still love being on the boat.
Enjoy the trip but don't forget to do it at the kids pace rather than adult pace. Ignore those who are racing around the canals. It's about enjoying the trip....not about how far you get. The kids may love doing 10 hours cruising a day....but mine don't.
Drop me a message if you've got any other questions about kids on boats (as I said mine are almost exactly the same age - and I've got a third who's slightly younger).
Cheers,
Dave
thanks for that, early starts wont be a problem as my 2 are always up and raring to go by 6 am!! insomniacs!! we have taken the kids for walks along the towpaths and they have become great at helping single handed boaters to do the locks, loving every minute. I have got quite fit chasing them from lock to lock!!
they have sorted a rota of whos doing locks and whos helping to drive on what days, so just think it is the long stretches inbetween locks that will be the boredom test. drawing and DVD seem to be high on their list of things to take!
My son is interested in buildings so we are going to go slow through the towns so he can look up names and what they are and write them down for investigatipon at a later date.
thank you and if I get stuck I will certainly be back to you for ideas!!
Things to do while travelling between locks....
How about small reference books that helps young-uns to identify trees, wild flowers, and other plants. The boat will be going slow enough to give them time to look them up - or they could photograph them and then save the photos to look things up on the internet.
Use passing boats to your advantage - make games like allotting points for boat colours. 10 points for common colours like green but 50 points for rare colours like purple. Consecutive boats with the same colour doubles the standing score. Carry the score over to the following day or begin again and try to beat the previous day's score
Help your kids to take an interest in boats by giving different numbers of points for design features like trad, semi-trad, and cruiser sterns. Tug deck or well deck. Chimneys that identify solid fuel stoves, numbers of chimneys, portholes.
Deduct points for Rosie and Jim on display
Make up stories up incorporating boat names and the characters driving the boats according to what they are wearing or what they can read from body language
Fantastic Ideas!! I have written them down and will talk to kids about how to put this in to practice!! going to go buy a book on trees an a moment!!
have thought about getting a little camera for them so they can take pics of their travels and see how many different things they can spot of interest!
thank you for a fab response!!
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Firstly an excellent choice of hire company - lovely boats!
I would doubt the kids will get bored, but it depends really on how good they are at amusing themselves and much they need to be kept amused. our first time boating with kids was with older teenagers and we feared this too - but they loved it, it was unique to them at the time and they revelled in it.
Difference was of course they could do the locks and bridges on their own so little chance to get bored really, but no reason why as you have already discovered why they can't 'help'
You might want to arm yourself with a couple of cheap binos and some wildlife/bird spotting books to stave off any boredom on some of the more quiet stretches.
And avail yourself of the life jackets the hire co. provide - when we have youngsters on the boat the rule was normally - 'outside the boat life jackets on, inside you can take 'em off', especially important around the locks and bridges which is where most accidents seem to happen.
Enjoy your break
we went with this company as Mark has hired this boat from them twice before and found it fabulous.
Yes the rule will be life-jackets on if outside at all times.
ah good idea I have a couple of little binos in the wardrobe somewhere I will hunt them out x
thank you xx
We started cruising with young children and whilst they were interested in helping they got bored on the long sections between locks. What we did was:-
Find out where the canal side activities are.
Most boat yards have a shop that sells ice ice cream etc
Find out where the parks are -there's a park in Napton that's about 10 minutes walk from the canal. There's also one in Banbury - Spice ball park.
Find out where the swimming pools are. There's a leisure centre about 2 minutes from the canal in Banbury.
We had a TV on board so they could watch DVDs.
Craft activities...
Bird watching books etc so they can spot the different birds and animals.
Sweets and biscuits for bribes!
Depending on the time of the year I'd get them to walk along the tow path collecting blackberries etc so we could make a crumble for tea.
When we stopped I'd get them to help wash the boat and polish the brass work etc. Makes them feel part of the crew rather than passengers.
I used to put the tool box in the rear hatch (Trad stern) so they could stand on it and "steer" the boat. I would stand behind with hand on the tiller.
Have they read any Arthur Ransome (or had it read to them)?
thank you for your reply!!
I have got on my list craft stuff, drawing things, books, dvd's and DS for boy and teddys for girl!
Mark is going to let them try a bit of steering and they can help at locks.
Good to know there ids a park at Banbury!!
Sea Magnets are fun....off the end of a stick, and pull up nails and whatever from the bottom of the canal. Make them wear their life jacket though. Ours leaned over too far to see what he had caught. Splosh.
Create a game out of collecting kindling for firewood.
feed the geese/ducks etc
photography...cheap digital cameras nice for kids.
Luckily my teen can handle the widebeam as well as anybody, so in locks I leave him at the tiller and I do the paddles. Plus by now he knows all my little hand signals...like "the tv aerial is about to be ripped off under that low bridge..."
thanks for the reply!!
um magnets sound fun but think my 2 would both be sploshers!!
the idea of little cameras is a good one!!
hahahahaha like the hand signals message!!
Our children were about the same ages as yours when we had our first narrowboat holiday and they enjoyed it very much.
We did insist on them wearing life jackets, they are both strong swimmers from a very young age, but there was no helping at the locks if they did not wear them. When they were playing inside, we used to yell 'LOCK' to them and they rushed to put the jackets on.
Our daughter took it upon her to prepare lunch for us, some cup-a-soup, and sandwiches. She took great pleasure in cutting the sandwiches into quite a lot of tiny pieces, but who's complaining?
When you are to go to a pub, choose one with an children's play area so they can get rid off some energy.
We always had lots of paper and crayons to keep them busy, and books, as they like to read.
As said before, DVDs are nice as well.
And my Mum prepared a small case for them to take along, with small treats (some sweets, toys, games), and they were allowed one of those each day. She continued to do so for many years, and they loved that "Blue Case".
I'm a bit worried about your timing, to me it seems that your trip from Valley Cruisers to Banbury and back in a week is a bit optimistic. Canalplan says it takes 7 days, 4 hours when cruising for 7 hours a day. And that means cruising, and no time for swimming pools or other leasure activities during the day.
When hiring for a week, you'll have 6 full days for cruising, plus some hours on the first day after picking up the boat. Normally you'll have to hand in the boat round 9 in the morning on the last day.
You can do this trip in a week, but it will mean longer days (say 9 hours a day), and I'm not sure if this is liked by young children. We found it easier for them (and us) to do shorter days when the children were young and to allow plenty of time for playing in parks or on the towpath.
(Sorry to end in a pessimistic mood, just making sure you have a wonderful holiday)
Helen
thanks for your wonderful reply!
I hadnt thought about letting them help prepare for meal times!! they could be the runner for the flasks of tea for the driver!!
you have now got me looking at pubs where we intend to stop each night to see if they have play parks!!
As for the timing, thre big boys say they have done this trip in the alloted time before so I am taking their word for it x
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hi all, well end of may myself, my partner, our best friend and our 2 young kids 5 and 7 will be boating out from Excellence afloat at Valley cruises for a weeks hol down to Banbury and back. My partner Mark and our best friend have boated for years and I have been out a couple of times but this is kids first time. They both seemed to enjoy helping at the locks yesterday for a single boater ( I thanked him so much for letting the kids help him ) . I am worried however that they may get bored with long stretches without anything to do? any tips would be helpful.
As we are hoping to liveaboard in a few years time this is like a taster for the children.
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this has been really helpful as was going to ask the same question, could I also use the enamel paint to touch up the cans I have?
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well yes this seems okay, but if you want to live aboard then surely you already know that you will have to declutter and take only that that you really need. I will be downsizing from a 4 bed house to a 70 footer if all goes to plan, but with the help of a good fitter will make use of all possible space. I will have to as will be me, partner and 2 children on board!
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HI me and my partner are planning to aquire our own boat in the next five years to live aboard with our 2 children. We go up to Braunston a lot and have walked a lot of the canal towpaths there and near us on the Kennet and Avon. We will be attending the boat festival there in june!! My partner (Judith and MArk by the way ) has boated in the past but I am a novice! I have done locks a lot tho.
SM Hudson...
in General Boating
Posted
Have seen you out and about on the cut, a beautiful boat .