Emerald Fox

I did not know there was another thread from last June about the Bridgewater - Rochdale 'trapped-and-squatting' unfortunates. Could a wide beam not go to Todmorden and park there until the landslip at Lock 15 is cleared? May be many months! Years, even! You just say to CRT "I'm going to Sowerby Bridge / Brighouse / Leeds but you haven't cleared the canal." May I point out here that the Rochdale Canal seems to be rather 'sick' between Lock 12 and Sowerby Bridge - our draught is 1-foot 11 inches and we made it quite happily after the Boxing Day floods, but boats of deeper draught may be scraping the bottom all the way. We visited the centre of Manchester for a day and I thought it wasn't as bad as people make out. Bell ringing at the cathedral (Hell - I mentioned religious stuff!) and there are many trains to take you away to nicer spots.

I've never thought about this junction before. I did look at Canal Planner and yes, there are 9 locks west of this little basin, these locks belonging to the Roachdale before it makes an end-on-end join with the Bridgewater. Is it true that with a CRT licence you can only be on the Bridgewater for 7 days IN ONE YEAR ??? (10pm - severely edited after having read Dean's thread from June 2015 and having become much wiser!)

It's these that eat yoghurt pots

You simply tell them that YOU have paid for use of the bank via your licence fee. And that they should be grateful for it.

How exactly are the Rochdale Canal and Ashton Canal joined? Canal Planner suggests Ducie Street Junction. Does anyone have photos or videos showing this link? Seems to be some kind of tunnel?

??? That's Dean's criminal activity. What's that to do with this?

Boaters sneak into the woods and gather branches they find laying on the ground. They call it 'foraging' but if you do the same in Tescos it's called STEALING. It's all a bit long - but you could drop it down the chimney vertically, eh?

1. Is 'sunny' his forename or surname? That just won't do! What did it say on his identification - just 'sunny' ? 2. For what reason did he ban your friend from the canal? You just need an ordinary CRT licence to allow 7 days on the Bridgewater. 3. Moored up where? And why would 'sunny' just bang on someone's boat and say "Your (sic) taking the piss." ? 4. Do you have anything in writing from Peel Holdings about this? 5. Have you written to Peel Holdings about this? 6. Has your friend been taking the piss? What do you think? Methinks there's more to this than the eye meets... 3 options? Via the Moon? Rochdale Canal landslip Lock 15. No-one ain't going nowhere.

Those people demanding the 40 Pounds should be named and a complaint sent to Peel and CRT. Perhaps they were passers-by and were trying to take advantage? Or did they have Peel identification? Always ask for identification and peoples' names! Peel Holdings is a company with a suspicious history. The Isle of Man is a tax-avoiding den. "If I had been approached about overstaying I would have asked to see the photos of the signs at all three access points. I'd have refused to pay the £40 and requested they email me the court appearance date." Too right! But facts are needed, not hearsay. And who is going to do anything about this?

But, all in all, what's wrong with 'overcharging' a bit? it's all money into the waterways system, and I bet those working at the boatyards don't get astronomical wages. Someone has had to drag that coal all the way from Poland. I remember reading a thread about coals and Taybrite was branded as 'poor', being composed of miscellaneous stuff - some of it even being coal. Pureheat and Excel seemed to come out tops. We have used P & E and no complaints from us. No experience with Taybrite. Does Which? magazine have an article comparing coals? This is really an issue that needs to be dealt with properly. Those rich Australians and Americans, by renting hire boats, are supporting the canals by pumping their Dollars and Kangaroo-Dollars into the system. Shame they smash up all the bridges and lock gates though.

Birch, plane, alder, spruce, pine. That's about 3 year's worth. Our house has a big stove in the middle and when it's minus 25 Centigrade a 'nest' of wood (maybe 30 pieces of wood) is burnt and when the ashes are not glowing anymore a steel plate is slid across the chimney keeping the heat in which circulates in the 'double skinned' stove. The bricks retain the heat and give it out gradually. There are electric radiators attached to the walls all round the house but these almost never come on as the stove does the lot. We just have T-shirts on here in mid-Winter. British houses are freezing inside!! We just had 2 nights in a B&B in England and wish we had brought our own hot water bottles with us! When I was a teenager my dad's second wife used to say "Put another sweater on." - Well, that's stupid: I say "Turn the heating up!". How can you concentrate on doing your homework when your nose is cold? Houses in Britain are built poorly. In Scandinavia buildings are constructed with proper insulation and 3 panes of glass in windows. Vehicles get plugged into the 240v electricity - engine water gets heated and there's an inside fan to warm up the air inside. The sauna has obviously developed from Siberia where it's blooming cold (as a third of Finns came from Siberia, according to genetic analysis). It's simply a warm room where you can get out of the cold and a clean place where women can have babies. The only country in the world to have a different word for sauna are the Swedes - they just have to be awkward - they call it 'bastu'. That's one reason why Finns think Swedes are absurd. Sauna is NOT a luxury - it's just a room with raised benches and a stove (electric or wood heated) at which you chuck spoonfuls of water. A little vodka and beer, and sauna is a nice place to have a chat and a think. Why the Brits are so against saunas and heating their cars with electricity which is so easily available, and environmentally better, is beyond me. We should really take the best of both countries. Finland should really have nice pubs as in Britain - but is lacking in this department. Finland has a nationwide good mobile phone and internet data network - Britain is complete crap in this. Why? Neither country is better than the other in my experience, but I do think it's wasted opportunities not to grasp the good ideas and incorporate them into your own culture.

You showed me yours and I'll show you mine https://goo.gl/photos/WWab3bzGUNWvCf4w9 I admit a lot are round and not split but they are thin; the thickies are always split. Fire going at the moment. It's handy when one's girlfriend owns a forest (taken a few minutes ago, it's still -6 Centigrade here)

Is that the Lidl fake copy? Or did you mean Stihl ?

http://www.abcboatsales.com/marinas/worcester-marina/ In what way are they unfriendly?

Why do so many boaters have logs uncovered on their roofs cut into cylindrical lengths? The rain leaches them causing unsightly stains on the paintwork, and because the logs haven't been split they ain't gonna dry out! Split 'em and cover them with a tarpaulin. And buy a proper chainsaw like a Husqvarna, not a silly battery-operated-Made-in-China piece of plastic from Lidl.

Pureheat 11.50/sack from the coal merchants in Hebden Bridge, right next to the railway station. Handy if you have a boat in the area - coal is heavy but you can also get logs and kindling from them - logs 5.00 net, kindling 4.00 sealed in plastic with carry handle. Kindling Sowerby Bridge petrol station on Halifax - Mytholmroyd road: 6.95/bag and less than what's in the bags from the coal merchants at Hebden Bridge. I laughed and walked away.