Bettie Boo

LMAO - but you all told me to read the threads B~

Thanks Ditchcrawler - I will check out that option on Monday Well the offer we made has been accepted based on a good pre-purchase survey. Survey is booked for the 10th, Insurance is all lined up, will need to finish packing up the house, sell/give away shed loads of stuff, get both pass ports sorted out before we become homeless and get 2 cats tagged. Oh and get the CaRT license of course. I'm still "hoping" we might be on in time for Christmas - or am I living in a dream world?? Pics to follow. BTW - what's C.W.D.F??? and wrap up warm??? I thought you lot said it didn't get cold on boats with MF stoves in the winter !!! Ta B~ Brilliant will give him a ring on Monday as well B~ here's a few pics of her

OMG what a disturbing thread!!! I really can't believe that some members of this forum have taken 7 pages of utter useless arguing over this tragic death, whose fault it was and who should take responsibility for it. I would suggest that we all should feel sadden by it and would hope that this man's demise would at the very least teach/enlighten other's to the dangers we all need to be aware of (whether from a personal or supplier stand point) don't let his passing be a waste. Gazza way back on pg 4 or 5 was pretty close in quoting the HSE directive. Whether you agree with it or not, it is English Law. Therefore if you consider, or would like to be considered as a "law abiding citizen" there isn't really any choice unless the law changes. If you don't agree with a law, I do believe you have a right to lobby your local congressman or local member of parliament to have the law changed. (good luck with that). Do I think H&S at times has gone to the extreme? The following statement found on a package of peanuts should answer that. "Caution the contents of this package may contain Nuts or their bi-products" Safety is everyone's responsibility. Individuals, employers, shop keepers, hire companies, public service providers etc etc Just my two pence worth B~

Hi All, Thank you so much for the suggestions so far. I was thinking Braunston to put her back in the water as we currently live in Coventry and will make it a short and easy trip to get our belongings onto the boat when it arrives. Spoke to a gentleman at Braunston late Friday afternoon and he said it was possible to put an 11' WB back in the water at their facility, but I would need to call back on Monday to speak to the person who is most knowledgeable in that area. Once our "stuff" is onboard we will indeed be CCers and the plan is over the course of the winter to make our way down to the K&A cruising in accordance with the planned stoppages, we are in no rush and appreciate that stops are maxed out at 14 days; again not a problem with our plans (as long as we don't get froze in somewhere, in which case I know we will need to contact CaRT). We don't have any type of mooring, are not planning to be bridge hoppers, and the plan is we will cruise the entire southern network, or the parts that can take an 11' boat safely anyway. From Bristol to Reading and up to Warwick - the idea is we cruise as much as possible this winter so when you kind folks, who aren't CCers make you way back to the canals in the spring, and see us give a wave, it will be in greeting rather than sheer panic Reason we are thinking of starting the haul from Chorley is simply due to the fact the boat is being pulled out this Friday (paid for by current owner) for reblacking and full pre purchase survey on the 10th. I didn't see the sense of then arranging for a crane to put her back in at Chorley so we could cruise her further south to be pulled back out again for the road haul to the GU. Does that make sense Again, as always thanks for you thoughts and advice - muchly appreciated B~

I'm not making a judgment one way or another, simply "trying" to follow this thread. Is the gist of it: -discussion on thread leads to difference of opinions -1 person, in said discussion takes exception to something someone else said -that person then sends a PM to the person they took exception with and amongst other things tells them to P**K **f? -person who received the PM either makes an official complaint or posts the PM on the original thread for others to see -Original thread is deleted as it contains strong profanity -This thread is started -Somehow a old radio show becomes the name and part of the topic -This somehow leads to a side discussion to the value, use and measure of swearing, cursing, profanity, adult language which ever term you want to use Have I got it right so far?? Do I dare ask what the original discussion was about in the first place without starting the whole thing off again? Thanks Phil for trying to explain B~ Edited for missing word in first sentence

Hi Debs, Welcome to the forum, I'm a novice myself so can only speak of the experiences hubby and I have had so far in looking for our dream boat. We've looked at both boats being sold via brokerage firms and private sales. We had our heart set on a WB we seen on the K&A (private sale), at the point of making an offer pending the outcome of a full pre purchase survey; the seller was Very reluctant to move the boat to either a marina or yard where the boat could be hauled out for said survey. Long story short, we ended up walking away even though the boat "looked to us" to be a perfect match to our requirements. We simply don't know enough about boats to risk our one and only chance at this new lifestyle change, by buying one without the expert advice of a surveyor. - Using a brokerage firm will hold any deposit you are required to make during the buying process and if for whatever reason you decide the boat isn't the one for you, "I believe" you are able to get your deposit refunded. With a private sale, you may find this is not so easy. - If you are new to boats as well as living on them, I would highly recommend setting yourself up with a surveyor once you find something you are interested in. There are numerous types of surveys you can get dependant on your own knowledge, the age of the boat etc etc. These range from just a hull survey, to a full pre-purchase survey. - Again, if this is all completely new to you, best advice I could give (from experience) is get out there, make as many appointments to see as many different style / size boats as you can, whether they are in your price range or not. Then you can decide which style suits you best. - Second best piece of advice one novice to another.....read as many of the different topics and threads in this forum as you can. Separate the wheat from the chaf, ignore as much as possible the bickering and squabbling as you can. If someone's reply seams sharpish or rude just ask them if they meant to be, in some cases it's just their sense of humor. There's an awful lot of nice, friendly and more than helpful ppl on this forum. But whatevery you do, never bring up types of loos - just read any of the numerous threads already in existence about this Very hot topic!! Loads of ppl will share their thoughts & opinions on which is best whether it be Narrow or Wide Beam; Trad, Semi Trad, or Curiser; Reverse layout or Trad Layout etc etc; but at the end of the day, it's whatever suits you and feels right for you that is what is most important. Best of Luck with your search B~

Hi All, Looking to get quotes from Road haulage firms to move a 57 x 10'10" Widebeam, 22 ton, from Chorley to Braunston. I've done a search on Google to find firms, but looking for advice / experiences here as to which firms others have used in the past and would recommend to others. Also, do the haulage firms arrange the crane out / in at each end as part of the service; or is that something I will need to organize with the two locations? (I've been told; rightly or wrongly doesn't really matter, that there is a way we could cruise to the K&A from Chorley, but would involve an Estuary which being novices, is of no interest to us at this point in time) Ta B~

As we are planning to be CCer's & I don't want an unsightly (to me) roof, but appreciate we will need to stow some items on it; this is the Best idea I've come across. You should Paten this Julynian!! So glad I took the time to read through the 6 or 7 useless pages of banter, arguing and sarcasm before reaching it - goes to show reading the entire thread is well worth it sometimes B~

Congrats - Really glad it all worked out for you B~

See this thread is making me feel we are buying and moving on board at the perfect time of year - much less on the canals for us to run into while we learn the art of cruising Beautiful pictures by the way B~

ok hubby's out, so I can't ask him. I've googled Goon UK. Is it a radio show your all talking about? B~

I appreciate this is slightly but as we get ever closer to this crazy dream of ours, we've started making the lists of all the things we need to do before actually becoming liveaboards. Obviously that list contains many items regarding Gabby & Zebby our two cats whom have shared their lives with us since they were 7 week old kittens. That was 13 & 1/2 years ago. Here's where I need your advice / suggestions please..... - They will both be tagged and instead of an address it will be 2 phone numbers, one of a land based friend and the other my mobile (Dave tends to loose or break his) No problem with this point - They have never even seen a cat flap before. With that said, they are quite accustomed to coming and going as they please when they want outside via a back room window in the warmer months. The boat we have put an offer on has wooden doors (with windows) to the cratch with a cratch cover and wood lined steel doors to the helm. I "presume" Cat Flaps are installed most often on the bow end rather than the stern when this is the set up?? Has anyone had any experience with training quite mature cats on the use of Cat Flaps? - I'm thinking the best way of rescuing them from the canal when they fall in is a fishing/butterfly net type thing? Zebby tends to be rather clumsy most of the time. I appreciate he will need to see the Vet after going into the canal due to the nasty bug that harbours there (sorry forget what it's called, but have seen it mentioned in other threads) - We've started training them that the sound of a hand bell we have means there is either Tuna or Chicken in their dishes and that seems to be working well. Hoping it will work when they decide it would be a nice time to explore the nearest hedgerow and we want to set off for the days cruising. - I've picked out two new "hooded litter trays" for them, one for the bathroom and the other for the cratch (it's a Trad stern, so no space out there for it) What else do I need to consider to make the change for them a least traumatic as possible? Ta B~

LOL Well in my defence, I did say "puncture" instead of "a flat tire tyre" B~

Ok, just to make sure I've got this correct.... When we do get the boat and move aboard, over and above the really big 3 safety concerns that I was already aware of (fire, sinking & carbon monoxide poisoning) you kind folks have enlightened me by reading the different posts that there are indeed at least 4 more to be considered..... 1) Although the thought of going through tunnels already had me terrified, I never once considered the thought that we may be met by a boat coming towards us in the opposite direction, and then to add to that little revelation, I find out that people take canoes, dinghy's and small power boats through OMG do they realize there are people just learning how to handle 22 tons of floating steel using the same tunnels???? 2) I now informed on this thread I could either be ran over by "Hells Angles" racing and doing "wheelies" on bicycles as I'm walking back from the pub in the dark because I forgot my flashlight in the pub 3) I need to watch out for hidden booby traps (lightly buried boards with nails sticking up) as I push the bicycle along the towpath in my sandaled feet because I've bought too much shopping to ride the bike - hence ending up with a nail in my foot and punctured tires as well 4) If When I fall into the canal, there's some nasty bug which I will more than likely get because I've screamed entering the water and swallow a couple of mouthfuls and will need to go to the hospital Never mind the Helmsman course - there should be Health warning, and advise to take out Major health/life insurance on all those sites you read when thinking of making this lifestyle change, you know the ones....they warn you about the unpleasantness of emptying the cassettes, getting set up with a doctor, no post code etc etc B~

Right you are MtB - it is indeed hard to find a good "cookie" over here - I tend to make my own.....Peanut Butter cookie's, Ginger snaps, Chocolate chip cookie's, Butter Pecan cookie's, Cinnamon snap's, Maple cookie's, Oatmeal & Raisin cookie's, Walnut Snowball cookie's Ohhhhh - I'm off to do some baking, just made myself very hungry for homemade cookie's - English sweet biscuits are good for dunking, and your cheese biscuits are Great for cheese (much better than across the pond), but Nothing beats a homemade cookie for a treat with a glass of milk B~

the first year I was here, about this time of year I said to Dave one day "we should go to the hardware store this weekend and buy an axe", (we were living in a maisonette at the time, with not 1 tree in the garden), his obvious reply was "what do we need an axe for?" knowing he didn't own any tools at the time; I looked at him questioningly and replied "well I'd thought we could go out the last weekend of the month to some near by woods, and chop down our Christmas tree" - resulting in fits of laughter while he explained to me yet another difference between England and East coast Canada B~

Great Link - thanks Rob B~

Too Funny

Hi All, Thank you so much for the info. I was able to secure Trevor Whitling services late this afternoon, and yes he does sound extremely knowledgeable, helpful and understanding on the phone. I've given him all the detail re: the boat being a self build being sold under 5 years, the link for the boat details as well as us being both complete novices. Not that it's the "beat all to end all", but might be of useful information to someone in the future, I was pleasantly surprised by the quote he gave me compared to some I had for another boat we were looking at in the south from other surveyors. The insurance people are happy as they have dealt with Trevor many times in the past and confirmed all the positive comments that I have seen written about him on the forum. They suggested I ask Trevor to have a once over the RCD & original bill of sale from Cutter's to the current seller, I explained that Trevor had already said he would do this for us. And finally spoke to the seller and again he has confirmed All the RCD paperwork, Builders Plate, original bill of sale will all be waiting for us on the boat on the day of the survey. I've given him the dates that Trevor is available & he's calling back tomorrow to let me which of these dates the boat will be out of the water. What a day of Great results - it's all beginning to feel rather real now Can you tell I'm getting just a little excited? B~