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TheBiscuits

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Posts posted by TheBiscuits

  1. 47 minutes ago, IanD said:

    fees will go up, there will be a CC surcharge, and widebeams will be charged more -- all as predicted.

     

    And the electric boat discount remains.

     

    So ideally you'd want an electric narrow boat with a home mooring.

     

    Oh, wait ... ;)

     

     

    • Haha 1
  2. 1 minute ago, IanD said:

    Thanks for the warning -- what was wrong at the Bridge, recent comments look quite good? Any other good mooring suggestions between there and Wigan Top Lock?

     

    Lousy beer.  Not been back this year so no idea if it's better/worse/under new management/turned into flats ...

     

    Depends on what you want from a mooring.  I quite like mooring near the golf course at Haigh Hall, but it's a mile and a bit to anywhere if you need anything.  If you're dashing for home you'll not have time to amble around Haigh Woodland Park anyway.

     

    The VM at the top of Wigan Flight is as good as anywhere if you want a quick start the following day.  There's also a bus to Wigan Central (https://wigancentral.bar/) if you mistime it for the festival. ;)

     

     

  3. Just now, IanD said:

     

    Hmm, interesting, Adlington is a possible stop -- was thinking of the Red House VMs and the Bridge Inn, but Adlington station is only a five minute walk away...

     

    The Bridge was dire last year, not been back since.

     

    Chorley has a better selection of alehouses and good pubs, and is only another stop ...

  4. 4 minutes ago, IanD said:

    Should be plenty of beer on board... 😉

     

    P.S. Beer festival is also nowhere near the canal, assuming it's the Bolton one!

     

    Train from Adlington, two stops ...

     

    Yes, Bolton Wanderers ground.  Usually around 150+ different cask ales as it includes the SIBA North West regional competition.

  5. I've never really understood this heating by calendar thing that some people do. If it's cold, warm the place up a bit.

     

    Admittedly there are some who run heating/stove just to avoid putting a jumper on, but when you're considering salopettes it's not being a wuss to warm up!  You're not obliged to keep it in until April just because you lit it once.

     

    I have seen some people stick a couple of large candles inside the stove to get the cheery flicker on a dank day.  I might have to try this to see if it fools me into thinking it's warmer ...

    • Greenie 2
  6. 4 hours ago, Mike Todd said:

    And usually so close to the bridge that it would take a snail to be that long getting there.

     

    Stop canoe/kayak, climb out, either pick up boat or deploy portage trolley, walk to other side of bridge with canoe, put back in water, climb in again, set off.

     

    I challenge you to do this in under 2 minutes for a standard L&L swingbridge.  That's what you are calling snails pace.

     

    In practice of course, most canoes/kayaks/boards just lie down and go under the bridge if possible, but some of the bridges have big girders and sticking out bolts underneath them.

     

    It's a liability CYA exercise from CRT.

    • Greenie 1
  7. 12 minutes ago, Jon57 said:

    Lots of these signs on the Leeds Liverpool just before most of the decommissioned swing bridges. Totally pointless. IMG_20230918_125157.thumb.jpg.d01000ad41d01198fe683cb62b330422.jpg

     

    Not all the "decommissioned" swingbridges are decommissioned.  Some of them are usually left open but the landowner can and does swing it when wanting to use it.

     

    Admittedly the signs are also near the ones with trees growing through the bridge deck too.  The vollies who erected them did ask what the point of some of them was, but were told to do them anyway!

     

     

     

  8. 42 minutes ago, LadyG said:

    Thirty million people can't be wrong, or can they?

     

    Assuming that's the number of Gregg's customers, it suggests that the other forty million or so in the country don't ever go there ... 🤔

    • Greenie 1
  9. On 16/09/2023 at 11:14, Peanut said:

    Furthermore, they require a qualified installer for the initial installation, and to deal with most of the fault codes from the electronics, including a 1200 to1400-hour service.

     

    What, every day, noon till 2pm?

    Get the service chap to refuel it while he's there and you won't need the electronics ... 

  10. 1 hour ago, Alan de Enfield said:

     

     

    If there is no electricity, gas, or fuel sytems installed then there is nothing for the examiner to examine. No need for a BSS.

     

    Same as you don't need a BSS fo an 'open boat'** powered by an outboard.

     

    Or even a boat with an open cabin (aka 'cuddy)

     

    I'm pretty sure you need a BSS on a boat with an enclosed cabin though, even if the entire checklist is marked "Not Present"

     

    And the correct labels on the water and diesel filler, obviously!

     

    Less sarcastically, an enclosed cabin will need fire extinguishers, smoke alarms, CO alarms.  If there's a battery to run eg lights and water pump that will need to comply.

  11. 2 hours ago, M_JG said:

    A MH or caravan is an ideal way to smuggle someone across the channel or for someone to stowaway

     

    A friend of mine brought back a box trailer from his place in France and rather than run empty filled it with well seasoned oak firewood.

     

    The organic matter scanner at the ferry port lit up like a Christmas tree and border control made him unload the entire 8ft x 6ft x 8ft trailer to prove there wasn't anybody hiding in it!

     

    He doesn't bring any back now ...

     

     

     

  12. 45 minutes ago, MtB said:

    £12.50 per day per boat. That might help reduce the attractiveness of living aboard in the capital.

     

    Not sure about that.

     

    There have been a couple of boats who spotted that the £25/day overstay charge on visitor moorings effectively grants permission to stay if you pay so do.

     

    Also £12.50 per day is ~£380 a month.  You won't find many other places to live at that rate in that London area.

  13. 2 minutes ago, buccaneer66 said:

    pineapple winr works out very well, I used cartons of unsweetened juice, the fermentation was so violent it feremted out in less that a week, I had to change the airlock everyday as it was like a eruption.

    It made a very strong dry wine.

     

    Yeah, I did a Wurzel's with pineapple once.  Then I cleaned up and painted the ceiling again ... 

     

  14. 4 hours ago, Sea Dog said:

    I didn't flag this sign as useless, but then my boat actually is about 17.5 metres! :D

     

    3 hours ago, Tonka said:

    The tunnel width signs are in metric & imperial.  This should be the same

     

    17 metres and 17 inches? :D

     

  15. On 05/01/2010 at 21:02, Moley said:

     

    Not a lot around at the moment, plenty of parsnips and cheap carrots but you're looking at 6-12 months to make anything decent from them.

     

    For a fairly quick and stupidly easy wine which is ready for drinking in 1-2 months, is surprisingly good and usually works out around 45p a bottle, take a look at Wurzel's Orange.

     

    Ignore the brand names, any supermarket juices will do just fine.

     

    1 litre white grape juice

    1 litre orange juice

    around 750g sugar

    Pectolase, tannin (or a mug of strong black tea), yeast, nutrient and glycerine.

     

    Simples :lol:

     

     

    Edit: Alternate link

    Fruity pink variant, half way down the first post. I've just started 6 gallons but quantities can be scaled down.

     

    Bumping this recipe as it's back on topic

    • Greenie 1
  16. 23 minutes ago, hypnoticmonkey said:

    It has been suggested that some users may enjoy a thread specifically for homebrewing. 

     

    Its a hobby I used to do a lot of around 2009-2013 but haven't don't for best part of a decade. 

     

    @Moley pretty much taught me everything I know about winemaking.

     

    I'm currently brewing a few things, if anyone wants the recipes let me know. 

     

    Here's what I've got on the go:

     

    - Wurzel's Orange Wine (WOW) with red grape juice instead of white

    - Apple Juice and Black Grape Juice 

    - Rose hip and lavender (experimental sparkling)

    - blackberry and cherry

    - rhubarb and plum

     

    Each one is one gallon, so 6 bottles per batch. 

     

    I used to make WoW by the 5 gallon bucketload until Aldi stopped doing their excellent and cheap pure white grape juice.

     

    5 gallons is not much more effort, and lasts nearly twice as long as one gallon ;)

     

    Where are you getting your grape juice from?  It should look a bit like a rosé when it's done.

     

    Also, I didn't realise @Moley was a boater, but it's a familiar name from the other topic-specific forum! 

     

    Having just seen the rumours he's stopped doing wine and is making beer, maybe I should invite him to join SIBA as a homebrewing member ...

  17. 28 minutes ago, MtB said:

    I expect the reporter concerned made the same mistake, and I suspect it is the K&A Trust who are doing all the practical work of clearing up the towpath. 

     

    Actually reading it again, that's a vox pop quote from a random local. 

     

    Maybe CRT need more blue signs in the area ... 😁

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