Dav and Pen
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Posts posted by Dav and Pen
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There used to be one on the R. Nene above Beckets park lock. It was only used to get people across to the Greyhound tack on race days.
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Today in 2017 we are climbing up the Ouche valley on the Burgundy canal. Here at Velars Sur Ouche there is one of the few places I know of where you can stop outside a supermarket. This chain is also the cheapest for diesel.
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Not on a canal but thought might be of interest. This is the floating bridge at the entrance to Curaçao harbour . The whole thing has to be opened for ships to pass through, this one is a modern replacement for the one I first saw in 1958 from a Shell Tanker.
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Today in 2006 on our way back to Antwerp. Unloading iron ore on the Albert Canal near Liege.
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Today in 2017 afloat again and getting ready to leave the dry dock. They have to lift the bridge and stop the road traffic so we can reverse out.
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New Prop being fitted in 2017. They needed to bring out the big spanner
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In Belgium there’s a crossing of the tidal river Yser on the route from Bruges to Dunkirk. Can be a bit tricky.
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2 hours ago, Stroudwater1 said:
Aha, true, but what Alton did the name come from? It seems unclear looking at the names that the GCC motor boats were given as the names appear to an uninitiated me to be random cities towns urban areas and villages. Alton Towers was a significant mansion well before the rides came with notable gardens that are grade 1 listed and nearish the canal so my hunch is from there? Was Nutfield named after Nutfield Priory or the village (Or neither...)?
Alton was one of the Town class boat so it would be safe to assume that It’s not the Alton Towers. I had never heard of the town of Tadworth until we brought the boat and had to look up where it was. Nutfield was not part of this fleet and could easily have been simply named after a local spot.
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Alton to me is the Grand Union motorboat which started the Narrow Boat Trust.
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Today in 2007 we moored next to Tam and Di’s Friesland at La Truchere on the R.Seille where they had just brought an old house which was starting to be renovated and where they now live for much of the year.
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In 2017 in the dry dock at St Jean de Losne. The surveyor decided that we needed a new stern bearing, although I thought there was very little movement, but as it’s was a survey for insurance and for the European certificate I had to give in. Funny that although you employ the surveyor they always seem to find extra work for the yard. Not suggesting anything underhand of course.The prop was damaged and we had brought a new one from UK as it was zero vat.
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This morning in 2007 the quay at Tornus. It’s clear from the height of the wall that this place often has big floods.
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21 minutes ago, David Mack said:
Some years ago, towing a disabled boat on a long line I had an oncoming grp cruiser pass me on the correct side, but then tried to pass the towed boat on the wrong side! I don't think he had even seen the towline.
This is even more interesting when it happens in Braunston tunnel and the cruiser didn’t understand what I tried to tell him as the Butty was just in the Bend . He bounced off the rope, the wall and the butty.
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Today in 2007 we had stayed overnight in the old lock at Gigny sur Saone a nice quiet place with a cafe in the old lock house. When the river was deepened and upgraded this lock was bypassed and a new big lock is a couple of Kms south.
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I think there is a reluctance to use the horn generally on the canals. If there’s a blind bend or bridge it’s best to assume you will meet something and you can often see by the water movement that there is someone around. This is the time to give a long blast and work out who is going downstream as they have the right of way unless I was on a loaded boat! We left the English canals some years ago as I’m afraid the number of badly moored boats and the shear numbers of them and the selfishness was spoiling the pleasure we had always had.
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Today in 1979 At Aston on Trent. We had finished camping boating and decided to load at Stenson and see if there were any customers on the way to Braunston via the Soar. Credit to the photographer.
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1 hour ago, LadyG said:
The Union flag upside down is a distress signal, but it's hardly a good signal.
I m not sure about flag etiquette of random unregistered boats on inland waters.
I've furled my red ensign, the flagstaff is very short.
At sea, I would lower the ensign at eight pm, as is normal when in harbour , or at sunset if under way.The flagstaff would be such length that it could be lowered to half mast, or dipped when a RN vessel is passing.
We used to dip the ensign when we passed another of the companies fleet. Always a contest to see who could get aft first. When we had a trip on Vic 32 the puffer a nuke submarine was coming in the opposite direction, I said we should dip the ensign which we did prompting panic in the conning tower as they had no flag flying.
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Today in 2005 on the Belgian Meuse. Herself asked if we could tie alongside the tanker barge which was easier for her. They told us to go first but soon overtook.We are actually sandwiched between two big barges.
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Nice painting on the summit lock office of the canal du Centre France. One side to the Med other to the Atlantic. Today 2013
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The quay at Givet on the French Belgian border today 2004
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Biggest load I ever had on a big Northwich motor was 26 tons (which was a mistake) and managed to get it from Hillmorton to Braunston and after selling a couple of tons got as far as Wigrams where luckily sold 3 tonnes. Think max across the Oxford summit was around 18 tons but that probably meant a couple of visits to the bank at the tight bends. This was the mid 1970s
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At the big Ashtac on the Ashton canal in 1972 amongst all the bikes shopping trolleys and assorted rubbish an unexplored bomb was uncovered. The volunteer dug it out and 2 of them carried it up to the towpath to show it to a policeman. The whole thing was captured on a film and the look on the coppers face when he realised what they had is brilliant. WRG had the film but don’t know if it survived.
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Today in 2004 on the Belgian R. Sambre. Commercials can’t move on Sundays so we had the lock to ourselves and they used the middle gate.
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Crazy price and what’s that horrible think at front of cabin
Tonic required. Send in your photos of what is nice on the waterways now.
in General Boating
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Today 2017 climbing towards the summit with the lock keepers on scooters.