martin_bristow

Dear all, My sincere apologies for my delay in writing - I've had no internet access since my last post. I want to thank everyone who has offered support and advice - thats what led me here. I particularly want to thank magnetman - YOU ARE A COMPLETE STAR . I am grateful to the others who looked but missed her as the cratch was missing and of course the colour had changed. It turns out that Selkie was stolen just before Christmas. I discovered her missing just afterwards when I went to do my regular checks and do some work on her. Looks like I have a lot of work to do now as she has been sanded and covered in bitumen black! Any advice? I would be very grateful if anyone has had experience with Bitumen. Q: Diesel and White Spirit do appear to melt it, but does anyone have any other suggestions for removing it without using these nasty substances or stripping off the Selkie's paintwork? Q: I was reading the posts about alarms and security. Does anyone have any suggestions as to a good resource or boat alarm manufacturer? My very sincere thanks once again, I am very happy to have her back.

Thankyou all for your responses. I promise that I am following up on all the advice given. I am trying to create a photo account to upload other pictures (from a very slow dial-up connection) - I'll let you know as soon as they are up. Thanks again.

Hello, I am grateful to Robert at Priory Marina who replied to a "HELP" e-mail and suggested I check your forum as someone else had managed to trace their stolen boat “CRAGDALE” with the help of members of this forum. Selkie is our 60ft Semi-Traditional Steel Narrowboat built by Liverpool Boats in 2003. I last checked her at her berth in Harefield Marina, near Uxbridge, on the 11th November, but when I went to check on her on the 27th December I was devastated to discover that she had been stolen. Having spoken to many people and BWB, I understand that she may have been repainted, and that her custom features may be my best hope of identifying her: Sides: 4 porthole style and 3 rectangular brass effect windows; 3 porthole style and 3 rectangular brass effect windows. Roof: 4 mushroom vents; A chimney at the front corner; A TV antenna at the front; A sunroof towards the centre; A Houdini hatch towards the back. If it still counts, her main colour is green, with red and cream borders and a cream name plate on the semi-trad section. I would very much appreciate any help or advice you can give us in recovering Selkie. The marina think they may have seen her in the last 2 weeks, but are unsure as there are so many boats at Harefield. I have been very heartened by the help and support given by various people connected with the waterways and really hope Selkie could be another successful recovery case. I am grateful to Melvin Ashton at Bluewater Marina who has created a web page with other pictures at www.bluewatermarina.co.uk/selkie. Thanks again for any help. Martin