Mad Harold

Yorkshire is God's own county! It's just the fact that there are lots of hills. Canals that transit hilly country have lots of locks that need maintainance, which they are not getting. I fully understand Midnight's frustration, having parted with a load of money for a boat, a licence,mooring and insurance, then only being able to cruise to the nearest pub, is really annoying.

Sound advice. Been looking for another boat for some time now, (not a steel narrowboat, but a grp cruiser) and although there have been three or four boats advertised ( on Facebook Marketplace) that on paper are suitable at the right price, they have gone before I can arrange a viewing. Two went after one day and others after a couple of days. It seems my requirements are the same as many other people's and I am not moving quickly enough. There are of course boats on Facebook that have been there for several weeks, but that is usually because they are either overpriced, or are varying degrees of project. Must try to get my backside into gear quicker!

They may have thought you were poor starving itinerant boaters and thought they were being kind to you.😃

Not boating, but I used to ride my motorbike along a 50mph limit road with several residental side roads joining it. What used to piss me off the most,was cars coming up to the main road too fast and braking hard at the last minute. I didn't know if they had seen me and were going to stop, so I fitted a very loud air horn and if aproaching a side road with a car either waiting or coming up to the main road, I would give a long blast of the horn. It cetainly drew attention to my presence, but there was one occasion when a car was creeping slowly out of a side road, with the driver's head looking the other way,I gave a blast and came to a halt. (Luckily I was going slowly at the time) I was then treated to a barrage of verbal abuse " Don't blow your F- ing horn at me.I F-ing saw you" So no, you can't win whatever you do. However,I have survived to draw my pension, so I would rather have verbal abuse than slamming into the side of a car.

From the above replies to your query, it sounds to me that you are letting yourself in for some massive headaches. I wouldn't even consider doing it.

The metal must have been very thin to be holed by a rock or shopping trolley! It is an old Springer though. The problem with arranging a survey on a new purchase, is the time it can take. Booking a surveyor, and dry dock/lift out to coincide, can be weeks or even months.In the meantime someone who takes a risk may buy the boat without a survey, and have the survey later for full insurance cover. Probably what this chap intended.

You can buy a windlass holster to fit to your belt. I had one,but it only lasted a year. Being a Yorkshire tightarse, rather than buying another, I used a length of rope with a suitable loop tied in for the windlass, and the ends tied together and hung over my shoulder and down to my hip for the windlass to hang there. You can then climb lock ladders and cross lock gates hands free.

Lend Me Your Aid by Gounod. 😞

Where did you buy it? Can you get me a 26ft GRP cruiser for a fiver? Don't mind if the engine is knackered. 😃

Can you get a phone signal in Saltersford Tunnel?

Thats about the only bit of the HNC that can be used at the moment! 😞

When the passengers are asked to help with the swing bridges, they may be a little less happy!

Put a new rubbing strip on my old Norman, and initially glued it in the groove with Stixall. However it wasn't long before some parts of it were coming out of the groove.As well as being subject to fore and aft rubbing, it is also gets vertical rubbing when ascending and descending locks. I used the screws that hold the metal strip to the hull and screwed through the rubber. It's a bit awkward getting the hole in the rubber to line up with the hole in the metal strip. I tightened the screws enough so that the heads were further in than the surface of the rubber strip. It looks a bit unsightly having a series of dents in the rubbing strip, but the strip stayed in place.

Problem is, when you're old enough to afford it, you may be too knackered to do it. Guess how I know this! 😞

You could always visit Dewsbury. Very nice at this time of year, I have been told. But I don't believe it! 😞