FirstMate

Ah, I had not read this before replying to your post concerning fuel along the waterways. We too have a Creighton. Ours is a 27ft centre cockpit, built in 1966 with a fibreglass hull and plywood top. I agree that finding information about Creightons is not easy, although we see many on the canals. We have only owned ours since last September. Just last week we met a lovely couple at Ruegeley who allowed us on board for a look at theirs to assist us with ideas of how they come in original form. Ours has been "got at" and we are in the process of refitting, although it is very useable with the work we have done so far. Their boat was built in 1974, and was in very good original condition inside. There is another newish member on here with a Creighton. Here is a link to the post. http://www.canalworld.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=21882 Hope that link works. Happy to share any information with you. If you PM me your e-mail address I can send you some photos of ours, if it helps. FirstMate.

Hello Dave. When we had an outboard engine we had to plan our trips well in advance for petrol stops. We found the large supermarkets along the canalside the most reliable. Tesco, Sainsbury and Asda were the most popular in our experience. We went into our local chain, of each of these stores, and picked up a leaflet from customer services, detailing where their stores are nationwide. These leaflets state which stores are 24 hour, which stores sell fuel, which have a pharmacy, etc. They are very useful leaflets. A 20 litre gerry can and a lightweight folding trolly are also useful. Both Nicholson and Pearson guides show petrol on their maps, but of course they quickly become outdated as garages close down, and new ones spring up. We also have a Garmin Nuvi 300 SatNAV which we find useful, especially on "pedestrain" mode, because this shows the canal, and Points of Interest, shops and petrol stations, etc. However, we no longer have a petrol outboard, having changed our boat to a diesel inboard. If you are planning a particular trip let me know, and if we have covered that route I may be able to help you locate fuel. We covered many miles with an outboard, including Llangollen, Manchester, London - all starting from Staffs and Worc canal. FirstMate.

The place that makes and repairs canopies at Compton is called Sew and Sew. Below Compton Lock, past Lime Kiln chandlers, moored offside after bridge 59. We were happy with the work he did for us a couple of years ago. The last number I had for him was; 07747654677.