Bobgrif

Thst seems like a pretty poor way of measuring usage 1000 random people is easy to do but with no correction for age group, gender, social group etc the sample may not be representative of the population. Geographical factors would also need considering accounting for those who are far from CRT waters It does show how they could reach the numbers given but does not inspire confidence in the results

Just managed to zoom up the image you posted on my mobile phone (a bit tricky!) I'm gobsmacked at the numbers and am trying to work out how they can be accurate particularly since CRT state that it is a survey of the public. I'd love to see the sampling methodology for this

677000000 visits in a country with a population of 67000000 including Wales, Scotland and NI (areas with huge canal. mileage) Surely either a misprint or a misreading?

That may not work anyway due to the 'deprivation of capital' rules. If the DWP realise you have spent the money to qualify for UC they can treat you as still having it and avoid having to pay you. Also if you claim UC you will be assigned to a 'work coach' who will monitor what you do and check you are trying to find work, if the coach thinks you aren't doing enough they can impose a sanction which will stop your payment. If you live on the boat at a fixed mooring you may also be liable for council tax and if you don't have a home mooring you will have to move regularly to avoid CRT taking action against you and possibly even insisting you take the boat off the canal. If you do the work at a boatyard they will not be able to let you live on it at the same time without breaking planning rules. They won't be willing to create a problem for themselves to allow you to do part-time work on a project boat. Then there is the problem of doing up the boat itself. Some years ago, I bought a boat on the understanding that I would be allowed to work on it for a few months before putting it back in the water (I didn't live on it but travelled to and from the yard daily). The boatyard were very helpful and I had access to electricity and water and got a lot of good advice from them but I think it would have been a strain on the relationship with them if I hadn't been there and clearly making progress on getting the boat suitable for relaunching and away to my own mooring. The key things that I remember is that everything is more complicated than you expect, takes a lot longer than you planned and costs a lot more than I budgetted. Having said that I enjoyed my time with the boat immensely and spent several happy years with her before selling her on - not at a profit financially though when costing how much I spent on the repair/refit and annual running costs.

One thought that I had in reading this was that the hull has only lost 0.6mm in places.over a period of 22 years - hardly a lot so I would assume it has been looked after pretty well should last a fair bit longer with care Looks like a nice boat as well

Many thanks for the helpful replies, I'm not sure that I know if we'll get a boat with one or not yet, but it won't be a decisive factor as I had reasonable skill at reversing before (and hopefully will remember ?). I don't really want an extra maintenance task and it will be something else to break down at a most inconvenient moment This has helped me to clarify my thinking a lot

Good point, I really would like the extra space that a longer boat provides, I am not concerned about single-handing having done this before and being quite comfortable with it. My uncertainty was whether a BT would give me enough benefit to make reducing the number of boats to choose from worthwhile I confess, I did polish brass vents but only once honest (when I was selling the boat to make it look better :)). I seem to recall it took ages and didn't make that much difference!!

thanks I thought that might be the case, as for driving I'm going to try to encourage it as I think she would enjoy it after she had some familiarity but she is quite reluctant/nervous and would rarely take the tiller on the old boat

I am just starting to look at getting another boat having previously had a 24' GRP cruiser and a 46' narrow boat (but have now been off the water for about 10 years). I'd like to move up a size again now to about 57' but wondering if a bow thruster is a worthwhile addition to the boat at this size. I had few problems manoeuvring my old boat but feel that I have lost some competence while off the cut. I should add that I am planning to buy second hand and in the spring with the aim of long term cruising and as my wife is unable to do any 'heavy' work (locks etc) due to a back problem I will mostly be handling the boat solo.