magpie patrick

That's what I thought, living in Bath, looking at seventy footers, and bough a 62 foot narrow boat. Took possession October 2006, April 2007 found myself on the Huddersfield Broad Canal desperatley looking for somewhere to turn before the first 57 foot lock

Made me laugh! Come and have a go on Ripple, you'll see the problem. We don't plough into anything, and indeed on the G and S we hardly ever touch anything but then it is over 80 feet wide, it's 35 feet wide though the bridges even! But the boats aren't as manoeuvrable as yours, I've no bow thruster so with a fixed propeller and rudder steering we're at the mercy of the wind along the 62 foot length, so the bow I'm trying to point into the wind is 62 feet from the power source, and this results in ignominious incidents when the bow just won't go round and I end up broadside against junction bridge, also steering into locks only a couple inches wider than the boat then some touching is inevitable. Yes I can get the boat in a narrow lock without touching at all, but I can't do it every single time, and if someone comes in next to me in a broad lock, they are aiming for a gap about the same width as a narrow lock and may well touch us. But, the boat is built of steel, no harm will come. Point being, if you own a sewer tube and don't want your paint scratched, don't leave the marina, and don't let the boat next to you leave either!

No, on the canals (rather than the much bigger rivers that you tend to cruise) it is simply a recognition that boats are going to come into contact with stone walls, steel piling and each other on occasion.

between 57ish and 62 the main thing is the Calder and Hebble, which means the Huddersfield and the Rochdale have to be done from the western end and become dead ends, above 62 the Leeds and Liverpool is out between Wigan and Leeds, and the Rufford branch. The impact of this is that you can't cross the country north of the Trent and Mersey, so if you go north on the trent you've no choice but to come south again, similar if you venture north of Manchester. You also can't get at the Lancaster Canal. It's not so much the amount of water you can't do but the way your route options get slashed because you can't cross the pennines

Yes they are Stroudwater 68 feel by 16, Thames and Severn 90 by 12 from Lechlad to Brimscombe, 90 by 16 through Bourne Lock and 68 by 18 for the last couple of miles to Stroud. Severn Trows were short and fat, Thames barges were long and thin. Once narrow boats became popular many of the locks were shortened to around 74 feet.

Right, we've got it planned Val is up to boating, so long as it involves watching the scenery go by. This weekend is her suggestion. So, tomorrow AM we leave for Saul, via "Confection Affection" in Stroud, I've finally been persuaded to break my vow of silence about where all the choccies I buy Val come from. Then to the boat, down to Patch Bridge, and WWT Slimbridge. Decision. If we go through Patch Bridge, we've 3 miles of canal with no bridges, should we stay or should we go, onwards to Gilgol brook, AKA the middle of nowhere. some problems are nice to have NOTE, for those who don't know, the bridges on the G and S are swing bridges and manned, and all close at 7pm

Could take a while to find them, but I've stood underneath the structure, underneath it's part filled in, but impressive Don't wonder in uninvited, or at least not alone, confined spaces are not that safe

None of the original structure will take the load, you'd have to reinforce it or demolish it all together. Those rails don't just lie on the ground, they are on arched structures up to 50 feet high. as it's now in WW (ahem, wonder where richard fairhurst got his info ) a brief synopsis. The canal is complete except for snagging from the Severn to Droitwich, and from The Worcs and Brum to the Salwarpe about 3/4 mile from the Droitwich Canal Basin. The Salwarpe was to be canalised as part of a development on the old car dealership. This isn't a straight forward job, the river was never navigable on this length, it needs to be widened, deepened and a towpath built. Critically under the towpath will be a pipe taking the bywash of the river lock to the basin in Vines park. The river lock will empty into the river, but the bywash carries the flow of Body Brook as well as the canal and this keeps the brook out of the river giving much needed flood alleviation. This was to be delivered as part of the development. To use the technical jargon, the development has gone tits up. There is enough water in the Salwarpe to work the barge canal locks a dozen of more times a day, but the Junction Canal can not open until the river section is completed. BW are now trying to find ways to fund the missing £500k that the developer was going to cough up. Hopefully open in full next year

Okay, My view, bearing in mind I worked on it professionally and Foxton to me falls in the QI box. We went for three rails out of practicality, it was going to be easier to drive piles between the old rails rather than through them. It had the advantage of minimising destruction of the original (and probably helped in getting EH support) but main motive was price. Surely a win-win IF it's cheaper AND doesn't disturb the original. We wanted tanks that looked like the originals, and our proposal was to retain the wet dock system, not least as to change to a dry dock system was again more expensive, and potentially involved regrading the whole plane! However we answered concerns about people riding on their boats by saying that hand rails COULD be fitted if it was required. The business case just didn't work with "busy day only" operations, as the ones who pay most are not the boaters but the land based visitors. and they want to see it working. Hence electric, there was always the option of having steam available for "steam days" In addition, if it became part of a wide boat route, then it needs to be open most days of the year as the locks are narrow We put a lot of work into the traffic side, with signing strategies, park and ride and park and sail, placing new car parks where coming through the village was less attractive etc. In my experience, a lot of objections to many developments, not just canal ones, the traffic objection is ill-informed. Unfortunatley traffic is one area where everyone thinks they are an expert. My view, while the site is a lot better than when I worked on it (in part due to our recommendations) is that it is a fossil: a very attractive fossil but a fossil nevertheless. Everyone who wants interpretation should ask what better interpretation could there be than bringing it back to life?

Using steam was one of the reasons for it's demise. Traffic was too light and thus the steam engine was shut down at night. As it takes about four hours to fire up a boiler guess what, they started using it less and less. Funny how you describe heritage as bollox, and the go on to want an exact replica of the 1910 version? If it had survived it would probably have been electrified in the 50s or 60s, had hand rails fitted when pleasure boats came, had the pulleys replaced with a simpler set up when the impact on cable fatigue became apparent...

How many reasons do you want! Objections to the incline... Technical: Shelmore Embankment Moves, and the plan would extend from the side of it, keeping the two fastened together would be a nightmare. The locks it would replace are probably the most intact in the flight, and it would be much cheaper to repair them The locks would offer dawn ti dusk user operation,a key IWA objective Visual. Admittedly this would have applied to the building of Shelmore Embankment 200 years ago, but this incline plane at right angles has a huge impact on views of and from the embankment, and offers views into properties that currently enjoy privacy Traffic: the country lanes around the area struggle with what Norbury Junction generates, and as the main point of the lift is to be a tourist attraction this is a major issue. Political, when asked, the locals voted for the locks, so the trust asked the question again... This has also split the trust, as only a few members really want the plane, but some committee members are pushing it. TBH this has probably held the restoration back 10-15 years, which is a shame as the Newport Branch would make a lovely, if energetic, cruise.

That, to my mind, is the point at which he has become unreasonable, of three options he has (no shower, shower with boat turned round, shower disturbing you) he chooses to sacrifice your peace and quiet at 3 am rather than his view.

Is this a washer woolwich? For replica read "pastiche"

Water loss is not a problem on most rivers, however sections of the lee and stort are effectively canals with limited water supply as for the Math ("do the Math" is an american saying, not a brit one) lock agin you, close gate (1) open paddles (2) open gates (3) Close gates (4) open paddles (5) open gates (6) close paddles (7) off ye go Lock for you close gates (1) open paddles (2) open gates (3) close paddles (4) so 7 one way or 4 the other average 5.5 gates closed lock agin you open paddles (1) open gates (2) Close gates (3) open paddles (4) open gates (5) close paddles (6) Close gates (7) off ye go having stopped for crew 8? Lock for you close gates (1) open paddles (2) open gates (3) close paddles (4) Close gates (5) pick up crew (as you can't in the lock?) 6? so 7 one way and 5 the other average 6 it is no more work operating a lock against you with the gates open, as you simply switch one clsing of gates with another, but it adds one gate operation when its for you and any slight leak adds opening the paddles as well

So do I my top three being... Saul to Stonehouse on the Stroudwater (which, with the HLF scheme would make the canal navigable from the G and S to Brimscombe). Cotswolds should then sit back and wait their next turn Finish the Monty (scored down because of likely restrictions on boat numbers) The Somerset Coal from the K and A to Midford (because my committee would shoot me if I didn't) Fourth would be Wey and Arun from the Wey to south of Bramley But it doesn't work like that. The Cotswold HLF bid was succesful in bidding for £12 million of a £40 million pot for that half year, it beat, among other things (I believe) the renovation of a museum in Oxford and the usual request for handout from one of the big heritage bodies (memory vague so I'm not naming them). The Droitwich Canal I beleive saw off a bid for money for "Vulcan to the Skies" although that subsequently got funding. If Foxton gets money it will be froma fund to promote tourism in the East Midlands, at the expense of a theme park in Charnwood Forest ro summat, from HLF in competition with an old manor house, and from Europe with a grant for "restructuring the rural economy" having seen off a ski slope in either Slovenia or Loughborough depending on the rules at the time Added, I have stuck my neck out a bit on those details so please don't ask for more!

Can I just add... I have no fixed view on Foxton, and didn't at the time. I was asked for professional advice, and have summarised it. If the locals are now agin, they have changed their tune (or Foxton has changed it's locals!) over the last ten years. Now, my opinion When people dream up things like the Brogborough Whilr (Yugh) I tend to point out that Foxton Locks are one of the busiest attractions for land based visitors on the canals... without a lift. The lift is now vastly different to when I did my study, an ironic case as you wouldn't have complained about spoiling the site then! The Falkirk Wheel gets a subsidy, but by virtue of it's location between Glasgow and Edinburgh (Location Location Location?) It has transformed the tourist economy of Falkirk. Love it or Loathe it, it is truly Iconic and Original, I squirm when people talk of a "second Falkirk Wheel" If the GU Leicester Summit is ever to be broad beam it needs a proper plan, with solutions at both ends proposed, even if they are built one at a time. This may not be a bad idea, as boats get more upmarket they run out of length. My personal opinion on something I looked at professionally, The Newport Incline Plane is a waste of time, and if built will suffer from Shelmore embankment moving The Whitchurch lift seems very odd, I would have thought a lock and a back pump would be more cost effective, and user operable. The schemes I actively or passively support as a private individual are the Somerset Coal, The Wey and Arun (which I have worked on professionally) The Monty (ditto, but I supported before I worked on it) and the Cotswold (currently working on it). I don't think I oppose any at all. I have been an active or passive supporter of the Huddersfield Narrow and the Droitwich, one of which has been open a number of years and one of which will open next year (and I've been professionaly involved in both, but rooted for them before that time) Oh, and the Bude Barge Canal, well, there's always got to be one hasn't there!

I thought of that, then thought "pre heaters" Then I had another thought. Patrick has his arm down weedhatch, Val leans back on starter button... So I kept the tractor key arrangement

I've no idea bout the last bit as the people now in charge either don't take professional advice or a getting it elsewhere. However English heritage are a lot more savvy than simply wanting things fossilised, and to be honest, while it is a scheduled ancient monument I don't think it's top of their priority list. Curiously they felt an adjacent incline was damaging to the setting When we reported it is true that the plane was largely covered in trees, and this has now changed. Do bear in mind there is also an agenda to get wide boats over the Foxton Summit, although building a "Hatton Style" 8 rise, as the GUC proposed in the 1930's, would also achieve this at Foxton We also recommended a new basin for the existing moorings (I know you didn't mean it like this, but I would never be so crass as to recommend "sling em off" without giving them somewhere else to go!)