purplehaze

Its all a bit of a gamble, had a cat, Biggles, no insurance, did have a couple of expensive issues (thyroid needed to removed and once knocked by a car) but he lived until he was 19 and any insurance costs would have far more than any claims that might have been made. Had a dog, lovely golden lab called Oscar, did insure him and thankgoodness we did, he was epileptic and the medication alone was over £200 a month plus he was the most accident prone dog we have ever owned, how many people do you know that when they ring the vets they know immediatley who you are by your voice alone (and its a big practise!!)Plus we once asked for a print out of his records it was the size of a small book. BUT it is also not a good thing we had a cat who due to it being insured went through the mill in an effort to find out what was wrong with it, turned out to be something nasty which could be sort of treated but not cured, with hindsight the poor little chap should have been put to sleep long before I made that decision, if we had not had insurance that would have happened, still feel guilty and very cross that the vet thought it ok to keep trying. This was a specialist my own vet agreed with my decision, rest in peace Jasper. Also you need to be very aware of policies that will not continue to treat any problems that have happened in the previous year, they may be more expensive but with Oscar that didn't matter, we were paying £15 a month and claiming at least £200 a month, bargin. I would also state that in general people have no idea how expensive drugs are, perscription charges are a really small percentage of the real cost, people are looked after by the NHS, animals have nothing like it. Julie

Well we have managed to afford two trips again this year, first week in June, Autherly Junction to Stourport, a very pretty route, we did it last year and for a short break with Napton Narrowboats its ideal with good places to eat on the way there and back. Second one is a full week at the start of September, we always go at this time as the schools are back, we have hired a Black Prince boat and aim to go from Stoke to Bugsworth Basin and back with a possible tootle down the Caldon (one we have not done before which in over 25 boating is very strange!!) Anyone been to the pub in the basin recently we went about 5 years ago and the food was very good. Julie

Hi everyone, just had a stoppage email re the Buckby flight apparently there is a sunken boat, anyone got any details? Julie

What an absolutley brilliant account of your travels, I have really enjoyed reading them, you have a wicked sense of humour Julie

We are going clockwise round the Warwickshire ring only out for a week but we have done it several times before and enjoy the challenge, we think we can reach the Greyhound, a fine pub with very good food on the first night, it was just as we hadn't started from this point we weren't too sure!!

Hi We are off on the 4th September with Valley Cruisers, based near Nuneaton, this is the first time we have hired from them and we are really looking forward to it as their boats look fantastic. I was wondering if anyone here has used them before, they seem very strict about pick up time, which is fair enough, but how are they on the hand over? Do they take into account previous experience (25 years plus) or do they insist on the full works for every boat? Again not a problem just that forewarned is etc etc Also how far did you get on the first night, any decent pubs about and where did you moor on the last night, again any decent pubs?? Any help/advice gratefully received. Julie

You just have to keep smiling!! Faced with angry boaters we tend to both ignore and smile at the same time, like the time a moored boat owner shouted at us, very loudly, that we were going too fast. We were actually on tick over if we had gone any slower we would have stopped, we were on a hire boat, a private boat in front was going much faster and didn't get shouted at. Another time we met a newby hirer boater who had been reduced to tears by a boat owner for not going into a lock properly (apparently they nudged his precious craft), and he shouted and swore at her and her husband and told them they shouldn't be allowed on the canals, we all have to learn don't we? Julie

It sounds strange but recently even with a hire boat out for a week we have had to find somewhere for a pump out, but maybe not. When we first started we had simple foot controlled flush loos, now we have super dooper loos with a 2 flush system which must use loads of water which result in the tank filling up much quicker. Equally they use an awful lot more water. As to SPO, we had the misfortune to be taking on water at the same time as a private boat was doing a SPO and well the smell was something else!! Julie

Totally illegal no doubt but absolutley brilliant!!

Well what a fantastic short break we have just had, we hired Centorious from Napton Narrowboats, 10 berth and a really lovely boat. We started at Autherly Junction and went down to Stourport and back. Crew consisted of me and the OH, my mum, my stepfather and his cousin, my little bro, his wife and their 3 daughters, aged 18, 16 and 12. Quite a boatful but we all get on really well so thats fine. Day 1, Monday 31st May, good news we can pick the boat up early, bad news when we got there at 1pm the boat had only just returned! The reason being that the previous hirer had a bit of a bad collision and their dog had fallen off the back and had to be taken to the vets, the dog was ok but it does flag up the problem of how to stop this happening. Anyway the boatyard staff were super had 3 cleaners on board and one sorting out the water etc and we were away by 2.30. The weather was good and we made excellent time, had a bit of suprise after we completed the Bratch, a call from big bro, he had been to Somerset for the weekend and had found out that his route back home on the Monday would take him very close to us and so was waiting for us at the Round Oak at Wombourne, lovely, we ate at the pub, food very good and also the beer. Day 2, Tuesday 1st June. Early start as the plan is to get to Stourport so that the next two days are easy to do. We need to get to Stourport as the boat is 70ft long and we need to be able to turn in the basin. We cast off at 7.45 and it was raining, didn't put off any of the crew and my nieces were all ready to do the locks. This is a really lovely canal, very few boats about and we make good time, we eat breakfast and lunch on the move and reach Stourport at 5.15pm. We go into the basin and turn and then moored for the night, a curry and a walk down by the river and a few beers finishes a good day. The facilities at Stourport are good, the playgrounds and fair look very well looked after, a pity the fair was closed! Day 3, Wednesday 2nd June. The sun is shining, lovely, we have a slow start this morning, a quick trip to Tesco for bread and milk then bacon butties for breakfast. We are heading for Kinver today and hope to moor near to the Vine for dinner. Cast off and then realised that there are no water points until Kinver, should have taken advantage of the water point at Stourport. With 10 of us on board we use a lot of water and we have no idea how much the tank holds, suprise suprise by 3.00pm we have run out of water, to be honest in 20 years of boating thats the first time its happened to us. We are suprised that there are no waterpoints at Kidderminster. It wasnt a problem as we soon filled up at Kinver. The weather was brilliant. We moored at 5, had a suberb meal at the Ivy and a good few drinks. Day 4, Thursday 3rd June. The sun is still shining!! Another casual start as we set of for Compton, it is really warm and very hot. The canal is still very quiet, not that many boats about, until you get to a lock of course. We have seen so many heron this time out, only 1 kingfisher, several squirrels, one doing a death defying leap across the canal, a grass snake and lots of buzzards. We moored at Compton and had a good meal at Oddfellows. Day 5, Friday 4th June. Last day on board, we cast off at 8pm as we need to be back at the boatyard for 9pm, again its a lovely day and we wish we were going to be out for longer, this canal is really beautiful with lots to see, the scenery is fantastic, we will be back!! Julie

Me too, when I first saw the pictures of the Falkirk Wheel I thought it was awful but we saw it last year I thought it was brilliant, no doubt when the Anderton Lift was first built lots of people didn't like that either. Julie

My heart goes out to you and all your family, one very brave man xxx

Dennis is sooo cute, loved your comments and photos. We have hired from Napton lots of times, lovely boats and a really nice boat yard. Julie