Alastair

the "hazard" I referred to was the risk of running onto the end of a pole that is jutting out. Also, how do you 'pick up' the poles? I suggest you consider a pontoon. Also very handy for storing coal etc.

I live on a river mooring. I'm not sure what you call 'pole moorings'. The most common thing I have seen (and use), is a pontoon held out from the bank by scaffold poles. You then tie up to the pontoon itself, or can run mooring ropes over the pontoon to the bank. Both methods have their advantages. If you are talking of connecting poles directly to the boat, consider how do you get from the bank to the boat? You will need some sort of gangway. Also, poles jutting out into the river are a hazard to boats, including your own.

I was moored in Limehouse basin for a couple of weeks. The lockkeepers were great and helpful, nice place to be, tho' a bit surrounded by flats. Good shops nearby, and the Cruising Association has it's headquarters there. I was stuck waiting for the right weather to come up the coast, so the lockkeepers let me overstay the normal time by weeks. The office staff would have kicked me out! One of the lockeepers lives on a narrowboat in the basin, with a large friendly alsation.

Live on all year round. Winter, the coal stove is going all the time, and she is snug. If London sinks beneath the sea, won't that mean most narrowboaters need to move onto seagoing boats ;-)