sigsegv

Not entirely sure what the point of this topic is. Yes, I imagine most boaters are aware that pollution has effects on health, and that setting fire to things for heat contributes to localised pollution. Or maybe they're not and read this thread and suddenly become aware. But then what? Are they going to decide to stop burning wood and coal, and simply be cold in winter because they cannot afford a less polluting solution to heating their homes in winter? There's an interesting line between 'making people aware' about things and chastising them about things they are not in a position to change. For better or for worse, there are a lot of people living on boats and the most energy and cost efficient way to maintain a comfortable living situation in the depths of winter is to burn wood and coal in a big iron box. Informing them of the effects of PM2.5 particulates on the respiratory system essentially does fxxk all except potentially make them feel guilty - they have no other option. To be charitable, because I apologise that this is a bit of a rant and I guess I'm coming off quite abrasive, maybe you are targeting those that *are* in a position to do something different - those that have a reasonable amount of money and therefore *can* choose other options for heating their boats in winter, or have other abodes that can be heated with methods that don't cause as much localised pollution such that they don't need to worry about the issues with heating a 50-70ft floating steel tube in winter.

I've run into Elektra on a handful of occasions, most recently on the Peak Forest this summer. It's a very well kitted-out boat, with both bow and stern thrusters so it's certainly a boat that would be able to handle the situation, and the helmsman (sorry, don't know his name) seems very capable if, in this situation, maybe not the best judge of risk to go on the Soar in these conditions..... Very fortunate that such a capable boat was in that situation, not sure I'd've been so comfortable with it

Employing full-time staff at the border of each region would possibly be cheaper than employing thousands more spotters. But then without reintroducing/maintaining stoplocks at those borders (which would create massive boat jams at peak times as well), there's not much to stop an unlabelled boat cheerily flipping off the border guard as they cruise past into pastures new. Not sure if that'd end up cheaper, monetarily, than an automated tracking and charging solution but it'd definitely be cheaper politically. I would not comply to being tracked (I track myself thank you very much), and it'd be an absolute political nightmare as well as likely running into the failures/struggles of any large-scale IT project

Our 52ft ex-Black Prince has had I think two previous owners who changed the layout. When we got her, from stern to bow the layout was Stern -> Bed -> Bathroom -> Big empty space -> Dinette -> Galley -> Bow. We shifted the dinette back into the empty space and fit a sofa between it and the galley such that it was then Dinette -> Sofa -> Galley, the idea being that since the stove was installed directly next to the galley, it made more sense to have the L sofa there facing the stove for those cold winter evenings. Not a lot I'd change to the layout to be honest, though I do like the thought of having a reverse layout with a closed bow a-la Ian D's boat.

I'm probably not one of them. Not due to malice or anything, but sheer laziness and a tendency to forget things, and I doubt I'd be the only one. Having to fill out a form on a weekly basis for where you are, and update your license would be forgotten/not gotten round to by so many people unless CRT *also* drastically stepped up their enforcement - which I doubt they have the resources or people to do effectively.

I can! Based on the info in the spreadsheet Daniel sent to me, I can tell you the following: She was built in 1990 and was originally based in Chirk. I'm afraid that's basically all I have on her. I also have her license number but I'm guessing you already know that The spreadsheet also says there was originally a picture of her on the old site, so it might be worth getting in touch with Daniel to see if he could grab one for you? If you send me a message, I can give you his email address. though we probably shouldn't make a habit of pestering him for pictures of our old boats, I'm sure a couple of times wouldn't be much of a pain for him.

I was at the Shroppie Fly earlier and had a flick through a Waterways World issue dated April 2007, thinking it would be amusing to see the issues of the time. Now, this is *way* before 'my' time (though my parents bought a holiday boat in I think '05), so naturally I'm missing a great deal of context but I'd be remiss if I didn't post my findings in this thread.

There's a CRT pumpout at the Anderton services too. £20 but it takes debit/credit card, no need for a pumpout card

A chap on the canal by middlewich claimed he'd heard from someone NBTA-affiliated that they'd heard something in the realm of 30% for CC surcharge but I suspect this is baseless speculation

How about a dwindling surcharge. It starts at 200% of the current license fee and reduces a percent for every 10 miles genuinely navigated. Boats could be fitted with tracking devices to verify distance travelled (welded to the boat, so it can't be removed and put in a car or something). This has the added benefit that when you're stuck due to a CRT stoppage, CRT end up getting even more money so they can fix the network! I'm full of great ideas, me

I've never heard of sceuomorphs being used to refer to things that don't directly reference objects and concepts in physical reality but ok, sure. Maybe at a stretch we can agree that sceuomorphs are a subset of simulacra that fit certain criteria.

certainly the use of fake rivets etc. might be considered skeuomorphs (the term I'm more familiar with, didn't know the alternative word), but I think it goes a bit deeper than that, with behaviours, practises, etc.

Ours has one of these. It's a particular characteristic of Black Prince (and other rental companies they or the yard that built them also sold boats to), along with the big rubber bow fender. I know they're far from traditional but I love them. In theory yeah, they can hinge upward but I've got a feeling mine's held in place with a clevis pin... I'm going to have to check this in the morning because I honestly can't remember now. But its design means it definitely wouldn't bend downwards. It can sometimes work as a nice little platform to stand on to clear any gubbins that have been caught around the rudder. I'm finding this thread a little bit fascinating, I must say. Obviously, there are very few truly *traditional* working boats on the network, but plenty of boats (and indeed everything we do on our wonderful network) certainly attempt to simulate, pay homage, whatever you want to call it, to those working boats and times of days gone by. If you'll forgive me for sounding a bit pretentious, it really makes me think of Baudrillard's thoughts of simulacra There are things we do on, to, and with canal boats that are certainly attempting to pay homage to and retain the traditions of a bygone era but in that act have actually become their own things entirely. And that simulacrum that has been created in itself has value, and ought be preserved by those that wish to do so. But at the same time, obviously, I genuinely find it fascinating to see how much better we could potentially optimise the vessels we use on the system, the system itself, while still retaining the aspects which I think are a common ground. But maybe that's just my engineer brain getting the better of me.

I see what you mean, and I don't think you're alone. There is a certain joy, maybe some type of base desire to feel the cold and do something about it thus becoming warm.

Probably didn't need to but to be honest I just fancied the comfort of a nice warm fire. Plus I've got an excess of wood from a downed tree near New Mills from this May (or was it June) that was just begging to be tested for dryness. It was already dead (hence them chopping it down), so has dried out fantastically. Plus the missus is away for the week so I've gotta do something to occupy my time that's not the pub.

One thing I'd definitely add to this list is pearl barley. Amazing for bulking out dishes, and I've been making something akin to risottos with it recently - it holds its texture really well, is a lot more forgiving than rice in risotto IMO and can also be added to a bunch of other things for bulking up and adding a bunch of nutrients. Mum used to add it to the stews she made us as a kid, and I'm always trying to find more things to sneak it into

I had almost the exact same experience as you! I think there was an issue with the information in my bank (Santander) whereby it didn't pass the name correctly (your name on your account must match the name used for the voucher). Got an error right at the end, implying it didn't go through, and on retrying it informed me that voucher had been used. Thankfully the next day the money appeared in my account. Happy days!

Got to admit, I'm probably a bit guilty of this at the moment on the Trent and Mersey due to coming off the Macclesfield and forgetting what it's like to be on a canal with water in it

Queer is somewhat reserved for those of us that identify as queer in some way as a reclaimed word though tbh I think it works well as a catchall for people that identify as LGBT+. Don't worry there's plenty of infighting among queer people as to use of these terms too, how many letters we add to LGBT, etc (but please don't ignore the T, saying LGB these days has taken on a somewhat unsavoury tone due to its heavy use by transphobes), flags etc. You can probably get by just saying LGBT, add a plus if you feel like it. Those that would be upset by 'missing' letters, using the 'wrong' flag, and stuff like that are mostly people that spend far too much time online.

Raises the question of why we're often told to only recycle clean stuff then, if it's all going into a lorry full of delicious garbage water

Just got the following in my inbox, another survey. This time it's asking what we think about the quality of the network and it's facilities. Hello, Knowing what boaters think about the Canal & River Trust is very important to us, and we would therefore ask you to take part in our latest Survey by clicking on the following link (Please note that the survey will close on the 25th September 2023): <Snip> We use the results of this survey to help us plan and prioritise improvements, so your participation is much appreciated, however, if you do not wish to take part in this survey please click on the following link: <snip> If you have any questions about the survey please email <snip> One thing I found interesting is the following; Refuse Disposal and Recycling bins where available (N.B. even where there are no specific recycling bins the waste is sorted and recycled off site.) Does this mean that when, upon not being able to find any recycling bins, we've reluctantly chucked our recycling into the general waste biffas, it's actually been OK and some of that might end up actually being recycled (at least... As much as any of the stuff we put into normal recycling bins gets recycled...)

Swans having a meal from the side of our boat, stuff dropping from trees onto the roof, good old thermal expansion... All of these things spooked us during the first few months of living aboard too. Unexplained noises in an unfamiliar setting can certainly be disconcerting.

Today at bramble cuttings. We had the place to ourselves for a few hours yesterday and again for a few hours today. Currently 3 boats moored up, what an absolutely gorgeous spot

Hi! Where can I find the source for this app? Couldn't find it on your github profile or linked on the website (unless I'm blind). Cheers