Noah

I'm hoping to go next weekend, by road and with tent. Anyone else going or been before? The festival seems good value at £25 for camping pitch and £6 for day entry. http://www.junctionevents.org.uk/ Noah

No such luck! Just free admission, which is not bad considering most two-day music festivals are around 100 quid just to get in. Noah

Mike I always though it was caused by flatulent fish! Methane is released from some muddy sediments by anaerobic decomposition in a similar way to landfill gas. But if it were in large volumes you would want to move moorings because of the smell! The shading caused by a widebeam might actually increase the process! (guess what I once did for my uni dissertation!) As for oxidation of iron or steel, I would be more concerned if the boat was moored in highly aerated water with lots of dissolved oxygen such as over a bywash or millrace. Noah

Gaggle Shame there were some self-important and whinging boaters. I’m sure they are a minority but the obnoxious ones always stand out from the crowd and are remembered. The river trip looked fun. That ship was the Polish sea-cadet vessel, the Dar Mlodziezy. We had a look on board last Saturday morning and it was HUGE. Would have loved to have seen it in full sail going back out of the river. They wouldn’t let us go below deck though, unlike a couple of the other tall ships that were there. Some details on: www.liverpool.gov.uk/News/newsdetail_2134.asp Even though we went by train we had a brill day out and can’t wait to take the boat down soon. First time at the docks in years. In the afternoon we found some awesome pubs on the way to the free, African music and food festival at Sefton Park. Noah

Good photos Gaggle, keep ‘em coming! I’m on the L&L in Appley Bridge and I’ve seen hundreds of boats heading for Liverpool over the past week. Not much water left in the pound though as the deep lock has been in constant use. Local boats are on the mud! I didn’t manage to get a boat ticket for the event but I’m going by train this Saturday morning. I won’t be happy if there are engineering works and the trains are not running. Weather like this and you need to watch TV? Noah

Steady stream of boats over the weekend on the L&L through Appley Bridge on their way to Liverpool. Good to see so many on this, usually quiet, stretch of canal. Noah

Hi Roger I live in Appley Bridge and walk/bike (and sometimes canoe) along this stretch a couple of times a week. I havn't spotted your boat but I'll say hello when I do. Noah

If someday I sell my house to live aboard permanently, then I'll miss my chickens. However, I did once see a narrowboat with a small run on the roof with three or so hens. It had just crossed the Ribble Link! In Belgium I saw a huge barge with chickens and a couple of goats. I don't know what DEFRA would make of it! Noah (with enough livestock on board already)

Awesome road trip report. Must be bloody minted! Noah

The Final Solution: There was insufficient clearance to get even a scissor jack under so I considered hiring either a toe-jack or block-and-tackle and slings. I decided to hire a local boat engineer, with his own lifting gear, for a few hours for a similar cost. Four new mounts are now installed and and the engine is alligned. The result after a short test run: Amazing! The severe vibration and noise under load at mid to high revs has dissappeared. Crockery no longer rattles on shelves and my fillings stay in my teeth. I will feel much happier now when the boat is pushing a 10-metre tide on the Ribble. Ironically, now there is a slight rattle just above tickover! I'm hoping to find that something has just been disturbed during the work and needs securing. Additionally, there is a now a diesel leak for me to fix. I suppose it is inevitable that the engine should behave like a new install with a few teething problems to sort out! Noah

I’ve just had all four of my engine mounts replaced and a pronounced noise and vibration at mid to high revs (in gear only) has disappeared. In my case it was likely that a combination of worn mounts and bad alignment was the cause of the problem. Noah

Hi Paula We are about to cross over to the Lancaster Canal and stay until the third weekend in May. So we’ll miss you by a week! It will be the first time that I’ve cruised along the whole canal but I’ve canoed and walked on sections. I can recommend a couple of canalside pubs that I call in occasionally: At Bilsborough is “Guys Thatched Hamlet” with Old Nells pub, which is good for meals and real ales with good outdoor seating. Gets busy when the sun shines though. In Lancaster is the Waterwitch. I haven’t eaten there but the beer selection is brill! (if that’s your thing). Busy with students in the evenings. The Glasson branch is also well worth a detour and there are several good food (and beer pubs at and around the sea lock basin. Noah

Err, yes that was how! Only front tooth I've ever cracked: how did I do it? falling off my dad's bloody fixed-wheeler! Angry to hear that bikes are banned from some trains. What ever happened to sustainable transport incentives? My girlfiend has inherited an early aluminium folding Bickerton bike with a box section frame and three speed. It's a bit heavy for her to use for her commute into Manchester and it looks a bit weird too. Supprisingly, it rides really well. Wouldn't want to do a 65mph downhill though! Noah

Yes, that's the one but only the cabin top was visible clearly so I didn't know what type of hull it had. It may have been on the bottom for a few years. Wonder what draught and beam it is? I've seen a few converted lifeboats around the coast, Glasson and Tarleton for example, but didn't realise that they would suit canal cruising. Even if they are deep draughted I suppose the chined and rockered hull would make gounding less likely. Noah

Is the mooring and pillbox included!? I've passed this hull many times when it was sunk and wondered if it was a lifeboat. Too much work for me but I hope somebody restores it. Down at Tarleton there is great-looking converted lifeboat called Black Swan. I last saw it going out of the sea lock for a crossing to Lytham. Looked like a mini Clyde Puffer going down the river against the tide. I wants it! Noah

Hi Janet Hopefully it reopens on 30 April as advised. I have friends moored on the Rochdale hoping to leave soon. There is a new marina at the planning stage in Rochdale but I can't see many people wanting to moor there with all the problems. A real shame because it's a beautiful waterway. I went for a motobike ride up to Diggle and Marsden, on the Huddersfield Narrow Canal, this morning and there were three narrowboats moving south, having just passed through Standedge Tunnel. Lovely day but spoiled by traffic on the motorways. I used to like driving/riding. Noah

It just needs full mudguards, a comfy saddle and a nice handlebar basket! And would 3 speed Sturmey-Archer gears be easy to retrofit? Noah

FIXED WHEEL on the towpath? I tried this once and ended up in a hawthorn bush when a pedal hit the ground! Since the 1940's my dad has used a fixed wheel bike for road touring and often did 100 mile per day. Only one brake! I thought he was mad and then my mum told me she sometimes rode with him, also on fixed wheel! I prefer my "wussy" (my dad's description) 21-cog hybrid. Noah

It's the 80 percent genuine Pussers Rum tasting sessions that interests me most! Problem is that I'll have to abstain if I'm going on my motorbike. If the festival was a few weeks later I'd have my boat over there but then I'd just get very ill! Noah

http://www.shanty.co.uk/Glasson2007.htm http://www.shanty.co.uk/Glasson2007flyer.pdf Sounds like a good event, on each day over the Easter weekend where the Glasson branch of the Lancaster Canal meets the sea. I'm crossing over to the Lancaster Canal in a few weeks on my boat but I hope to get to this event for a day, probably on my bike. An interesting place at any time and awesome fish and chips! Noah

Hi John I've just been back to the boat for another look and to take some measurements (with the old mounts still in place). Without having a look at a new mount in a chandlers, I am asuming that a mount's stud/pillar is NOT permanently captive within the mount body. If this is the case then I will only have to jack up very slightly, one at a time, to allow the old mount body to slide out sideways after first removing the large stud/pillar. I could then slide the new mount into position and then screw in its stud before finally inserting the two fixing bolts and nuts. If the mount studs cannot be removed then I would have to lift the engine a few inches to clear them! Hopefully not. Noah

Hi Catweasel Thanks for the advice. The R&D site makes the alignment part seem straightforward. I'll probably replace all four mounts with a matching new set while the engine is raised on the jack. Noah

Vibration from my narrowboat engine has been gradually worsening and I believe that at least one of the soft engine mounts needs replacing. The rubber “disk” appears to have compressed or collapsed somewhat, although all the locknuts are tight. A previous owner must have replaced at least some of the mounts because they are a mix of types. The boat and engine is 15 year old and has an R&D coupling which is OK. It seems that the engine will have to be jacked up by a few inches to allow clearance for the mount’s threaded stud to be removed and the new one inserted. Before I can do this I will have to uncouple the exhaust, gearbox and possibly fuel lines. Has anyone done this, and is it a job for reasonably competent DIY? I have a healthy distrust of “boat engineers” after some previous poor workmanship! Any advice would be appreciated. Noah