adam1uk

This now official from CRT:

Mike Christian is the name used by Tim Tyler and Jonathan Wilson for their slightly cheaper shells. There’s not a huge amount of difference really — they don’t have scrolls in the handrails and have one fewer guard iron on the bow. As I understand it, the underwater shape is the same.

We’re just back from the Llangollen and Monty, and the Navigation is only open Thursday to Sunday now. We had a perfectly good Sunday roast there — although it wasn’t as good as I remembered from thirteen years ago (and the owners are still the same). Of course it’s not as near the terminus any more, as the terminus has moved to Crickheath Wharf,where there is nothing apart from some moorings, a big winding hole, and a pet food factory. It’s good to do the extra mile though. The place we really liked was the Black Bear in Whitchurch. It’s in town, so about 20 mins walk from the moorings on the arm, but excellent food and several local beers too.

The booking system must have been brought in since we were last there ten years ago. We had come in from the Ship Canal, and just picked a vacant spot — which, looking at the photo, wasn’t any of the ones they’re using now. The mooring was about the only thing we did that day that didn’t need booking!

You say it’s obvious, but I reckon more than fifty per cent of the stakes I see in use have the D towards the boat, and the rope being held only by it and not the stake itself.

According to the latest annual report, for 2022/23, boat licenses and moorings brought in £47.3 million. Spending included major infrastructure work of £47m, dredging of £7.4m, £8m on vegetation, and £35.4m on ‘caring for our waterways’. So it’s difficult to argue that any boating income is spent on anything other than boating.

Richard Parry, in his Q and A at the Crick Show.

CRT say they spend virtually nothing on towpaths. All the money comes from sources like Sustrans, developers, local authorities etc.

The government analysis of the CRT grant concluded it was good value for money — but they decided to cut it anyway. That’s one of CRT’s arguments for getting the decision reversed, that much of the public good could be lost (although they’re not expecting this government to change its mind, they’re concentrating on influencing the next one).

As I understand it, the electric discount is only available to those with a serial hybrid, not those with a parallel hybrid, so the discount itself doesn’t make much sense.

The location code for a boat’s home mooring used to be printed on the licence (and there was some code for no home mooring, too) — so anyone could tell. But I’ve just checked and last year’s licence and this year’s no longer have it.

None of this changes the fact that your boat would look much better with a tip at and button at the stern.

But have you got a clipboard?

I'm even more confused now, because to get from Alvechurch to Netherton you don't need to do Farmer's Bridge (they're on the same level). And you've decided to go through the entire Azolla weed area that CRT have asked people to avoid. Why don't you go down Wolverhampton and turn left to get to Kinver, and avoid spreading the invasive weed?

Last time we went to Llangollen was 2010, and this was the main story in the local paper:

You might be right. But it might also force a lot of people off the water, and result in a lot of people just not paying — both of which would mean you don’t get the increase in income you expected, and in fact have to spend more chasing it. And that means to have to charge even more to those who are paying.

That would be doubling what most people pay, and that’s only the start. The grant has been frozen for the past few years, while inflation has been at 10 per cent, so it’s already had a significant real terms cut. The future plan is to cut it to £50m in 2027 and then reduce it by 5 per cent a year in cash terms for ten years. So when you take all that together it makes a huge difference for an organisation with an income of roughly £200m. You could look at it as a percentage of government expenditure, where it’s so infinitesimally small that it barely registers, and wonder why they’re even bothering to cut it. Particular when their own report said it was good value for money.

The government grant is currently a bit over £52 million a year. I don’t think anyone would turn down £400m a year, though…

Back in 2011, we boated through Tewkesbury where there are lots of second hand bookshops. One had a waterways section, and we bought an old map for £1, which we subsequently framed. I think it dates from the mid 80s, so doesn't have the Rochdale, Huddersfield Narrow, or the Droitwich -- but it is a constant talking point. Photo from before we took it to the boat.

I'm not sure what you've said and what I've said are incompatible. As far as I know, all the marinas with private water pre-date the introduction of the NAA. The marinas with private water I was talking about would all have been established before the NAA was introduced. I probably should have made that clear.

I forget how many times we've been through this over the years. There are some marinas and moorings with private water -- these are usually either in river backwaters which are not CRT controlled, or are fed by a spring in some way. These do not require moorers to have a CRT licence. Marinas that have a NAA are using CRT water and do require a CRT licence, even if you never leave. If they weren't using CFT water they would be dry and would therefore being a pretty useless marina. It's actually in the NAA: Just because you repeatedly say something, it doesn't make it true.

In the most recent annual report online (which is 2021/22) income from boat licences and moorings is put at £44.5m. The Defra grant is £52.6m. And they've just announced the 2023/24 programme of works will be £89m. When Richard Parry was speaking at the Crick Show, he said they spend virtually nothing on towpaths. All that funding comes from other sources, such as Sustrans, local authorities, and developers.

I'm pretty sure that, depending on the relationship between the marina and CRT, they can ticket a boat in the marina for not having a licence. The standard Network Access Agreement has a clause that says:

In April, you're likely to have as much trouble with the Avon not co-operating as you are the Severn. I would also think that the Avon Ring is quite a difficult one to start with for novices, especially anti-clockwise. The locks on the river are big and can be fierce going up, and you have the flow to contend with. I'm not saying it's impossible, but it's not one of the easier routes. Don't be put off by urban boating either. After all, it's where a lot of the history is. As an alternative, have a look at doing the Black Country Ring which would give you a really good mix of town and countryside, and lots of locks, especially starting at Droitwich which would mean the Tardebigge flight both ways. To avoid that (if the Severn is OK, you could do a combination of the Black Country and Stourport Rings. As far as who does what, I would suggest that you take turns.

Just been down to the boater facilities at Cosgrove. Outside the bin compound is a huge pile of fly-tipped stuff, including a set of dining chairs. And inside the locked compound is just as bad, with bits of a bed among other stuff.