john6767
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Posts posted by john6767
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1 hour ago, Philip said:
Thanks for the info. If I go for it, I've decided I'll book the up passage 3 weeks before the down passage and take separate annual leave weeks. It'll still give me about 7 days cruising on the Lancaster and hopefully there'll be a marina somewhere where I can leave the boat for the remaining couple of weeks before returning to the L&L.
If I decide to take 2 days for the up passage and make use of Preston marina, do you think I should be ok going under my own power rather than booking the tow? That'd be my preference, I don't mind having to use Preston marina if I give myself enough time, just want to be sure I have enough power to make headway whilst punching the tide!
When we were there we did struggle a bit to find marina space, there are not many marinas on the Lancaster. We did get into Barton Grange in the end, but it is the only time anywhere on the system I have not easily found a short term mooring in a marina. I would enquire about the mooring as soon as you can.
I think only you can make the decision on the crossing and the boats capability, but only being able to do 3mph on the Severn I would say puts very much at the low end, as you are pushing the tide for much of the trip with say 30 mins in the middle at slack water.
Have you watched some of the YouTube videos on the Ribble link, here is a selection if you have not, there are many more. Bear in mind lots of the YouTube stuff is very sensationalist as that is good for views, and add revenue!
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I think it would be a bit of a rush, but not impossible. You certainly could do the Lancaster end to end (of at least Ribble Link basin to Tewitfield) in 2 days, but it seems like a bit of a rush, however the locals do like speeding you can act like a local and gun it. Whilst the Glasson Branch is only 6 locks, they are not exactly the easiest to do, so it would be better to spend a night in the Glasson basin if you can.
I believe they will try to do a cancelled passage the following day if possible, we were looking like having to do that for our up passage, but the wind dropped in the morning and we were able to go as planned.
Your boat does not sound ideal, so you may be too slow on the up passage at least, which means a diversion to Preston and complete the crossing the next day, so again that would be an issue if you are pushed for time.
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1 hour ago, jonathanA said:
Would anyone know/care if you booked for tomorrow and went today? I think you would at least be trying to adher to the spirit of the agreement if not the exact letter.
doubt it, but at least on the way out you get 7 days, so there is no harm in booking it early, and it only takes 2 days from Preston Brook to Leigh for example, so for example book it when you get to Middlewich for the next day and you will be good.
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8 minutes ago, TheBiscuits said:
So are you not returning within 28 days? If you are you'll need to use the 3-day bit to get back as you can't make 2 separate bookings in any 28 day period.
If you're going across the Mersey, across the Ribble or up Wigan flight you won't need to bother booking the Bridgewater passage.
Of course if you're spending more than a month this side of Leigh it doesn't matter anyway, it's a separate journey booking for the Bridgewater.
In our case it will be 30 days from the start of the outbound to the return, so it would not let us do it as one booking. So when we return I will make a new booking. It was a combination of 28 days and not a month, and the fact that the clock starts when you enter start the Bridgwater outbound 7 days, that had me confused to start with, as I was thinking our 30 days would count as one trip but it does not.
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1 hour ago, Frankgh said:
Sadly the Avon is out and 2 trips through the Tardebigge are in our future as the hire company is advising against any river travel. I will inquire during handover if that includes Droitwich to Stourport. Either way, Birmingham, here we come!
You could do Stratford upon Avon and return on the canal, and then depending on how much you like locks, on the return from Stratford divert off and go GU to Braunston. On the return when you get to Kingswood junction you could even carry on up the GU and get into the centre of Birmingham that way, before returning to base on the W&B. I am assuming you have 2 week is, which I think you have said but if not then probably just Stratford and back would be my suggestion.
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23 minutes ago, LadyG said:
I thought I'd like to have a few days on the Bridgewater, but it seems I need to pay for a boat safety tyoe Certificate, as well as a payment to use the water, is this so, I thought there was some reciprocal agreement?
You are confusing the Bridgewater canal with the Manchester Ship canal. You do not need anything for the Bridgewater you just book you visit on the usual CRT bootkong site. You get 7 days for and outward journey plus an optional additional 3 days for a return journey within 28 days from the first day of the out bound journey. The wording used does not make sense if you example you are using it like we just did for tansit from T&M to the Leeds Liverpool, but that is how it works.
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2 hours ago, JRT said:
Brilliant. Thanks. That worked. The CRT site is not very clear/helpful/intuitive or maybe I'm just a bit thick!
We are going into Liverpool next week and the bit that I found was hard to understand was the Bridgewater booking. My guess is the framework is not really designed for that type of booking, andit took me a bit of time to get my head around how it worked.
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3 hours ago, Frankgh said:
It looks like from that site that 3 locks are impassable, Pershore, Evesham and Nafford. Is that correct?
My reading is Pershore and Nafford are closed, and Evesham is closed downstream due to the upstream lock landing being obstructed. The general notes say that navigation is not recommended, and to contact ANT if you absolutely need to travel.
If I were the OP I would look for an alternative route that is all canal based.
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19 hours ago, Frankgh said:
The time has arrived after months of waiting! We will start the Avon Ring Monday out of Droitwich. We shall go anticlockwise and will take the Avon locks very carefully whilst we travel upstream. I have reviewed David John's trip upstream the Avon and it look perfectly OK as long as one is prudent with the gate paddles. We have 2 weeks to complete the trip so time is on our side. If you see the 2 yanks on the cut, give us a shout!
Are you certain that the Avon is navigable for its full length at the moment. The ANT notices are here, https://www.avonnavigationtrust.org/notices/ and to me it looks like it is not yet all open following the winter.
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1 hour ago, Mike Tee said:
we came through a cutting a couple of days ago - just north of Shrewley tunnel - from the look of it, it must be on the list of 'just about to'
You mean the one at Rowington? I was studying that when we came through there a couple of weeks ago, and that certainly has very steep sides, and I agree is a good candidate for a slip. If that happened, the River Soar is the only route North to South and good luck with that at the moment.
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3 hours ago, Sue Taylor said:
Update we've now been moved to wootton Wawen to start our trip... So we'll definitely be attempting the Avon ring although there is now a boat stuck in a lock near Worcester and the severn could be flooded 🤦🏼♀️
If you are still doing this on your original timeframe, then both of those will be a non issue by that time.
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We came up Hatton on Sunday, no flies present
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10 minutes ago, IanD said:
Either the Rochdale or the HNC is a *very* long way round (almost double the time) to get from Cas to Leics compared to the Trent... 😉
But he is not going to be able to go the Trent route in the next 2 to 3 weeks, so over the Pennines is really the only practical route. Or go the simple way and put it on a truck if time is short.
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I also had a problem raising Upper Lode a couple of years ago, called on VHF, no response, called on telephone, no response. As we were going down and there is a pontoon, moored up and my wife walked to the lock, and eventually found the lock keeper, I think he was fixing his car or something!
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1 hour ago, TheBiscuits said:
Less spreadsheet and more locks, that's the ticket 🤣
Nah, more spreadsheet, better plan, less locks 😀
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I too am rather disappointed that this in not a spreadsheet issue, been brushing up my skills updating my BCN Challenge spreadsheet.
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2 hours ago, magpie patrick said:
I haven't checked but I assume a cutting on this scale is one of the 1830s improvements? Could the original route be reopened instead? 😉🙃
Yes it is, and no it could not!
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3 hours ago, Victor Vectis said:
A bit late to the party but the freshly repainted 'Red Wharf' and crew will be pushing for that much coveted and hotly contested second last position.
😀
Posted the entry form yesterday.
See you in May.
You are supposed to get the boat repainted after the challenge, not before!
Anyway our entry is also in 🙂
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16 minutes ago, Rob-M said:
Not a location I would choose to stop overnight.
Me neither!
37 minutes ago, Annie cariad said:Hi
Thanks for the mooring advise /master class LOL
Had our 4days in Brum centre moved on now at minworth top lock for the night.
Great passage down farmers bridge and Aston . Loved the catacombs at snow hill ,art work etc
Overall good experience in Birmingham lunch at the Ivy ,beers at the canal side pub gas st Basin, made bacon sarnies and shared with the three st people collecting change close to mailbox and boat.
Glad you enjoyed it, and without wanting to just state the obvious, whilst the trip boats do get a rock on, if you are well tied to the bollards with your ropes tight then you should not move.
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19 hours ago, Victor Vectis said:
Might be a bit of fun.
I've often wondered what the slowest WP on the system would be.
😃
Lapworth services would be a strong contender in my book.
I'm told that filling up while someone is taking a shower can be, ahem, 'interesting' when the showerer dashes out to complain!
Don’t know about the shower thing, but I would not have said that Lapworth is that bad, Cambrian Wharf is a slow one and slower than Lapworth, which is mad given where it is you would think it would have a very good flow.
Off the top of my head I would say that Lower Hayford has to be a contender for slowest.
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12 minutes ago, Midnight said:
I still don't see an option to book the Liverpool Link on the C&RT bookings page.
It’s not there, but you can book it by phone if you want to
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19 minutes ago, pearley said:
Plus the electricity charge or included?
I believe it includes electricity
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1 hour ago, Hudds Lad said:
Seem to recall someone saying it's because they are forbidden from straying too far from the loo etc. by the CRT guidance for volunteers ?
They seem it manage that without an issue on other flights, Lapworth and Hatton spring to mind.
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I got fed up of waiting for the Liverpool Link to be put back on the booking site, so I messaged CRT and they called me back and I have booked it over the phone.
If you are interested, it is still passages every day other than Tuesday and it is £15 a night (up from £10 last year).
Ribble Link Query
in General Boating
Posted
I think it is expected that high time will be around Astland lamp, bepening on the strength of the tide. We were about half an hour up the Ribble before we felt the effect of the outgoing tide, and by the time we got to the turn 8th Savick brook we had slowed by a couple of miles per hour. We were first boat, but a long way, and we waited on the pontoon for well over an hour, which by that time the other boats had arrived, before we were allowed to proceed under the bridge and up Savick brook.