LoneWolf

I also found them tricky. The 2 lift technique described above is the method i used as well. For the 1st lift I'd almost squat beside them and hold the handle right at the end for maximum leverage then try & lift so my leg muscles did the work. There were still a couple I couldn't manage though

I'm using 3 with a huawei dongle and have only had a couple of places where i've got no signal. This is coming up GU, coventry t&m etc. Every now and then it does go through phases where it keeps dropping the connection and i have to tell it to connect again despite the signal being good

Thanks Kerching & Matthew I shall be pootling down to Apperley Bridge tomorrow. Yeah, Skipton was nice. good shops, 2 laundrettes (both shut on weekends tho!), beers with Ange & Dave. Ended up staying longer than i'd intended tho due to having to investigate water under the sink & waking up with the realisation that I had no idea if there was anti freeze in the coolantwater. Am at Field3 now which is lovely. I must say this canal is probably the most difficult I've done so far though. Just noticed you are at Shipley - I have passed you! That 18 times clockwise bridge is mental innit. Took me about 20 minutes to figure out how to do it (10 just looking for the wedges - lol) and had just resigned myself to making drivers wait for a very long time while i single handed through it & was tying line to the bridge when another boat came into view.

Can anyone advise on the best place to get Diesel, gas & possibly solid fuel between Apperley Bridge & Rodley? If any locals have phone numbers for boatyards/marinas that would also be appreciated so i can phone them up & ask about sunday opening & allowing diesel split declarations etc My Nicholsons for this area appears woeffullly out of date. thanks in advance - i have to log off now (batteries!) but i'll be back later

I've moored between bridges 11 & 12 in Alperton with no problems - v close to Alperton tube Also Black horse is ok (but a bit grotty) & convenient to Greenford tube Horsenden Hill is better imo cos it's nicer but you'd have further to walk in your finery

Yes. only a month to figure out where to get stuck. Not enough for a genuine cc'er like me. I'm currently on L&L still on the 1st leg of my 'progressive journey or series of journeys' (London to Leeds) when I get to Leeds I'll be turning round & heading out again but there are so many stoppages (& i dont move too fast) that I'll be caught between Newlay & Skiptonish I think

Saw one somewhere between Blackburn & Hapton last week - it made me very happy They're not native to this country - "escapees have established themselves in a feral state" according to my 70s bird book. The only other place i've seen one is Regents park where there are several strange species of duck

Thanks for the tips. Gravity - love it! It's all basic physics with yer locks an that innit. (The BW key lives round my neck while i'm crusing) It was more the 'how to get the boat through and secured so i can shut the gate and still get on' that was worrying me but I see you have lock landings both sides up here so i should be ok. unlike the one down south which had 2 foot of earth then bushes & no bollards on the other side - I was still standing there holding the rope & scratching my head when Lady Godiva came along to rescue me.

My plan is to stop (if room) at swingbridges do a bit of walking & then back to boat & carry on so will either be practising swings solo or waiting for another boat if i get stuck. Reckon they'll be a few boats out tomorrow as weather should be good. pm received & number in phone - you can come rescue me if i get flummoxed by the bridges!

Today was the day it rained forever! Still managed 12 locks tho thanks to my new friends on 'caroway' and am in Gargrave - excellent dinner at something Swan pub & am now a bit inebriated. WIll be in Skipton tomorrow. But will take my time & do some walking in the dales on way i think so dont be looking out for me before the pm

I went past Lower Park Marina today - I even turned my music down like the considerate boater i try to be Anyway must to bed... gotta get up & away early tomorrow cos i'm the boat on the waterpoint

Yup - should be there by Wed. I have some company for the locks tomorrow so shouldn't be as tiring as today (Barrowford single handed with muppets shutting lock gates in your face!) Indeed. I think they are Ange's windswept hireboaters from Saturday. they were just trying to decide whether to go down the locks when I arrived. They didnt really fancy it as it was a bit late but were a bit concerned by the waterpoint/1hr sign/lock landing spaces only available. I told them they were fine to stay and then chose the waterpoint for my place. The peeps on the locklanding are another hire boat. We all offered breasting up to the only boat to go past as night fell.

Well I'm now at Greenberfield top - it's a bit full.

oh I'll be sticking around a few days doing laundry etc

I'm on my way - eta Wed or (more realistically) Thurs Do i feel a mini banter coming on?

oh yes it will! the wind has blown all the clouds away and is now dying down Being new to it, we r not proper boaters you know cos we are still up wasting electricity. We should be adapting our sleeping patterns to daylight hours

If Janet haddn't been coming to help I would have stayed in bed also tomorrow will be sunny