Wots on your roof?

[Maverick]

Whilst out at the weekend we had the pleasure of chatting to 2 elderly livaboards who each had their own boats and travelled the system together for company.

 

Their boats were an absolute credit to them the way they were spotless with brasses shining, and it reminded me of how gipsies take such prde in their caravans. They had been on the system 15yrs and I remarked to my girlfriend that if I were a livaboard thats how I would like my boat to look.

 

At the other end of the spectrum of cause are the bridgehoppers with 3 trees a wheelbarrow and the kitchen sink on the roof.

 

Each to his/her own.

 

Who are the real/proper boaters? Any guesses?

[Barry]

Oooooh Noooooo

 

I have a sense of impending doom now

 

Its all going to go wrooooong

 

Take cover!!!

[Maverick]

Oooooh Noooooo

 

I have a sense of impending doom now

 

Its all going to go wrooooong

 

Take cover!!!

 

Its been to quiet anyway, I only asked

[Supermalc]

Not a lot at the minute. Just 2 gang planks (I made them from the pine offcuts for others, but no one wanted them. A bargain at a tenner each) and a half full sack of firewood.

 

Now I've nothing against anyone who keeps their boat/house/car spotless, but to be honest, I really don't want to spent the majority of my life cleaning.

[Chris J W]

At the moment I've nowt on the roof, but no doubt that'll change. I'd hope that I'd not have it too cluttered, but as I'm by nature a bit of a clutter-monkey I suspect I'll have to try hard to keep it clear!

 

I'd quite like to see if I can grow some veg in pots on the roof (or in the well deck) but try and not look either too twee or too, er, 'traveller' (for wont of a better word)

[DHutch]

To answer the title question.

- Slightly aged life ring, plank, two strips of wood for sliding the enigineroom roof off on, centerline, few bits of driftwood drying for use as kindleing, and a random scattering of laquered roof vents.

 

 

I think its a balence thing, and i choice thng. Neather end of the spectrum have it how i would have it, but if both are enjoying there life, there doing it right for them. no?

 

 

 

Daniel

[StoneHenge]

I have the boat hook, plank and pole, a top box full of camping stuff along with a porta potti for emergencies, a life ring, a cannon with flowers in it and a severed arm (and a solar panel on sunny days).

 

I've seen some gorgeous immaculate boats whom are liveaboards (usually retired though and have the time), and some which are rusted up to the hilt with a small forest on top. Each to their own. I like the in between thing where it's not cluttered, but looks lived in (ifkwim).

 

I have noticed though and perhaps someone can confirm or deny as appropriate, that the majority of live aboards who cruise a lot of the year barely having anything on their roof, and I wondered whether this was a case of, if it isn't on there you can't steal it, or they have just got tidy over the years?

[Maverick]

I have the boat hook, plank and pole, a top box full of camping stuff along with a porta potti for emergencies, a life ring, a cannon with flowers in it and a severed arm (and a solar panel on sunny days).

 

I've seen some gorgeous immaculate boats whom are liveaboards (usually retired though and have the time), and some which are rusted up to the hilt with a small forest on top. Each to their own. I like the in between thing where it's not cluttered, but looks lived in (ifkwim).

 

I have noticed though and perhaps someone can confirm or deny as appropriate, that the majority of live aboards who cruise a lot of the year barely having anything on their roof, and I wondered whether this was a case of, if it isn't on there you can't steal it, or they have just got tidy over the years?

 

 

Could be that as they cruise continually and I assume pass under many bridges, it saves having to remove items to pass under them!!!!

 

Do you have to remove the imergency potti everytime you pass under a low bridge and where can I get one of those severed arms from? (preferably dripping blood)

[StoneHenge]

Could be that as they cruise continually and I assume pass under many bridges, it saves having to remove items to pass under them!!!!

 

Do you have to remove the imergency potti everytime you pass under a low bridge and where can I get one of those severed arms from? (preferably dripping blood)

 

No, the top box thus far has not caused us any problems getting under even the lowest bridge (bridge 17 on the ashby means ducking for anyone over 5.5).

 

I got the arm from a fancy dress shop. It looks quite real, and we have had it in all various positions, including hanging out the window. Someone said to us the other day as the tootled past. Love the cannon, love the name, not wild about the arm though!

[Orphiel]

Haha, I am definitely guilty of being all kinds of messy, not to mention slightly silly.

 

I've got a bunch of misc. boat stuff like hooks and gangplanks that to my shame I have not yet sorted out, all just came with the boat. Will probably get rid of some to tidy up as cannot imagine I need it all (speaking too soon, almost definitely). I also have a table and 2 chairs, folded, and a Tv arial and a trolley. These are the bane of my life as however hard I try I cannot get them tidy. I am shortly to have a full scale reshuffle of the whole roof.

 

For usefulness, I have a huge solar panel, and have just put up 3 growbags of veg and a herb pot. For utter uselessness, I have a stone gargoyle, and some solar powered fairy lights...

 

Am planning to get some top boxes when I have the money and properly sort it all out when I have the time. Would be useful to have somewhere to preprly store coal and wood. Also it doel feel very cluttered, which makes me irritated when I look at it.

 

Meg

[Tinally]

Apart from my VHF and CB antenna, my usual roof adornment is fish scales and bits of dead roach as the local gulls seem to find my hard-top a convenient dining table. Last week it was chicken bones when the bl**** birds had a raid on the local take-away!!

 

Dick

[Richard Fairhurst]

Who are the real/proper boaters?

Those delivering serious, viable commercial cargo on the A&C/Yorkshire Ouse/Trent/tidal Thames.

 

The rest of us are just having fun and should really know better than to bandy terms like "proper boaters" or "pretend boaters" around.

 

[Bones]

hmm well, I did have a boat pole with a hook on it on my roof... not any more (Sob).

 

Logs (nicely chopped by some kindly gentlefolk of the parish)

Boat pole

Solar panel

Life rings

Fender

Herbs

Cheese. Hmm... I must move that cheese.

 

 

edit: Does this make me a bridge hopper?!

Edited August 14, 2007 by Bones

[Sir Nibble]

The rest of us are just having fun and should really know better than to bandy terms like "proper boaters" or "pretend boaters" around.

Hurrah! Yes! There are too many people about who think only "our kind of people" count.

[mayalld]

Those delivering serious, viable commercial cargo on the A&C/Yorkshire Ouse/Trent/tidal Thames.

 

The rest of us are just having fun and should really know better than to bandy terms like "proper boaters" or "pretend boaters" around.

 

 

 

Ah, but it *IS* so much fun to watch how excited some people get if they are excluded from "proper boaters"

[Ewart Hodgson]

On my roof? - A very large mug of strong Assam tea, whenever possible :-)

[Breals]

A very sturdy, heavy and long boat pole with 'Jew's Ear' fungus growing on it, centre line, my windscreen with the steel roof cover on top of it, and a shiny wok lid over a leaky flying saucer vent.

[John Orentas]

It is always tempting to say, it is my business and mine alone what I store on my roof, a person must consider though that you may well be judged by your neighbours and others by what signals you boat gives to a very real degree your boat is an extension of you personality.

 

I was at one time involved in a certain amount of voluntary work with council tenants, driving through an area it is all to easy to make a very rapid assessment of who may live in a particular house though it may be totally wrong. An old gas cooker abandoned in the front garden, perhaps a few car spares lying around, lawn uncut, the hedges uncared for and the front gate off it's hinges. Now the people who live in that house may we be perfectly nice respectable folk and there may be very good reasons why the property is in that condition but the messages they are sending out are very different.

 

And so it is with boats, it you have a couple of old batteries on your back deck and you use car tyres because they work better than proper fenders, there may even be a few personal items stacked on the towpath covered by a plastic sheet. If your boat looks a bit like this, whether you like it or not neighbours and passers by will form an opinion of you.

[Breals]

Hopefully I'm driven more by practicality than what I fear people will think of me... I need access to the roof because of the way I use locks. So my plans for acres of busy lizzies and petunias, gnomes, windmills and birdbaths on the roof will have to remain unfulfilled ;P

 

That said, I've seen boats resembling the hanging gardens of Babylon emerging from Pershore Lock without much trouble...

[blackrose]

Who are the real/proper boaters? Any guesses?

 

They're all real/proper boaters, they just have different ways of doing things.

 

There are nicely painted houses with clean windows and immaculately manicured front gardens, while others look neglected, have broken gutters & old rusty cars stand in the driveway. Is anyone suggesting that the occupants of either of these aren't real/proper homeowners?

[honey ryder]

ha ha... yes erm , well our boat is quite er, full of stuff.

weve got :

a K1 racing kayak,

a surf board,

gang plank,

pole

boat hook,

life ring,

couple of bags of wood,

fibreglass sailing dinghy (orange)

2 old fashioned deckchairs ( for renovating )

a big piece of carpet to sit the dinghy on

9 flower pots with various herbs, flowers and until i ate them recently, some carrots

a trowel and a gardening fork

a weighted base for a big umbrella

a heavy ballast weight

a centreline ( lady muck complained we didnt have one when she rescued our boat from drifting down the canal)

a pushbike (sometimes 2)

a dinghy cover used as a tarp over the kayak and surf board

a rusty seized transom wheel for the dinghy

some old matting to protect the roof from bike pedals and some insulation foam.

 

I truly am up there with the scum of the waterways, the gipsies, the pikies and the bridge hoppers. except we dont bridge hop but cruise each 2 weeks or so. so far we havent had to remove anything from our roof for bridges or tunnels.

the closest/lowest bridge so far has been 6 inches off the top of our chimney which is the highest point along with the rudder on the kayak

 

we'de like to get some solar panels but not sure how they would fit on the roof.

[Machpoint005]

Paint.

Rather dull, UV-affected dark green paint.

[Chris-B]

Long Shaft, mop,short kebbing shaft ( no namby pampy weedhatch), centre line and boarding plank

Oh yes and occasionally but not always the two painted "buckby" watercans normally inside due to thieving scrotes

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

( Oh and one Rose in a plant pot !)

[StoneHenge]

Yes, I forgot about the centre rope, plus a buckby can, and bucket, and folding washing line.

 

More than you think eh? Still, be prepared as they say!

 

ha ha... yes erm , well our boat is quite er, full of stuff.

weve got :

a K1 racing kayak,

a surf board,

gang plank,

pole

boat hook,

life ring,

couple of bags of wood,

fibreglass sailing dinghy (orange)

2 old fashioned deckchairs ( for renovating )

a big piece of carpet to sit the dinghy on

9 flower pots with various herbs, flowers and until i ate them recently, some carrots

a trowel and a gardening fork

a weighted base for a big umbrella

a heavy ballast weight

a centreline ( lady muck complained we didnt have one when she rescued our boat from drifting down the canal)

a pushbike (sometimes 2)

a dinghy cover used as a tarp over the kayak and surf board

a rusty seized transom wheel for the dinghy

some old matting to protect the roof from bike pedals and some insulation foam.

 

I truly am up there with the scum of the waterways, the gipsies, the pikies and the bridge hoppers. except we dont bridge hop but cruise each 2 weeks or so. so far we havent had to remove anything from our roof for bridges or tunnels.

the closest/lowest bridge so far has been 6 inches off the top of our chimney which is the highest point along with the rudder on the kayak

 

we'de like to get some solar panels but not sure how they would fit on the roof.

[Smelly]

Logs. lots and lots of logs, and the necessary poles and planks.

 

Anyone sneering had best remember that I've at least halved my coal bill over the first half of the winter and my carbon foot print will be signficantly reduced. Furthermore, anyone knowing about forestry will know that green wood takes at least 6 months to season properly so it needs to be out for a good long time.

 

You might have a clear roof but what is that ebersbacher doing for thr fossil reserves?

 

I'd love a canal side shed but that simply ain't possible at the mo, unless someone can lend me a 15-20ft joey I could tow.

 

Speaking as an ex cargo carrying boating type; the "proper boaters" had holds to carry stuff in and I sorely doubt that had they not they would have let themselves run out of fuel just for the sakes of their twee neighbours whinging.

 

 

BTW, I ain't bridge hopping, got me a respeckabul mooring, just prefer to save money and carbon.