Advice for a would-be liveaboard

[Mikesp]

Hi all.

 

I've come to the oracle for some initial help

 

I've been thinking about living on a boat for a long time and hope to make it a reality asap. I would dearly love to live on a widebeam but I will be single-handed. This will make locking a laborious task I'm  thinking. Is there anyone on here that may be in the same position as I hope to be, that could provide advice on this.

 

Thanks in advance

 

Mike

[Alan de Enfield]

@blackrose

 

He;s the man - crusied his wide beam all over.

 

Questions -

What do you mean by widebeam ? (anything over 7 foot is classed as a widebeam)

What length are you looking at ?

Where do you plan to use it (you cannot get from South to North (or vice-versa) without lifting it out and going on a truck) ?

[Guest]

2 minutes ago, Mikesp said:

Hi all.

 

I've come to the oracle for some initial help

 

I've been thinking about living on a boat for a long time and hope to make it a reality asap. I would dearly love to live on a widebeam but I will be single-handed. This will make locking a laborious task I'm  thinking. Is there anyone on here that may be in the same position as I hope to be, that could provide advice on this.

 

Thanks in advance

 

Mike

 

Paging @blackrose

[Alan de Enfield]

Just now, Alan de Enfield said:

@blackrose

 

He's the man - cruised his wide beam all over.

 

Questions -

What do you mean by widebeam ? (anything over 7 foot is classed as a widebeam)

What length are you looking at ?

Where do you plan to use it (you cannot get from South to North (or vice-versa) without lifting it out and going on a truck) ?

 

[mrsmelly]

1 hour ago, Mikesp said:

Hi all.

 

I've come to the oracle for some initial help

 

I've been thinking about living on a boat for a long time and hope to make it a reality asap. I would dearly love to live on a widebeam but I will be single-handed. This will make locking a laborious task I'm  thinking. Is there anyone on here that may be in the same position as I hope to be, that could provide advice on this.

 

Thanks in advance

 

Mike

As others have said Blackrose has done it for years. My twopenneth is that widebeams are MUCH MUCH MUCH better to live on than narrowbeams. I found mine no harder to single hand or with the missus than my narrowboats, in fact it was better than my very heavy 70 footer single handed as it was only fifty feet but MUCH better inside space and much more comfortable. Just the limits as to areas that put me back on a narrowboat.

[Mikesp]

1 hour ago, Alan de Enfield said:

@blackrose

 

He;s the man - crusied his wide beam all over.

 

Questions -

What do you mean by widebeam ? (anything over 7 foot is classed as a widebeam)

What length are you looking at ?

Where do you plan to use it (you cannot get from South to North (or vice-versa) without lifting it out and going on a truck) ?

Ideally approx 10ft 'ish'. I would feel more comfortable taking up a bit less space on the narrow sectionso of canal and 10ft still gives ample room for 'space'

Length 57' or less

Ideally use south till area covered then ship boat to the north

 

Thanks for answering

[Mikesp]

20 minutes ago, mrsmelly said:

As others have said Blackrose has done it for years. My twopenneth is that widebeams are MUCH MUCH MUCH better to live on than narrowbeams. I found mine no harder to single hand or with the missus than my narrowboats, in fact it was better than my very heavy 70 footer single handed as it was only fifty feet but MUCH better inside space and much more comfortable. Just the limits as to areas that put me back on a narrowboat.

Thanks for the reply. You echo my thoughts but I will reserve some pennies to move the boat if needed. Rgds Mike

[peterboat]

1 hour ago, Mikesp said:

Hi all.

 

I've come to the oracle for some initial help

 

I've been thinking about living on a boat for a long time and hope to make it a reality asap. I would dearly love to live on a widebeam but I will be single-handed. This will make locking a laborious task I'm  thinking. Is there anyone on here that may be in the same position as I hope to be, that could provide advice on this.

 

Thanks in advance

 

Mike

Hi Mike, I have had my widebeam for 10 years now, I have done it single handed and mob handed and as long as you take your time on your own it easily doable. I used to have a narrowboat before and after the widebeam I don't think I could go back to a narrowboat unless it was a very nice 72 footer with separate engine room for a electric motor 

5 minutes ago, Mikesp said:

Ideally approx 10ft 'ish'. I would feel more comfortable taking up a bit less space on the narrow sectionso of canal and 10ft still gives ample room for 'space'

Length 57' or less

Ideally use south till area covered then ship boat to the north

 

Thanks for answering

Mine is 57 x 12 it's what came along and at that time the license was the same for both narrow and wide 

[Mikesp]

There's not a lot of difference in licence price is there. I thought it was the length X 1.05?

[blackrose]

Yes I've lived on a widebeam for years and I have cruised a fair bit and 99% of the time that's been single handed. However, most of the time I've lived on this boat I've had moorings in different places, mainly because of work commitments. 

 

In terms of locking, yes it's laborious. I have to open and close all 4 gates by myself so if there is someone around to help and I can just stay onboard it's a real treat. I got this boat over 15 years ago when I was 43. At that time I could push myself and do 25 locks in a day. These days I have to admit I feel knackered if I do 5 or 6. Maybe it's age catching up with me or maybe I'm just out of practice.

 

The main difference between single handing a widebeam and a narrowboat is just the momentum of the widebeam. You must stop the boat on the engine. Don't step off with a centre rope and attempt to lean back on it like you see some narrowboats doing. It will just drag you down the towpath. Stop it by taking a turn around a bollard if you must but only if its already going very slowly otherwise a centre eye, or a fairlead might snap.

 

For the same reason I think it's even more important to go slowly. You can always increase engine revs, but reducing speed while maintaining control it's more difficult. Use the boat's momentum to your advantage. As you're approaching locks or moorings take the boat out of gear for a few seconds and see what the wind or current are doing then knock it back into gear. 

 

I can recommend Edward Burrell's book. A Guide to Motor Barge Handling

Edited January 21, 2021 by blackrose

[Mikesp]

1 minute ago, blackrose said:

Yes I've lived on a widebeam for years and I have cruised a fair bit and 99% of the time that's been single handed. However, most of the time I've lived on this boat I've had moorings in different places, mainly because of work commitments. 

 

In terms of locking, yes it's laborious. I have to open and close all 4 gates by myself so if there is someone around to help and I can just stay onboard it's a real treat. I got this boat over 15 years ago when I was 43. At that time I could push myself and do 25 locks in a day. These days I have to admit I feel knackered if I do 5 or 6. Maybe it's age catching up with me or maybe I'm just out of practice.

 

The main difference between single handing a widebeam and a narrowboat is just the momentum of the widebeam. You must stop the boat on the engine. Don't step off with a centre rope and attempt to lean back on it like you see some narrowboats doing. It will just drag you down the towpath. Stop it by taking a turn around a bollard if you must.

 

For the same reason I think it's even more important to go slowly. You can always increase engine revs, but reducing speed while maintaining control it's more difficult. Use the boat's momentum to your advantage. As you're approaching locks or moorings take the boat out of gear for a few seconds and see what the wind or current are doing then knock it back into gear. 

 

I can recommend Edward Burrell's book. A Guide to Motor Barge Handling

Very informative. Thanks. I'm 67 with reasonable health but the 'take it slowly' seems like appropriate advice!

[blackrose]

1 minute ago, Mikesp said:

Very informative. Thanks. I'm 67 with reasonable health but the 'take it slowly' seems like appropriate advice!

 

Yes and the most important bit is don't let other people distract you at locks or make you feel like you need to work the lock faster. Just take your time

[mrsmelly]

3 minutes ago, Mikesp said:

There's not a lot of difference in licence price is there. I thought it was the length X 1.05?

Its not only the licence. when I had mine only a few years ago moorings cost the same as narrow moorings so in fact when I sold my 70 foot narrowboat and bought the much comfier widebeam my mooring fees reduced quite considerably. However thats no longer the case as many places now charge a big premium for the extra width so do your homework ?

[ditchcrawler]

5 minutes ago, blackrose said:

 

 

In terms of locking, yes it's laborious. I have to open and close all 4 gates by myself so if there is someone around to help and I can just stay onboard it's a real treat. I got this boat over 15 years ago when I was 43. At that time I could push myself and do 25 locks in a day. These days I have to admit I feel knackered if I do 5 or 6. Maybe it's age catching up with me or maybe I'm just out of practice.

 

Did you have any boating experience before you got your widebeam?

[Alan de Enfield]

4 minutes ago, Mikesp said:

There's not a lot of difference in licence price is there. I thought it was the length X 1.05?

 

It depends on the beam - it is rising to Nb x 1.2.

 

 

[mrsmelly]

Just now, ditchcrawler said:

Did you have any boating experience before you got your widebeam?

He lived on a sewer tube.

[blackrose]

3 minutes ago, ditchcrawler said:

Did you have any boating experience before you got your widebeam?

 

Yes. 3 years on a 45ft narrowboat.

[ditchcrawler]

2 minutes ago, mrsmelly said:

He lived on a sewer tube.

Thats my point, he wasn't 67 when he started, experience saves a lot of work and physical effort

[blackrose]

8 minutes ago, ditchcrawler said:

Thats my point, he wasn't 67 when he started, experience saves a lot of work and physical effort

 

That's true, but it's never too late to learn.

What I would recommend to Mike is that he takes someone experienced out with him for the first few trips. 

 

Start by doing the locks together and aim to get to a point where the experienced crew member is just watching you doing it on your own.

 

Once you can do it all by yourself it's quite a liberating feeling. You'll arrive at locks and people will say "Where's your crew?" or "That's a big boat to move on your own" but to you it will have become second nature.

Edited January 21, 2021 by blackrose

[mrsmelly]

2 minutes ago, ditchcrawler said:

Thats my point, he wasn't 67 when he started, experience saves a lot of work and physical effort

Agreed. The ones that worry me are those that wait all their life at work and then retire onto a boat to live and those that just live a life tied down wanting to retire onto a boat,  lots die before they get there and others dont understand what is involved in full time living aboard, not saying the op is such a person, if I was him and intended living off narrow ditches a widey is a no brainer.

[peterboat]

6 minutes ago, ditchcrawler said:

Thats my point, he wasn't 67 when he started, experience saves a lot of work and physical effort

I am with you it's going to be a hard learning curve at 67 not something I would want to do

[blackrose]

13 minutes ago, peterboat said:

I am with you it's going to be a hard learning curve at 67 not something I would want to do

 

Maybe the best advice is to hire a widebeam for a week with a more experienced friend and see if you can learn how to do it yourself. I can't remember the name of the company but I've seen widebeam hire boats on the K&A. Just don't do it during a bank holiday weekend - mayhem.

Edited January 21, 2021 by blackrose

[David Mack]

1 hour ago, blackrose said:

Stop it by taking a turn around a bollard if you must but only if its already going very slowly otherwise a centre eye, or a fairlead might snap.

 

Or you might hoik the bollard out of the ground.

[TheBiscuits]

1 hour ago, blackrose said:

The main difference between single handing a widebeam and a narrowboat is just the momentum of the widebeam. You must stop the boat on the engine. Don't step off with a centre rope and attempt to lean back on it like you see some narrowboats doing. It will just drag you down the towpath. Stop it by taking a turn around a bollard if you must but only if its already going very slowly otherwise a centre eye, or a fairlead might snap.

 

For the same reason I think it's even more important to go slowly. You can always increase engine revs, but reducing speed while maintaining control it's more difficult. Use the boat's momentum to your advantage. As you're approaching locks or moorings take the boat out of gear for a few seconds and see what the wind or current are doing then knock it back into gear

 

That's all good advice for any other boat too.  

[Mikesp]

1 hour ago, ditchcrawler said:

Did you have any boating experience before you got your widebeam?

Yes I suppose that holding people up did cross my mind. Widebeams don't fare well with impatient people from what I've gathered