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Fat boats on the North Oxford


Dr Bob

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1 minute ago, Lily Rose said:

Here's another photo. This is how far he got past me before he could get no further and had to reverse back. I started to leave at the same time. If I hadn't I don't know what would have happened.

 

An extended period of chaos presumably.

 

IMG-20210814-WA0000.jpg

 

The Man from Del Monte, he say no :D 

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2 minutes ago, Markinaboat said:

I think widebeams are restricted beyond Dunchurch Pools marina (going north). They have to book with CRT if they want to cruise between the marina and Braunston Turn.

I believe they can also go as far as Barby Moorings as well.

 

I suspect "booking passage" is a joke and doesn't help at all.

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5 minutes ago, Markinaboat said:

I think widebeams are restricted beyond Dunchurch Pools marina (going north). They have to book with CRT if they want to cruise between the marina and Braunston Turn.

 

Official line is;

 

Managing the safe movement of wide beam boats on the North Oxford Canal

The North Oxford Canal between Braunston Junction and Hillmorton Locks is a narrow canal, not designated for wide-beam craft. However, wide-beam craft access to and from Dunchurch Pools and Barby Moorings is permitted, in a single journey (i.e. not mooring on the towpath or offside between Braunston and Hillmorton Locks).

Boaters with wide-beam craft planning travel on the North Oxford Canal, to or from Dunchurch Pools or Barby Moorings, should notifyenquiries.westmidlands@canalrivertrust.org.ukone week ahead (where possible*) of the boat movement with the following information: 

  • Boat index and name
  • Planned date of movement (if a you cannot provide an exact date please provide a range e.g between x date and x date)
  • Direction of movement
  • Contact number for the person who will be navigating the boat

*If you are unable to give a week’s notice, please email the West Midlands team as soon as possible so that they can make others aware of wide-beam craft movement on the north Oxford canal

Planned wide-beam boat movements on the north Oxford will be published on the Trust’s notices and stoppages web page.

The maximum craft dimensions for boats on the canal are:

Length 21.96m (72ft)

Beam 2.13m (7ft’)**

Draught 1.09m (3ft 7’’)

** subject to the above exemption for access

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2 hours ago, Lily Rose said:

11.15AM today in Braunston, i.e. a Saturday morning in mid-August.

 

I'm at the water point near Midland Chandler's and am about to leave and go through the turn towards Napton. There's another boat on the water point behind me and another ahead that has just gone into the turn. Suddenly he starts reversing back out.

 

Why?

 

It's good old fatboat "miles away" (I wish he was!) coming through Braunston turn from Napton direction to head up to Dunchurch Pools. He's well known there, I'm told, because he doesn't stay there. He regularly comes out and heads down to Braunston and towards Napton without giving a damn about the trouble he causes to everyone else. He does not give way but expects everyone else to somehow get of his way. Allegedly.

 

Anyway, he couldn't squeeze past (it transpired after he tried to, albeit not without scraping alongside me) so of course others had to shuffle about so he can get through. I'm also told that he can't get round the turn without making contact so presumably it's not unknown for lumps of the concrete edge to become cracked, dislodged and going splash. No wonder it's in a bit of a state there. Probably some of the bridges don't fare any better.

 

Is it worth complaining to CRT and, if so, who to?

 

Anyway, here's a photo or two...

 

 

IMG_20210814_111123205.jpg

IMG_20210814_111355007.jpg

IMG_20210814_111335572_kindlephoto-319624365.jpg

I would contact CRT to say there was a wide boat movement not notified on the stoppages page. Suggest sending to the "enquiries" address above and copied to CRT West Midlands (I think there's an address on the CRT site). 

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2 hours ago, Lily Rose said:

11.15AM today in Braunston, i.e. a Saturday morning in mid-August.

 

I'm at the water point near Midland Chandler's and am about to leave and go through the turn towards Napton. There's another boat on the water point behind me and another ahead that has just gone into the turn. Suddenly he starts reversing back out.

 

Why?

 

It's good old fatboat "miles away" (I wish he was!) coming through Braunston turn from Napton direction to head up to Dunchurch Pools. He's well known there, I'm told, because he doesn't stay there. He regularly comes out and heads down to Braunston and towards Napton without giving a damn about the trouble he causes to everyone else. He does not give way but expects everyone else to somehow get of his way. Allegedly.

 

Anyway, he couldn't squeeze past (it transpired after he tried to, albeit not without scraping alongside me) so of course others had to shuffle about so he can get through. I'm also told that he can't get round the turn without making contact so presumably it's not unknown for lumps of the concrete edge to become cracked, dislodged and going splash. No wonder it's in a bit of a state there. Probably some of the bridges don't fare any better.

 

Is it worth complaining to CRT and, if so, who to?

 

Anyway, here's a photo or two...

 

 

IMG_20210814_111123205.jpg

IMG_20210814_111355007.jpg

IMG_20210814_111335572_kindlephoto-319624365.jpg

That’s the one I met at the A45 bridge a couple of months ago. He just couldn’t give a hoot who he inconvenienced. I spoke to him and he confirmed he had told CRT of his voyage. If true, the CRT also couldn’t give a hoot!!

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Thanks all, I will put in a complaint.

 

I was mistaken about Dunchurch Pools though, it's not moored there. The friend that I misunderstood is moored there and has seen that boat to-ing and fro-ing in the Napton to Dunchurch area a few times this year. He also said the boat has gone up to the winding hole north of Barby Moorings and even a bit beyond that and then reversed back to it.

 

It does seem as though he is out to gain as much pleasure as he can on a canal unsuitable for his boat and without caring a jot about who he inconveniences or about CRT requirements.

 

Martyn - I was going to pm you to ask if that was the boat you encountered but you beat me to it!

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2 hours ago, Rob-M said:

Email your photos to enquiries.westmidlands@canalrivertrust.org.uk and enquire why this boat is traveling without notification and how they are unsuitable for the waterway as they could only fit through by hitting your boat and forcing others to move out of the way.  If nobody complains CRT will think they are managing the situation well.

Please also copy in Matthew Symonds at matthew.symonds@canalrivertrust.org.uk

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1 hour ago, frangar said:

I would suggest that boat is in breach of the T & C as it’s outside of the size for that waterway therefore it’s liable to be removed from the waterway. 

If you hit it hard enough in the right place, it might end up on the bank....

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On 09/08/2021 at 14:56, MtB said:

Weirdly, I just passed an absolute MONSTER of a fat boat on the north Oxford, about half a mile south of Dunchurch Pools, creeping along southewards and hugging the bank.

 

Couple steering it looked suitably embarrassed. 

 

Mike, was this the boat "Miles Away" that I posted pictures of earlier in this thread?

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8 hours ago, Lily Rose said:

 

Mike, was this the boat "Miles Away" that I posted pictures of earlier in this thread?

 

Certainly looks like it. I posted a photo a couple of pages back:

https://www.canalworld.net/forums/index.php?/topic/109777-fat-boats-on-the-north-oxford/&do=findComment&comment=2675560

 

 

 

 

Resolution is too poor to read the name, but the colour of the boat is the same, and there is an illegible name in white writing on the bow.

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7 hours ago, MtB said:

 

 

Thanks Mike.

 

But... there's an update that arrived before I sent my ail but not before I spent ages writing it!

 

I have been sent a photo showing his boat now in Dunchurch Pools marina. Apparently today is his 1st day. 

 

I quote...

 

"...he will be on board all the time and is not planning on going out on to the canal anytime soon.
Apparently he has been waiting for two months for the mooring to come available due to covid."

 

We shall see!

 

 

 

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Here's another update regarding "Miles Away" which partly contradicts the last one. It seems my contact had been given some duff info when he got back to the marina this morning!

 

The text reproduced below comes from none other than Dr Bob (he has given me permission to name him as the source).

 

"...here is the boat today, taken from our boat. We got back from our trip down the GU on the 27th July and they were here so they arrived sometime before that. The have been in and out 3 times that we have seen since then. I'll try and get more information. Certainly complain to the CRT as they cannot be informing them of each trip. Coming through Braunston on a weekend is madness and I'm sure the CRT never agreed to that."

 

Note that Dr Bob says that they have been in and out 3 times since 27 July. That's three times in three weeks! 
 
That's surely not in the spirit of the CRT rules?
 

 

 

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3 hours ago, Lily Rose said:

 

Here's another update regarding "Miles Away" which partly contradicts the last one. It seems my contact had been given some duff info when he got back to the marina this morning!

 

The text reproduced below comes from none other than Dr Bob (he has given me permission to name him as the source).

 

"...here is the boat today, taken from our boat. We got back from our trip down the GU on the 27th July and they were here so they arrived sometime before that. The have been in and out 3 times that we have seen since then. I'll try and get more information. Certainly complain to the CRT as they cannot be informing them of each trip. Coming through Braunston on a weekend is madness and I'm sure the CRT never agreed to that."

 

Note that Dr Bob says that they have been in and out 3 times since 27 July. That's three times in three weeks! 
 
That's surely not in the spirit of the CRT rules?
 

 

 

 

Ok, just to add some detail to my photo posted up thread (as requested by PM), I took the photo as I rode my bike northwards on the towpath, so the boat MILES AWAY was travelling south, at 12.23pm on 9th August 2021, according to the exif data attached to the image file. 

 

Here is the location according to Applemaps. The boat was just a little south of Dunchurch Pools Marina entrance. 

 

175893263_Screenshot2021-08-15at20_07_28.png.067878bb95bc0e71d6a7fac3e7be22a1.png

 

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2 minutes ago, MtB said:

 

Ok, just to add some detail to my photo posted up thread (as requested by PM), I took the photo as I rode my bike northwards on the towpath, so the boat MILES AWAY was travelling south, at 12.23pm on 9th August 2021, according to the exif data attached to the image file. 

 

Here is the location according to Applemaps. The boat was just a little south of Dunchurch Pools Marina entrance. 

 

175893263_Screenshot2021-08-15at20_07_28.png.067878bb95bc0e71d6a7fac3e7be22a1.png

 

Thanks Mike.

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3 minutes ago, ditchcrawler said:

I didn't see ant fat boats on the North Oxford only two on the bit between Branston and Napton Turn, one of those was repinning her moorings as we passed

Is that bit considered to be the GU or the "mid Oxford"?

 

At least they are moored at wide points and don't cause an obstruction. I do wonder how long they have been moored there though, the grass is growing well around the mooring hooks/pins.

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1 minute ago, Tracy D'arth said:

Is that bit considered to be the GU or the "mid Oxford"?

 

At least they are moored at wide points and don't cause an obstruction. I do wonder how long they have been moored there though, the grass is growing well around the mooring hooks/pins.

 

 

The one moored just east of Wigwams Turn has been there every time I pass for the last three months. 

 

No doubt it moves away as soon as I'm gone and comes back next time i do that stretch....

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10 minutes ago, roland elsdon said:

Its the warwick and napton canal, I believe, between braunston and bottom of hatton.

 

 

If you had said Bottom of Hatton to Wigram's Turn, I would agree with you. The Oxford Canal Company remained in profit for a lot longer than it might because of the tolls it could levy on the Wigram's to Braunston stretch.

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11 minutes ago, Tony Brooks said:

 

 

If you had said Bottom of Hatton to Wigram's Turn, I would agree with you. The Oxford Canal Company remained in profit for a lot longer than it might because of the tolls it could levy on the Wigram's to Braunston stretch.

Yes i think you are right. That makes the length between wigrams turn and the new braunston turn an orphan canal, until  incorporated in the grand union.

 

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19 minutes ago, roland elsdon said:

Yes i think you are right. That makes the length between wigrams turn and the new braunston turn an orphan canal, until  incorporated in the grand union.

 

 

It was never an orphan, it was always under the Oxford Canal Company, hence the tolls it could extract. I think it only became known as the GU in relatively recent times. Possibly post nationalisation. I am sure I read that the Braunston Puddle Banks and cutting beyond were part of the straightening the Oxford Canal Company carried out.

Edited by Tony Brooks
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