Cost of tow across Ribble ?

[narrowboatmike]

Hi, has anyone any  information about the cost of a tow across the Ribble.

We have a 57 ft narrowboat, thanks, Mike and Melanie.

[matty40s]

You need to specify which way, N-S could be a lot more than S-N as the tow boat may have to come over on the previous tide.

Edited August 13, 2021 by matty40s

[TheBiscuits]

38 minutes ago, matty40s said:

You need to specify which way, N-S could be a lot more than S-N as the tow boat may have to come over on the previous tide.

 

Nah, the tug collects you part way along the crossing.  You set off from Preston and they meet you at around the two mile perch.

 

It was about £70 last year, don't know this year's prices.

[frangar]

Just do it! I did it with 21hp of JP2….was told I’d need to go to Preston…I’d never make it…in the end did it with ease. Just check your cooling is up to it. 

[narrowboatmike]

10 hours ago, TheBiscuits said:

 

Nah, the tug collects you part way along the crossing.  You set off from Preston and they meet you at around the two mile perch.

 

It was about £70 last year, don't know this year's prices.

Great, thanks. I'd rather pay £70 than worry about over heating and my wife 

falling overboard as she doesn't swim. I'm sure there is a wife joke somewhere in that 

statement.

 

[robtheplod]

7 minutes ago, narrowboatmike said:

Great, thanks. I'd rather pay £70 than worry about over heating and my wife 

falling overboard as she doesn't swim. I'm sure there is a wife joke somewhere in that 

statement.

 

maybe wife overheating?

[narrowboatmike]

3 minutes ago, robtheplod said:

maybe wife overheating?

Or sinking ha ha 

[john6767]

50 minutes ago, narrowboatmike said:

Great, thanks. I'd rather pay £70 than worry about over heating and my wife 

falling overboard as she doesn't swim. I'm sure there is a wife joke somewhere in that 

statement.

 

If you haven’t seen it already, this is a video that shows a narrowboat being towed up the Ribble link.  You can get an idea of what is involved, and decide if you think that is the better option for you, personally I would rather be in control, unless there is a hard reason why the engine is not capable.

 

 

[Tom766]

I'm looking for a tow North, our 10hp outboard only does 5mph on a canal. I can see it being at a stalemate against a tide

[blackrose]

59 minutes ago, john6767 said:

If you haven’t seen it already, this is a video that shows a narrowboat being towed up the Ribble link.  You can get an idea of what is involved, and decide if you think that is the better option for you, personally I would rather be in control, unless there is a hard reason why the engine is not capable.

 

 

 

I agree. Any canal boat that can't handle a bit of tidal work isn't up to much. I understand that some owners are a bit scared on big rives and in tideways which is natural, but the guy in that video is freaking out about some small waves from another boat's wash. I don't think he's ever felt his boat pitch and roll before - he was even talking about capsizing! He'd better stay off the tidal Thames if he doesn't like waves!

Edited August 14, 2021 by blackrose

[Tom766]

Haha love a bit of water skiing, bigger the wake the better. I fantasize of skiing the Leeds n Liverpool often. Can it be done behind a narrowboat I wonder

[blackrose]

39 minutes ago, Tom766 said:

Haha love a bit of water skiing, bigger the wake the better. I fantasize of skiing the Leeds n Liverpool often. Can it be done behind a narrowboat I wonder

 

Only if you're very small and weigh less than 10kg

[Grassman]

1 hour ago, Tom766 said:

Haha love a bit of water skiing, bigger the wake the better. I fantasize of skiing the Leeds n Liverpool often. Can it be done behind a narrowboat I wonder

 

 

I was disappointed that when on the Manchester Ship Canal the 2 oncoming tankers we met slowed right down to virtually a stop. I was looking forward to some large waves but I think I was creating more of a wake than they were.

[ditchcrawler]

13 hours ago, narrowboatmike said:

Great, thanks. I'd rather pay £70 than worry about over heating and my wife 

falling overboard as she doesn't swim. I'm sure there is a wife joke somewhere in that 

statement.

 

Or a wife jacket

[TheBiscuits]

13 hours ago, Tom766 said:

I'm looking for a tow North, our 10hp outboard only does 5mph on a canal. I can see it being at a stalemate against a tide

 

That's as fast as my boat goes, and I've done the Ribble Link a few times.

 

If you can sustain that for 3 hours it's fast enough, and if you choose a high tide you'll be doing more than that speed as you'll be in 30 feet of water not 3 feet of water.  You'll have to punch harder against the tide, but you'll also have a longer time window to get through onto Savick Brook.

 

If you can, drop onto the River Weaver at Anderton and see how fast you can go in deep water.  The run from Dutton lock down to Weston Marsh and back will tell you if your boat is capable of doing the Ribble Link if you wind it on a bit, and the river has a 6mph speed limit so you can rev it hard.

[Tom766]

That's a good idea 👍

[Cheshire cat]

I tried going fast down the non tidal Severn. We were doing 5.3 mph at 1700 rpm. The engines maximum speed in gear is 2200rpm because she is overpropped. Over 1700 we got a lot more noise but not much extra speed. 

 

I know the boat has done the Ribble Link with it's previous owner and he told me she handled it with ease so I'm looking forward to giving it a go. Our engine is a beta 33 so it's not the biggest.