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Are boaters getting more selfish or is it just the world in general


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13 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

 

Already posted above.

 

 

 

 

They are fully detailed in the 'General Canal Bye Laws' :

 

Sound signals Bye-Law No12.

 

(1) Every power-driven vessel navigating on any canal shall be furnished with an efficient whistle.

 

(2) When vessels are in sight of one another the master of a power-driven vessel under way in taking any of the courses hereinafter referred to in this Bye-law shall indicate that course by following signals on such whistle, namely :

One short blast to mean “I am altering my course to starboard”, two short blasts to mean “I am altering my course to port”, three short blasts to mean “My engines are going astern”, four short blasts to mean “I am about to turn or to turn round”.

This signal shall be followed after a short interval by one short blast if turning to starboard or two short blasts if turning to port and shall be repeated to any approaching vessel, whereupon such approaching vessel shall take action to avoid collision.

 

(3) In fog, mist, falling snow, heavy rainstorm or any other conditions similarly restricting visibility whether by night or day, the following signals shall be used:-

(a) A power-driven vessel making way through the water shall sound, at intervals of not more than two minutes a prolonged blast.

(b) A power-driven vessel under way but stopped and making no way through the water shall sound, at intervals of not more than two minutes, two prolonged blasts with an interval of about one second between them.

(c) A vessel when towing and a vessel under way which is unable to get out of the way of an approaching vessel through being not under command or unable to manoeuvre as required by these Bye-laws shall sound, at intervals of not more than one minute, three blasts in succession, namely, one prolonged blast followed by two short blasts.

(d) Every vessel aground in the fairway or mid-channel shall, so long as she remains aground, signify the same by sounding five or more blasts in rapid succession at intervals of not more than one minute. (4) When the view of the canal ahead is obstructed by a bend in the canal and until such view is no longer obscured, a powerdriven vessel making way through the water shall sound, at intervals of twenty seconds, a prolonged blast.

 

(5) The Master of a power driven vessel approaching a lock which is operated by staff provided by the Board for that purpose and requiring the bridge to be opened shall sound one prolonged blast, except that on the Weaver Navigation when navigating downstream he shall sound one prolonged blast followed by one short blast.

 

(6) The Master of a power-driven vessel intending to pass a moveable bridge, which is operated by staff provided by the Board or other authority, and requiring the bridge to be opened shall sound one prolonged blast, except that on the Weaver Navigation when navigating downstream he shall sound one prolonged blast followed by one short blast

And does a typical boat horn count as a "whistle"?

And no guidance on the duration of 'short' and 'prolonged' blasts.

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12 minutes ago, David Mack said:

And does a typical boat horn count as a "whistle"?

And no guidance on the duration of 'short' and 'prolonged' blasts.

 

I make no comment as to the way they are presented, I was simply helping you out as you said you couldn't find any sound regs that applied to the canals.

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Well, talking of sound signals as Jeff and I were moments ago as we approached a bridge with a bit of an S bend the other side and a boat visible approaching... Although we were a bit closer I decided to stop as it was wider on our side. Then we hear 3 short blasts from the other boat. Wow, I think that is the first time that has happened  under those circumstances. It certainly cleared up who was going to go through first!

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2 minutes ago, nicknorman said:

Well, talking of sound signals as Jeff and I were moments ago as we approached a bridge with a bit of an S bend the other side and a boat visible approaching... Although we were a bit closer I decided to stop as it was wider on our side. Then we hear 3 short blasts from the other boat. Wow, I think that is the first time that has happened  under those circumstances. It certainly cleared up who was going to go through first!

I presume the other boat stopped and let you through.  The one time I heard 3 short blasts so took that to mean the boat approaching was going to stop they just carried on straight through the bridge and I had to go hard astern to avoid hitting them.

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3 minutes ago, Rob-M said:

I presume the other boat stopped and let you through.  The one time I heard 3 short blasts so took that to mean the boat approaching was going to stop they just carried on straight through the bridge and I had to go hard astern to avoid hitting them.

Yes, this chap knew his signals and had stopped.

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Just now, nicknorman said:

Yes, this chap knew his signals and had stopped.

 

Not common though -- I've done the same in the past (3 blasts to signal I was letting them through) and they didn't had a clue what that meant, usually they stopped as well...

 

Wishing that most or all boaters on the canals knew the meaning of horn signals doesn't make it true, however much of a good thing that would be... 😞

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Going back to my original rant about boats on the wrong side, it can be tricky to know what to do when faced with opposite direction traffic on the wrong side. Last spring I was driving home from the gliding club, which is in Cairngorms National Park which is a touristy area. It was pitch dark. I was driving along the “ski road” (Aviemore to the ski slopes) and turning off left at a junction on a bend. I could see headlights coming the other way and soon realised they were on my side of the road. Presumably a confused foreign driver, and there was no other traffic to show them their error. Should I try to stop, should I speed up to make the left turn before they got there? In extremis, should I move over to the right?

 

In the event I sped up, or at least stopped slowing down, and made the turn off at speed with about 20yds to spare. All a bit worrying though!

 

Also had a cyclist veer onto my side on a single track road, fortunately we were both going pretty slowly so collision was avoided. She realised her error and swerved back onto her side just as I came to a stop. At least she had the decency to look apologetic!

Edited by nicknorman
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12 minutes ago, nicknorman said:

Presumably a confused foreign driver, and there was no other traffic to show them their error.

In my late 20s I worked in Oman. Before that I had never owned a car, although I had passed my test some time before. So it was in Oman, in a company landrover, that I really learned how to drive. On the right hand side of the road. Coming home on my first leave, I picked up a hire car at Heathrow and was promptly deposited onto the A4 during the morning rush hour, so there was no doubt where I should be on the road. That same evening, after visiting a friend in a very quiet suburban housing estate I turned out of her cul-de-sac into the main estate road, only to find a pair of headlights coming straight towards me on my side of the road. "What's that idiot doing?" I thought, as realisation slowly dawned on me....

Edited by David Mack
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17 minutes ago, nicknorman said:

Going back to my original rant about boats on the wrong side, it can be tricky to know what to do when faced with opposite direction traffic on the wrong side. Last spring I was driving home from the gliding club, which is in Cairngorms National Park which is a touristy area. It was pitch dark. I was driving along the “ski road” (Aviemore to the ski slopes) and turning off left at a junction on a bend. I could see headlights coming the other way and soon realised they were on my side of the road. Presumably a confused foreign driver, and there was no other traffic to show them their error. Should I try to stop, should I speed up to make the left turn before they got there? In extremis, should I move over to the right?

 

In the event I sped up, or at least stopped slowing down, and made the turn off at speed with about 20yds to spare. All a bit worrying though!

 

Also had a cyclist veer onto my side on a single track road, fortunately we were both going pretty slowly so collision was avoided. She realised her error and swerved back onto her side just as I came to a stop. At least she had the decency to look apologetic!

 

The one time I encountered a 'foreign' driver driving on the wrong side was in France, and it was a French registered LHD car! I had to quickly asses was it me or was it them as I was obviously in a foreign country. After quickly realising I was on the correct side and the other driver wasnt I managed to swerve to avoid a head on. He carried on seemingly oblivious until he likely hit somebody else or was seen by the Gendarmerie.

 

I can only assume it was a UK driver in French registered car, but I would think it take some doing to drive on the wrong side when the steering wheel is on the 'correct' side.

 

 

 

 

Edited by The Happy Nomad
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33 minutes ago, The Happy Nomad said:

 

The one time I encountered a 'foreign' driver driving on the wrong side was in France, and it was a French registered LHD car! I had to quickly asses was it me or was it them as I was obviously in a foreign country. After quickly realising I was on the correct side and the other driver wasnt I managed to swerve to avoid a head on. He carried on seemingly oblivious until he likely hit somebody else or was seen by the Gendarmerie.

 

I can only assume it was a UK driver in French registered car, but I would think it take some doing to drive on the wrong side when the steering wheel is on the 'correct' side.

 

 

 

 

He could have been drunk of course 

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20 hours ago, furnessvale said:

Most boats these days sem to be fitted with tinny car horns that wouldn't blow the skin off a rice pudding.  The first thing I do with any boat is fit a Klaxon.  Not necessarily the genuine article.  Cheap copies are available which fit the bill.

 

My boat is fitted with a feeble horn so I bought one of these.

 

https://www.daviessports.co.uk/product/coaching-and-resources/loud-hailers-and-horns/fox-40-ecoblast-air-horn-and-pump/phfp08725?pk_cid=1&pk_keyword=PHFP08725gls&pk_medium=multifeeds&pk_campaign=Google&pk_source=Google&pk_content=BusinessIndustrial&utm_source=Google&gclid=Cj0KCQjwn4qWBhCvARIsAFNAMihmRuu3KOBwcp3uz6UmR0n2ErH2_lgNfzaeeKT8dP6GsQCOBYbYTTYaAs68EALw_wcB

 

The only problem is that when used it terrifies the dog... ☹️

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I had an encounter coming off the motorway in to the services, as I was going up the slip road a car turned towards me and started heading down the slip road heading the wrong way on to the motorway.  Fortunately I was able to block the road in front of them and they stopped, it was an elderly couple who were very grateful when I explained to them why I had stopped them.  They were able to turn round and go the correct way, just a little shaken.

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Horns...

Mine is very loud....BUT...

 

...it takes about 3 seconds to get up to maximum strength, then 3 seconds to return to normal.

 

If I start blasting out a signal to someone, the chances are that when I've finished, the other boat will either be miles away, or we've bashed into each other... 🙂

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7 hours ago, The Happy Nomad said:

 

The one time I encountered a 'foreign' driver driving on the wrong side was in France, and it was a French registered LHD car! I had to quickly asses was it me or was it them as I was obviously in a foreign country. After quickly realising I was on the correct side and the other driver wasnt I managed to swerve to avoid a head on. He carried on seemingly oblivious until he likely hit somebody else or was seen by the Gendarmerie.

 

I can only assume it was a UK driver in French registered car, but I would think it take some doing to drive on the wrong side when the steering wheel is on the 'correct' side.

 

I was stopped by a set of temporary traffic lights in France, the road was closed to me on the right hand side. No other vehicles around. When the lights changed I set off and, reaching the end of the closed lane, continued on the wrong side of the road. Fortunately it was one of those long straight roads and I saw the car coming towards me on the same side of the road... after a few seconds I realised what was going on and moved across to the right. This was in a hire car. It's surprisingly easy to get it wrong when you're doing something you do every day but on the other side of the road.

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I use a "fire warning" aerosol horn and I don't think anyone would miss hearing that. They are cheaply available from B&Q, Screwfix etc and mine is attached to the rail by a jubilee clip. As I am on the Trent and there is a large pleasure boat near me it does come in quite useful, as well as when am I emerging from the Marina or meeting lots of rowers and canoes on the river.

 

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  • 2 months later...

To perfectly illustrate the premise of the OP, I put forward these photos as exhibit A (yes, it might be 'naming and shaming' but given the level of ignorance, I really don't care)

The water point/Elsan/Rubbish disposal point at Braunston at 11.30 am this morning

image.png.b461ecac28d01e2e0b050f39c72d75ba.png

Not a problem I thought, I'll moor up opposite and wait until he's finished. So I stood around like a lemon on the opposite side of the canal for about a quarter of an hour waiting for something to happen. There was no sign of watering up, dumping rubbish or emptying of Elsan's (or even going into the nearby chandlers)  A nearby moorer walked past and asked me if I was waiting for the boat to move ,I obviously answered "Yes" to then be told, "Oh, he's moored up, he's been there since yesterday afternoon". Annoying doesn't begin to describe it. Realising this muppet's ignorance I then managed to squeeze in behind him but not properly moored so whenever a boat came past the bow kept drifting out. I did the necessary (Elsan, Water,rubbish) and then reversed back telling the crew not to bother fending off if the bow hit the moored boat; as it turned out the boat reversed as straight as an arrow (on the one occasion I had rather hoped it wouldn't) so we didn't. By the time I'd finished there was a queue to get the the service block.

It can be seen here that there was plenty of mooring available opposite

image.png.3543c195b4579b1e557e98ab52919fe1.png

 

....but if that wasn't good enough for him, this is what the Braunston moorings looked like at the time......

image.png.e14ca80486dad94c2873a5d128ca20a7.png

 

When watering up I was conversing loudly with a moorer on the other side of the canal of just how ignorant this piece of mooring had been, but since there was no reaction from anyone on the boat I can only assume that to compound the matter, the boat was unoccupied.

 

I have a level of sympathy with someone turning up at Braunston at, say, 7pm no mooring available and taking the only place he could find (if that was indeed the case). I have no sympathy whatsoever with someone leaving the fecking thing there for the whole morning when alternative moorings were available:angry2:

 

Rant over!!

 

 

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1 hour ago, Wanderer Vagabond said:

I thought of that but the canal is too narrow there so I'd have blocked it. Some of us have consideration for others, unlike that muppet.

…and then Miles Away would have come along :) 

 

couple of weeks ago there was a boat moored on the lock landing above Hillmorton bottom locks, a week later it was still there. I asked the vollockie what the deal was but he didn’t seem bothered so i left it at that. The second time we passed there was a hire boat there as well, guess they assumed it was fine as a boat was already there (they’d gone across to the cafe for lunch) :(

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18 minutes ago, Hudds Lad said:

…and then Miles Away would have come along :) 

 

couple of weeks ago there was a boat moored on the lock landing above Hillmorton bottom locks, a week later it was still there. I asked the vollockie what the deal was but he didn’t seem bothered so i left it at that. The second time we passed there was a hire boat there as well, guess they assumed it was fine as a boat was already there (they’d gone across to the cafe for lunch) :(

Was it anything to do with a Volockie, surly he is not there to police such things, if he is not a boater he probably doesnt even know its not the done thing

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On 02/07/2022 at 11:44, robtheplod said:

In the past I've come across boats moored at the water point. Often i just move on to the next, but on one occasion i needed to fill up then. There wasn't anyone onboard so i double breasted up and pulled my hose over his boat and began filling up. He returned just as i was finishing and wasn't too please but didn't say anything...

I don’t know why he’d get angry - in more crowded bits like London, similar practice is welcomed. People sometimes stop on water points after dark if there wasn’t a space where they expected, to move on first thing in the morning. Multiple times I’ve breasted up to fill with water early morning and someone’s popped out to help grab my lines or shuffle their boat to the outside so they can leave without disturbing my hosepipe. 

Edited by cheesegas
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On 04/07/2022 at 09:49, nicknorman said:

Ok own goal, I shall have to add another 2 seconds to the empirbus programming. However 4 to 6 seconds is quite a long time and I don’t think I have ever heard such a long toot. Couple of seconds is the norm on the ground (water),

I give a long blast when entering a blind bend or junction when  it is clear to me that I must have clear passage. Or I must stop and engage astern if something I can't see is coming through and is giving a long blast because it is committed.

Only yesterday I was about to moor up just as a trip boat left his mooring just ahead of my intended mooring, I gave two very short toots and held my course, really just to say, I've seen you and I am staying on my side ie my port side 

At sea, (or one could say in other circumstances) I would use two standard toots, that signal says, I am turning to port.

Edited by LadyG
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