Actual use of anchors in emergencies on UK canal/river network

[Momac]

3 hours ago, IanD said:

 

If insurers (and the courts, and CART) thought that a narrowboat venturing out onto a river without an anchor was "seriously negligent", you can bet your boat that having one would be a legal requirement to get insurance cover and/or a license, like passing BSS.

Thank goodness there is not  a legal requirement for everything.

But taking reasonable care and not acting recklessly  are    insurance requirements    How taking reasonable care is interpreted is matter of opinion

.

 

Some advice on Navigating the Trent here 

 

https://nabo.org.uk/files/trent_sg.pdf

Anchor does appear in the text 

 

Edited November 25, 2022 by MartynG

[LadyG]

56 minutes ago, bizzard said:

I'm on a river and I wouldn't go anywhere without my tackle.

You always have that option ,

Edited November 25, 2022 by LadyG

[Momac]

3 hours ago, IanD said:

 

Some people might also consider that taking a diesel boat onto a river without draining/cleaning the fuel tank to remove any water/dirt and replacing all the fuel filters to be seriously negligent,

I hope not.

It would be  a pain to do all that every time we  leave the marina.

[peterboat]

3 hours ago, Wanderer Vagabond said:

Anchors aside, having seen the standard of some of the Boatmaster Licence Holders on both the Thames and the Trent, I'm unsure of how much of a recommendation that is in reality. I was well impressed by the standard of the Tug Skippers on the Thames, but they were just pulling rubbish barges, now  after the Marchioness disaster I was expecting the passenger boat skippers to be absolutely First Class, sadly I was very disappointed, they were crap.

You have seen the boat he Skippered? Its very big and a thing of beauty 

[Guest]

9 minutes ago, peterboat said:

You have seen the boat he Skippered? Its very big and a thing of beauty 

 

Well.

 

The Nottingham Princess is big, yes, and needs a lot of skill to skipper.

 

But 'a thing of beauty?'

 

Mmmm.

[TheBiscuits]

15 minutes ago, M_JG said:

But 'a thing of beauty?'

 

Nah.

 

That's Tim not the boat!

[peterboat]

1 hour ago, M_JG said:

 

Well.

 

The Nottingham Princess is big, yes, and needs a lot of skill to skipper.

 

But 'a thing of beauty?'

 

Mmmm.

Sarcasm Martin, Tim will know what I mean.

The boat that lives by the castle in Newark is a lovely looking boat, I have forgotten her name but unlike the the princess cruises she has style here is a screenshot 

[Guest]

19 minutes ago, peterboat said:

Sarcasm Martin, Tim will know what I mean.

The boat that lives by the castle in Newark is a lovely looking boat, I have forgotten her name but unlike the the princess cruises she has style here is a screenshot 

 

Well I can see her name on the hull and two life rings..

[peterboat]

9 hours ago, M_JG said:

 

Well I can see her name on the hull and two life rings..

I know I read it after I googled it

[Alan de Enfield]

9 hours ago, peterboat said:

That lives by the castle in Newark is a lovely looking boat, I have forgotten her name but unlike the the princess cruises she has style here is a screenshot 

 

And - to get back onto the interesting subject of anchors - Sonning has an anchor (Fisherman pattern) lying on her bow ready for deployment.

 

 

 

Anchor evolution :

 

Edited November 26, 2022 by Alan de Enfield

[Tacet]

17 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

And - to get back onto the interesting subject of anchors - Sonning has an anchor (Fisherman pattern) lying on her bow ready for deployment.

 

 

 

Anchor evolution :

 

Not sure I can accept the second style.  The stock needs to be at right angles to the arm if there is to be any chance of it biting.

 And the CQR predates the Danforth type.

[Momac]

The boaters handbook also  indicates a need for an anchor

https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/refresh/media/thumbnail/41331-the-boaters-handbook.pdf

 

 

 

[Midnight]

There's a good article by Nick Roberts on the Facebook Trentlink page with advice on deploying anchors on the tidal Trent.

 

Here's a link for FBers

https://m.facebook.com/groups/666937220961360/permalink/922398408748572/

Edited November 26, 2022 by Midnight

[peterboat]

43 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

And - to get back onto the interesting subject of anchors - Sonning has an anchor (Fisherman pattern) lying on her bow ready for deployment.

 

 

 

Anchor evolution :

 

That's why I chose that picture Alan 

[Alan de Enfield]

23 minutes ago, Tacet said:

Not sure I can accept the second style.  The stock needs to be at right angles to the arm if there is to be any chance of it biting.

 And the CQR predates the Danforth type.

 

Indeed about 20 years earlier, and is still s far superior anchor to the Danforth (except it can bite your fingers when it swivels)

I always try and do research on my anchors and have lots of documentation regarding them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited November 26, 2022 by Alan de Enfield

[howardang]

12 hours ago, peterboat said:

You have seen the boat he Skippered? Its very big and a thing of beauty 

Large for the Trent, of course, and a handful to handle at times with plenty of windage to offer a challenge in strong winds but - I really don't think it could be described as a thing of beauty! Functional and  aesthetically slightly  soulless yes! 😉

 

Howard

Edited November 26, 2022 by howardang

[Alan de Enfield]

8 minutes ago, howardang said:

Large for the Trent, of course, and a handful to handle at times with plenty of windage to offer a challenge in strong winds but - I really don't think it could be described as a thing of beauty! Functional and  aesthetically slightly  soulless yes! 😉

 

Howard

 

I think I'd pretty much agree :

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited November 26, 2022 by Alan de Enfield

[Wanderer Vagabond]

59 minutes ago, MartynG said:

The boaters handbook also  indicates a need for an anchor

https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/refresh/media/thumbnail/41331-the-boaters-handbook.pdf

 

 

 

I would rather question the practicality of having two anchors ready for use. I have found somewhere to stuff the one that I have in the bow locker when it's not needed, I have no idea where on earth I'd put a second one when not needed. I suppose I could get a lifeboat to tow behind and put it on that

[Wanderer Vagabond]

6 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

I think I'd pretty much agree :

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Oh, I thought it was bigger than that. Yes it was that one that gave two blasts on the horn and then pulled out directly into my path on the Trent. I was so close that I couldn't even cut across it's stern and had to steer out into the river to avoid a collision. This was back in 2015 and I'm not saying that the other poster was skippering, but in my view, if you cast off and cause another boat to have to take serious evasive action to avoid a collision because you haven't looked behind, then you have seriously fouled up. Hence my comment about holding a Boatmaster Licence isn't necessarily evidence of competence.

[Alan de Enfield]

21 minutes ago, Wanderer Vagabond said:

I would rather question the practicality of having two anchors ready for use. I have found somewhere to stuff the one that I have in the bow locker when it's not needed, I have no idea where on earth I'd put a second one when not needed. I suppose I could get a lifeboat to tow behind and put it on that

 

I have quite often seen Danforth (type) anchors mounted vertically on the stern (on cruiser-stern boats) sat in a piece of 'U-shaped channel' on the outside of the rail above the rudder. It makes a tidy job..

Not a easy on a 'Trad'.

[Guest]

37 minutes ago, Wanderer Vagabond said:

Oh, I thought it was bigger than that. Yes it was that one that gave two blasts on the horn and then pulled out directly into my path on the Trent. I was so close that I couldn't even cut across it's stern and had to steer out into the river to avoid a collision. This was back in 2015 and I'm not saying that the other poster was skippering, but in my view, if you cast off and cause another boat to have to take serious evasive action to avoid a collision because you haven't looked behind, then you have seriously fouled up. Hence my comment about holding a Boatmaster Licence isn't necessarily evidence of competence.

 

Without corroboration or video support I tend it pays to not pay a lot of attention to a one sided account of an incident on the internet/Facebook/ etc. One often finds there is two sides to every story.

 

It's one of the reasons my car has a dash cam.

[howardang]

34 minutes ago, Wanderer Vagabond said:

.......................Hence my comment about holding a Boatmaster Licence isn't necessarily evidence of competence.

Human nature strikes again,; and holding a Boatmasters certificate or  even  holding a driving licence is  not total proof of competence! In both examples there is no excuse for ignorance of the correct procedure. Unfortunately, I don't think either licences examine candidates for having good manners or their use of common sense. 

 

Howard

[Tacet]

1 hour ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

Indeed about 20 years earlier, and is still s far superior anchor to the Danforth (except it can bite your fingers when it swivels)

I always try and do research on my anchors and have lots of documentation regarding them.

 

I recall a plough type anchor, very similar to a CQR but without the swivel to the stock.  Seemed to hold well and no trapped fingers 

[GUMPY]

I always liked Brian on Zavala's  design for anchor stowage, admittedly it's a semi trad but would work on a trad.

Gives the ability to deploy from bow or stern without leaving the helm position 🤔

[peterboat]

1 hour ago, howardang said:

Large for the Trent, of course, and a handful to handle at times with plenty of windage to offer a challenge in strong winds but - I really don't think it could be described as a thing of beauty! Functional and  aesthetically slightly  soulless yes! 😉

 

Howard

 

1 hour ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

I think I'd pretty much agree :

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I did say earlier to Martin it was sarcasm! 

57 minutes ago, Wanderer Vagabond said:

Oh, I thought it was bigger than that. Yes it was that one that gave two blasts on the horn and then pulled out directly into my path on the Trent. I was so close that I couldn't even cut across it's stern and had to steer out into the river to avoid a collision. This was back in 2015 and I'm not saying that the other poster was skippering, but in my view, if you cast off and cause another boat to have to take serious evasive action to avoid a collision because you haven't looked behind, then you have seriously fouled up. Hence my comment about holding a Boatmaster Licence isn't necessarily evidence of competence.

Needs mirrors I think?