Mooring in isolated spots

[Dockeroo]

I am new to canal boating, the other day we took our pleasure boat out for our first night, I moored in a beautiful spot about 1km/mile away from any other boat or civilisation.

 

I wondered why no other boats where moored there (it was along the towpath) and if you go further up either way there are 10 moored in a line with eachother.

 

Then it came to night time the beauty turned Into darkness, someone walked past (Even though the towpath was closed to public as CRT works going on) at about 12am and I felt uneasy, not knowing where they went and animal noises that sound human from the bushes ect😂

 

At 1 point there was a large splash in the water and what sounded and felt like a humans voice, seemed like it could be Old Gregg from the mighty boosh!

 

Paranoia or ghosts aside I wasn't scared just understanting and slight fear of how isolated and vulnerable we could be so spent the next 4 hours on light sleep mode with my windlass to hand.

 

This brings my question, I often see boats moored with eachother, like neighbours, and rarely see them on there own, is this normal practice? Or is it perfectly normal to be moored on your own far away from anyone?

[LadyG]

I usually moor near others as I expect there will be depth of water.

Also local info, like diesel at £1.00 per litre locally, pubs which serve pub grub 

Also the area will likely be free of scrots, no guarantee, but my boat was targeted by Polish men who worked in a sandwich factory and at 4.00 am set off to gather anything that proved  moveable. They have fishing rods and come right up to the boat to identify anything that is not chained to the boat.

 

Edited July 9, 2023 by LadyG

[Dockeroo]

2 minutes ago, LadyG said:

I usually moor near others as I expect there will be depth of water.

Also local info, like diesel at £1.00 per litre locally, pubs which serve pub grub 

Also the area will likely be free of scrots, no guarantee, but my boat was targeted by Polish men who worked in a sandwich factory and at 4.00 am set off to gather anything that proved  moveable. They have fishing rods and come right up to the boat to identify anything that is not chained to the boat.

 

Unfortunate, I guess that's the only negative circumstance likely to happen, people stealing lose things off the top of the boat? Or drunk people climbing on and rocking it?

 

As a theif It's not like there's much worth stealing that's worth the risk to actually break into a boat, and you don't know what's in there waiting for you either seems more of a danger to the them if you have a dog or protective husband.

[Alan de Enfield]

17 minutes ago, Dockeroo said:

and rarely see them on there own, is this normal practice?

 

 

It  is certainly 'normal practice' for us - why would we want to moor in the middle of an 'estate' ?.

 

Mind you, our home/house is about 3 miles from the nearest neighbour so being in 'the sticks' is not a new experience for us.

Edited July 9, 2023 by Alan de Enfield

[Dockeroo]

3 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

 

It  is certainly 'normal practice' for us - why would we want to moor in the middle of an 'estate' ?.

 

Mind you, our home/house is about 3 miles from the nearest neighbour so being in 'the sticks' is not a new experience for us.

We feel the same and like to be away from others, but aren't used to sleeping in isolated spots so I guess that's just our first time to get used to it.

 

I just wondered if there was a reason the boaters on that stretch and most i see chose to more with eachother away from the best part of the canal, maybe it was haunted 😂😂

Edited July 9, 2023 by Dockeroo

[beerbeerbeerbeerbeer]

It took me a little while to get used to it and then it became a really pleasant thing to do. 

 

Edited July 9, 2023 by Goliath

[Guest]

Further away from others as poss. always used to be our mantra.

 

No idiot to ruin your evening with loud music and/or running their engine or worse a genny.

[Alan de Enfield]

9 minutes ago, Dockeroo said:

I just wondered if there was a reason the boaters on that stretch and most i see chose to more with eachother away from the best part of the canal, maybe it was haunted

 

 

It seems that many / most boaters are 'herd animals'. You can moor up in a really quiet spot with no boats a mile either side of you and someone will come and moor up behind you - I got really annoyed on one occasion when someone came and moored so close that the bow-button was touching my boat. I asked them why, that with about 2 miles of empty canal bank they actually had to moor up so they were bumping into us.

Edited July 9, 2023 by Alan de Enfield

[Dockeroo]

2 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

 

It seems that many / most boaters are 'herd animals'. You can moor up in a really quiet spot with no boats a mile either side of you and someone will come and moor up behind you - I got really annoyed on one occasion when someone came and moored so close that the bow-button was touching my boat. I asked them why, that with about 2 miles of empty canal bank they actually had to moor up so they were bumping into us.

Makes sense, I actually had someone do that to me when I was moving my boat (not staying on it but mooring till the the next day when I come back to move again)

 

It was away from other boats just a fiberglass cruiser freshly painted, and they came with a 60 ft barrow boat and physically smashed into the front of it and moored up nearly touching it... then they just smiled, I didnt even ask why as its just disrespectful and they didn't do by mistake, bemused ne.

[Mad Harold]

The first night I spent aboard, I moored out 'in the sticks'.

Pitch dark, wind sighing through the trees, an occasional owl hoot and fox bark.It was a bit uncomfortable at first, but once used to the solitude, I wouldn't want it any other way.

There are 'scrotesville' areas that I would only moor there briefly to make a cup of coffee, but not overnight and certainly not leave my boat unattended.

I know some boaters like their solitude and are not happy when someone moors up close to them, but the 'herd' instinct is quite strong in most of us and it feels more secure to be near someone else.

[Alan de Enfield]

1 minute ago, Dockeroo said:

a 60 ft barrow boat

 

Probably a better description than the oft used "sewer tube"

[Arthur Marshall]

I'd always rather be as far from anyone as possible. I come out for peace and quiet and am always very aware (like right now, in fact) that the boat moored up close to me will start their engine for hours. Or, like the other night, a boatload had a party on the bank til 1am. As I also like to practice rather noisy brass instruments, it seems only polite to do it where it won't annoy anyone - I don't play if anyone's in earshot .

Sometime it just can't be helped as mooring is impossible anywhere except in a mob.

[GUMPY]

16 minutes ago, M_JG said:

Further away from others as poss. always used to be our mantra.

 

No idiot to ruin your evening with loud music and/or running their engine or worse a genny.

 Conversely you can run your music as loud as you like and not disturb anybody.

[Peugeot 106]

My daughter and partner could be accused of coitus interruptus when they found a couple on the roof at 2am. They were woken by the boat gently rocking…..

Don’t know who was more surprised but lit was the end mooring in central  Oxford so hardly out on the sticks

 

[Hudds Lad]

10 minutes ago, Peugeot 106 said:

My daughter and partner could be accused of coitus interruptus when they found a couple on the roof at 2am. They were woken by the boat gently rocking…..

Don’t know who was more surprised but lit was the end mooring in central  Oxford so hardly out on the sticks

 

Had they left a teapot on the roof by any chance?  

[David Schweizer]

We often moored alone on a quiet stretch, and never had any negative experiences, unless you count a farmer starting to combine wheat in the field ajacent to the towpath at eight in the evening. As the wind was blowing all the chaff towards the canal, we did actually move to alongside the next field which had already been cut.

 

 

 

Edited July 9, 2023 by David Schweizer

[ditchcrawler]

56 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

 

It  is certainly 'normal practice' for us - why would we want to moor in the middle of an 'estate' ?.

 

Mind you, our home/house is about 3 miles from the nearest neighbour so being in 'the sticks' is not a new experience for us.

Bit like us.

 

[Midnight]

I like 'remote' especially those 'Friends of the River Nene' moorings. Mrs Midnight on the other hand is wary of the mad axeman when moored up in remote spots. I keep reminding her the odds of meeting the mad axeman increase somewhat the nearer to the towns and cities you go.

Edited July 9, 2023 by Midnight

[IanD]

We once moored in what we thought was a nice quiet isolated spot on the Southern Oxford. Woken up at 7am the following morning by an F111 passing just over our heads on full afterburner, then another one a few seconds later. Never heard a noise like it, we thought the end of the world had come...

 

With the benefit of hindsight, mooring right opposite the end of the runway at the Upper Heyford USAF base wasn't a smart move... 😉

Edited July 9, 2023 by IanD

[PeterF]

2 hours ago, Dockeroo said:

 

😂

This brin🫢gs my question, I often see boats moored with eachother, like neighbours, and rarely see them on there own, is this normal practice? Or is it perfectly normal to be moored on your own far away from anyone?

Often you will find groups of live aboard boats moored together where there is a location with good access to transport especially near bridges if they have a car.

[Jen-in-Wellies]

7 minutes ago, IanD said:

We once moored in what we thought was a nice quiet isolated spot on the Southern Oxford. Woken up at 7am the following morning by an F111 passing just over our heads on full afterburner, then another one a few seconds later. Never heard a noise like it, we thought the end of the world had come...

 

With the benefit of hindsight, mooring right opposite the end of the runway at the Upper Hayford USAF base wasn't a smart move... 😉

At least mooring on the River Witham at the end of the RAF Conningsby runway gives a bit of variety. Fast jets on week days, Battle of Britain flight piston engine aeroplanes at the weekend.

[PaulJ]

I've never had a problem with remote moorings.

A few weeks ago moored up in the middle of hundreds of boats in Tottenham, I dozed off on the sofa about 8.30pm while watching TV- woke up to find my  Phone, wallet (cash, cards, driving licence etc) gone. All ten foot away from my presumably snoring self..

 

[pearley]

1 hour ago, Jen-in-Wellies said:

At least mooring on the River Witham at the end of the RAF Conningsby runway gives a bit of variety. Fast jets on week days, Battle of Britain flight piston engine aeroplanes at the weekend.

Last time we were there I said to my wife "don't worry. They'll stop flying when it gets dark" The didn't!

 

3 hours ago, M_JG said:

Further away from others as poss. always used to be our mantra.

 

No idiot to ruin your evening with loud music and/or running their engine or worse a genny.

That's why we like to moor well away from other boats. So we can run the gennie if necessary.

[Mike Todd]

5 hours ago, Dockeroo said:

Unfortunate, I guess that's the only negative circumstance likely to happen, people stealing lose things off the top of the boat? Or drunk people climbing on and rocking it?

 

As a theif It's not like there's much worth stealing that's worth the risk to actually break into a boat, and you don't know what's in there waiting for you either seems more of a danger to the them if you have a dog or protective husband.

I happened to us!

3 hours ago, IanD said:

We once moored in what we thought was a nice quiet isolated spot on the Southern Oxford. Woken up at 7am the following morning by an F111 passing just over our heads on full afterburner, then another one a few seconds later. Never heard a noise like it, we thought the end of the world had come...

 

With the benefit of hindsight, mooring right opposite the end of the runway at the Upper Heyford USAF base wasn't a smart move... 😉

At least it won't happen to you again!

[MPR]

A few years ago we moored up in Macclesfield jus before the aqueduct opposite an old warehouse with flapping corrugated iron.  There were quite a few boats there when we arrived but, by early evening, we were totally alone.  What did they know that we didn't.  We found out some time later when the prowler arrived.  Guess it's all changed now with desirable apartments opposite.