Bulbourne Yard

[LEO]

I have moored at Cowroast for many years (30+), as have many others, some of us used to organise charity auctions, they were renowned - buy the stuff one year, store it, resell it next year (for the same amount).............well it was for charity!. About 7 years ago I bought a framed (20"x 15") print of a boat passing the Manager's house and Workshops at Bulbourne, it was a Springer, the picture was taken about about 1986..... good quality picture. It cost £2...............

 

The redevelopment started - sell it to the Developers I thought..........Covid came......I broke my leg, I had a new knee......the picture gathered dust in the garage.

 

So in 'TYOL 2024'the development is finished, the Manager's house has sold for about £1million+ my wife wanted to visit Tring Garden Centre at Bulbourne ( a short walk from the canal - best value restaurant on the summit). I thought, I wonder if those peeps who bought the Manager's house might like...........

 

I called, no answer to video door bell.....another door bell.....somebody came, I had interrupted a Zoom Call............no real interest in the picture. my wife might want it - 'How much?' - a fiver for canal related charity.............I had left full contact details......... I left the picture.......not heard anything.

 

Actually, the conversion of Bulbourne Yard looked brilliant, a place to live brilliant, interest in canals history from the inhabitants............................................................ ZERO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

So at Bulbourne, the pub has changed, the last time any recognition of history emerged there was when filming of an episode of 'Call the Midwife' was filmed there............

 

We traveled on to Cowroast, another Boater's stopover.............here the 'modernisation' of canalside pubs, in this case the Cowroast (now the Artisan) continues, but unless CRT have left you with any money and you have very (£60 a head for a meal) deep pockets AVOID............... again canal or local history ZERO...............the basic dream is to develop it into a Night club..........so scurry on dear Boater.......North or South...........history is  disappearing.......

 

 

 

 

Edited February 17 by LEO

[GUMPY]

That is so depressing to read, Bulbourne open days were so much fun and the pub was excellent. I'm glad we moved on and away.

[ditchcrawler]

11 minutes ago, GUMPY said:

That is so depressing to read, Bulbourne open days were so much fun and the pub was excellent. I'm glad we moved on and away.

 

[GUMPY]

What year was that? Must have been after 2002 because Caro is there.

Possibly the last time it happened.

[ditchcrawler]

12 minutes ago, GUMPY said:

What year was that? Must have been after 2002 because Caro is there.

Possibly the last time it happened.

I have it down as 2003

[rusty69]

TL;DR When we was young and fab.

 

We bought our boat from Cowroast marina some 25 years ago last week. Twas before the days of Internet forums and the thousands of you tube videos extolling the many virtues of canal boat ownership. It was thus,with ignorant bliss, armed with only a week's hire boat experience between us and the enthusiasm that only youth seems to provide, that we came to own a rather neglected 70ft narrowboat and jumped into the muddy ditch feet first, with eyes wide shut.

 

Unfortunately for us, though we had a hull survey,we were about to be faced with the harsh reality of boat dwelling in winter without any heating. We had, somewhat prematurely, handed in our notice on the tiny cosy flat which we had been renting,that would have protected us quite nicely from the remaining winter.Having moved out of the shelter of the marina, the honeymoon period plugged into the umbilical and the fan heater connected to it was soon a distant memory. 

 

We spent the first two weeks moored outside the marina entrance, frequenting the Cowroast pub every night, soaking up its warmth, and hoping to take some back with us to the freezing boat, Staying to the final moments, hoping the bar staff could see the desperation in our eyes and take pity on us. That night, after slipping into our woefully inadequate sleeping bags, we were greeted by a strange new sound, which turned out later to be the canal freezing over. After a week or so, with the canal still frozen,our now full toilet tank and empty water tank, no gas and no heating, I was beginning to think we may have made a serious mistake with this boating business.

 

We had somewhat stupidly bought the boat without a mooring,and for some reason, that escapes me now decided not to stay in the marina. We spent the next week traipsing up and down frozen towpaths in search of moorings, only to be greeted with looks of pity as those in the know kindly informed us that we should have sorted out a mooring before buying the boat. We eventually happened across a scruffy boatyard next to a somewhat lovely little pub and quite noisy railway line where we were introduced to a couple of characters the locals referred to as the two Kevs. We must have looked despondent and freezing, as the Kevs took pity on us and found us a mooring.

 

We spent the next few years fitting out the boat and travelling the stretch of canal between London and Braunston, often stopping at the curry pub at Bulbourne and the various pubs enroute in Berkhamsted. Tring summit was, for the first year,a regular cruise as we took various family members, who thought we were mad,for a ride. Visited Bulbourne yard on a number of occasions marveling at the skill and sheer size of the work undertaken there.

 

Happy memories of Cowroast, even though it was grim at the time.

[GUMPY]

46 minutes ago, ditchcrawler said:

I have it down as 2003

That's what C and I deduced.

 

20 minutes ago, rusty69 said:

we were introduced to a couple of characters the locals referred to as the two Kevs. We must have looked despondent and freezing, as the Kevs took pity on us and found us a mooring.

 

Big Kev would take money off anyone and everyone 😂

25 years ago I was still on Idleness above Lock 59, Changed boats to Parglena and then Loddon, left the mooring 5 years ago and then moved down here.

[mark99]

Have moved to a small village in North Midlands and found an England long gone from down South.

[Derek R.]

We were familiar with Cow Roast and Bulbourne from 1983 on.

 

Mid 1980's.

 

Alongside JAPONICA prior to setting off to Braunston for major steelwork.

 

 

 

 

 

The pub opposite was for a while re-named 'The Lock & Quay' (from the older Grand Junction Arms), and in the eighties was run by a very amicable couple who let the Aylesbury lot use the 'games room' for music and song, Christmas there was magical.

 

 

[LEO]

16 hours ago, ditchcrawler said:

 

Thanks, an excellent set of pictures, I wonder if the original forge remains, good seeing the gates made..........wonder where all the templates for gate sizes for all locks on the GU went?................I did see a small railway cart loaded with sheet metal has been retained, but I doubt if ever a boat will moor again......the Pub has reverted to it's original name and is under the Oakman Inns badge. 

 

The Cowroast PH name is shelved, it's now the Artisan.................check dress codes before you cross the threshold........

[magnetman]

15 hours ago, rusty69 said:

the enthusiasm that only youth seems to provide, that we came to own a rather neglected 70ft narrowboat and jumped into the muddy ditch feet first, with eyes wide shut.

 

 

Hence the slightly inaccurate forum user name. 

 

 

We used to moor at Boobun quite a lot back in the day. Marsworth flight is one of my favourites last time I did it was in 2010 several days before offspring #1 was born. 

Prior to that must have done the flight both ways about a dozen times. 

 

Happy days. 

 

We did 50 locks the day I last went through Maffers. Cassio Bridge lock to Grove lock. Long day that was 2 of us on the Boat. 

 

 

Enjoyed that. 

[koukouvagia]

17 hours ago, GUMPY said:

That is so depressing to read, Bulbourne open days were so much fun and the pub was excellent. I'm glad we moved on and away.

We used to take our two boats up from Cowroast to Bulbourne for the Open Weekends.  I suggest that the good publicity for the canals from that event achieved far more than the blue signs and wellness campaigns.

We would show local school children around our boats and at the weekend they would return with their parents.

 

[BuckbyLocks]

Looks like Brian Collings in the hold of "Sculptor".

[GUMPY]

2 minutes ago, BuckbyLocks said:

Looks like Brian Collings in the hold of "Sculptor".

That posture is unmistakable.

Lovely man.

[Tonka]

26 minutes ago, GUMPY said:

That posture is unmistakable.

Lovely man.

Agree

[PeterScott]

 

16Sep1980

[koukouvagia]

23 hours ago, LEO said:

So at Bulbourne, the pub has changed, the last time any recognition of history emerged there was when filming of an episode of 'Call the Midwife' was filmed there............

 

 

It was a dark and stormy night in Limehouse (aka Bulbourne) . . 

 

There was quite a collection of historic boats for the filming which was supposed to be set in Limehouse.

Owl, Hampton, Hood, Jaguar, Northolt and Holland were called upon to add background verisimilitude.

 

 

 

[frangar]

6 hours ago, koukouvagia said:

We used to take our two boats up from Cowroast to Bulbourne for the Open Weekends.  I suggest that the good publicity for the canals from that event achieved far more than the blue signs and wellness campaigns.

We would show local school children around our boats and at the weekend they would return with their parents.

 

Derek Pearsons boats in the background....he was living aboard in Audlem until quite recently..still have one of his chimneys in use...must be getting on for 30 years old now....wish I could get him to make me another!

[Sue68]

Does anyone know what the two Kevins are doing? I know big Kev left Winkwell and the other Kev was having a house built in Kent but that is old news.

[BEngo]

2 hours ago, frangar said:

Derek Pearsons boats in the background....he was living aboard in Audlem until quite recently..still have one of his chimneys in use...must be getting on for 30 years old now....wish I could get him to make me another!

Ditto.  I still have the back cabin chimney, a tall pipe and a cutter he made in '89 or ' 90, together with a tipcat and two  buttons.  All still going strong.  The bow fender didn't  survive more than about 5 years.  The front stove chimney lasted until 2011 when it was knocked overboard at Brinklow.

 

Derek was an amazing guy.  He singlehandedly put the steel top on Wylo over a single summer in Aylesbury basin. He used no power tools apart from the welder. All the steel sheets were cut  with a hand sheet saw, curves by  chain drilling and a file.

 

N

 

 

[Tuscan]

Used to moor at Nigel’s lock cottage and then the field at Marsworth. Did the Marsworth flight most weekends waking up Gary on Lily as we went past  . Wendover arm rallies then the Grand Junction with David Blagrove leading the singing on the last night , happy days. 

[LEO]

There is interest in the canal at the old workshops, the owners of the Manager's house have just emailed me, they are delighted with the picture, want to buy it and will make a generous donation to charity, good news, My wife is delighted as well, a bit more 'junk' cleared from the garage.

[koukouvagia]

I must admit that this development is not bad, given that it was highly unlikely that a new use could be found for the former workshop once the wonderful old lock making machinery was taken out.  What became of it?

The manager's house must have lain derelict for over twenty years.

I remember going to a public meeting which BW and the developers arranged.  I recall someone saying that the old blacksmith's forge was a listed structure and would have to be incorporated into the new flats.  I wonder if this ever happened.

 

 

 

Edited February 19 by koukouvagia
One of the pics didn't upload

[Stroudwater1]

Dec 2023

 

[ditchcrawler]