Where are all the boaters?

[MtB]

1 hour ago, SLC said:

Well we haven't been out as we went on an ocean cruise in a sunny climate. The weather does make a difference and I am sure if we had had a warm and sunny early spring there would have been more about. I am not one for opening lock gates in the rain and trying to keep dry and sometimes that wind has been biting. It will be interesting to see how things progress over the next few months - just as we are out and about!

 

 

I think you're right. I've not been inclined to even visit the boat in this cold and chilly Spring so far. 

 

And the other boat has been in for painting. Awesome work done by Tasha, and I'm not easily impressed. 

[peterboat]

2 hours ago, Arthur Marshall said:

I don't even think it's the licence increases, they, tbh, aren't that much, and we are all are stuck with them anyway. I think it's the hugely increased running costs, gas and diesel, repairs and maintenence. Combine that with endless stoppages which just make it more stressful going out for a long trip while wondering if you'll get home and you have to think harder about whether it's worth it. Leisure boaters are probably, like me, doing fewer short 1 or 2 week trips and saving the money for a single long summer cruise.

I agree but my point is these next planned increases will put the nail in the coffin. My mate returned this week having failed to leave Yorkshire! He had the green light to go out via the Trent and that was taken away before he got there.

[Mike Todd]

I suspect FOMO combined with WFH.

[Jon57]

50 minutes ago, Mike Todd said:

I suspect FOMO combined with WFH.

Wtf CBA IMHO it's nice and peaceful. 😁

[mrsmelly]

On 01/05/2024 at 16:37, peterboat said:

We are off to Marple and then Bakewell with Chatsworth for Monday, should be ok can normally find free parking and the weather is better there than the east coast allegedly 

Today, just about as far west as you can get without getting wet in the Irish sea it's beautiful at last. Sat int garden with a cold cider at moment pre Barby. Probably not going tut beach this weekend as it will be busy with the poor sods who live in towns and cities in England visiting somewhere nice!!

[ditchcrawler]

3 hours ago, mrsmelly said:

Today, just about as far west as you can get without getting wet in the Irish sea it's beautiful at last. Sat int garden with a cold cider at moment pre Barby. Probably not going tut beach this weekend as it will be busy with the poor sods who live in towns and cities in England visiting somewhere nice!!

Same on the other side

[sigsegv]

Found out where all the boaters are! On the GU just south of Mountsorrel. Passed maybe 3 or 4 boats as we were heading upstream, but the second we moored up, I'd say maybe 10 or more boats passed us at various times since about 3pm. Not bad considering the flooding recently, but I guess the sun drew us all out.

[gatekrash]

Whereas we've been out from Droitwich down to Worcester, couple of days at Diglis, then back up the river and seen less than a handful of boats. Normally a Friday sat in Worcester we'd see quite a few ABC boats out of lowesmoor...we saw 2. It's definitely quiet at the moment here.

[matty40s]

2 hours ago, sigsegv said:

Found out where all the boaters are! On the GU just south of Mountsorrel. Passed maybe 3 or 4 boats as we were heading upstream, but the second we moored up, I'd say maybe 10 or more boats passed us at various times since about 3pm. Not bad considering the flooding recently, but I guess the sun drew us all out.

Probably people are using the Soar as the route North/South now rather than climb onto the Birmingum summit.

2 hours ago, sigsegv said:

Found out where all the boaters are! On the GU just south of Mountsorrel. Passed maybe 3 or 4 boats as we were heading upstream, but the second we moored up, I'd say maybe 10 or more boats passed us at various times since about 3pm. Not bad considering the flooding recently, but I guess the sun drew us all out.

Probably people are using the Soar as the route North/South now rather than climb onto the Birmingum summit.

 

Incredibly busy on the GU Weedon pound, non stop all day, many hire boats out along with everyone else. Good to see, hope they are all ready for the big freeze from tuesday. 😉

[Grassman]

I spent yesterday manning the Fund Britain's Waterways campaign stand at Fradley and up until when I left at 3pm only a few boats passed by, and all day there was only one boat moored on those usually busy moorings below the Swan Pub.

[PaulJ]

8 narrowboats and 2 widebeams on the Wigan Flight yesterday.

That must count as being pretty busy 😀

[MrsM]

1 hour ago, Grassman said:

I spent yesterday manning the Fund Britain's Waterways campaign stand at Fradley and up until when I left at 3pm only a few boats passed by, and all day there was only one boat moored on those usually busy moorings below the Swan Pub.

Good grief - all of the many times we came through Fradley mooring was fender to fender. Extraordinary!

[ditchcrawler]

3 hours ago, MrsM said:

Good grief - all of the many times we came through Fradley mooring was fender to fender. Extraordinary!

We were billy no mates the other week, above Shade Hose and Wood end it was packed 

[Rob-M]

Fradley, below Junction Lock had just one space. Quite a reverse to get to it as it was over half way along the pound.

[matty40s]

4 hours ago, PaulJ said:

8 narrowboats and 2 widebeams on the Wigan Flight yesterday.

That must count as being pretty busy 😀

You are just showing off now!

Was anyone else moving except for you though.....🤪

[PaulJ]

10 minutes ago, matty40s said:

You are just showing off now!

Was anyone else moving except for you though.....🤪

Not only was they moving , they were desperate to be moving.The widebeam behind me waiting to go next into the bottom lock actually asked me to leave the lock quicker (the two boats in front had only just got in the next lock)

😀

Was a lovely steam boat coming down too..

 

[Victor Vectis]

Took a walk around Castlefield today. Lots of space.

Spoke to one bloke who said thet had been moored for three days and no one had said anything about it to them.

[CruisingRobin]

On 03/05/2024 at 19:29, MtB said:

 

 

I think you're right. I've not been inclined to even visit the boat in this cold and chilly Spring so far. 

 

Well, the last couple of days have been lovely in the West midlands.  I brought my magic rain parka with me on this trip, who's very presence chases the bad weather away.  I'm not sure of the battery life, though.

 

Stone is replete with boaters.  Folks seem to be coming out.

[Mike Todd]

16 hours ago, CruisingRobin said:

Well, the last couple of days have been lovely in the West midlands.  I brought my magic rain parka with me on this trip, who's very presence chases the bad weather away.  I'm not sure of the battery life, though.

 

Stone is replete with boaters.  Folks seem to be coming out.

Queue of 3 or 4 to go down Hack Green locks this morning as we came up.

[Naughty Cal]

On 04/05/2024 at 13:31, mrsmelly said:

Today, just about as far west as you can get without getting wet in the Irish sea it's beautiful at last. Sat int garden with a cold cider at moment pre Barby. Probably not going tut beach this weekend as it will be busy with the poor sods who live in towns and cities in England visiting somewhere nice!!

I think we have been to the only place in the UK where the sun didn't shine this weekend 🤣🤣🤣

 

It's been misty and murky all weekend and very much on the chilly side.

 

Made for some cracking pictures though and meant it wasn't busy 😀

 

 

 

 

Back home now enjoying the sunshine in the garden.

[Chris T]

Plenty of boats pootling about on the Macc summit this weekend, but....where are all the ducks?

 

[Hudds Lad]

1 minute ago, Chris T said:

Plenty of boats pootling about on the Macc summit this weekend, but....where are all the ducks?

 

Probably in Braunston for the duck race  

[Naughty Cal]

10 minutes ago, Hudds Lad said:

Probably in Braunston for the duck race  

No, they are all in the fields round here making the most of this winters newly formed ponds 😀

[Hudds Lad]

9 minutes ago, Naughty Cal said:

No, they are all in the fields round here making the most of this winters newly formed ponds 😀

We passed a field somewhere on the Leicester Line in early March, absolutely full of swans stood around in groups, must've been a hundred or more. Never seen so many in one place before.

[Rob-M]

On 05/05/2024 at 09:01, Grassman said:

I spent yesterday manning the Fund Britain's Waterways campaign stand at Fradley and up until when I left at 3pm only a few boats passed by, and all day there was only one boat moored on those usually busy moorings below the Swan Pub.

You boated past us today.  They were queuing at Colwich lock when we got there, 1 in the lock coming down and another 4 waiting behind them.  We were ok going up though.