GRP mixing with narrowboats

[grandbanks]

I haven’t experienced our own waterway system yet but I once took a GRP sailboat from Galveston, Texas, to New Orleans via the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, one of America’s busiest industrial waterways.

The journey took ten days and we were cheek by jowl with barge ‘tows’ comprising, sometimes, 3 barges wide by 3 long. They are actually pushed, not towed. We also encountered ships and even an oil platform destined for the gulf oil fields!

When the ‘tows’ are really moving along great spumes of white bubbles are formed in the spaces between the barges. I asked a barge captain what caused that and he said “It’s crushed fiberglass from the little sailboats we run down”!

There are two major locks, the Harvey Lock and the Industrial Lock, which connect the ICW to the Mississippi River and the Mississippi to Lake Pontchartrain. We went through the Harvey lock completely alone, it made me cringe at the thought of the cost to the Louisiana taxpayers of our transit, and for the Industrial lock we were ‘hip towed’ by a huge tug.

It was very intimidating to be constantly in the presence of massive steel vessels that could crush us like an egg, but it was an experience I wouldn’t have missed for the world.

[tony collins]

Steel boat goes into lock first and leaves last.

GRP hitting steel is much better than the other way round!

 

Always be prepared to lower a paddle once you've raised it

 

How does that work in a narrow lock? I agree about steel in first. I am happy to share a lock with any boat that will fir in with us. Once on the T&M, the 45ft boat infront of us refused to allow a 23ft cruiser in with him. "There's not enough room!" he exclaimed. However it managed to fit into the same lock with our 45ft boat! Funny that!

 

Tony.

[ChrisPy]

How does that work in a narrow lock? I agree about steel in first. I am happy to share a lock with any boat that will fir in with us. Once on the T&M, the 45ft boat infront of us refused to allow a 23ft cruiser in with him. "There's not enough room!" he exclaimed. However it managed to fit into the same lock with our 45ft boat! Funny that!

 

Tony.

probably shy about making intimate physical contact

[Naughty Cal]

How does that work in a narrow lock?

 

It doesnt

 

If the steel goes in first it comes out first.

[Aunty_Rinum]

......I spent a week on the training ship Foudroyant in Gosport harbour (just off from HMS Vernon) as a lad......

How old are you?

The first HMS Foudroyant (the captured French one) was broken up in 1787.

The second HMS Foudroyant (British second rate line of battle ship) was wrecked in 1897.

[carlt]

How old are you?

The first HMS Foudroyant (the captured French one) was broken up in 1787.

The second HMS Foudroyant (British second rate line of battle ship) was wrecked in 1897.

HMS Trincomalee

She was renamed Foudroyant to commemorate the lost ship and became a youth training vessel at Falmouth. On his death, the ship was presented to the Society for Nautical Research and towed to Portsmouth as accommodation for HMS Implacable. After World War Two, in which she was used as a store ship, she was demobilised to continue youth training under the auspices of the Foudroyant Trust. In 1986, she was closed as a training ship and the Trust decided to restore her to her original condition and return to her former name of HMS Trincomalee.

 

Unless there is some obscure "pedant alert" I've missed, then the third HMS Foudroyant survived (under that name) until 1986, before regaining her original title.

 

So he needn't be that old.

Edited August 13, 2009 by carlt

[FadeToScarlet]

I'm happy to share, and have done so on several occasions. On the fenny rivers around here, there's a fair few GRP boats along with the narrowboats. But the splitters only seem to go anywhere when the sun's out, funny that...

 

On a more serious note, I'm happy to share locks, but will always rope up with more care than usual to stop the boat moving about. There's also a few sensible things to do, such as having the GRP in first when going uphill, because the flow from the guillotine gate makes everything in the lock go backwards, and I'd rather be hit by them, then them by me!

[ChrisPy]

How old are you?

The first HMS Foudroyant (the captured French one) was broken up in 1787.

The second HMS Foudroyant (British second rate line of battle ship) was wrecked in 1897.

just a sprog .........................

[bramley]

hmmm when we bought the boat from ely to milton keynes we mixed with a couple of nb's in locks on the ouse and didnt really have much problems, but i was a little concerened, my thoughts are that the nb would generally on rest on the grp boat while the water flow pushes the boat from the side.

 

i spose my main concern should probably most hire boaters, not wanting to tar them all with the same brush, but i had a few bad expereinces in the past with blue ones..

[pirate paul]

Some interesting craft we shared locks with on the Caledonian canal in June this year.

Caledoniain

 

Haggis

Bout time the Caledonian was linked to the Forth Clyde, and the Forth Clyde linked to the rest of the network.

[Iain_S]

Bout time the Caledonian was linked to the Forth Clyde, and the Forth Clyde linked to the rest of the network.

 

The first stage is the restoration of the Northern Reaches of the Lancaster. Then we can think about the Kendal and Wndermere Canal . . . . . . . . . . . ......

 

Iain

Edited August 18, 2009 by Iain_S

[RLWP]

Bout time the Caledonian was linked to the Forth Clyde, and the Forth Clyde linked to the rest of the network.

 

I think you have got mixed up somewhere. This isn't Second Life, it's the real world.

 

Richard

[haggis]

Bout time the Caledonian was linked to the Forth Clyde, and the Forth Clyde linked to the rest of the network.

 

They are linked - by the sea :-)

 

haggis

[furnessvale]

hmmm when we bought the boat from ely to milton keynes we mixed with a couple of nb's in locks on the ouse and didnt really have much problems, but i was a little concerened, my thoughts are that the nb would generally on rest on the grp boat while the water flow pushes the boat from the side.

 

i spose my main concern should probably most hire boaters, not wanting to tar them all with the same brush, but i had a few bad expereinces in the past with blue ones..

 

I have had no problem sharing with GRP even with a loaded working boat. I found the main thing was to put the GRP alongside the centre of the working boat so that the larger boat had no chance to swing out building up momentum. If you put the GRP at one end or the other (but still alongside), the larger boat can swing out at the opposite end with quite a lever effect against the GRP.

 

I hope you can follow my drift.

 

George ex nb Alton retired

[journeyperson]

On a more serious note, I'm happy to share locks, but will always rope up with more care than usual to stop the boat moving about. There's also a few sensible things to do, such as having the GRP in first when going uphill, because the flow from the guillotine gate makes everything in the lock go backwards, and I'd rather be hit by them, then them by me!

 

I went up the Middlewich flight yesterday with a GRP but I went in first because I like to keep my boat hard up against the top gate to stop being slammed into it and the other chap was happier at the back anyway. I am 40ft and he was 25ft and there were no problems.

Edited August 18, 2009 by journeyperson

[bramley]

To put this to a bit of closure, we have mixed with narrowboats (steel) in locks at stoke bruene, and i couldnt of been with more lovely considerate people both up and down the flight.

 

judy and john from the beech nut and the narrowboat reid were both great.

 

John from the first boat told us exactly what you had said on here and there was no bashing or anything.

 

if anything is was quite handy as we had both gates opened, so i wasnt bashing of gates when the wind blew.

 

Also Judy from the first boat helped my GF do her first lock and explained everything great to her she is very thank full

 

Cheers

 

Ross and sam

[DHutch]

We go through with the wooden sba launches. As said, typically the routine is 'steel in first, out last' which actaully works of through places like the erewash because they they nip onahead and setup ready for us just to slid in and be followed by them.

 

Keep it a little slow till halfway, opening paddles to suit the lock when filling, and no worries at all. Down clearly is very easy.

 

If the GRP is creaking then you (or them) are really doing something wrong. BUt generally, no worries with sharing if care is used. imo.

 

 

Daniel

[Sir Nibble]

 

you all won't remember the days when ships were built of oak and built to last.....................

 

I spent a week on the training ship Foudroyant in Gosport harbour (just off from HMS Vernon) as a lad.

She was captured by Nelson's navy and used as a prison ship, (EDITED: wrong - that was the original ship of that name, not TS Foudroyant) but they did explain that it was no longer used for that purpose - you could have fooled me !

I watched the water boat (small tanker/workboat) come alongside one day to fill our tanks (barrels?).

She had a huge spherical rope fender. It embedded itself in the rotten oak planking, leaving a large dimple in the 200 year old vessel. Made a nice creaky sound.

Her original name was "Trincomalee" and she was built in Bombay of solid TEAK! not oak. She is now in Hartleypool.

[CanalWalker]

I dont mind slumming it and sharing with a narrowboat but given the choice I wouldnt.

[Chertsey]

I've been on a little GRP boat sharing locks with steel narrowboats, and I've been on a steel narrowboat sharing locks with GRPs, and it's definitely the latter that makes me more nervous.

[bastonjock]

Ive shared the locks on the nene quite often with narrowboats,the narrowboat is ushered in first,i tie up centrally and i usually exit first,i find that the narrowboat owners are usually very concerned about not damaging my grp boat.

[Giggetty]

Her original name was "Trincomalee" and she was built in Bombay of solid TEAK! not oak. She is now in Hartleypool.

[/quot

 

I thought that teak was abjured by the RN, splinters from gunfire readily producing septic wounds. Another wood perhaps?

[mrsmelly]

Howdy Gents and lass's

 

 

just a quick one, we are away next week in our 23ft grp cruiser.

 

while at a pub today (canalside) i realised how busy the canals are at the moment.

 

at locks what do you narrowboaters do if a grp boat is already in the lock but there is space for a boat beside?

 

is it advised to mix with narrowboats for stay away from sharing locks?

 

just wondered as i dont want to cause a fuss or damage to our boat lol

 

Ross

 

Hi

 

Take a tube of Humbrol cement with you it used to fix my Airfix kits back together when I was a kid...........

[RLWP]

Hi

 

Take a tube of Humbrol cement with you it used to fix my Airfix kits back together when I was a kid...........

 

After you had crashed your grey spitfire into your dark blue stuka?

 

Richard

[mrsmelly]

After you had crashed your grey spitfire into your dark blue stuka?

 

Richard

 

Yeah

or what was that funny german plane with the engine at one side of the fuselage and the cockpit at the other ?