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Thinking of living-aboard

sallyannie

By sallyannie
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sallyannie Gongoozler

sallyannie

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Hello.

 

I have been thinking of buying a boat for some years now I have finished my nurse training i'm starting to look into this a bit more seriously.

 

 

I'm a complete novice so and help and advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

Look forward to your replies

 

Sally xx

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saltysplash Experienced

saltysplash

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Posted (edited)

No i havent got a boat yet (need a job first)

 

I havent hired either just looking into things at the moment

 

have a look at the living afloat section, then see if you and a few friends can hire a boat for a weekend or a week if you can afford it, it will either make or break your descision and give you some idea of life afloat.

Edited by saltysplash
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jelunga Influencer

jelunga

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Try a week hiring in the depths of winter on a sparsely equipped boat. Then you will at least know that if you can put up with it for a week!!

 

We hired from Valley Cruises in Nuneaton. Had two weeks on a 6 berth in May one year, weather was beautiful, warm sunny great fun. We then hired their little 2 berth, with only a matchbox for a bed, a broom cupboard for a shower and a boatman's stove for heating. This kept going out since I am sure they had fitted some device to prevent it getting too hot. It was the beginning of November and a cold winter. We managed to enjoy ourselves on that, even with frozen canal and mooring ropes!!

So we reckoned we would enjoy living full time.

 

We have not yet moved onto our boat, but have stayed on her through the icy winter and hot summer.

 

It should work out!!

 

Keith

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MrCJ Collaborator

MrCJ

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Welcome to the site you find it full of useful information dont worry about posting a topic that you think might have been done, sometimes the search doesnt come back with what you want. So just post away.

 

Has been said try hiring in the winter and see if you like it.

 

good luck and enjoy

 

P.S. two topics that no one can agree on are pumpout loos and CCing they always a good one to get the best out of everyone :lol: and a few :banghead:

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sociable_hermit Experienced

sociable_hermit

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I'm working in London quite a bit at the moment, so my boat is often empty mid-week. If you want some experience of living aboard in a Marina in the winter, you're welcome to look after my boat part-time for a while, when the weather gets cold. It does me a favour having someone looking after her while I'm gone.

 

A group of us are also going on a hire boat trip at the end of this month, and I know there are still places available. The original plan was to take my boat as well, but we've had a few people drop out. We're going from Great Haywood and hopefully doing the Macc. It won't teach you much about living aboard (most nights we'll be in the pub) but it will give a taste of boat handling. Also possibly a good lesson in being thick-skinned, as people generally don't like hire boats, although I guess if you're a nurse you're pretty thick-skinned already.

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mrsmelly Veteran II

mrsmellyDonate to Canal World

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Not to put you off but moorings at an affordable rate are.scarce around Brim.

 

So long as you don't mind a commute it's easy to CC round the fringes of the city though.

:D

Continuously cruise round the fringes of 1 city ? Now I know this is a wind up :lol: Dont u mean continuously moor ? ;)

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sallyannie Gongoozler

sallyannie

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I was thinking of trying to get a moor round the Alvechurch area I drive and an looking for jobs in south Birmingham and Worcester as i live about 5- 10 miles from Alverchurch as it is. So don't really want to live in the city I want some where quite and away from roads as I have three cats and am used to peace and quite where I live any way.

 

 

sociable_hermit where is your boat based?

 

Thanks for all you helpful friendly advice you guys are ace

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Natalie Graham Proficient

Natalie Graham

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Try a week hiring in the depths of winter on a sparsely equipped boat. Then you will at least know that if you can put up with it for a week!!

 

 

 

A week in the snow on a barely converted ex-working boat with no insulation and a galvanised bucket in a toilet compartment with a port hole that was just hole (no glass) got me hooked. :)

 

Watch the BW mooring auctions for moorings. Residential ones around Birmingham seem to come up quite frequently.

 

 

Just out of interest, how long would it take to get round all the BCN while sticking to the minimum requirements of BW's interpretation of the law?

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sallyannie Gongoozler

sallyannie

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Just out of interest, how long would it take to get round all the BCN while sticking to the minimum requirements of BW's interpretation of the law?

 

I dont know what you mean? as I said complete novice I was planing on popping up to a marina this weekend and getting some info just putting the feelers out for help and info

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sociable_hermit Experienced

sociable_hermit

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You've got plenty of choice in that part of the world, if you prefer rural living. Note, however, that some Marinas have local planning restrictions and won't accept full-time liveaboards. Many will turn a blind eye but it pays to phrases one's questions carefully and avoid the "R" word.

 

My boat is based in Willington, between Burton and Derby. Not sure of travel times to/from Birmingham by car - I've driven to Lichfield railway station a few times and that takes about half an hour, if that helps?

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saltysplash Experienced

saltysplash

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I'm working in London quite a bit at the moment, so my boat is often empty mid-week. If you want some experience of living aboard in a Marina in the winter, you're welcome to look after my boat part-time for a while, when the weather gets cold. It does me a favour having someone looking after her while I'm gone.

 

A group of us are also going on a hire boat trip at the end of this month, and I know there are still places available. The original plan was to take my boat as well, but we've had a few people drop out. We're going from Great Haywood and hopefully doing the Macc. It won't teach you much about living aboard (most nights we'll be in the pub) but it will give a taste of boat handling. Also possibly a good lesson in being thick-skinned, as people generally don't like hire boats, although I guess if you're a nurse you're pretty thick-skinned already.

 

 

sounds like an offer not to be missed

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ymu Rising Star

ymu

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:D

Continuously cruise round the fringes of 1 city ? Now I know this is a wind up :lol: Dont u mean continuously moor ? ;)

You could easily argue that the BCN and surrounding canals are a significant part of the network - certainly in the absence of any formal definition of what this actually means. The BCN alone is over 100 miles of canal. You could CC around that area for a couple of years without ever mooring in the same "place" twice. Even in London, you're allowed to return to the same spot after a year away from it. Unlike London, the BCN has very few boats on it, so a few more CCers would do it the world of good. Parts of it are virtually unnavigable thanks to the amount of weed that isn't getting ripped up in other people's propellers all the time.

 

OP, if you drive, just work out the longest commute you can bear and see what parts of the network you can reach within that distance. Oxford is not much more than an hour away from Alvechurch, for example. Brum is very well connected road-wise, but the motorways are bloody awful at commuter time (any bit of the M6 especially, with the northern bit of the M42 a close second), so it might be difficult depending on where the job is and what hours you work. Apart from the M6, it is significantly easier if you're heading out of town when everyone else is heading in, and vice versa.

 

If you want to keep the car within a short walk, you will be more restricted for good mooring spots, but a bike sorts that out easily enough. You can also get folding motorbikes if that makes it easier (certainly will for some commutes, but they're too small for the motorways around Brum).

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Bagpuss Contributor

Bagpuss

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:D

Continuously cruise round the fringes of 1 city ? Now I know this is a wind up :lol: Dont u mean continuously moor ? ;)

 

Stratford, Severn, Avon, W&B, Northern Stretches of GU, BCN, Staffs and Worcs... I'd call that a significant portion of the system! There's a decent number of folk who do and never get any bother.

 

I was thinking of trying to get a moor round the Alvechurch area I drive and an looking for jobs in south Birmingham and Worcester as i live about 5- 10 miles from Alverchurch as it is. So don't really want to live in the city I want some where quite and away from roads as I have three cats and am used to peace and quite where I live any way.

 

 

sociable_hermit where is your boat based?

 

Thanks for all you helpful friendly advice you guys are ace

 

If you want to have a proper chat we'll be in Alvechurch from 1st Oct, or possibly the weekend before 23rd Sept (looking at the calendar that's more likely). If you're free you could come & try some rough weather boating, cats willing I'll be leaving central Brum at around 5pm. We might even bring the hangover faerie if you're good... If not cruising with us ask for Dan & Sue from Birmingham at the Weighbridge, we won't be far away. PM if you're interested.

 

Also, it might be worth asking around to sublet a boat up there for the winter; very naughty but it does happen, just don't ask the marina ;)

 

Alvechurch is slim for moorings although there are, I believe, a couple free at the minute after all the rigmarole. A lot of people say "get a mooring first" and you could probably sublet it for a while to recoup some of the cash. Ain't cheep though!

 

Dan (who should've logged out of Sue's profile) (a.k.a Smelly)

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sallyannie Gongoozler

sallyannie

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Stratford, Severn, Avon, W&B, Northern Stretches of GU, BCN, Staffs and Worcs... I'd call that a significant portion of the system! There's a decent number of folk who do and never get any bother.

 

 

 

If you want to have a proper chat we'll be in Alvechurch from 1st Oct, or possibly the weekend before 23rd Sept (looking at the calendar that's more likely). If you're free you could come & try some rough weather boating, cats willing I'll be leaving central Brum at around 5pm. We might even bring the hangover faerie if you're good... If not cruising with us ask for Dan & Sue from Birmingham at the Weighbridge, we won't be far away. PM if you're interested.

 

Also, it might be worth asking around to sublet a boat up there for the winter; very naughty but it does happen, just don't ask the marina ;)

 

Alvechurch is slim for moorings although there are, I believe, a couple free at the minute after all the rigmarole. A lot of people say "get a mooring first" and you could probably sublet it for a while to recoup some of the cash. Ain't cheep though!

 

Dan (who should've logged out of Sue's profile) (a.k.a Smelly)

 

 

 

Hi that would be great!

 

I dont know how to send a PM? :help:

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