Well Preserved Old Hire Boat

[alan_fincher]

Back in about 1970, I worked as a Saturday job at a local hire-boat firm.

 

The smallest and probably mainly newest boats were 40 footers, fairly elaborate by the standards of the day, but primitive compared to todays hire boats. They had sea toilets, no shower, and gravity fed water from a small galvanised tank on the roof, (no water pump problems here!).

 

Here is the original brochure page, that includes "Daisy".....

 

 

and here she is today, when I was surprised by her passing us remarkably near to her old hire base.

 

She is remarkably unchanged, still wooden topped, and has retained the gravity fed water, it appears.

 

 

Any other hire boats of this age, still looking much as built ? Even the colours have largely been retained, although the blue is darker.

 

EDITED TO ADD: Looking at the boat plans, did they really have the cooking facilities dead opposite the toilet ? I rather think they must have, as a lot was squeezed in, with no surplus space back then at all.

Edited September 20, 2010 by alan_fincher

[Athy]

Quite remarkable! Whoever built her obviously did a good job. I am amused by the plans, one of which has "engine under deck" properly printed, the other a hastily handwriten "engine under deck".

[Guest]

Out of curiosity what was the name of the firm?

[alan_fincher]

Out of curiosity what was the name of the firm?

"The Wyvern Shipping Company".

 

Now probably the only significant hire boat operator south of Gayton Junction on the GU, and still in the ownership of the same family.

 

Back then it operated just 12 boats, half of them converted ex-working boats.

 

I'm not sure about now, but I'd say the number must be around the 30 mark, some of which are actually still very old, and with wooden rather than steel cabins, although all are always well presented.

[Guest]

There does seem to be something about family run places going the distance....and surviving decades.

[alan_fincher]

Quite remarkable! Whoever built her obviously did a good job. I am amused by the plans, one of which has "engine under deck" properly printed, the other a hastily handwriten "engine under deck".

 

By this stage they bought the shells, but built the rest, including the wooden cabin in their own workshops.

 

I think they have continued to fit all their own boats, and at one stage may even have been doing the steelwork ?

 

EDITED to add link to

 

Old Post

 

that featured the more historic Wyvern boats from the same brochure.

Edited September 21, 2010 by alan_fincher

[stagedamager]

ISTR they converted Barlow's "Hazel" which is still converted somewhere with it's wyvern cabin.

Regards

Dan

[alan_fincher]

ISTR they converted Barlow's "Hazel" which is still converted somewhere with it's wyvern cabin.

Regards

Dan

Yes,

 

see link to old post in post above yours.....

 

[stagedamager]

Thanks for that Alan, she's a lovely boat, my family raised her in about 1993 when she was sunk at Trent Lock with a section 8, she wasn't in bad nick, a couple of soft bits but was mainly due to water ingress. She had been motorised but both the engine and 'ellum were missing. I remember she had solid oak floors throughout and a brand new morso squirrel still in it's packing case!!

Last I heard she was down towards Hemel.

Regards

Dan

[richardf]

They used to have the icebreaker Princess as part of the hire fleet - it had really scary bows and must have been lethal in the wrong hands. Some friends of mine put on a new steel cabin - I think she is on the River Wey - it's got an inspection boat look to it.

[alan_fincher]

They used to have the icebreaker Princess as part of the hire fleet - it had really scary bows and must have been lethal in the wrong hands. Some friends of mine put on a new steel cabin - I think she is on the River Wey - it's got an inspection boat look to it.

Aagin, also referred to in the older post I linked to above.

 

She was a scary machine in the hands of inexperienced hirers!

 

[Athy]

Princess must rank about third in the league table of boats which you would least like to see coming at you round a blind bend. I'd put a Town class motor at no.1 and a CanalTime boat in second, though a Harborough Marine might be daunting too.

[Keeping Up]

Aagin, also referred to in the older post I linked to above.

 

She was a scary machine in the hands of inexperienced hirers!

 

 

I love their description of the hull as "immensely strong". Actually that was probably an understatement.

 

Princess must rank about third in the league table of boats which you would least like to see coming at you round a blind bend. I'd put a Town class motor at no.1 and a CanalTime boat in second, though a Harborough Marine might be daunting too.

 

It was great when I had a Harborough boat. With that lovely high bow you could frighten people out of the way on corners and at bridges.

[alan_fincher]

Princess must rank about third in the league table of boats which you would least like to see coming at you round a blind bend. I'd put a Town class motor at no.1 and a CanalTime boat in second, though a Harborough Marine might be daunting too.

Have you not seen Mike Askin's Royalty class motor "Victoria" ? Or the prototype Grand Union boat "George" ?

 

Or even Derek R's "Tycho" with it's massive ice-breaker ram.

 

All formidable things, (though I'm sure their owners treat those they meet with great caution! ).

[Naughty Cal]

Princess must rank about third in the league table of boats which you would least like to see coming at you round a blind bend. I'd put a Town class motor at no.1 and a CanalTime boat in second, though a Harborough Marine might be daunting too.

 

I find the bows on these:

 

 

quite high on my list

 

Back on topic though, it is ice to see these older boats still in good condition many years after coming off hire. She still looks well loved

[Athy]

it is ice to see these older boats

Yep, it's real cool.

[carlt]

Last I heard she was down towards Hemel.

 

Is this after Runcorn?

 

I knew she was for sale, at Runcorn, but hadn't heard about a sale.

[stagedamager]

Hi Carl I believe it was, we sold her to the couple who had it at Runcorn for years but then last year I heard on the grapevine it was down south, could be hearsay but you never know!

Regards

Dan