70 foot limitations

[soldthehouse]

What are the recognised limits of navigation for full length narrowboats

[Gillie]

There is a list of Craft & lock dimensions of Jim Sheads site...here

Craft & Lock dimensions

 

I find the amount of back breaking work I had to do this July blacking

our 70 ft boat a bit of a limitation to me ever doing it again!!

Edited October 3, 2010 by Gillie

[bottle]

Or the 'official' document here: http://www.waterscape.com/things-to-do/boating/useful-downloads left hand column, Plan a Cruise, Waterway Dimensions (it is a document file so you will need an 'office' program to read it.

[soldthehouse]

There is a list of Craft & lock dimensions of Jim Sheads site...here

Craft & Lock dimensions

 

I find the amount of back breaking work I had to do this July blacking

our 70 ft boat a bit of a limitation to me ever doing it again!!

Thanks.

 

Or the 'official' document here: http://www.waterscape.com/things-to-do/boating/useful-downloads left hand column, Plan a Cruise, Waterway Dimensions (it is a document file so you will need an 'office' program to read it.

Thanks

[mrsmelly]

What are the recognised limits of navigation for full length narrowboats

Ok so the post is a wind up right ?.............narrowboats are all 70 feet or more surely ?

[bottle]

Go and play with your cassette(s)

[mrsmelly]

Go and play with your cassette(s)

How ya doin dooooooooood

[magpie patrick]

As it's you STH, I assume it's not a wind up...

 

Staring from the North west

 

Ruffird Branch Leeds and liverpool, max 62 feet at 14 foot beam. May get a 66 foot narrow boat through. This cuts the Ribble Link and The Lancaster off, even though they can take seventy footers

 

L and L main line, same length restriction from Wigan lock 21 (the first above the Junction with the Leigh Branch) to River Lock Leeds, therefore no east west passage from Leeds to Wigan

 

River Ouse/Ure 57 feet wide beam from Linton Lock north, prob get a 60 foot narrow boat through. Dead end at Ripon

 

Not sure about Castle Mills Lock, York

 

Derwent, notionally 55 feet wide beam but academic as Sutton Lock now derelict.

 

Pocklington Canal: notionally 55 feet wide beam (60 narrow?), sone ene else may know

 

Beverley Beck, 65 foot wide beam, and 70 foot narrow beam that gets there will get through

 

Driffield, 60 foot wide beam, 63, 64 narrow?

 

Ancholme, Harlem Hill Lock, 69 feet widebeam, you'll get through if you're determined enough to get there.

 

Calder and Hebble/ Huddersfield Broad above Broad Cut, 57 foot widebeam, 60 footers have got through but no more. cuts off east west via Rochdale and Huddersfield

 

SSYN, allegedly 61 feet above Rotherham BUT a 72 foot GU narrow Boat got to Tinsley Bottom Lock. BW probably won't let you try now.

 

Thorne Lock. A Thorne in your side. You can reach it from Keadby, you an reach it from Bramwith via Goole, but you can't go through it...

 

Then you are into

 

Grand Sluice Boston, can only pass on the level

 

Salters Lode: Only on the Level

 

Welches Dam, somewhat academic, as it's closed and the Old Bedord River above probably impassible

 

Brandon? lock, Little Ouse. Bloody silly at about 40 feet

 

If you crane your boat out the Brecon and Abergavenny locks are only 64 feet long, and the Broads have length limits in their bye laws...

 

Big Thing is that, north of the Trent and Mersey, you can't cross the pennines..

[soldthehouse]

As it's you STH, I assume it's not a wind up...

 

Staring from the North west

 

Ruffird Branch Leeds and liverpool, max 62 feet at 14 foot beam. May get a 66 foot narrow boat through. This cuts the Ribble Link and The Lancaster off, even though they can take seventy footers

 

L and L main line, same length restriction from Wigan lock 21 (the first above the Junction with the Leigh Branch) to River Lock Leeds, therefore no east west passage from Leeds to Wigan

 

River Ouse/Ure 57 feet wide beam from Linton Lock north, prob get a 60 foot narrow boat through. Dead end at Ripon

 

Not sure about Castle Mills Lock, York

 

Derwent, notionally 55 feet wide beam but academic as Sutton Lock now derelict.

 

Pocklington Canal: notionally 55 feet wide beam (60 narrow?), sone ene else may know

 

Beverley Beck, 65 foot wide beam, and 70 foot narrow beam that gets there will get through

 

Driffield, 60 foot wide beam, 63, 64 narrow?

 

Ancholme, Harlem Hill Lock, 69 feet widebeam, you'll get through if you're determined enough to get there.

 

Calder and Hebble/ Huddersfield Broad above Broad Cut, 57 foot widebeam, 60 footers have got through but no more. cuts off east west via Rochdale and Huddersfield

 

SSYN, allegedly 61 feet above Rotherham BUT a 72 foot GU narrow Boat got to Tinsley Bottom Lock. BW probably won't let you try now.

 

Thorne Lock. A Thorne in your side. You can reach it from Keadby, you an reach it from Bramwith via Goole, but you can't go through it...

 

Then you are into

 

Grand Sluice Boston, can only pass on the level

 

Salters Lode: Only on the Level

 

Welches Dam, somewhat academic, as it's closed and the Old Bedord River above probably impassible

 

Brandon? lock, Little Ouse. Bloody silly at about 40 feet

 

If you crane your boat out the Brecon and Abergavenny locks are only 64 feet long, and the Broads have length limits in their bye laws...

 

Big Thing is that, north of the Trent and Mersey, you can't cross the pennines..

Thanks for taking the time for that reply. Ive had the hots for a boat for a while even though I,m building my own. the one I fancy is 70ft and wouldnt shorten easily and I wouldnt want to anyway, the one I,m building will cure my building enthusiasm. We are up north obviously and its all a matter of whether we want to spend our time that far away from family in the first years of casting off. Thanks again for reply, Stuart

[Guest]

Thanks for taking the time for that reply. Ive had the hots for a boat for a while even though I,m building my own. the one I fancy is 70ft and wouldnt shorten easily and I wouldnt want to anyway, the one I,m building will cure my building enthusiasm. We are up north obviously and its all a matter of whether we want to spend our time that far away from family in the first years of casting off. Thanks again for reply, Stuart

 

Hi Stuart -

 

70ft will indeed restrict you from cruising on some of the northern system - including the L&L, Ripon and the Calder and Hebble but if like us you don't mind travelling to the start of your cruise 70ft will be fine....

[soldthehouse]

Hi Stuart -

 

70ft will indeed restrict you from cruising on some of the northern system - including the L&L, Ripon and the Calder and Hebble but if like us you don't mind travelling to the start of your cruise 70ft will be fine....

Thanks Martin, I suspect the first few years will be spent wandering aimlessly so it may not be an issue and the boat I,m building I wont be able to sell for five years anyway and the children could use that, I was just interested on how limiting it actually is.

 

Stuart

 

Did you get out alone

Edited October 3, 2010 by soldthehouse

[Guest]

Did you get out alone

 

http://www.canalworld.net/forums/index.php?app=blog&module=display&section=blog&blogid=169&showentry=1030

[alan_fincher]

Thanks for taking the time for that reply. Ive had the hots for a boat for a while even though I,m building my own. the one I fancy is 70ft and wouldnt shorten easily and I wouldnt want to anyway, the one I,m building will cure my building enthusiasm.

If it's the one I think you could be talking about, the fact that it is 70 feet long might not prove to be the biggest thing you need to be thinking about.

[soldthehouse]

If it's the one I think you could be talking about, the fact that it is 70 feet long might not prove to be the biggest thing you need to be thinking about.

Mums the word

[Guest]

Mums the word

 

Surely not a wide beam or one of those old fashioned deep draughted working boats??

 

I fear you have gone over to the dark side...

 

 

 

 

too many to's edit...

 

 

..

Edited October 3, 2010 by MJG

[Keeping Up]

For completeness I feel I should add to Magpie Patrick's excellent list, two other locks that we have seen this year:

 

Reach Lode sluice, on the Burwell Lode where it meets the River Cam. It's about 62 ft I believe, I know we couldn't fit 67ft into it. That's the one where we'd been messing about to try and find a way to fit when after 10 minutes I spotted the sign that said the guillotine would descend automatically after 15 minutes.

 

Lode's End lock near Ramsey on the Middle Level - in theory you can't get a 70 footer through there as it's nominally 68 ft long. Our 67ft fitted easily, especially as when we got there the levels were equal and we could open both ends at once like this.

 

Oh and the lock on the Little Ouse near Brandon is Brandon Lock. Here's what happens if you try to fit a 67 footer into it.

Edited October 3, 2010 by Keeping Up

[dmr]

There is a list of Craft & lock dimensions of Jim Sheads site...here

Craft & Lock dimensions

 

I find the amount of back breaking work I had to do this July blacking

our 70 ft boat a bit of a limitation to me ever doing it again!!

 

I thought I blacked the boat and you painted the nice red and white stripes on the back bit!!

 

But seriously: Blacking is hard work however long the boat, a lot of effort goes into the ends...

But 70 foot is a very big boat to look after.

You have to be very careful in locks, there is a lot more to go wrong.

A very large part of the system will take a 70 foot boat.

Single handing is very difficult.

There is something very nice about 70 footers, I would not have anything else.

[mykaskin]

Not sure about Castle Mills Lock, York

 

Beverley Beck, 65 foot wide beam, and 70 foot narrow beam that gets there will get through

 

Driffield, 60 foot wide beam, 63, 64 narrow?

 

 

Driffield, 62 foot original, but some locks a bit longer. Struncheon Hill will take a full length GU boat (71.5 feet):

 

but needed the extra space over the cill. We could get the bow over, but not the stern, so had to come down backwards. Could turn top and bottom of the lock. Should be no problems with high river levels, but a problem on neaps.

 

Beverley Beck will take unlimited length when on the level.

 

and plenty of room in Castle Mills:

 

 

Cheers,

 

Mike

[RLWP]

I thought I blacked the boat and you painted the nice red and white stripes on the back bit!!

 

But seriously: Blacking is hard work however long the boat, a lot of effort goes into the ends...

But 70 foot is a very big boat to look after.

You have to be very careful in locks, there is a lot more to go wrong.

A very large part of the system will take a 70 foot boat.

Single handing is very difficult.

There is something very nice about 70 footers, I would not have anything else.

 

I'm not sure I agree with the bits in red. Tawny Owl is very well behaved in locks, even if you whip both paddles up straight away. And she's the only boat I've ever single handed, and again I found her easy to deal with. In many ways it's easier because much of the system around our way was built for boats that size.

 

Richard

Edited October 4, 2010 by RLWP

[casper ghost]

Haven't you got to at least finish the one your doing now first.. Your suffering from the main hurdle to boat building, not stopping until you've finished...

Casp'

[Tim Lewis]

As it's you STH, I assume it's not a wind up...

 

<Snip)

 

Big Thing is that, north of the Trent and Mersey, you can't cross the pennines..

 

You can croos the Pennines on the Rochdale in a 70' boat but you will have to come back the same way!

 

Tim

[magpie patrick]

You can croos the Pennines on the Rochdale in a 70' boat but you will have to come back the same way!

 

Tim

 

True of the Huddersfield as well,

 

You an engineer by any chance...

 

that information was technically correct but not exactly useful

[Tim Lewis]

True of the Huddersfield as well,

 

You an engineer by any chance...

 

that information was technically correct but not exactly useful

 

Am confused, did I dream that we have taken Fulbourne (71' 6") over the Rochdale?

 

In case you are womdering there are pictures at:

 

http://www.fulbourne.org.uk/rc0802/Index.html

 

http://www.fulbourne.org.uk/rc0902/Index.html

 

Tim

 

[

Edited October 4, 2010 by Tim Lewis

[NB Alton]

Yes the Rochdale is well worth the Journey on a 70' (or even 71' 6") boat that summit pound especially is spectacular even if you do have to retrace your route.

 

As for the Huddersfield, the restrictions are a bit more complex inluding width 6'10" not 7' and then air draft / profile and to some degree draft / determination.

[magpie patrick]

Am confused, did I dream that we have taken Fulbourne (71' 6") over the Rochdale?

 

In case you are womdering there are pictures at:

 

http://www.fulbourne.org.uk/rc0802/Index.html

 

http://www.fulbourne.org.uk/rc0902/Index.html

 

Tim

 

[

 

No, you are not dreaming. I have done the same with Ripple on The Huddersfield

 

What I am saying (and you are deliberately avoiding) is that if, for example, you are in Manchester and wish to go the Aire and Calder, you have to via the Trent and Mersey, and having got to Leeds or Wakefield, your only way back is via the Trent. The country effectively gets cut in half north of Fradley Junction

 

This considerably reduces the attraction of a seventy footer in Northern England, especially on the Yorkshire side.