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[MissMax]

I thought that the owner would be legally obliged to provide a 'Home mooring' so Alex Cat would be ok with CCing and taking the Grand Tour of London at her leisure. Just like

as if renting from a hire company, the owners have to make sure the boat is canal worthy and legally safe. As long as these things are taken care of Alex should be ok.

 

Is London really that full?

[David Mack]

I thought that the owner would be legally obliged to provide a 'Home mooring' so Alex Cat would be ok with CCing and taking the Grand Tour of London at her leisure.

If you have a home mooring you aren't CCing! I think you are confusing a home mooring with the requirement for a hired out boat to have a proper base.

 

Just like as if renting from a hire company, the owners have to make sure the boat is canal worthy and legally safe. As long as these things are taken care of Alex should be ok.

But as this isn't a hire company, you cannot be sure of any of those things.

[Alex Cat]

No home mooring and defo not a hire company.

It seems as though I'll be doing something that is 'under the radar' - a little like an 'under the radar' sublet of a room in a shared house.

On the other hand it seems as though the risks are pretty equal on both sides of the fence - if I'm an irresponsible tenant and wreck the boat and don't comply by the cc'ing rules then the owner is as much at risk as I might be if they were renting a substandard boat to me.

 

Having read around on other forums it does seem as though people are doing this and taking the risks - how else does one gain any experience of a cc'ing lifestyle otherwise?

[Dave Payne]

How can you be sure the boat is safe and insured correctly.....

 

If someone is breaking rules with regards to home mooring and renting it out, then how can you be 100% sure you are covered legally if something happens, or all the systems are checked and 100% safe.

[RLWP]

and insured correctly

 

It may be third party insured against losses to others, it cannot be anything more because it isn't complying with the license or declared use

 

Richard

[cuthound]

It may be third party insured against losses to others, it cannot be anything more because it isn't complying with the license or declared use

 

Richard

And if it's not complying with its licence and/or doesn't have the correct BSS certificate would the insurance company pay out to a third party?

[David Mack]

No home mooring and defo not a hire company.

It seems as though I'll be doing something that is 'under the radar' - a little like an 'under the radar' sublet of a room in a shared house.

On the other hand it seems as though the risks are pretty equal on both sides of the fence - if I'm an irresponsible tenant and wreck the boat and don't comply by the cc'ing rules then the owner is as much at risk as I might be if they were renting a substandard boat to me.

 

Having read around on other forums it does seem as though people are doing this and taking the risks - how else does one gain any experience of a cc'ing lifestyle otherwise?

Yes there are people doing it, an no doubt some quite happily. But the boat won't be correctly licensed or insured, and is unlikely to have the correct Boat Safety Certificate (the requirements are more onerous for hire boats, which this would be). So if anybody clamps down you could find yourself homeless at virtually no notice. And if the boat isn't safe, it could sink, or you might wake up dead one morning from carbon monoxide poisoning.

And most people get experience of CCing by buying a boat and doing it.

[Alex Cat]

Very many thanks for all the thoughtful words.

I'll go to see the boat tomorrow and it's going to be extremely useful to be able to talk through these posts with the owner - see what she says and how I feel about everything.

 

....and if I don't ever show up on here again, you'll know that something extremely dodgy went down!

[cuthound]

Very many thanks for all the thoughtful words.

I'll go to see the boat tomorrow and it's going to be extremely useful to be able to talk through these posts with the owner - see what she says and how I feel about everything.

 

....and if I don't ever show up on here again, you'll know that something extremely dodgy went down!

Ask to see the insurance and BSS certificates. These should be for commercial, not leisure use., as should be the licence.

[Life Goes On]

Welcome all newbies - I too am a newbie and I did rush in to buy my boat, didn't look around that much bar online, went £5000 over my original budget and feel that I could have got a better boat for the money if I'd shopped around more but I fell in love and have always been impulsive but I had done some research prior, been here two weeks, not exactly looking forward to moving on as it's idyllic where I'm at but guessing next stop will be just as beautiful and know it was the best decision ever

 

But I do keep saying "ask me again in winter"

[Big Ade]

Sheila and I (Ade) have done a fair bit of boating via hire boats and in 2014 we commissioned our new boat.

 

We took delivery of it at Thorne (Bluewater Marina) in September 2015, the boat having sailed from the builder's base in Hull Marina via the Humber and Trent. Sadly for some reason I was not allowed to accompany them on that trip which would have been epic for me.

 

The boat is a 57 foot narrowboat, the hull fabricated by D P Bridgeman completed to a sail away by Hesford Marine and fitted out by Cain Narrowboats.

 

Our extended families are all Sheffield based so the boat is Sheffield themed. The colours are the old Sheffield Transport Department cream with navy blue stripe, we have the City of Sheffield coat of arms and Yorkshire rose on the sides and the boat is was named by the Master Cutler (Mr. David Grey MBE) and is called 'Ghenoar Wittlin'.

 

Ghenoar Wittlin, say it as it is spelt missed with a hard 'G' as in Ghent and you have the Sheffield dialect. It is Sheffieldish and means I have stopped (Ghanoar - gen (given) oar - (over) ) worrying - wittlin. I find I am explaining this about twice every day on the cut (unless we are near Sheffield where everyone gets it straight away).

 

The inaugural cruise was from Thorne to Sheffield basin where the boat was laid up for the winter (also held in by the lock repairs at Tinsley). We took it out at the end of cold March and headed East, the only option.

 

We are both retired and have no plans other than to keep the boat moving and stop if there is something interesting. Every now and then we will put the boat in a marina and return to our home back in Sheffield.

 

The first trip took us to Barnoldswick (Barlick) after a 7 day stop in Skipton. We liked Skipton a lot. At Barlick marina a boater gave us grave tales of woe about the upcoming Blackburn stretch (mattress around his prop, trolley jammed between prop and rudder, plastic bags wrapped around his prop). So we turned round and decided to go across the Penines via the Huddersfield narrow route.

 

We retraced our steps and turned off at Castleford for the marina at Dewsbury where after a discussion with another boater and use of a stick it was agreed that our boat was too tall for the Huddersfield and anyway I would also need to have the solar panels taken off, the horn and nav lights removed too. There was a silver lining though, on the way back to Leeds the bow thruster ingested some plastic, the impeller became a ball of tightly spun plastic. Gordon, who owns the marina, very kindly adjusted the slipway bookings dragged our boat out and we discovered that the 'grilles' were allowing large items to be drawn in and were restricting the effectiveness of the thruster. He removed the offending items, cut out the problems and re-welded new 'grilles' closer, narrower and much more efficient. The thruster is MUCH better now, thanks again Gordon. Dewsbury is a great little marina it is quiet, close to supermarket, there is good food at the café and a real ale pub 'Leggers' all very reasonably priced

 

So the other option was the Rochdale route but that was still closed from the Boxing Day floods and there was no imminent chance of it being open so we were off to Skipton once again. We knew the route now and the weather was getting better too.

 

The water level at the top was beginning to concern CRT and we were told to buddy up on the locks which was good. We made it all the way over and moored up overnight at Foulridge and went through in the morning. The cruise down through Blackburn/Burnley was not as bad as we were led to believe (picked up a length of carpet but it was easy enough to get off). It is without doubt the worst litter strewn place we have seen, I am a supporter of corporal punishment, hanging and deportation so I would like to see these perpetrators dealt with severely (it would be a steep but effective learning curve).

 

We did the Wigan flight in 6 hours getting stuck for twenty minutes in a lock bottom and a little further on having stones thrown at the boat. My catapult and a few ball bearings saw the little scrotes off (bad idea in hindsight).

 

Took the boat up to Scarisbrick Marina and left it there whilst we went to a wedding in the Lakes. Picked the boat up and brought it back to Wigan and then down to Lymm to sort out a problem I am having with the controller.

 

I am writing this as we are moored just up from the Anderton Boat Lift on a sunny Sunday morning.

 

So that is what we have done so far, we might go up the Llangollen to Trevor, we will be going down the Trent & Mersey to Stoke and maybe up to Derby.

 

If you see us give us a wave. Be lucky, be healthy and always be safe.

 

Sheila and Ade

[toekneep]

Hello everybody,

 

I have already found some excellent advice on here so thanks all for that. My wife Gill and myself (Tony) had planned to retire to a narrow boat and travel the network five years from now but our circumstances have changed and we now plan to buy and live part time on board whilst still working. We have a half share in a bungalow to sell which will fund the narrow boat. We are already swimming in selection criteria to such an extent that I have produced a spreadsheet to score boats against to try and narrow (sorry) down the choice. It's a minefield isn't it?

 

I might not post that often because I'm pretty good at searching out existing information but I'm looking forward to joining the community and who knows, maybe even contributing eventually.

 

All the best

 

Tony and Gill (G&T)

 

 

[MissMax]

If you buy the boat, then i can test it until you and your wife retire

[nigel0266]

Hello one and all,

I'm seriously considering joining this seemingly

amazing world of boating and looking to live aboard.

Only me, still in full time employment but only four days a

week.

Any and all advice would be welcome.

Not spent a penny yet, just trying to soak up all the

info.

[NealSmith100]

Hi

 

My name is Mike.

 

I have recently bought a cabin cruiser (I would have liked a narrow boat but unfortunately, couldn't afford one!).

 

I haven't been out on her yet - and I am really nervous about encountering my first lock.. but I have wanted to do this for many years and hopefully, my wife Cheryl will love the boating life too.

 

I have a question or two on boat maintenance and would appreciate any help anyone could offer?

 

Kindest regards to all

 

Mike

 

Change the names (to protect the guilty) and this is basically me.

 

Except I am working towards the liveaboard narrowboat thing (possibly with little progress but working towards it!)

[kohaladonah]

Aloha all,

 

We (my husband, me and two of our friends) are considering a narrowboat holiday in the UK. All of us are retired, from the US (we live in Hawaii, our friends are from Alabama) and all of us have some level of boating experience, mostly sailboats, in lakes or bays, mostly a number of years ago now. We're looking for recommendations for a good 'beginners' routing with lots of scenery, interesting villages and towns, good pubs, and not too demanding in terms of numbers of locks, although we do want at least a few, just for the authenticity of the experience.

 

At this point, we have just started kicking the idea around, will probably be looking at 10 days to two weeks and have heard that the Bridgewater, Ashby, Lancaster, Northern Trent and Mersey, and Shropshire Union are good for beginners, but don't know much else about them.

 

Most likely, we will be arriving into Heathrow and making our way to and from our canal boating starting and ending place by public transportation - train, preferably - and also will be looking for the most "inclusive" hire boat company we can find - don't want to have to pack linens, etc. and don't want a lot of surprise fees and charges above the stated rental rates.

 

Any help and/or suggestions will be gratefully accepted.

[sherrycanon]

HI everyone, my name is Sherry. I have always wanted to have a boat and I finally bought one. Would like to start my first boating trip soon but I am a bit apprehensive in taking it out on my own. I am a novice in this area so I would like to get some real good advice here

[Sea Dog]

Welcome to the forum and congratulations on your new boat. I fear it's already giving you sleepless nights judging by your time of posting, but I hope you have many happy times together!

[NealSmith100]

Welcome to the forum and congratulations on your new boat. I fear it's already giving you sleepless nights judging by your time of posting, but I hope you have many happy times together!

 

 

Hear hear!

 

Not jealous of you at all.....

[Davestampy1]

Hi me and my girlfriend have just brought a widebeam house boat near hampton court.I am a carpenter with a plan to do it up. Its moored in a lpvely location on the thames. I am still unsure on if i need a saftey check license ect and if i need to doit all before or after i do it up hopefully someone can help.. tia...

[Alan de Enfield]

It may have been prudent to find out the legal requirements before buying the boat.

 

Hi me and my girlfriend have just brought a widebeam house boat near hampton court.I am a carpenter with a plan to do it up. Its moored in a lpvely location on the thames. I am still unsure on if i need a saftey check license ect and if i need to doit all before or after i do it up hopefully someone can help.. tia...

[Tony Kelly]

A big shout out to all seasoned and not so seasoned members!!

I don't know about the word newbie, this seems to have some kind of negative connotation,however after decades of motorcycles, trucks, coaches/buses and other miscellaneous machinery I'm turning my back on the roads and about to buy my first narrow-boat.

My first question is: I've done a lot of research, but what concrete considerations should I think about (weigh up) before I sink (hopefully not in the canal/river) my savings into a boat?

 

As well as this, I've looked at a 1994 50' with a build by Grayson (hull) interior by Neil Cox, I've checked on-line but I can't find any info about these names. Do any of the members know anything about these names/builders? By the way the boat is called Serendipity and was recently advertised on ebay/Newsnow/Freeadds, any comments very welcome, thanks.

A big shout out to all seasoned and not so seasoned members!!

I don't know about the word newbie, this seems to have some kind of negative connotation,however after decades of motorcycles, trucks, coaches/buses and other miscellaneous machinery I'm turning my back on the roads and about to buy my first narrow-boat.

My first question is: I've done a lot of research, but what concrete considerations should I think about (weigh up) before I sink (hopefully not in the canal/river) my savings into a boat?

 

As well as this, I've looked at a 1994 50' with a build by Grayson (hull) interior by Neil Cox, I've checked on-line but I can't find any info about these names. Do any of the members know anything about these names/builders? By the way the boat is called Serendipity and was recently advertised on ebay/Newsnow/Freeadds, any comments very welcome, thanks.

[Phil Ambrose]

Hi me and my girlfriend have just brought a widebeam house boat near hampton court.I am a carpenter with a plan to do it up. Its moored in a lpvely location on the thames. I am still unsure on if i need a saftey check license ect and if i need to doit all before or after i do it up hopefully someone can help.. tia...

A general rule is to have all legal requirements in place at the point you assume ownership ie BSC, license, insurance (thinks bit like a car)

Phil

[Keirdre]

Hello all!

 

My wife and I have just bought a 48ft Springer narrowboat as a liveaboard. We're currently moored on the Thames but about to take it onto the Kennet and Avon with the intention of wintering around during the Bristol area. Already fearing the Caen Hill lock flight!

[Alan de Enfield]

Hello all!

 

We're currently moored on the Thames but about to take it onto the Kennet and Avon with the intention of wintering around during the Bristol area.

 

Good luck.