Trent at Alrewas - is it in the red?

[mrsmelly]

From what I saw of the Soar yesterday, it wasn't so much the flow, although this was moving quickly, it was the amount of crap (large branches, bags, other rubbish etc) that was being taken down in the first proper flow for a long time.

 

Yes you are right. There was quite a lot of crap on the trent also. At one point a perfectly formed coots nest floated past with eggs but no parents

 

Tim

[Ange]

Yep we were amazed by the amount of crap that's come down the Derwent and accumulated below the lock.

 

I know where you're coming from Tim but we're still relatively inexperienced and have mum & dad with us on their boat with even less experience so I think we'll play it safe. Dave was talking about turning the boat round and going back into Shardlow when I left for work this morning - there's worse places to be stuck

[mrsmelly]

Yep we were amazed by the amount of crap that's come down the Derwent and accumulated below the lock.

 

I know where you're coming from Tim but we're still relatively inexperienced and have mum & dad with us on their boat with even less experience so I think we'll play it safe. Dave was talking about turning the boat round and going back into Shardlow when I left for work this morning - there's worse places to be stuck

 

Yeah shardlow is a great place to be stuck...especialy if you are stuck on the bend outside the two pubs

 

Tim

[Guest]

Hi

 

Not that I would ever advise people who have made a decision to stay put on safety grounds but remember IF you are competent and want to cruise red boards dont always mean problems, the flow is more important, you can sometimes have red boards due to depth but little flow so the only problem then may be air draft. The Trent through Nottingham had a flow of 2 knots yesterday and there were several narrowboats and small tupperware on the river. Obviously if we get proper floods and the river line cannot be followed then its best to stay put.

 

Tim

 

But I guess if even if you wanted to and you are behind mechanised locks that require a BW key like we currently are the lockies wouldn't let a leisure boat through would they??? surely they disable the self operated pedestals somehow ... or can you insist that they do??

 

(hypothetical question BTW - I'm not wanting to pass)

 

Yep we were amazed by the amount of crap that's come down the Derwent and accumulated below the lock.

 

I know where you're coming from Tim but we're still relatively inexperienced and have mum & dad with us on their boat with even less experience so I think we'll play it safe. Dave was talking about turning the boat round and going back into Shardlow when I left for work this morning - there's worse places to be stuck

 

Ange - as you will know Shardlow can be a pig to get moored sometimes, there is however often a place to moor just through the flood gate on your left - it's often unused because you need pins and there is only enough room to get your stern to the bank where you can get on and off the boat. Still handy for the town if you can't get space in the main spots.

[Keeping Up]

I think it depends on the river. For example at Gloucester we had to sign a disclaimer stating that we wished to "exercise our right to navigate the River" and '"demand to be allowed to navigate, against the advice of the lock keeper".

[BruceinSanity]

We've just come through the Alrewas section no bother this morning. The river had come up a couple of inches overnight, but was still at least two inches below the yellow. We did 5.6 mph over the ground, on a throttle setting that moves Sanity Again through the water at around 4 mph, so the flow was around 2 mph.

 

I had no trouble breaking out of the current at the end to get into the Wychnor cut.

 

I can well believe it's much higher lower down though, judging by the appearance of the Dove as we crossed the aqueduct.

 

 

 

[Ange]

Got a text from Dave while I was at work today:- "We decided we were going to shoot (the rapids) down to Sawley after lunch, but then level started to rise again so we wussed out"

 

We're hoping to make a break for it tomorrow, but only if we're totally happy.

 

Boats have been going through while we've been sat here and I've not read of any catastrophes so we're probably being over cautious - we're a bit new to this river stuff!

[jelunga]

Got a text from Dave while I was at work today:- "We decided we were going to shoot (the rapids) down to Sawley after lunch, but then level started to rise again so we wussed out"

 

We're hoping to make a break for it tomorrow, but only if we're totally happy.

 

Boats have been going through while we've been sat here and I've not read of any catastrophes so we're probably being over cautious - we're a bit new to this river stuff!

Possibley they all sank without trace or survivors?

Or all lost in the Shardlow Triangle

Edited April 21, 2012 by jelunga

[Davidss]

SNIP

We're hoping to make a break for it tomorrow, but only if we're totally happy.

 

Boats have been going through while we've been sat here and I've not read of any catastrophes so we're probably being over cautious - we're a bit new to this river stuff!

OK, FWIW, my experience of taking a boat past the red traffic lights and arriving safely at Sawley Marina.

I was single handed, and it wasn't my steel narrowboat, so there was less at risk :-)

This was a decade or more ago.

 

Working through Derwent Mouth lock was noticeably quicker than normal, because the lock didn't have to empty very much!

I had no difficulty getting back on board after closing the bottom gates.

I aimed straight down the middle while still in the canalised section. You will have seen that as you enter the river the flow is from your right, almost at 90 degrees. The faster flow is across the mouth of the canal, so aim more or less straight across the river to cut through the faster flowing water.

You are aiming to get closer to the right-hand bank of the river. Note that 'closer to' is NOT 'close to', a 20 foot gap is fine.

 

Also note that the boat moves faster through the water if the tiller is pointing straight ahead. When crossing the fast flow keep the engine speed high and the tiller straight, letting the flow push the boat sideways, you have the space to play with, so moving 10 feet sideways is no problem, as you will actually be moving diagonally and will soon exit the fastest flow. Do NOT try to counter steer against the sideways movement, concentrate on getting through the fast flow into the slacker water.

 

Once you are moving parallel to the right hand bank, stationed about 20 feet off, you can reduce the stress on the engine and yourself by throttling back and enjoying the spectacle. You are effectively in the slackest flow of the river, but there are no sandbanks or shallows to worry about.

Any arch of the Motorway bridge is passable, so maintain your course at this point.

 

As you get level with the start of the barrier across the weir, wind the engine up to full speed and align the boat so that if you were to maintain your course the right hand side of the boat would brush the piling on the right hand side of the approach channel to the flood lock.

 

As you approach the channel the push of the river will be from right to left, getting stronger and stronger the closer you get to the channel entrance.

Again, concentrate on the best possible forward speed by holding the tiller straight ahead. The channel is wide enough to allow some diagonal movement of the boat. Depending on the actual flow of the river you may need some strength to push the tiller right, just to maintain the straight ahead position. This will only last a few seconds but can be surprising, and is probably the most stressful part of the trip.

 

When you reach the flood lock note the position of the paddles on both gates. It's probable that all four gates will be closed, but a single paddle raised at each end of the lock. There are only gate paddles.

Progress through the lock as normal, but leave the gates and paddles in the same state as you found them.

There may be notices posted giving advice on this point.

 

If you wish to reward yourselves by visiting the Chandlery and Cafe you can moor on the nearside and walk round via the road bridge.

Alternatively idle down the cut giving yourself plenty of time to examine the boats on the moorings of both the Marina and the Derby Motor Boat Club.

The next task is to spot the directions of the lockeeper as to which one of the paired locks you are to enter.

 

HTH, and have fun.

[Ange]

SNIP OK, FWIW, my experience of taking a boat past the red traffic lights and arriving safely at Sawley Marina.

I was single handed, and it wasn't my steel narrowboat, so there was less at risk :-)

This was a decade or more ago.

 

 

HTH, and have fun.

 

Thanks David - you have a phenomenal memory if all that was from a decade ago! Unfortunately we'd done it by the time I read your post, but your advice was spot on and much appreciated.

 

It was interesting that when we left the lock the flow from the Derwent pushed us one way, but then the flow from the Trent countered it very quickly. We had mum & dad following us in their boat and it was noticeable.

 

We're safely moored at Trent Lock tonight - it's been fascinating watching the boats fly by downstream and slog past upstream since we've been moored up! We're moving on to Kegworth tomorrow where we're booked to have an electrical overhaul on Monday (quivers with excitement at the prospect of moving from a 2 knackered batteries to a six brand new batteries boat!!)

 

Apologies to the OP for hijacking thread with my waffle!

[Nev]

Thanks David - you have a phenomenal memory if all that was from a decade ago! Unfortunately we'd done it by the time I read your post, but your advice was spot on and much appreciated.

 

It was interesting that when we left the lock the flow from the Derwent pushed us one way, but then the flow from the Trent countered it very quickly. We had mum & dad following us in their boat and it was noticeable.

 

We're safely moored at Trent Lock tonight - it's been fascinating watching the boats fly by downstream and slog past upstream since we've been moored up! We're moving on to Kegworth tomorrow where we're booked to have an electrical overhaul on Monday (quivers with excitement at the prospect of moving from a 2 knackered batteries to a six brand new batteries boat!!)

 

Apologies to the OP for hijacking thread with my waffle!

 

No problem, I have enjoyed reading the different views and advice. More courage than I would have had .....

 

Nev

[Ange]

No problem, I have enjoyed reading the different views and advice. More courage than I would have had .....

 

Nev

 

Thanks Nev - most importantly - did you get your boat where it needed to be? It's always good to know the outcome when someone posts for help on the forum - however much we may meander from the topic

[Nev]

Thanks Nev - most importantly - did you get your boat where it needed to be? It's always good to know the outcome when someone posts for help on the forum - however much we may meander from the topic

 

Ange,

 

Yes we moved Waterlily back to her home moorings on a sunny day yesterday, we are glad we did as it has rained literally all day today (Wednesday) very light traffic with the majority being Canal time and Shakespere boats with only a few private boats moving. The Trent was more active than when we went down a few weeks ago and you could feel the current but not a problem at all.

 

All in all a great days boating but I am getting familiar with that stretch so we need to head off somewhere new soonish.

 

Thanks for all the interesting and helpful replies,

 

Nev