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Traveling on a canal at night?


Foxtrot

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8 hours ago, TheBiscuits said:

Interesting. From the link:

I have to admit we certainly did not have an anchor light when moored in Castleford Cut, but the Aire & Calder is on the list where this is required, and I suppose you technically need one on the pontoons outside the Royal Armories at Leeds.

8 hours ago, TheBiscuits said:

Interesting. From the link:

I have to admit we certainly did not have an anchor light when moored in Castleford Cut, but the Aire & Calder is on the list where this is required, and I suppose you technically need one on the pontoons outside the Royal Armories at Leeds.

How many narrowboats even have an anchor light?  (As opposed to a too light anchor!)

How many narrowboats even have an anchor light?  (As opposed to a too light anchor!)

The subject of needing an anchor light on The River Trent etc has been mentioned to me before. However I do not recall seeing anyone put an anchor light on when moored on a pontoon or a wall on the River Trent non tidal locks or at Torksey.  If you anchored at a place other than at one of the designated visitor moorings an anchor light could however be important.

 

 

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5 minutes ago, MartynG said:

The subject of needing an anchor light on The River Trent etc has been mentioned to me before. However I do not recall seeing anyone put an anchor light on when moored on a pontoon or a wall on the River Trent non tidal locks or at Torksey.  If you anchored at a place other than at one of the designated visitor moorings an anchor light could however be important.

 

 

We have not used our anchor light on the Trent or the Aire and Calder when moored on a designated visitor mooring but we do use it when moored on ad hoc moorings or are at anchor. People may not be expecting you to be moored where you are so the anchor light is a good marker to show that you are there.

We would never dream of navigating at night without our nav lights on. But why do some narrowboats insist on having huge search lights on the bows of their boats which blind you as you approach them? :angry:

They may not be required to have nav lights but some of the forward facing lights they carry are beyond a joke.

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9 hours ago, TheBiscuits said:

Interesting. From the link:

I have to admit we certainly did not have an anchor light when moored in Castleford Cut, but the Aire & Calder is on the list where this is required, and I suppose you technically need one on the pontoons outside the Royal Armories at Leeds.

How many narrowboats even have an anchor light?  (As opposed to a too light anchor!)

I must admit to also having failed to comply with the law.

When moored in an 'official' mooring place (Pontoon, Lock Wall etc) I have never used my anchor (mooring) light, and I don't think I have ever seen anyone do so. 

The day we stop learning is the day we died.

On the Trent Navigation, the Weaver Navigation, the Aire and
Calder Navigation, the New Junction Canal and the Sheffield and
South Yorkshire Navigation every vessel aground in the fairway
or mid-channel and every vessel moored at any place (including
vessels comprised in a composite craft) shall by night display a
visible white light of such a character as to be capable of being
seen from all directions.

 

But no requirement for "visible from x miles"

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3 minutes ago, Ray T said:

Historical precedent? :)

I very much doubt it.

I bet that threw a wide beam, not a searchlight or spotlight one.

Also I bet it was no more than a 50W bulb at the end of 60 feet of inadequate cable with a large voltage drop, so not that bright.

It may look impressive, but not like the idiots with search lights with powerful halogen bulbs we have to endure now, I bet.

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44 minutes ago, Naughty Cal said:

We have not used our anchor light on the Trent or the Aire and Calder when moored on a designated visitor mooring but we do use it when moored on ad hoc moorings or are at anchor. People may not be expecting you to be moored where you are so the anchor light is a good marker to show that you are there.

We would never dream of navigating at night without our nav lights on. But why do some narrowboats insist on having huge search lights on the bows of their boats which blind you as you approach them? :angry:

They may not be required to have nav lights but some of the forward facing lights they carry are beyond a joke.

Not so much the size of the lamp, more the output of the bulb/s fitted. I have seen many craft fitted with halogen security type lights which are way over the top-some even fit two, car style, which can confuse as well as blind. 

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There is no need to have a tunnel light pointing at oncoming boats, better to have it pointing upward to shown the curve of the roof.

This topic reminds me of running a tripboat narrowboat in the 1960s when I was surprised to find that there was no need for a bar license on board as long as the boat was moving.   We did many night time cruises for rugby clubs and the like.   The only problem being that we had a large elsan toilet which needed emptying during the cruise and one night a passenger was washing his tankard over the side and looked back to see the elsan contents going in the cut.   None of these new fangled holding tanks in those days.

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7 minutes ago, JamesFrance said:

There is no need to have a tunnel light pointing at oncoming boats, better to have it pointing upward to shown the curve of the roof.

This topic reminds me of running a tripboat narrowboat in the 1960s when I was surprised to find that there was no need for a bar license on board as long as the boat was moving.   We did many night time cruises for rugby clubs and the like.   The only problem being that we had a large elsan toilet which needed emptying during the cruise and one night a passenger was washing his tankard over the side and looked back to see the elsan contents going in the cut.   None of these new fangled holding tanks in those days.

Well if they were all drinking canned larger he wouldn't notice the taste......................

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1 hour ago, dave moore said:

Because many know no better. Why searchlight type headlamps are popular is an enduring mystery to me.

So you can see to the far end of the tunnel as you go in, that is in case some one turns the light at the end of the tunnel off.

Joking apart you are doing 4 mph in almost a straight  line, there are no junctions, you can see anyone coming towards you a mile away, no one is going to step off a pavement in front of you or pull out of a junction.

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Away from towns, the amount of light you need to navigate varies enormously. A clear sky moonlit night will only need enough lighting for others to see you. An overcast night with no moon can be almost as dark as a long tunnel. In towns it is the other way round. Low cloud cover bounces back street light and makes it easier to see around you. I enjoy night boating. A clear night with a good moon makes for a special trip. My tunnel light has no focus. Just flat tinfoil behind the bulb to bounce the light forward. Perfect for night boating where you want to illuminate a wide area to see where the cut is turning. Too bright and your night vision is compromised, so everything out of the beam is invisible.

Jen

Edited by Jen-in-Wellies
spelllin
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8 minutes ago, Jen-in-Wellies said:

Away from towns, the amount of light you need to navigate varies enormously. A clear sky moonlit night will only need enough lighting for others to see you. An overcast night with no moon can be almost as dark as a long tunnel. In towns it is the other way round. Low cloud cover bounces back street light and makes it easier to see around you. I enjoy night boating. A clear night with a good moon makes for a special trip. My tunnel light has no focus. Just flat tinfoil behind the bulb to bounce the light forward. Perfect for night boating where you want to illuminate a wide area to see where the cut is turning. Too bright and your night vision is compromised, so everything out of the beam is invisible.

Jen

For the last ten years we have used no lights other then the nav lights and have travelled safely for several hundred miles in the dark. So long as others can see you and you can see them, which is where nav lights come in handy, then there is no need to illuminate 1 miles ahead of you. 

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2 hours ago, ditchcrawler said:

So you can see to the far end of the tunnel as you go in, that is in case some one turns the light at the end of the tunnel off.

Joking apart you are doing 4 mph in almost a straight  line, there are no junctions, you can see anyone coming towards you a mile away, no one is going to step off a pavement in front of you or pull out of a junction.

This^^^. You're doing well if you get 4mph in a tunnel – 2 more like.

In a similar discussion on another small forum, I've just suggested there might be a market for a LED tunnel light with a ground or frosted glass lens to create a dispersed illumination, maybe with a clear window at the top to shine on the tunnel arch.

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3 minutes ago, BruceinSanity said:

This^^^. You're doing well if you get 4mph in a tunnel – 2 more like.

In a similar discussion on another small forum, I've just suggested there might be a market for a LED tunnel light with a ground or frosted glass lens to create a dispersed illumination, maybe with a clear window at the top to shine on the tunnel arch.

Actually some of the wide tunnels are where our deep draughted boats can really stretch their legs.
4mph is very achievable in both Blisworth and Braunston.
The deep new middle bit of Blisworth is noticeably faster.

(This assumes a clear run, with nobody coming the other way, obviously! :D)
 

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4 hours ago, alan_fincher said:

I very much doubt it.

I bet that threw a wide beam, not a searchlight or spotlight one.

Also I bet it was no more than a 50W bulb at the end of 60 feet of inadequate cable with a large voltage drop, so not that bright.

It may look impressive, but not like the idiots with search lights with powerful halogen bulbs we have to endure now, I bet.

Alan, do you really think I was not aware of that? I was meant to be humour which is why i put this: :)

Edited by Ray T
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4 minutes ago, Ray T said:

Alan, do you really think I was not aware of that? I was meant to be humour which is why i put this: :)

Sorry Ray!

I was completely blinded by an oncoming headlight, and hence failed to see the smiley!

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1 hour ago, alan_fincher said:

Actually some of the wide tunnels are where our deep draughted boats can really stretch their legs.
4mph is very achievable in both Blisworth and Braunston.
The deep new middle bit of Blisworth is noticeably faster.

(This assumes a clear run, with nobody coming the other way, obviously! :D)
 

Absolutely, wide tunnels are one of the fastest parts, easy 4mph.

1 hour ago, Naughty Cal said:

For the last ten years we have used no lights other then the nav lights and have travelled safely for several hundred miles in the dark. So long as others can see you and you can see them, which is where nav lights come in handy, then there is no need to illuminate 1 miles ahead of you. 

In relation to a wide river I would probably agree, but I have never been on a river in the dark and to be honest I would not be planning to.  But on a narrow canal you certainly do need to be able to see where you are going and see the edge when going through bridge holes or into locks etc.  So in those case you do need a light that properly illuminates your forward path.

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On 19/01/2013 at 15:50, bottle said:

 

 

 

It would need to be a 'continental' one or it would dip the wrong way. :wacko:;)

 

or as ditchcrawler says mount it upside down but that would tend to light the trees and not the bank, good in a tunnel though (possibly).

Most Japanese motorbike headlights,dip straight up and down.

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17 hours ago, john6767 said:

 

In relation to a wide river I would probably agree, but I have never been on a river in the dark and to be honest I would not be planning to.  But on a narrow canal you certainly do need to be able to see where you are going and see the edge when going through bridge holes or into locks etc.  So in those case you do need a light that properly illuminates your forward path.

But that's just the thing. You can see where you are going without the need for a huge spotlight. Your eyes adjust to the dark and you can see a good distance in front of you.

Until of course some dim wit comes the other way with their concentration camp style flood light shining in your eyes that then ruins your night vision :angry:

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1 hour ago, Naughty Cal said:

But that's just the thing. You can see where you are going without the need for a huge spotlight. Your eyes adjust to the dark and you can see a good distance in front of you.

Until of course some dim wit comes the other way with their concentration camp style flood light shining in your eyes that then ruins your night vision :angry:

Strongly agree. My last night trip was on the Cam and Ely Ouse, lit by only nav lights and the moon. I find a spotlight or searchlight disorienting, actually, and it adversely affects your own night vision (as well as people coming the other way!). If anything a canal has "harder" edges than a river, so it's even easier to spot the water's edge.

Edited by Scholar Gypsy
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