How often do you use your boat.

[Guest]

Not enough is my answer

 

Where abouts in Skipton were you?

Keep up at the back-

 

You've clocked it.

Edited October 4, 2013 by The Dog House

[NBDensie]

120 days in 2013. We are both retired (early!) - it was either working or boating, one of them had to go. Difficult decision.

[comfortably numb]

It can be a difficult decision Helen. We were in a similar situation 12 years ago but with a static caravan we had. We were paying £1200 a year ground rent, but due to circumstances we only used it 3 times one year and twice the next, So we decided to sell it, and then not so long afterwards regretted having done so and really missed it, wishing we hadn't let it go.

 

We also had hireboat holidays most years and one good thing that came as a result of it was that we bought a share in a boat, thus increasing our holidays on the canals, and now have a boat of our own and moved on board full time at Easter.

[Mac of Cygnet]

As decidedly none full time live-aboards up until now, I can give a fair idea how much time we have managed to be on board. often working it around Cath's (now former!) job....

 

2011 - 88 days

2012 - 87 days

2013 (to date) - 54 days

 

I hope we'll add a bit more this year, but not enough to get to previous years figures.

 

Next year, however!.........

 

Like Alan, I have also kept a record, in my case since I bought Cygnet in 2006

 

2006 - 113 days

2007 - 120 days

2008 - 134 days

2009 - 143 days (+5days lent to No2 son)

2010 - 128 days

2011 - 136 days

2012 - 94 days

2013 - haven't counted up yet, but probably a bit more than last year, + 7 days lent to No2 son with different girlfriend.

 

If I found I wasn't using the boat, for whatever reason, for more than (say) 30 days per year, then I would regretfully consider selling it.

 

Edited to say that as I live in the Scottish Borders, and travel back & forth to the boat wherever it is at the time (Yorkshire in winter, anywhere in summer), by public transport, this involves a fair amount of effort to pursue my boating.

Edited October 4, 2013 by Mac of Cygnet

[Arthur Marshall]

Six weeks in July August, at least two in March and September, a couple usually in October. Plenty of odd twio or three day trips. Lived on it for a year (twice) when in between wives and houses... in general, it's saved what's left of my sanity and gets me away from musicians for a bit!

[Gingerbeer]

Sort of on the same topic but how many of you have boats close by so you can use it when the urge strikes? We are closer to the Lancaster than any other canal but it has its limitations. A little further to the L&L and we have many more possibilities for cruising. Just wondering for those who don't live on your boat full time if you have to keep your boat a fair distance away to open up more cruising options or if you are just lucky enough to work in a place with a nice marina close to you. What is the distance of travel in miles you are willing to drive in order to enjoy boating more than a week or two during the year? Just curious how far people drive to their boats.

[Fred_Smith]

About 20 days in 9 months this year inc some static maintenance days, seriously questioning the value of having a boat as the cost of ownership is so high

[Penelope]

We live up in County Durham, so no hope of keeping the boat on our doorstep!

We travel to our boat every school holiday, bank holiday weekends and also the odd weekend.

 

It is a 3hr+ drive for us, we were at Mercia Marina but have moved over to Aston Marina, as we like the varied cruising opportunities over this way.

We will move to another area eventually, but it will always be a bit of a drive.

[Gingerbeer]

wow, 3 hours is a long time to drive. You are very dedicated. Must be nice to finally get there and relax on the boat.

[Billw]

I've managed 60 days on my (shared) boat this year, 6 to 8 hours to get to it, depending on the traffic.

[Guest]

Sort of on the same topic but how many of you have boats close by so you can use it when the urge strikes? We are closer to the Lancaster than any other canal but it has its limitations. A little further to the L&L and we have many more possibilities for cruising. Just wondering for those who don't live on your boat full time if you have to keep your boat a fair distance away to open up more cruising options or if you are just lucky enough to work in a place with a nice marina close to you. What is the distance of travel in miles you are willing to drive in order to enjoy boating more than a week or two during the year? Just curious how far people drive to their boats.

We drive around 80 miles to get to our boat. Mainly all dual carrage way or motorway which helps . Only the last and first few miles are single c way.

 

We used to drive around 150 miles and that did start to get wearing hence we moved our base further north.

[Ray T]

Half hours drive from house to boat.

 

Mrs T works part time so often on her work days Millie (dog) and me potter to the Boat Inn at Birdingbury Wharf, have a drink and return.

45 minutes by boat, 5 by car. I know which way I prefer to travel though.

[Gingerbeer]

Dog House, are you on the Yorkshire coast above the Moors? Seems like I thought you were but memories fade as your read so many posts a day.

 

Some 8 hours, some a 1/2 hour, some 3, some someplace in the middle. When I read everyone's posts everyday I thought you were all much closer to a marina. Not sure why I thought that, but I did. Are some of you far away because you want to be on a certain canal or river?

 

Makes our 20 min. ride to the nearest marina seem easy, peasy. Just wish the link from the Lancaster to the rest of the canals was an easier one that didn't have to be calculated or planned out like it is now.

[Guest]

Yes we live between the North Yorkshire moors and saltburn- by-the-sea.

 

Our boat is moored at Pollington in east. Yorks. We'll it isn't at the mo as we are at Bramwith on the stainforth and keadby canal, pollington is our home mooring.

[Paul C]

Distance from home (if your home isn't the boat, that is) to boat is an interesting issue. There's obviously a compromise between distance home-boat and 'useful' location on the canal network eg near a junction(s) to give varied boating/cruising opportunities. Also, we've been advised every now and again to vary the mooring location to keep cruising interesting rather than getting stale as the years go on.

 

Last winter when we found we weren't using the boat so much for extensive cruising, I moved the boat closer to work, luckily work was close to the boat and there were a couple of locations 5-10 mins away, which greatly helps cut down the travel time to the boat.

 

Luckily we live in an area with fairly dense canal network (Cheshire) so there's plenty of choice on suitable locations.

[Catrin]

2011 - 88 days

2012 - 87 days

2013 (to date) - 54 days

 

Clearly not enough!

 

My work did take over quite a lot earlier this year, and there have been family things to deal with, but we are hoping to spend at least some time boating later this month.

 

It's about 20 minutes drive to Chalice's mooring, 45-ish to Sickle's. But fortunately Chalice's mooring is only a small deviation from the route if we are going to Sickle, which helps if we've left something on the wrong boat.

[nicknorman]

66 days so far this year, another 29 planned = 95 days, which it think is not bad considering we must hold the record of distance from house to boat at 450 miles each way. Thank god for Flybe.

[Gingerbeer]

66 days so far this year, another 29 planned = 95 days, which it think is not bad considering we must hold the record of distance from house to boat at 450 miles each way. Thank god for Flybe.

 

This will seem like a no brainer question for you but why not get an inboard cruiser and sail the ocean and rivers with it? Or why not moor in Edinburgh? You certainly win the stuffed bear for traveling. Wow, I still can't wrap my mind around that.

[nicknorman]

This will seem like a no brainer question for you but why not get an inboard cruiser and sail the ocean and rivers with it? Or why not moor in Edinburgh? You certainly win the stuffed bear for traveling. Wow, I still can't wrap my mind around that.

Oceans? Jeff hates waves and the sea, plus its boring with nothing to look at. Rivers? Always at the lowest point of the land so limited view. Boring in anything other than moderation.

 

Union canal (& Forth &Clyde) - quite pleasant, very limited routes, Scottish Canals (or whatever they are called) regard the system as their trainset and you are not allowed to work the locks or liftbridges, which makes the whole exercise one of meeting agreed rendezvous times etc. too stressful!

 

Plus Aberdeen to say Falkirk, or Edinburgh, is at least 2 hrs /120 mile drive, mostly not on motorway (no motorways north of Perth, because the Scottish government likes to keep all the funding for the central belt)

 

OR, the 2000+ miles of interconnected waterways in Englandshire. House to boat 3hrs 30 on a good day when Flybe is on time. Free airport parking with my job. Book in advance quite cheap. Recently Flybe had a special offer on where they paid the taxes and charges, you paid the fare. We booked about 15 return flights for £20 to £30 each. There is a Friday evening flight, and a Sunday evening flight, making weekends on the boat quite feasible.

[mrsmelly]

We have had are boat for 10 years now. This year we have Hardly used it with one thing and Another. It's Frustrating as its so much to have a boat. So there the question how often do you use your boat.

 

 

This year we have only had weekends on it due to work and family . Not sure if we should sell and get a smaller boat .

Every Day.

 

Tim

[Lady Muck]

A rubbish 15 days boating this year.

Combination of reasons -

Skintness - couldnt afford a new starter battery.

Family crises galore. Spent nearly every weekend tending to octogenarian parents, or ferrying other rellies around.

Now Im just way too busy (and still skint) darent leave my mooring and mains as my leisures are on the way out and I need to save for new ones.

Hey ho. At least our boat is our home.

[Athy]

Sort of on the same topic but how many of you have boats close by so you can use it when the urge strikes? any .

Strangely, it doesn't work that way. For three years our journey from our house to our boat took one minute, as she was moored at the end of our front garden (as in my avatar picture). Yet we did only a half-dozen or so day trips per year, with the occasional overnight stay at Flood's Ferry.

Now, 'Trojan' is moored in Oxfordshire, about two-and-a-quarter hours' drive from home. Yet this year we have had half a dozen long weekends on her and one long trip (14 days), far more than we ever used to use her when she was at home. Off to Oxon. again next weekend for what will probably be our last potter of the year.

[alan_fincher]

Distance from home (if your home isn't the boat, that is) to boat is an interesting issue. There's obviously a compromise between distance home-boat and 'useful' location on the canal network eg near a junction(s) to give varied boating/cruising opportunities.

A very valid point.

 

As Cath has already indicated neither of our boats is that far from home, but none-the-less Chalice is about half way down the Southern Grand Union from Braunston to London.

 

This means.....

 

1) To get anywhere with a significant choice of route is really approaching half a weeks reasonably intensive boating, so if we have no more than a week available, we really can only largely travel over one of the the same lengths of canal and back - either to the South, or to the North. (There is also the Aylesbury Arm for a bit of variety, if it isn't closed for one reason or another!).

 

2) Rings only become possible if at least two weeks are avaiable, and then still not that much choice.

 

Overall though, I think we would have made far less use of boats so far if actually kept significantly further from home.

 

I would actually love to move home to an area of the country that gave a much wider range of cruising routes without the need for significant car travel - anybody got a nice canal-side house for sale in the Midlands that includes two dedicated moorings?

[Gingerbeer]

Oceans? Jeff hates waves and the sea, plus its boring with nothing to look at. Rivers? Always at the lowest point of the land so limited view. Boring in anything other than moderation.

 

Union canal (& Forth &Clyde) - quite pleasant, very limited routes, Scottish Canals (or whatever they are called) regard the system as their trainset and you are not allowed to work the locks or liftbridges, which makes the whole exercise one of meeting agreed rendezvous times etc. too stressful!

 

Plus Aberdeen to say Falkirk, or Edinburgh, is at least 2 hrs /120 mile drive, mostly not on motorway (no motorways north of Perth, because the Scottish government likes to keep all the funding for the central belt)

 

OR, the 2000+ miles of interconnected waterways in Englandshire. House to boat 3hrs 30 on a good day when Flybe is on time. Free airport parking with my job. Book in advance quite cheap. Recently Flybe had a special offer on where they paid the taxes and charges, you paid the fare. We booked about 15 return flights for £20 to £30 each. There is a Friday evening flight, and a Sunday evening flight, making weekends on the boat quite feasible.

 

Wow, the flights seem really great. It probably helps time wise. I didn't know how the canal system or rivers worked up there. Good to know.

[Naughty Cal]

Sort of on the same topic but how many of you have boats close by so you can use it when the urge strikes? We are closer to the Lancaster than any other canal but it has its limitations. A little further to the L&L and we have many more possibilities for cruising. Just wondering for those who don't live on your boat full time if you have to keep your boat a fair distance away to open up more cruising options or if you are just lucky enough to work in a place with a nice marina close to you. What is the distance of travel in miles you are willing to drive in order to enjoy boating more than a week or two during the year? Just curious how far people drive to their boats.

Our boat is moored about 50 miles from home or about an hour away on fast A roads. Close enough that we can nip down as and when we fancy yet far enough away that we feel as though we have been away each week.

 

Means we spend four nights a week onboard each week.

 

We could moor closer to home but the cruising grounds would be more limited.