Castlefield Basin Wars

[John Holden]

For interest -

 

http://www.manchesterconfidential.co.uk/News/When-Two-Tribes-Go-To-War-Manchester-Castlefield-Basin-Canal-Boats-Peel-Holdings

[cheshire~rose]

Talk about biased reporting!

 

Show some images of black boats just in case any of them happen to belong to a trouble maker - I feel very sorry for anyone tarnished in this way who could be totally innocent.

 

Show some images of out of date BW licences - so? that does not mean the boat is not licenced and it is not on BW waters so?

[Guest User]

.... How does one sink "listlessly" ?

[John Holden]

The whole Castlefield basin is an abomination, it should be a world heritage site being one of the first places to kick start the industrial revolution. Instead what do we get, posh expensive bars with addresses such as Catalan Square posh expensive "apartments" for people who have more money than sense and only want to see pretty boats out of their windows.

[StarUKKiwi]

Lazy reporting; although when we passed through in August the basin was full & someone had moored on the lock moorings - glad we weren't staying - Dean is probably the most qualified to comment as he uses the Elsan point there

[rubblequeen]

I don't know those "scallywags" what we going to do with them? Haven't heard anyone called a Scallywag for years, so quaint.

[pearley]

I'm disappointed. Our boat is not shown. Must have arrived here on Tuesday just after the photographer.

 

To be fair, this is our third, short stay here since September and there are at least 6 boats that have been moored here all that time (though it is possible they moved and come back to moor in the same place) One ex-hireboat called Warbler was here on the last visit in 2011. The majority of these boats have CRT licences.

 

On our first visit we moored in front of the sinking boat. There were no signs of any collision but it became apparent on our second day that it was sinking. I rang Peel who said they knew about it but as it had a CRT licence (long expired) on it they were waiting for the Trust to contact the owner. When we woke the next morning it had been untied and pushed or floated to near the other side and sank. It was still there three weeks later but has now been removed.

 

Would agree about the rubbish but Peel provide no rubbish facilities any where on the Bridgewater.

 

Regards

Pete

[Lady Muck]

Has anyone checked to see if they've got any blond haired blue eyed kids onboard that might not be theirs?

[KevMc]

Talk about biased reporting!

 

Show some images of black boats just in case any of them happen to belong to a trouble maker - I feel very sorry for anyone tarnished in this way who could be totally innocent.

 

Show some images of out of date BW licences - so? that does not mean the boat is not licenced and it is not on BW waters so?

 

From a position of ignorance I thought the article was quite well written - it seemed to present the opinions of boaters and landlubbers .... the pictures on the other hand were dreadfully titled and placed in a manner to show things at their worst; but as I say I am totally ignorant of the real situation in the basin

[Athy]

Has anyone checked to see if they've got any blond haired blue eyed kids onboard that might not be theirs?

Hoorah! I see that I cannot award you a greeno bein' as 'ow you is important like, but have a virtual one.

 

I did not see the article as particularly biased.

[pquinn]

''sinister black boat'' that '' took it upon himself to administer vigilante justice, resigning the inhabited white and blue craft to a wet end with a full-blooded ram. it had to be BAT MAN! who else could sink a boat using only a sheep.

[Athy]

Not something ewe or I could do, nooooo.

[mayalld]

Talk about biased reporting!

 

Show some images of black boats just in case any of them happen to belong to a trouble maker - I feel very sorry for anyone tarnished in this way who could be totally innocent.

 

Show some images of out of date BW licences - so? that does not mean the boat is not licenced and it is not on BW waters so?

 

I didn't find it biased, indeed the article actually explores the issues of people with black boats being tarred with the same brush, and how they don't like it.

 

Castlefield is somewhere that is (or should be) a shining example of waterways rejuvenated.

 

Certainly, some will mutter into their beards about yuppies, and wrecking the industrial heritage, but it is a living open space that embraces the canal and celebrates the architecture, far better that than perfectly preserved untouched industrial landscape.

 

The out of date licences - do we expect others to know about the jurisdiction of the relvant authorities, and if a boat is moored at Castlefield with NO MSC number or licence, and an out of date BW licence, the picture is fair enough, as it is a picture of a boat that has no licence for where it is and an expired licence for a navigation authority that has a reciprocal arrangement.

[John Holden]

 

 

 

Certainly, some will mutter into their beards about yuppies, and wrecking the industrial heritage, but it is a living open space that embraces the canal and celebrates the architecture, far better that than perfectly preserved untouched industrial landscape.

 

 

 

 

I take it you have never seen Castlefield before and after?

[pearley]

Strangely enough, or not, we had our number taken today but he didn't bother with the overstayers, just walked past them.

 

There are 2 black boats moored here at present.

 

Regards

Pete

 

Edited to say 3 black boats!

Edited October 24, 2013 by pearley

[gaggle]

The crew on the small plastic boat said hello as we arrived at Castlefield and goodbye as we left , i seen no behaviour from them to upset anybody , if anything was going to upset residents or other boaters i would have thought it would have been a wide beam boat that had a generator on the path next to the water point , it was no nuisance to me that a generator was running late but i was wondering if people in the YMCA especially could be justified in complaining , the boat with the genny running is not just a visitor as i have seen it there on each occasion i visit over years.

[DeanS]

I can provide some info to balance all of this

 

We have moored in Castlefield often, because as a widebeam the Rochdale 9 is the only exit route from our marina, which leads to Castlefield basin. There are boats which have lived in Castlefield for years, but they all know each other, and get along well. They cause no problems. There are a lot of tour boats operating on weekends, pumping out loud music as they take their hen parties etc cruising, but this is part of the ongoing charm of the basin. They have run those services for years, and again, everyone knows each other, and there is a lot of mutual respect between the boaters there. You then get a different crowd in the basin...all the boats which are "passing through". These boats often find that the elsan point is not up to standard, although quite honestly, there is a full marina/showers/toilets/elsans/diesel/gas/pumpout supplier 45mins down the Bridgewater (Stretford Marine). There are some permanent moorings on the Science Museam side, and these boaters tend to run generators at all hours. They have been there for years, and cause no real trouble. Occasionally when the Council has bands playing etc, they have to move their boats out of this area, and then they return. The guys in the 2 black boats, are decent, if left alone. One boat has had altercations with pubcrawlers in the past. Motley Crue owner is a genuine guy, and causes no problems.

 

The troubles recently began, when 2 scrappy looking GRP boats (with windows missing, and basically inhabited by undesirable types) were kicked out of New Islington marina (on the Rochdale) for causing some problems. They moved down to the Bridgewater, and took up residence. Local boaters in Castlefield basin (after having a few pints), decided they needed to be encouraged to leave. One black boater rammed one of the boats a few times. It never sunk, and looked fine days later. (which surprised me). Weeks later, the GRP boats were still there, and I'm not surprised they were encouraged to leave the area if the boater pulled out weapons.

 

Yes it makes a great story for a journalist, but it's a real non story really. Those boaters have been there for years and are actually doing Peel a favour by keeping Castlefield basin from becoming inhabited by hobos on boats who try and escape CRT by hiding on the Bridgewater.

 

If Peel put up signs, nothing will change at all because there's actually no real issue on a widescale.

[StarUKKiwi]

See I knew Dean was best qualified as most of theorist on here pass through

[Richard10002]

Are we suggesting that some of the boats in Castlefield have been there for a long time, which exceeds the permissions of their licence, but it's OK because they cause no trouble, and actually police the situation - to a degree?

 

Surely Cart &Peel should get a grip and ensure that licence agreements are followed?

 

Or am I misunderstanding?

[mayalld]

 

I take it you have never seen Castlefield before and after?

Wrong.

[DeanS]

Are we suggesting that some of the boats in Castlefield have been there for a long time, which exceeds the permissions of their licence, but it's OK because they cause no trouble, and actually police the situation - to a degree?

 

Surely Cart &Peel should get a grip and ensure that licence agreements are followed?

 

Or am I misunderstanding?

 

When you say "get a grip".....I think that's where the misunderstanding is. The waterways are 2000 miles of canals etc. The Bridgewater is a small 40mile canal. It has very few non CRT boats moving along it. It has a lot of CRT licenced boats which use Castlefield as an interchange..either to reach the Ashton, or the Rochdale, or to head off to the Macclesfield or the L&L. Peel has nothing to "get to grips with" because there is no real issue, just a journalist with a story about 1 boater who chased another boater, on one particular day. In fact Peel are doing a fantastic job improving towpaths along many stretches of their patch. The Bridgewater is a gem of a canal, surrounded by shallow ditches which CRT fail to dredge. CRT could take a page out of Peels book anyday. Peel do have a grip on licencing. They keep many boaters out by much higher pricing.

[Timleech]

I suspect it's mainly the local councils which pay for the towpath improvements.

The Bridgewater started life deeper than the adjoining waterways now under CRT control, and some of the Bridgewater does need dredging.

Yes there's nowhere near enough dredging being done on CRT waterways in the area.

 

Tim

[kevinl]

I'm with Dean, things on the Bridgewater are just fine. Someone gets kicked off a CaRT marina ends up on the Bridgewater and causes some problems is the story here, a bit like one council evicting some bad neighbours who then simply move on and become someone else's problem. I think CaRT could learn a something about running a canal from Peel. Richard seemed to suggest some heavy handed intervention is the way to go (as I read his comment) after over than 250 years in the business I think they know how to run a canal.

[DeanS]

If I was a resident in one of the Castlefield blocks of flats, the things I'd be wanting journalists to speak out against, would be:

 

1. The clubs that play ultra loud music until 2am in the morning. (it seems to have gotten worse recently)

2. The lack of rubbish bins. The clubs are forced to pile huge piles of bags up. Boaters are expected to carry waste to a skip 100m away.

3. All the goose poop.

4. All the old furnishings of some clubs stored out the back.

5. Drunk people shouting and swearing when walking back from clubs to their homes at night.

 

Boaters are the least of their worries.

[cheshire~rose]

If I was a resident in one of the Castlefield blocks of flats, the things I'd be wanting journalists to speak out against, would be:

 

1. The clubs that play ultra loud music until 2am in the morning. (it seems to have gotten worse recently)

2. The lack of rubbish bins. The clubs are forced to pile huge piles of bags up. Boaters are expected to carry waste to a skip 100m away.

3. All the goose poop.

4. All the old furnishings of some clubs stored out the back.

5. Drunk people shouting and swearing when walking back from clubs to their homes at night.

 

Boaters are the least of their worries.

 

 

I do not see any harm in that?

 

Boaters are very used to being able to pull up alongside refuse points along the canal - it is very useful.

 

To have to walk 100m with a bag of rubbish is not such a hardship really is it? I would imagine we all walk a lot further than that when doing a flight of locks!

 

Ok so if you are staying in that area for a while you may have to make a few trips but if I am in an urban area and not likely to be near CRT refuse point for a few days I tend to pop my rubbish into a supermarket carrier bag and take it with me when I leave the boat on a daily basis. I simply pop it into a rubbish bin when I am passing one.