Who's been out in the sun today?

[RLWP]

Is Tawny still floating?

 

Richard

[junior]

I thought some locks were closed for a while between SB and London?

I'm pretty sure there are stoppages at Apsley, Black Jacks and Gas locks. I'm not sure about exact dates but it might be pssible to do 24hr boating over a weekend and get through them after one opens and the next closes, if that makes sense.

[Leo No2]

I thought some locks were closed for a while between SB and London?

Mark - he was, bless him, so clueless that I doubt he knew!

[alan_fincher]

And the dog's opinion of this was what, exactly? or

 

He is fairly compliant, and even if he desn't enjoy, he doesn't really put up much resistance either.

 

It's going to be bloody cold tonight as a pay off for the mild sunny day!

 

All the boats around us are covered in frost already!

 

Not too cold I trust.

 

This I think is the furthest I have ever got through the winter without feeling the need to protect the more delicate bits of Chalice's plumbing by at least a partial drain down.

 

BBC Weather is only predicting zero here, but already both our external thermometers are showing about that, and I'm sure it will get colder.

[Naughty Cal]

Apologies Cal,

 

I forgot you have a GRP cruiser. My comments were directed towards the large metal top of a narrowboat.

It's quite nice watching the boats frost up outside whilst we are sat in t shirts under the canvas!

 

Surprising how much wildlife is in the yard. Seen a badger and a fox already this evening.

 

It's about time the yards crow buggered off though. She seems to have adopted the yard as her home and although quite tame she is getting on my nerves now!

[NB Alton]

We set of from Poynton at 8am in grey drizzle. By the time we set off from Marple about 11 it was brightening up. We've had a glorious afternoons boating on the Upper Peak Forest, finally tieing up in Whaley Bridge after 8pm. The cloth & gunnels are covered in frost. Just grabbing some tea, then off to the Goyt pub to round off a brilliant days boating.

 

Cheers! Brian

[ditchcrawler]

Mark - he was, bless him, so clueless that I doubt he knew!

If you read Grahams blog he was tied up fore and aft in Buckby top lock

[mark99]

Who is Graham? link would be good.

[blackrose]

I went out on the river in the dinghy and practiced anchoring - good fun!

 

Still too high to take the boat out on the Avon - I went up to the next weir in the dinghy and it was scary!

Edited January 19, 2014 by blackrose

[Ally]

We finally got a green light on the river, so cruised onwards, it was a glorious day to be out and about.

[p6rob]

Is Tawny still floating?

 

Richard

Yes. Well, it was still afloat at lunchtime.

 

Rob

[Leo No2]

Who is Graham? link would be good.

I think he may be referring to this - http://contentedsouls.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/g-has-to-live-up-to-his-gentleman.html

[mark99]

I think he may be referring to this - http://contentedsouls.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/g-has-to-live-up-to-his-gentleman.html

 

 

Yes looks like it. Could have been tragic.

 

Didn't see the original link for some daft reason.

 

Apsley is closed for a couple of weeks IIRC.

Edited January 19, 2014 by mark99

[RLWP]

Yes. Well, it was still afloat at lunchtime.

 

Rob

Excellent, thanks Rob

 

Richard

[Dyertribe]

Mad dogs and Englishmen usually

[station tug]

How do you insulate a cockpit canopy?

carpet

[ditchcrawler]

Who is Graham? link would be good.

I linked it earlier in #24

[Liam]

A slight frost covering on Ariel's deck a little after 11pm tonight but nowhere near as cold as I thought it would get...

 

Still a clear and starry night though.

[PiRSqwared]

Went for a walk along the Regent's from islington tunnel to Primrose Hill. Plenty of boats. One or two of them were even moving. Lovely day in the capital. Back in 'arlow now.

[DandV]

Because our UK visitors permits are limited to six months we are in exile here in the sun in NZ.

We have let our house in Auckland for eighteen months, two UK summers and the intervening winter. We are spending our summer based here at our family bach (NZ holiday cottage)in the Marlborough Sounds, that very indented coastline at the northern end of the South Island.

We have no mains power, no telecom landline, and the closest road is ten miles away.

We phone our grocery order through to the supermarket in Picton and they come down on the twice weekly mail launch. A 640watt solar system provides the lighting and refrigeration plus power to charge the toys. Water heating is provided by a jacketed wood burner with another wood burner providing space heating. We have abundant high quality manuka fire wood. Our nearest neighbours are 300metres away but they have returned to “civilisation” this morning. The closest permanent inhabitants are 1k away across the bay at the swanky 5star Bay of Many Coves Resort.

Fishing is good so we allow for a freshly caught fish meal every second day.

Thanks to information given to me on this forum we have finally got our Victron Combi inverter interfaced with our budget Chinese generator. I had to buy the interface unit to disable the UPS function on the inverter so now we no longer get anxious when the sun is not shining..

We had a wonderful first year on Whio cruising the middle western margin. Bizarrely our cruising both started and finished with a road trip due to the Aylesbury Arm closure. From Milton Keynes we headed northwest traversing the full length of the Coventry Canal Ashby and Caldon canals From Lymm to Llangollen. Ellismere Port to Sharpness and back to Milton Keynes via Stratford on Avon and Birmingham. We loved the river sections and can recommend watching the Severn Bore. That is what real tidal waters.

We met lots of great people. I think pillocks largely do not float, they need wheels. We are so looking forward to getting back on board Whio in May heading south to London, Essex and the River Thames and the canals off it. I am studying, slowly for my marine radio operators certificate as there is some question whether an NZ VHF qualification is acceptable in Britain but the full certificate including the offshore section is internationally accepted under treaties.

We have heard that another Whio has been launched on the canals.

Don and Val

[Burgiesburnin]

I have.

[adam1uk]

Was quite amazed by the number of boats passing through Stoke Bruerne today - first one was 08:00 (ish) and they were still passing through at 16:15. Just a wonderful day.

 

I did feel sorry for the person who had bought a boat (probably late this last week or may be even yesterday) who was, I understand, on his way to add to the congestion in London whose first lock was Stoke Bruerne top. He waited ages for a 'mate' to go down with but they spent an age sitting in the lock whilst he untangled the rear rope from his prop. I think he went out breasted up to the new 'mate'. I was always taught that Prior Planning Prevents P£&& Poor Performance or PPPPPP. As it was his first lock I assume he bought it somewhere between here and Buckby bottom and received no instruction but he had, however, managed to get through Blisworth tunnel!

 

May be the one Graham met at the top of the Buckby flight

http://contentedsouls.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/g-has-to-live-up-to-his-gentleman.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+blogspot/unSLGR+(Contented+Souls)

 

Unlikely to be the same one, because if he'd already done Buckby, SB wouldn't have been his first lock.

 

When we did a short trip through SB between Christmas and New Year we met two boats whose owners had just bought them and were doing their first locks. One steerer was completely clueless, and might also have got his rope round his prop if I hadn't suggested that it wasn't a good idea to have it trailing in the water. He was also off to London, and knew nothing about moorings or indeed anything else.

[BlueBelle1]

Wonderful weather yesterday and today, it's brilliant and so much wild life, totally enjoying the experience

[matty40s]

Winter is such an awful time

(Hillmorton this morning with Badsey and Angel being worked on}

 

Especially when you have to work.......

 

(Passing Stowe Hill this afternoon)

Edited January 20, 2014 by matty40s

[Victor Vectis]

Me. I cheekily got to steer Red Wharf up the Lapworth flight. Brilliant fun, if a bit cold

 

Richard

And thank you for your help, Sir & Madam Tawny Owl.

 

Cold today from Illshaw Heath into Brum, about 200 yds of thin ice just short of the railway bridge at Shirley, but lots of low sunshine.

 

(Pity a lot of the Nth. Stratford is in the shade!)