Hello from Seasider

[Seasider.]

First of all, thanks for adding me to the forum.

My wife and I have lived on the coast for the last twenty something years but towards the end of the summer, we'll be moving inland to the Oswestry area. The canal isn't very far from the house that we'll be living in.

I have a much loved Orkney Longliner fishing boat and rather than sell it, I'm wondering whether or not it would be suitable to use on the canal. I quite fancy tootling up and down, calling at the local pubs which we already frequent and doing a spot of course fishing.

If its suitable to use on the canal, I'd also like to know roughly how much it would cost me to keep it on the canal for six months of the year. It's fifteen foot long and has a fairly shallow draft.

Right final question. Four or five years ago, my wife and I hired a narrow boat for three days and travelled from Whittington in Shropshire to Llangollen and back. Obviously, Llangollen was the end of the line but I was wondering just how far you can get if you travel in the opposite direction from Whittington?

Thanks for your patience, I may have one or two more questions to ask you.

[Tiggs]

How wide is your fishing boat?

 

In the opposite direction you can join the whole of the inland canal and river system - Bristol, London, Liverpool, Hull - how far do you want to go.

[magictime]

I don't see why your boat shouldn't be suitable for the canals, especially if the beam's less than the 6'10" of a typical narrowboat.

 

There's a price list for "long-term" 3, 6 and 12 month licences here:

 

https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/refresh/media/thumbnail/24443-licence-fees-2016-2017-private-boats.pdf

 

- and one for "short term" 1 month, 1 week and 1 day licences here:

 

https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/refresh/media/thumbnail/24445-short-term-licence-fees-2017-2018.pdf

 

That second link also includes prices for a 30 day explorer licence, which I believe is basically a book of 30 one-day tickets to be used in a 12-month period.

 

When you say "on the canal six months of the year", what are you picturing exactly? Getting a mooring for 6 months and having it on a trailer in your garage/on your driveway the rest of the time?

[Seasider.]

Not very wide Tiggs, only five foot at it's widest. From what you've said, that seems plenty far enough. I can sort of remember the people at Whittington who we rented the narrow boat from pointing at one bit of canal and saying that you could only go for a few miles.

My boat has a good trailer and my idea would be to launch it at the beginning of the summer and then bring it home for the winter. We'll be moving close to the little village of Weston Rhyn and the canal runs right through it.

We almost posted at the same time Magictime.

 

 

Thanks for the link Magictime. If I read it correctly then it's going to cost me £275.00 for six months. Is there anything else I need. I have insurance for my boat every summer for use on the sea, as in public liability.

Edited May 1, 2016 by Seasider.

[Tiggs]

5' x 15' - you can go anywhere.

 

Perhaps the people were thinking you wouldn't want to take in through locks?

[W+T]

Welcome to you both, you have a great boat there, the Orkney Longliner are good boats, dont blame you keeping it. that boat is fine for canal use cheap as chips to keep moored, but if you can i would keep it trailerd to give a bigger choice of where to mooch about. It will fit down all the canals you would want to and small rivers also.

[GoodGurl]

Not very wide Tiggs, only five foot at it's widest. From what you've said, that seems plenty far enough. I can sort of remember the people at Whittington who we rented the narrow boat from pointing at one bit of canal and saying that you could only go for a few miles.

My boat has a good trailer and my idea would be to launch it at the beginning of the summer and then bring it home for the winter. We'll be moving close to the little village of Weston Rhyn and the canal runs right through it.

We almost posted at the same time Magictime.

 

 

Thanks for the link Magictime. If I read it correctly then it's going to cost me £275.00 for six months. Is there anything else I need. I have insurance for my boat every summer for use on the sea, as in public liability.

if you have gas or electricity on the boat you will need a BSS they last for 4 years

http://www.boatsafetyscheme.org/

Edited May 1, 2016 by GoodGurl

[Jo_]

Your Whittington people were probably pointing at the Montgonery Canal which is only 7 or 8 miles in length. But that is a 'branch' off the Llangollen.

[magictime]

My boat has a good trailer and my idea would be to launch it at the beginning of the summer and then bring it home for the winter. We'll be moving close to the little village of Weston Rhyn and the canal runs right through it.

 

So are you planning to pay for a mooring through the summer months? (Not everyone does, but if you leave it on the towpath, you need to move it to a new spot at least every couple of weeks.)

[rasputin]

Or use a 30 day explorer ticket and put it in for weekends or the odd week.

[Seasider.]

I've also got a 15 foot fibre glass Canadian Canoe, it's more or less the same length as the Longliner, would I have to pay the same amount to have this on the canal?

[magictime]

I've also got a 15 foot fibre glass Canadian Canoe, it's more or less the same length as the Longliner, would I have to pay the same amount to have this on the canal?

 

If you look at the price lists I linked to above, right at the bottom there are (much lower!) prices for "portable unpowered" boats; I think your canoe would fit into that category. (As long as its crew can manually lift it in and out of the water.)

Edited May 2, 2016 by magictime

[David Mack]

Or join the British Canoe Union, which allows you to use your canoe on CRT waters at no further cost.

[Seasider.]

I'll definately look into that David.

[Seasider.]

Could folks point me towards a good canal guide? Many thanks.

Edited May 3, 2016 by Seasider.

[magictime]

I think this would be the most directly relevant to you:

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Counties-Canals-Collins-Nicholson-Waterways/dp/0008101590/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1462297557&sr=8-1&keywords=welsh+canals

 

...but you're connected to the whole system.

[W+T]

http://canalplan.eu/