Female single hander

[bigcol]

Regards falling in,keep a ladder connected to your boat when moored up.

Could be helpful to you,or someone else who needs to get out.

 

Being moored here on line,in a boatyard, we've seen lots of single female liveaboard owners.

One moored lives here,New 60 x 12 and never been on a boat of her own before, and she's of slight build,and takes it out for short cruises on her own.

 

 

Col

We knew another slight in build lady,who lived aboard on her own.

She cruised every where,including the Thames, seen selfies of her going under Tower bridge.

 

She had done it for many years,but have now moved into a canal cottage up north a it.

 

Still keep in touch

 

Col

[Murflynn]

why so sad?

[Alan de Enfield]

You can understand concerns (male or female) with 'headlines' like this :

 

From 'the other side' :

 

Vicious towpath attack

Friday, 26 August 2016 07:58

A TEENAGE girl resisting a man who attempted to steal her phone whilst walking the Dudley Canal towpath was viciously attacked, pushed into the water and her head held under.

The 17 years old girl was walking towards Purlin Wharf at 7.45pm on Tuesday night when he tried to grab the phone from her hand, but she resisted him, but he then attacked her, pushing her into the water as she would not let go of it, Alan Tilbury tells us.

 

Held her under the water

Luckily she could swim, and attempted to climb out, but he grabbed her and attempted to hold her under the water, but as she thrashed about he let go and ran off as another walker appeared and helped her out of the waterway.

The girl was obviously left very shaken by her ordeal, thinking at one point she was going to be drowned.

 

Taking it very seriously

The police are taking the attack very seriously and describing the man as mixed race in his late 30s to early 40s, around 5ft 8ins tall, of muscular build with short black hair and with a Dudley accent. Officers have been on the towpath and want to trace the man who pulled her out of the water.

Edited August 27, 2016 by Alan de Enfield

[Jerra]

You can understand concerns (male or female) with 'headlines' like this :

 

From 'the other side' :

 

Vicious towpath attack

Friday, 26 August 2016 07:58

A TEENAGE girl resisting a man who attempted to steal her phone whilst walking the Dudley Canal towpath was viciously attacked, pushed into the water and her head held under.

The 17 years old girl was walking towards Purlin Wharf at 7.45pm on Tuesday night when he tried to grab the phone from her hand, but she resisted him, but he then attacked her, pushing her into the water as she would not let go of it, Alan Tilbury tells us.

 

Held her under the water

Luckily she could swim, and attempted to climb out, but he grabbed her and attempted to hold her under the water, but as she thrashed about he let go and ran off as another walker appeared and helped her out of the waterway.

The girl was obviously left very shaken by her ordeal, thinking at one point she was going to be drowned.

 

Taking it very seriously

The police are taking the attack very seriously and describing the man as mixed race in his late 30s to early 40s, around 5ft 8ins tall, of muscular build with short black hair and with a Dudley accent. Officers have been on the towpath and want to trace the man who pulled her out of the water.

While I understand the concern that type of article will be appearing in local papers all over the country with the main difference being the attack took place in the street.

[ditchcrawler]

 

Well, that's a different matter. Unfortunately, I think there was a thread somewhere here from a female boater feeling unsafe on her own, but on the other side of the coin plenty of threads about improving boat security, and internet, phone coverage etc., (for staying in touch).

Having just boated through London where there are quite a few ladies by their selves and then looked at all the bars and grills on the doors and windows of the flats in the area one has to say is a boat a safer bet than a flat?

[Sir Percy]

Having just boated through London where there are quite a few ladies by their selves and then looked at all the bars and grills on the doors and windows of the flats in the area one has to say is a boat a safer bet than a flat?

 

They seem to attract a lot more attention from would-be thieves, undesirables and general weirdos who can go from the towpath and onto someone's boat in a single step.

 

I got mugged on a stretch of Camden towpath while walking home on a foggy, dark Autumn evening. Not that late, around 18:00. Something I don't usually do, would have been on my bike but for having an arm in a sling due to a broken shoulderblade. Two guys waiting just after a bridge, I walked past, one of them called out to ask me the time. I turned round, sussed out what was happening, turned and started running. Hampered by the arm, got caught and flung to the ground. The standard advice is to hand over your valuables, but I was so pissed off having just come out of hospital, I started kicking out and shouting for help (the arm was zipped up inside my jacket). This went on until one of them bent over and punched me in the gob to shut me up. To be honest, I was running out of steam and ideas and no-one was coming to help, even though there's a busy road just above the canal. After tossing my card wallet out on the ground, they took it and ran off.

Things I thought about afterwards: 1) take the standard advice 2) shout RAPE instead of HELP (still probably won't help in London) 3) get a powerful torch with a 'temporarily blind your assailant' mode

Edited August 27, 2016 by Sir Percy

[Starcoaster]

Shouting "fire" is usually advised, as is directing shouts for help at specific people in sight, to avoid the crowd mentality of "someone else will deal with it..." When one person intervenes, others tend to follow.

[Erie Canal]

I single cruise. I'm on the South Oxford having been out weeks from the river Stort. Just be sensible and moor up with other boats ( whether they are still there when you get up is a different matter), if you don't feel comfortable keep moving. Talk to lots of people at locks / when moored up, you make friends and contacts and boaters look out for each other. You will love it :-)

[RLWP]

 

 

Swing bridges are easy for a girl... just wait for a bloke to come along and they'll be falling over themselves to help!

 

This is true. A short skirt doesn't work at lift bridges when I wear one

 

Richard

Edited August 29, 2016 by RLWP

[PaulG]

Hi, I was wondering if there are any single women living aboard. I have been bitten by the narrow boat bug and I am seriously considering getting my own boat. However, I am on my own. Is it possible for a woman on her own to handle a narrow boat?

There's a lady of a "certain age" moored opposite us in the marina with a 70-or-so-foot Hudson Tug.

 

She goes off cruising by herself for months in end.

[Robbo]

There's a lady of a "certain age" moored opposite us in the marina with a 70-or-so-foot Hudson Tug.

 

She goes off cruising by herself for months in end.

May be waiting at a lift bridge for some helpful bloke?

[Greylady2]

I know a lovely lady in her 70's who single hands as well, she made me jump this morning shouting 'oy' when i past her at 6am.

 

I say go for it, i single hand as a newbee but ive never done locks alone.

 

Too scared.

[Guest]

I feel reassured about the handling, wondered about the safety aspect. My family don't seem too keen on me taking off alone.

If you mean in regard to your own personal safety and vulnerability as a lone female I would wager you would be safer on the waterways than you would living in some other parts of the UK. The general crime rate seems pretty low and what there is relates to petty crime such as theft.

 

I can't recall one report on here or anywhere else of a Lome female being subject to any form of attack. Of course whether you actually 'feel' safe or not is another matter, no doubt Starry or Lone Wolf can advise as to how they ensure they minimise what small risk there is and can advise much better than me if this is indeed what concerns you.

Edited August 31, 2016 by MJG

[Guest]

Completely unrelated in some respects but not in another.

 

We often meet sole lady caravanners and campers. There was a young Austrian girl we met on our site in Italy this week who was happily back backing around Europe for the summer.

 

Occasionally she was joined by friends in the different countries she was visiting but in the main she was alone for most of the time.

 

She kept rellies informed of where she was headed for each day and rang in when she arrived. She also used her iPhone to let trusted rels know where she was.

 

Overkill perhaps??? but it helped her feel safe on her travels.

[NealSmith100]

When I was looking at marinas I was taking to the manager as Whixall marina in Shropshire and they have 4 single women liveaboards, so absolutely,. And I know it may be different to CC, but the principle remains - they (I assume) cruise sometimes so handle a boat alone.

 

I cant think of a single reason why anyone couldn't do it if they wanted to.

[Dave_P]

 

This is true. A short skirt doesn't work at lift bridges when I wear one

 

Richard

Perhaps you need to practice more at your make-up application?

[RLWP]

Perhaps you need to practice more at your make-up application?

 

I rouged my knees!

 

Richard

[bargemast]

 

I rouged my knees!

 

Richard

 

Any photo's of you as this beauty Queen ?

 

Peter.

[RLWP]

 

Any photo's of you as this beauty Queen ?

 

Peter.

 

They are on my specialist pay-per-view website

 

Richard

[bargemast]

 

They are on my specialist pay-per-view website

 

Richard

 

Too bad, that means I'll never see them

 

Peter.

[RLWP]

 

Too bad, that means I'll never see them

 

Peter.

 

Are you sure, your subscription payment cleared, including your regular user discount

 

Richard

[bargemast]

 

Are you sure, your subscription payment cleared, including your regular user discount

 

Richard

 

Having just checked the payments I've made over the last 10 years, I couldn't find this subscription payment, which may have something to do with the fact that I only subscribe if my regular user discount is at least 100%.

 

Peter.

[mross]

I think single men get mugged more often than single women. Either way the risk is small. Could you keep a dog? They are often very protective and give a sense of security. Plus they make great companions.

[Lizzy]

Another (quite new) solo liveaboard female here. Handling the boat is no problem. I think it's more technique than strength. I don't have so much experience or knowledge about boaty stuff like engines or electrics yet but am learning a lot and people are so helpful (especially on this forum). I have only been down the GU once mainly, so can't speak about safety in other places. But so far I have not felt threatened anywhere. Personally I would avoid mooring in industrial, derelict, or dark areas.

 

If you are on facebook I can refer you to a number of boating women-only closed groups. I find them great for moral support and the occasional bit of bitching. If you want to join them, send me a private message.

[Starcoaster]

If you mean in regard to your own personal safety and vulnerability as a lone female I would wager you would be safer on the waterways than you would living in some other parts of the UK. The general crime rate seems pretty low and what there is relates to petty crime such as theft.

 

I can't recall one report on here or anywhere else of a Lome female being subject to any form of attack. Of course whether you actually 'feel' safe or not is another matter, no doubt Starry or Lone Wolf can advise as to how they ensure they minimise what small risk there is and can advise much better than me if this is indeed what concerns you.

 

I only came close to having a problem once, in my first six months or so on the boat. I was tied to an area with showers, as my boat didn't have one on it when I got it, which meant I got into a routine of going to the showers at about 10pm each night.

One night, someone cornered me in the shower block (I had just walked in and was dressed etc.) He was clearly waiting there and I am sure-ish upon reflection that he had been following my regular movements, and knew when I would appear in the shower block.

I am a big girl with a loud voice who is not short on confidence and worked for many years in the private security sector, and so our man changed his mind pretty sharpish and tried to make out it was an accident/mistake... And no, I was not overreacting or misreading things.

 

So from that I have learned to not stick to a trackable routine and to be more aware of who is observing your comings and goings, but I don't let it take over my life by any means, because if I did, there would be no point on keeping going with it.

 

Many boaters are very friendly and chatty which is nice, and means that you can usually get help if you need it, practical or otherwise. However, I remain speculative when random blokes I have only just met ask where I moor, where I am going, if I am single handing etc right away. The 99% are just nosy or interested and don't really think that whilst this might be a normal question like talking about the weather when addressed to a couple or a lone bloke, it's not really a good opener with a lone woman.

So to me, it is always a good idea to think about your safety when giving answers. I am also not afraid to tell someone firmly but politely that I don't want to share that info-most immediately see the point whilst some are a bit taken aback, but only one or two have got shirty-I don't care, that's on them, not me.

 

On that note, if you're on the pull, the canals are very much the place to find 30-60 something lone male divorcees who are starved of female company... And who will sometimes try to pull you in the oddest places, like when you're emptying your bog-and in the oddest ways-the same bloke in fact, who opened with "so I shot two pheasants and I'm going to cook them tonight..."

Errr sounds lovely, I'll just empty my bog and then I'll pop round to Shotgun Central for dinner, a look at your doll collection, and then maybe a little light murder if it all goes well... Seriously though, like a lot of people, he had good intentions, just approaching someone can be hard! (I didn't go, anyway.)

This is something that you get used to after a while, and can happen at locks and when mooring in a row where others are, in canalside pubs etc. (within a month you will be able to spot other boaters a mile off and them you, and none of you will have any idea how), and most invites/offers are purely platonic or with no expectations, and none of it has never in my experience been threatening or problematic.

 

But seriously, coal and diesel scented girls in scruffy combats with greasy hair lugging a toilet cassette are majorly hot stuff in some areas.

 

Also, as I learned quickly when I first joined the forum, CWDF is not like most online forums in that a large portion of the membership know each other in real life or through friends of friends, and there's not the level of anonymity here that you generally associate with forums.

This took me aback at first, when people started offering to meet me/help me out IRL when I first got my boat, as we all of course have it drummed into us that People From The Internet Are Dodgy.

Whilst obviously this is true for some, don't be taken aback by it if you start getting offers and messages from members (probably largely male just because that's what most of the members are) offering help or to meet up. I took up an offer to help me collect my boat in the end when it became evident to me that things are different here, so don't be surprised or rule it out-but of course, check out who you are meeting, their reputation here and if they have met anyone else before, etc.

 

Finally, I do know a lot of other female boaters, and I do personally know of two who have had problems with male boaters that befriended them. There are weirdo's everywhere, no more so on the canals than elsewhere (well, at least not dangerous ones) but do use your head about things.

Ultimately, it is important to not be frightened or nervous as standard for all sorts of reasons, not least because if you are, you will be in a constant state of over vigilance that cannot be meaningfully maintained for any length of time, and that may ultimately cause you to miss real cues, warnings and indications of something being wrong or not adding up that you would otherwise be able to spot and process if you were calm.

 

I think that's all I can think of for now.

Edited August 31, 2016 by Starcoaster