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mizpah2

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14 minutes ago, Peter-Bullfinch said:

Is it true that for those with a mooring you pay the C&RT twice?  The first is the licence fee and the second is the % of your mooring fee which goes directly to the Trust from your mooring provider. I had heard that is about 9% of your mooring fee. If this is the case then for a 57' boat paying about £900 for a  licence  and with a £2000 mooring then the Trust receives about £1080.

No - you don't 'pay C&RT twice'.

You pay your licence fee to C&RT

You pay your mooring fee to your mooring provider.

 

Some (by no means all) Mooring Providers have a contract with C&RT, that in return for allowing them 'free access' to the canals they will give C&RT 9% of their potential mooring income.

Other Mooring providers have no such arrangement.

It is nothing to do with you or I how the Mooring Provider spends his income.

Irrespective of the mooring providers agreement to pay C&RT their 9%, you will find that their charges are 'market competitive' so all it means is that you are paying the same price irrespective of the Mooring provider / C&RT agreement it just means that those providers with an agreement 'make' 9% less on their investment.

 

Its like suggesting that as you pay your mooring fee which includes boat refuse collection, you should not be paying C&RT for boat refuse collection (or vice versa) - even worse, if you have a residential mooring and pay Council Tax you are now paying 3x for refuse removal (Mooring Provider, C&RT, and the Council)

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  • 2 weeks later...

Are their benefits of wheel over tiller? Ive had both in a sea application (quicksilver 6m cruiser) and found the tiller simpler in ease of use but the wheel better for comfort but you have tidal flows and 2m swells and waves to contend with. Is it simpler on the canals or is tiller still the favoured choice?

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I find tiller easier than wheel.

That may be down to steering position, though. If the steering position isn't at the stern, then wheel becomes the only option, otherwise tiller steering is simpler and easier to use.

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16 minutes ago, Iain_S said:

I find tiller easier than wheel.

That may be down to steering position, though. If the steering position isn't at the stern, then wheel becomes the only option, otherwise tiller steering is simpler and easier to use.

Thank you lain_S for your reply and time, steering on the boats we like are wheel and at the stern

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Tiller - I have a tiller on our widebeam, which is easy to steer. The widebeams with wheels I have seen on the cut SEEM to be a lot of hard work to keep straight - might be down to the steerer though :boat: :D

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On 2017-5-1 at 12:52, matty40s said:

20170501_120812_zps5pbl4jva.jpg

Typical example of inconsiderate and thoughtless mooring. Just to be as close to the bridge as they can.

 

Blimey, if you can't steer past that moored boat easily there really is something wrong. Just push the tiller to starboard a bit...

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On 18/05/2017 at 09:33, Matt&Jo said:

Are their benefits of wheel over tiller? Ive had both in a sea application (quicksilver 6m cruiser) and found the tiller simpler in ease of use but the wheel better for comfort but you have tidal flows and 2m swells and waves to contend with. Is it simpler on the canals or is tiller still the favoured choice?

I have a boat with a wheel and you just get used to it, takes longer than a tiller to do so tho.    I think wheels look daft on a fat narrowboat tho, they more suited to boats with wheelhouses.

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3 hours ago, blackrose said:

Blimey, if you can't steer past that moored boat easily there really is something wrong. Just push the tiller to starboard a bit...

That picture doesn't really show the issue. It's a blind bridge hole from the other direction so you need to take the bend wide. With the wide beam there you essentially had to use the inside of the bend and have even less of a view of anything coming through the bridge.

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On 01/05/2017 at 12:52, matty40s said:

20170501_120812_zps5pbl4jva.jpg

Typical example of inconsiderate and thoughtless mooring. Just to be as close to the bridge as they can.

 

 

Nether Heyford / High House........

Not as close to the bridge as another wide beam recently managed though.

Sadly increasingly the norm not just there, but at dozens of similar locations of bridges on a bend.

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13 hours ago, blackrose said:

Blimey, if you can't steer past that moored boat easily there really is something wrong. Just push the tiller to starboard a bit...

Hard to explain why from that picture, but that particular boat was in my view actually making it far harder for full length boats travelling the other way.

You need to be able coming the other way to sweep your back end into the space it is occupying, because as you go through the bridge, which is very obscured, otherwise you are very likely to find your front end pointed at a boat on the other side moored equally inappropriately.

That is one of the worst bridges around there, and regularly has boats where they would best not be on BOTH sides.

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9 hours ago, IanM said:

That picture doesn't really show the issue. It's a blind bridge hole from the other direction so you need to take the bend wide. With the wide beam there you essentially had to use the inside of the bend and have even less of a view of anything coming through the bridge.

Or as I have just said a view of any boat moored far too close to the bridge on the towpath on the other side.

Mike is wrong on this one, as anybody who takes a 3 foot draughted 72 footer through there on a regular basis will know.

It is not a lack of skill by those attempting to get through the bridge, it is either ignorance or an "I don't care" attitude by wide beam owners that dump boats in places like that for a fortnight at a time.

Edited by alan_fincher
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We pick up our, brand new, wide beam next week and our first trip from Botany Bay to Reedley Marina is a little heavy on Locks so this thread is very informative. Because we are newbies, despite recently getting our Inland Waterways Helmsman licences, we are having a professional come with us the first day, as I would hate to get it wrong first time out. I particularly like the attachement to the tiller, which we will be getting. We've also had bow thrusters fitted as a "boot n' braces" job but are hoping not to use them often.

If any of you are out on the canal the first weekend in June and you see a very stressed woman guiding a wide beam through the locks/swing bridges please be kind and shout words of encouragement!

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On 25 May 2017 at 10:14, LilyD said:

We pick up our, brand new, wide beam next week and our first trip from Botany Bay to Reedley Marina is a little heavy on Locks so this thread is very informative. Because we are newbies, despite recently getting our Inland Waterways Helmsman licences, we are having a professional come with us the first day, as I would hate to get it wrong first time out. I particularly like the attachement to the tiller, which we will be getting. We've also had bow thrusters fitted as a "boot n' braces" job but are hoping not to use them often.

If any of you are out on the canal the first weekend in June and you see a very stressed woman guiding a wide beam through the locks/swing bridges please be kind and shout words of encouragement!

Stop worrying, and enjoy it.

Here's inspiration for you;

20160923_142227_resized.jpg.002cf4a6b1825d4a1e3aa43b7e5f71a3.jpg

Margaret is 5feet 2ins, 71/2 stone and "well over 21".

You'll soon find you don't need the bow thruster, and certainly not the silly stick thing on the tiller.

Welcome to the world of fat boats!

 

IMG_0141.JPG

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55 minutes ago, DRP said:

Stop worrying, and enjoy it.

Here's inspiration for you;

20160923_142227_resized.jpg.002cf4a6b1825d4a1e3aa43b7e5f71a3.jpg

Margaret is 5feet 2ins, 71/2 stone and "well over 21".

You'll soon find you don't need the bow thruster, and certainly not the silly stick thing on the tiller.

Welcome to the world of fat boats!

 

IMG_0141.JPG

That is a proper wide beam designed for the canal it worked. Not something that some folks want as a floating cottage, hardly designed to be in sympathy with the way canals are today.

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5 hours ago, Ray T said:

That is a proper wide beam designed for the canal it worked. Not something that some folks want as a floating cottage, hardly designed to be in sympathy with the way canals are today.

IMO the amount of different designs, sizes, lengths, and colour schemes that make up the boats on the canals, as well as the different uses people have for them, is what gives it the diversity it holds for all of us to enjoy. I for one wouldn't want to only see examples of the old working boats, I really enjoy the wide selection we have to admire / amuse us as we travel along.

I enjoy seeing & listening to the coal boats as they pass us by, these IMO are really the only example left of vessels using the canals for what they were designed for.  Yes there are loads of converted old working boats around, but more oftern than not they are now someone's leisure boat, show boat for taking to rally's and festivals, or someone's home.  Now don't get me wrong, I have no problem with any of that, but it's not really an example of "vessels using the canals for what they were designed for"

What I do find rather frustrating/annoying is the owners of modern style narrow boats who have an opinion that somehow their boat has more "right" to be on the canals then our modern widebeam.  Just because they have made the choice to have their pride & joy decked out with the roses & castles, klaxon (sp?) horns and all the brass fittings know to man and not forgetting the fake plastic wood trim effect and of course the lovely traditional sign writing.  Sorry, but IMO these types of boats are no more designed to be in sympathy with the canals than a modern widebeam is. 

If their argument is a wide boat using a narrow canal where they really do cause a obstruction then fair enough, as far as wide boats mooring to close to bridge holes or locks, I agree this is inconsiderate, just the same when a narrow boat does the same thing.  It's happened to us loads of times, we just carry on as best we can.

I remember our first winter on the cut, and we were moored in what we thought was a perfect spot, armcor so we could use the goat chains instead of pins, no tall trees to interfer with the solar, no houses or roads within sight.  Then along came one of the coal boats who stopped and explained to us why we shouldn't moor there.  On the outside of a fairly tight bend.  We soon moved on, after thanking them for their kind words of advice and not assuming we knew better.

 

 

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On 2017-5-25 at 10:14, LilyD said:

We pick up our, brand new, wide beam next week and our first trip from Botany Bay to Reedley Marina is a little heavy on Locks so this thread is very informative. Because we are newbies, despite recently getting our Inland Waterways Helmsman licences, we are having a professional come with us the first day, as I would hate to get it wrong first time out. I particularly like the attachement to the tiller, which we will be getting. We've also had bow thrusters fitted as a "boot n' braces" job but are hoping not to use them often.

If any of you are out on the canal the first weekend in June and you see a very stressed woman guiding a wide beam through the locks/swing bridges please be kind and shout words of encouragement!

By my count, you have 7 locks at Johnston's, and then 6 through Blackburn ( not that many really). And only 3 swing bridges, also 1 tunnel. A nice stretch from Clayton to Readly which will be easygoing (apart from all the shopping carts and bicycles that are lurking beneath... especially on the burnley mile :) ).

Please don't be to worried about using the boat,  and try get out of the marina as much as possible! I've seen 3 or 4 new builds go into Readly in the past few  months and several over the years and alot of them never move again. There seems to be a thing about marinas, in my opinion, where boats take root and owners have no interest in going for a sail. 

Get settled in and comfortable with the boat, then go for a cruise to Bingley for a few weeks (great scenery, pubs, people... the list goes on) and enjoy the waterways. This gives you a real chance to do some locks and swing bridges, they just keep on coming at ya.

Enjoy you new 'home' but remember to get out there and explore! :) good luck

 

 

Edited by Canal321
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1 hour ago, Canal321 said:

By my count, you have 7 locks at Johnston's, and then 6 through Blackburn ( not that many really). And only 3 swing bridges, also 1 tunnel. A nice stretch from Clayton to Readly which will be easygoing (apart from all the shopping carts and bicycles that are lurking beneath... especially on the burnley mile :) ).

Please don't be to worried about using the boat,  and try get out of the marina as much as possible! I've seen 3 or 4 new builds go into Readly in the past few  months and several over the years and alot of them never move again. There seems to be a thing about marinas, in my opinion, where boats take root and owners have no interest in going for a sail. 

Get settled in and comfortable with the boat, then go for a cruise to Bingley for a few weeks (great scenery, pubs, people... the list goes on) and enjoy the waterways. This gives you a real chance to do some locks and swing bridges, they just keep on coming at ya.

Enjoy you new 'home' but remember to get out there and explore! :) good luck

 

 

Thank you for this breakdown of locks etc. Looking at the numbers it does seem eminently achievable.

We plan on using the boat a lot (why buy one if you're not going to play with it?) and, after the first week settling in, are making towards Skipton for our inaugural trip; after that - Bingley! Then, hopefully, the whole of the Leeds-Liverpool will unspool before us over the summer months.

Really, really excited by the new adventure!

 

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