The old fashioned way

[haggis]

We were coming down Audlem (in the rain) and met a boat coming up

The lady working the locks told me that they had left all the top gates open as they boat "in the old fashioned way" . Never heard that excuse before :-)

 

Haggis

[FadeToScarlet]

We were coming down Audlem (in the rain) and met a boat coming up

The lady working the locks told me that they had left all the top gates open as they boat "in the old fashioned way" . Never heard that excuse before :-)

 

Haggis

I hope you thanked her, for ensuring all the locks were completely set for you, and considerably speeding up your journey by giving you a good road.

[haggis]

Not really. We did, though, have a wee friendly chat about the good old days when lock gates didn't leak. Not a problem today though as there is loads of water in the flight

 

Haggis

[Chertsey]

We were coming up *behind* two boats that left all the top gates open on the Basingstoke. Their excuse was 'we thought it was the Narrow Boat Trust behind us'.

 

Beat that.

[Captain Pegg]

Not really. We did, though, have a wee friendly chat about the good old days when lock gates didn't leak. Not a problem today though as there is loads of water in the flight

Haggis

When was this fabled time exactly?

[Arthur Marshall]

When was this fabled time exactly?

You must remember the old days. Things were better then...

[Captain Pegg]

You must remember the old days. Things were better then...

So folks say. Must be true then...

[magnetman]

We were coming up *behind* two boats that left all the top gates open on the Basingstoke. Their excuse was 'we thought it was the Narrow Boat Trust behind us'.

 

Beat that.

Can't be arsed to close the exit gates

 

Anyway - I thought that boating on the Basingstoke was subject to having an employee of the management with you when locking due to water shortages

 

I would quite like to do the Basingstoke next year in one of my boats with my ladies but I find being directed through locks officiously to be quite annoying.

 

I would follow instructions - not that I want to drain any pounds by leaving gates open but I just like doing locks by myself while the ladies relax aboard the launch.

[Chertsey]

Once we were through the bottom lock we were left to get on with it. Might have been a bit different from usual because of the festival. Also the people on the ground weren't officious at all, really friendly and enthusiastic. And I do have a very low oficiousness threshold.

[Neil2]

Funnily enough I was talking to a couple recently who related a similar story, but from a slightly different angle. They had been talking to an old farmer who had land adjoining the T&M and had lost a number of cows that had fallen into locks. Apparently he too referred to the "old days" when gates were left open, and in fact maintained the practice was primarily to leave an escape route for careless livestock. It's plausible, given that bovines do seem to have a particular talent for falling into canals.

[ditchcrawler]

We were coming up *behind* two boats that left all the top gates open on the Basingstoke. Their excuse was 'we thought it was the Narrow Boat Trust behind us'.

 

Beat that.

Maybe they had followed them a few weeks before

[magnetman]

Funnily enough I was talking to a couple recently who related a similar story, but from a slightly different angle. They had been talking to an old farmer who had land adjoining the T&M and had lost a number of cows that had fallen into locks. Apparently he too referred to the "old days" when gates were left open, and in fact maintained the practice was primarily to leave an escape route for careless livestock. It's plausible, given that bovines do seem to have a particular talent for falling into canals.

I've heard a similar argument about leaving gates open but it was about people who fall in being able to get out of the lock chamber. I don't think* they had the egress ladders in the old days in the lock chambers so if one was to fall in an empty lock with bottom gates closed it could well be curtains if nobody else was about

 

*maybe they did have ladders. Not certain about this bit but all the ladders I have seen look rather modern. I believe they were fitted to enable people who had fallen in to climb out of locks and are actually not a piece of boating equipment.

Edited October 1, 2016 by magnetman

[dave moore]

Never had them in the old days! Dave

[Athy]

MM, you raise an interesting point. Yes, the ladders do tend to look modern (though this could be because, like lock gates, they have been periodically renewed over the years). In the absence of ladders, I suppose that the only thing an inadvertent lock-plunger could do would be to try and shin up one of the gates. If the lock was fairly shallow you could probably have hauled yourself out by standing on the cill. If, however, it was Somerton Deep or similar, that would have been a different story.

[Chewbacka]

..........................

 

*maybe they did have ladders. Not certain about this bit but all the ladders I have seen look rather modern. I believe they were fitted to enable people who had fallen in to climb out of locks and are actually not a piece of boating equipment.

The original ladders - assuming there were - would have been either wood or un-galvanised wrought iron, both of which would have recycled themselves to the point of failing a safety inspection and so would have been replaced, hence that could by why they look new.

Also remember in the good old days the canal was disgustingly dirty in the more urban areas. In researching my family tree, one of my ancestors in Yorkshire was a wharf man and he gashed his leg with a bailing hook. A few days later he was dead with what was described as gangrene. So drowning was not the only worry.

[cuthound]

I've heard a similar argument about leaving gates open but it was about people who fall in being able to get out of the lock chamber. I don't think* they had the egress ladders in the old days in the lock chambers so if one was to fall in an empty lock with bottom gates closed it could well be curtains if nobody else was about

*maybe they did have ladders. Not certain about this bit but all the ladders I have seen look rather modern. I believe they were fitted to enable people who had fallen in to climb out of locks and are actually not a piece of boating equipment.

I remember the lock ladders being fitted in the 80's. BW had to cut a recess into the lock sidecar accommodate them.

 

I can also recall having to climb down the gate of Atherstone top lock (also in the 80's) to rescue my dog who had fallen into the empty lock and was sitting on the cill, getting good a shower from the leaking gate and generally looking very sorry for herself. The Gate was steel and unbelievably slippery.

 

Mind you a ladder wouldn't have helped, unless I swam from it to the cilling to get to the dog.

[Tony Brooks]

Can't be arsed to close the exit gates

 

Anyway - I thought that boating on the Basingstoke was subject to having an employee of the management with you when locking due to water shortages

 

I would quite like to do the Basingstoke next year in one of my boats with my ladies but I find being directed through locks officiously to be quite annoying.

 

I would follow instructions - not that I want to drain any pounds by leaving gates open but I just like doing locks by myself while the ladies relax aboard the launch.

 

We did the Basingstoke last year and the wardens were nothing like the way you portray them. The left me to get on with it and only followed up caulking the gates if there were no other boats due. True you have to meet them at the start of the day and sometimes they helped work the locks if there was a problem or they were waiting for a boat coming the other way.

 

The office were also very friendly and helpful despite the rumours that have been circulation for years.

 

It is important that your recognise they have had a water supply problem from when the canal was built. This has little to do with today's management who seem to try to make the best of a poor situation so help them by going early in the summer. We went in June and managed to get to the end and back in their week.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[magnetman]

Thanks and thanks to the other posters.

I have never been on the Basingstoke so I admit to assumption which is "the mother of all -ups"

 

Good to hear from people who have been there.

[ValandPete]

We enjoyed the Basingstoke. The staff work really hard to keep the canal open and are pleasant and helpful.

 

Val

[sueb]

An old boatman friend remarked about the trees the whole length of the canal. Don't go in the autumn they are mainly nut trees and it gets noisy. You know how I know!

[Laurie Booth]

You must remember the old days. Things were better then...

And you could drink the canal water.

[mark99]

Thanks and thanks to the other posters.

I have never been on the Basingstoke so I admit to assumption which is "the mother of all -ups"

 

Good to hear from people who have been there.

 

No problem whatsover from the rangers. They work a few locks behind you closing and caulking so you don't often see them.

Edited October 2, 2016 by mark99

[FadeToScarlet]

And you could drink the canal water.

Not recommended, since sanitation was a bucket in the engine 'ole.....

[Grassman]

We recently came off the Avon onto the Stratford Canal and were following a hire boater who was leaving the gates open after leaving. They thought that because they'd been instructed to do this on the river, they same applied to the canal locks.

[WJM]

Closing gates behind you just creates more work for everyone. When the canals were worked commercially it was unheard of to close gates after you. And ladders are a very recent addition, they were not present during the commercial days.