Jump to content

After advice for using Forth&Clyde/Grand Union and general boating in Scotland


Featured Posts

I'm about to start looking for my first Canal Boat and plan to use it on the Forth&Clyde and Grand Union Canals

I'd be grateful for any advice from any members that use these canals and in particular:

 

What is the best type of boat for that system-traditional narrowboat or wider boat

Can you moor along the canal or are you restricted to official pontoons (like the Caledonian Canal)

Scottish Waterways website states leisure moorings are available but are they easy enough to come by

I'll apologies in advance for this and the many other newbie questions that will follow. This is the beginning of a long term plan so I'm trying to get things right.

 

Any help appreciated

 

 

 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I assume you mean the Union canal :-). There is no such thing as continuous cruising in Scotland and all boats must have a mooring 

These are virtually all owned by Scottish Canals and can be pricey and the prices may be going up 

If you speak to SC make sure you find out the price for the next few years 

There are both narrow and wide boats on the lowland canals

You can moor on the towpath - if you can get near it and the foliage allows

Haggis 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The only limitation I can think of for a wide beam boat is the tunnel at Falkirk which I think is less than 12 feet - I seem to remember a 12 foot wide boat getting stuck in it. Not sure where is the best place to find out about boats for sale but if you join the Lowland Canal Association someone there might know of some 

Haggis 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On beam, the official maximum for the Union Canal is 12' (used to be 12'6" when the canal was in commercial use). As Haggis said, the Falkirk tunnel is a pinch point, but only below water level. The boat that couldn't get through was 12' right down to the baseplate, and was relatively deep draughted.

I skipper a 10'6" beam boat, and that can be hard to get through some of the bridges (the new ones!) on the Union without touching the sides.

A narrowboat is unnecessarily restricted accommodation wise, IMO, and a bit wider isn't a problem. On the other hand, narrowboats can share a caisson with the trip boats on the Falkirk wheel, so usually straight in ...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The SC website has a skipper guide that gives some dimensions and advice to skippers: https://www.scottishcanals.co.uk/activities/boating/skippers-guides/

Forth & Clyde Canal Skipper PDF: https://www.scottishcanals.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Scottish-Canals-Lowlands-Skippers-Guide-WEB-May-16.pdf

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...
27 minutes ago, eastcoastfisher said:

Are the Scottish Canals moorings the only moorings available on the Forth&Clyde or Union or does anywhere else offer leisure moorings

From what I've learned over the past few months, Scottish Canals own all the moorings that have facilities such as toilets, showers, etc. Facilities differ from place to place, as do prices.

You could, in theory, get a patch at the bottom of a field somewhere, but you'd have no facilities or safety.

I suppose it's like comparing living in a hotel to living in a tent.

SC are also picky about boats going in to the canal. I'm having to get mine steamed to remove any possible invasive species from England. :D

 

  • Greenie 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

A few more (probably of many) questions

Are all SC locks staff operated or are some user operated (are there always staff on hand, didn't see anybody obvious on locks 1-16 from the Helix yesterday)

Roughly how long does it take to get from the Helix to beyond Camelon through the locks,skippers guide says 6 hours-is that about right

Reading other posts there seem to areas that need to be 'booked in advance' to travel . How much of the system needs to have advanced notice given

I've read mention of narrowboats for sale at Auchinstarry, does anyone know if they are still there

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Scottish Canals require you to contact their Assisted Passage team to book your times through locks and bridges.  Also contact Falkirk Wheel Basin for times up/down the Wheel between Union and Forth Clyde Canals. 

Hope this helps. 

Allan 

  • Greenie 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

12 minutes ago, AllanD said:

Scottish Canals require you to contact their Assisted Passage team to book your times through locks and bridges.  Also contact Falkirk Wheel Basin for times up/down the Wheel between Union and Forth Clyde Canals. 

Hope this helps. 

Allan 

and you have to plan in advance :-) . I think the minimum time is 24 hours before you want to go through a lock or under a bridge but they prefer 48 hours. 

haggis

  • Greenie 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, eastcoastfisher said:

Thanks for that,

 

Haggis was that your 'Gamebird' we saw at The Kelpies yesterday.

Any idea of boats for sale at Auchinstarry?

yes, she is still there but we plan to take her back to her mooring this weekend now that the lock is fixed. We moor on the Union so don't know about boats for sale at Auchinstarry. maybe a question asked via the Lowland Canal Association might get to someone who might know? 

haggis

  • Greenie 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

19 minutes ago, eastcoastfisher said:

How long are you allowed to stay on SC moorings other than your own home mooring

That's a good question! We have on occasion left gamebird elsewhere on the Lowland canals and we have never been asked to move on BUT we have always told SC what we were doing and why. I have heard rumours of boaters being asked to move back to their official mooring but in all honesty I don't know how true this is. Sorry, not a very helpful reply but I don't know the "proper" answer.

haggis

  • Greenie 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, eastcoastfisher said:

How long are you allowed to stay on SC moorings other than your own home mooring

As above, a good question!

I have been told that it's 24 hours by more than one person, including Scottish Canals staff. However, very few of the moorings are sign posted as being 24 hour, and some of the signage is, shall we say, very discreet. I have always argued for the default position of 14 days. In practice, it doesn't seem to be a problem, and I have seen boats moored on visitor moorings for several weeks at a time, most probably with the knowledge of local S.C. staff.

It has to be said that there is a distinct shortage of visitor moorings in some places, not helped by the conversion of some of them into residential moorings, and Scottish Canals do not seem to subscribe to the concept of towpath mooring, as the following quote from the Lowland Canals Association website suggests :

Q. The Emergency Landing Evac points on the Union Canal were only dug out to 15m. Are there any plans to lengthen these as many boats cannot fit?

A. There is no plan to extend these as they are for emergency use only! If they were extended then they may be mistaken as mooring areas that some might moor up at! This Autumn/winter we will be creating the same Evac points on the Forth & Clyde Canal. 

 

  • Greenie 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Nothing to say you can't, but there are practical considerations, like how close you can actually get to the side. On the Union, a 6' wide bank of reeds is not unusual. (Hence the "Emergency Landing Evac Points" I mentioned above.)

The edging stones on the Union tend to be sloped at about 45 degrees, and, on the Forth and Clyde, the towpath is often about 3 ft. above water level.

  • Greenie 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.