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Droitwich Barge Canal


Drayke

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Having recently been up and back down the Droitwich Barge Canal, from the Severn to bride 14, in our wide beam, I would just like to let others know that there are NO facilities of any sort on this canal for wide beams, no water points, no pump outs, no Elsan disposal, no rubbish disposal and no moorings near Droitwich, so you can’t even visit the town. The lock gates are heavy to move and so is the paddle gear, you need muscle. The scenery on the other hand is very nice, when you can see it through the reeds, you can’t even see the tow path. The only places we found to moor up were just above lock 2, official visitor mooring, and lock 6 on the offside directly above the lock. The winding hole just below bridge 14 looks like it will only take a 65’ boat, no signs denoting it as a winding hole. When we turned there of course there was someone fishing there and he got quite upset, tough.

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11 minutes ago, F DRAYKE said:

Having recently been up and back down the Droitwich Barge Canal, from the Severn to bride 14, in our wide beam, I would just like to let others know that there are NO facilities of any sort on this canal for wide beams, no water points, no pump outs, no Elsan disposal, no rubbish disposal and no moorings near Droitwich, so you can’t even visit the town. The lock gates are heavy to move and so is the paddle gear, you need muscle. The scenery on the other hand is very nice, when you can see it through the reeds, you can’t even see the tow path. The only places we found to moor up were just above lock 2, official visitor mooring, and lock 6 on the offside directly above the lock. The winding hole just below bridge 14 looks like it will only take a 65’ boat, no signs denoting it as a winding hole. When we turned there of course there was someone fishing there and he got quite upset, tough.

The subject of not being able to get a wide beam into Droitwich has featured here before. I thought it was fairly well published and the purpose of the winding hole before bridge 14 was because it is the limit of navigation for wide beam craft. That said it doesn't appear on CanalPlan as a winding hole and of course the one place you might expect to find definitive information - CRTs own interactive map - doesn't appear to show winding holes at all.

 

I would have thought it possible for a wide beam craft to moor between bridges 13 and 14, I often see narrow boats moored there and by Droitwich standards it's a wideish section. It is easily walkable into the town centre and just as near the rubbish facilities as the visitor and permit moorings.

 

Otherwise much of the information you post is equally true for narrow beam craft. There is no Elsan anywhere from Hanbury to Hawford, there are no designated moorings from above Hawford locks to Droitwich. Mooring against the towpath is pretty much impossible other than at very few locations and even then it's unlikely to be easy. The locks are hard and the cut is shallow. There is however a water point in Droitwich.

 

The reeds though I believe are an original feature and were planted for protection against erosion and are always tall at this time of year. You can see a lot more in the winter and it is a very tranquil setting; if you ignore the dogs and their companions.

 

However I can imagine it is hard work for little reward for a wide beam.

 

JP

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At least they have moorings above lock 2 now. When we did it we had to overnight on the river pontoon and climb over a fence to get off and go anywhere!

It is a beautiful canal but agree it's a shame they seem to have restored it with a view to preventing casual towpath mooring (rather like on much of the K&A)

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5 minutes ago, Dave123 said:

At least they have moorings above lock 2 now. When we did it we had to overnight on the river pontoon and climb over a fence to get off and go anywhere!

It is a beautiful canal but agree it's a shame they seem to have restored it with a view to preventing casual towpath mooring (rather like on much of the K&A)

I doubt it was restored with a view to preventing casual towpath mooring. More that no provision was made, possibly on cost grounds. There weren't mooring sites to be restored, requirements were different in the 1930s when it fell into disuse. As I said earlier the reeds are actually a historic feature. I do agree a little bit of mooring may be useful as it's pretty hard to stop without blocking a lock landing.

 

JP

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We boated through during its first season open, and later moored at Droitwich Spa Marina. The reeds on the Barge Canal were a challenge to a kind of mooring effort and there were a few spots that had been cleared by boaters, which was a help.  When I mentioned this to the Lockie working the Hanbury flight, he said the reeds had to be left as they supported the rare reed warbler.  I don't know how true that was but you can certainly find a BW Conservation Management Plan for the canals.

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10 hours ago, Sbg said:

We boated through during its first season open, and later moored at Droitwich Spa Marina. The reeds on the Barge Canal were a challenge to a kind of mooring effort and there were a few spots that had been cleared by boaters, which was a help.  When I mentioned this to the Lockie working the Hanbury flight, he said the reeds had to be left as they supported the rare reed warbler.  I don't know how true that was but you can certainly find a BW Conservation Management Plan for the canals.

Restoration of long abandoned canals often/frequently presents  a challenge with the nature conservation folk. some have been been designated sites - unsurprising, nature takes over once mankind has disappeared. In some cases the new occupants are unusual or of particular interest and some folk think that they have 'always' been there. The canal restorers then have to make some kind of uneasy peace with the other interests and it can lead to compromises that are not as convenient for boaters as otherwise have been the case. But then, without the compromise we could not cruise that 'new' canal.

 

We kept our boat at Droitwich Spa last winter and found the canal, the marina and the town all  very pleasant. The only time we were prevented from doing what we wanted was when the canal froze over! But since we had already set aside time to visit the boat we did so but explored the area by car and found plenty to do and see. The train service from Droitwich is excellent.

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3 hours ago, roland elsdon said:

And clearly you can get a fat boat to droitwich as i saw 2 in the marina last week . Going boating may be limited but hey

Going up the canal from the Severn end, bridge 15 has a width restriction of 7ft. Coming from the W&B end is also 7ft, so the fat boats must have been craned in and why anyone should do that is beyond me.

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11 hours ago, roland elsdon said:

And clearly you can get a fat boat to droitwich as i saw 2 in the marina last week . Going boating may be limited but hey

Seeing fat boats in a marina means nowt.  There's a fat boat in Droitwich Spa Marina which has narrow locks after just yards in either direction from the entrance, and if you go up the hill a bit to Hanbury Wharf (again, narrow locks in all directions) they're not only moored there but are for sale.

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8 hours ago, F DRAYKE said:

Going up the canal from the Severn end, bridge 15 has a width restriction of 7ft. Coming from the W&B end is also 7ft, so the fat boats must have been craned in and why anyone should do that is beyond me.

They must do it simply to live on them - they clearly aren't the least bit interested in cruising. I think the Inland Waterways are a navigation system and those who are not really interested in boats and boating should leave boats and the waterspace to those who are, but not everyone agrees.

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1 minute ago, roland elsdon said:

Actualy by leaving them in a waterlocked marina they are leaving the narrow canals to their intended craft. It just seems odd. Mind you five years from retirement put your boat in a marina while fitting out, then on retirement lift out and go boating - makes sense

Well yes, whilst filling 2 sometimes hard to come by moorings of course. I have no issue with the fit out thing either and I'd go further and support those who have a real love for boats but, for bona-fide reasons, can't cruise one - but if they're wide beam they probably ought to be in their rightful environment. 

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21 hours ago, roland elsdon said:

And clearly you can get a fat boat to droitwich as i saw 2 in the marina last week . Going boating may be limited but hey

But do you know how they got there? (We moored next but one to one of them last winter BTW)

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6 minutes ago, Mike Todd said:

But do you know how they got there? (We moored next but one to one of them last winter BTW)

Craned directly in, no other possible way they could have got there. As you will know the marina is just down the road from New & Used Boat Co at Hanbury Wharf. I believe there is some commercial arrangement between the two. I followed a mobile crane down the road from one to the other a few weeks ago.

 

JP

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1 minute ago, Captain Pegg said:

Craned directly in, no other possible way they could have got there. As you will know the marina is just down the road from New & Used Boat Co at Hanbury Wharf. I believe there is some commercial arrangement between the two. I followed a mobile crane down the road from one to the other a few weeks ago.

 

JP

Thanks for pointing out thew obvious - seeing as how some people failed to guess that!

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On 28/07/2018 at 21:12, Mike Todd said:

Restoration of long abandoned canals often/frequently presents  a challenge with the nature conservation folk. some have been been designated sites - unsurprising, nature takes over once mankind has disappeared. In some cases the new occupants are unusual or of particular interest and some folk think that they have 'always' been there. The canal restorers then have to make some kind of uneasy peace with the other interests and it can lead to compromises that are not as convenient for boaters as otherwise have been the case. But then, without the compromise we could not cruise that 'new' canal.

 

We kept our boat at Droitwich Spa last winter and found the canal, the marina and the town all  very pleasant. The only time we were prevented from doing what we wanted was when the canal froze over! But since we had already set aside time to visit the boat we did so but explored the area by car and found plenty to do and see. The train service from Droitwich is excellent.

I agree - it was brilliant to be one of the first boats to cruise the newly re-opened link.  Our boat had a high air draught so getting under the M5 was a serious challenge but Droitiwch itself was a smashing stop and we enjoyed both canals immensely.  I do wish there was a small reed management scheme in place so that so of the more picturesque spots were available for mooring but full understand the conservationists' views; as ever a balance to be struck.

 

Edited to add: We moored at Droitwich Spa Marina for a year and I couldn't fault them. As I was living on the boat 2-3 days a week (for work in Malvern) having a pontoon right next to the shower block was great -  running across the snow to get a hot shower was an experience!!!

Wychavon-20130123-00009.jpg

Edited by Sbg
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When I passed Droitwich Spa marina this afternoon there was a wide beam manoeuvring onto the service pontoon. There were three people on the back deck like some folk had come along for the ride. :D

 

JP

Edited by Captain Pegg
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On 29/07/2018 at 18:58, Mike Todd said:

But do you know how they got there? (We moored next but one to one of them last winter BTW)

I saw one of them being delivered when I was working on Kiwidad's boat there.

12 minutes ago, Captain Pegg said:

When I passed Droitwich Spa marina this afternoon there was a wide beam manoeuvring onto the service pontoon. There were three people on the back deck like some folk had come along for the ride. :D

 

JP

It was naysayers from narrowboatworld who didn't believe one could move.

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54 minutes ago, Captain Pegg said:

When I passed Droitwich Spa marina this afternoon there was a wide beam manoeuvring onto the service pontoon. There were three people on the back deck like some folk had come along for the ride. :D

 

JP

Longest voyage it'll ever make unless a crane and the guys from AB Tuckey get involved! 

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On 29/07/2018 at 10:29, Sea Dog said:

Well yes, whilst filling 2 sometimes hard to come by moorings of course. I have no issue with the fit out thing either and I'd go further and support those who have a real love for boats but, for bona-fide reasons, can't cruise one - but if they're wide beam they probably ought to be in their rightful environment. 

The wide beam is in it's rightful environment, it's floating on water;). When I moored in Droitwich Spa last month I spoke with the lady on board as I passed on my way to my mooring, and the boat was indeed (obviously) craned in (I think I made some comment about how tight it must have been coming through the marina entrance off the canal:rolleyes:). She has it there because it is the most convenient mooring for her and she likes the marina, I can't think of any better reason for putting a boat there. It's her boat to do as she wishes with it.  It is no dafter than the boat on the South Oxford moored in a puddle in the middle of a field alongside the canal (assuming it's still there).

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21 minutes ago, Wanderer Vagabond said:

The wide beam is in it's rightful environment, it's floating on water;). When I moored in Droitwich Spa last month I spoke with the lady on board as I passed on my way to my mooring, and the boat was indeed (obviously) craned in (I think I made some comment about how tight it must have been coming through the marina entrance off the canal:rolleyes:). She has it there because it is the most convenient mooring for her and she likes the marina, I can't think of any better reason for putting a boat there. It's her boat to do as she wishes with it.  It is no dafter than the boat on the South Oxford moored in a puddle in the middle of a field alongside the canal (assuming it's still there).

It's less daft than all the boats that can fit through the marina entrance but never do. Isn't there a very expensive GU remake in BW blue and yellow colours and a light blue cabin there? Never seen that out on the canal.

 

I think we said hello to each other just before you left Netherwich Basin.

 

JP

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