Vlog 214: A Cruise to Amuse
On Wednesday 13th May, the lockdown restrictions on the English waterways were relaxed slightly to permit day trips (no overnight stays away from a home mooring) for leisure boaters. As I’m currently moored in a marina where I’d stopped for winter, I am following those guidelines rather than the Continuous Cruising rules. Anyway I took the opportunity to fire up the narrowboat and do a five-hour cruise down towards Fazeley Junction and back.
Start point: https://goo.gl/maps/5rRJQsQ5a9sXp1A46
End point: https://goo.gl/maps/zxLvThqwryCV4g4j9
This william again. For us Us viewers it would be nice to see a map of your travels. We have been to the UK once. Seen London, Bath, and Liverpool. But many of your locations are ver unknown to us . Yes I do under stand your privicy.
Hi. I don’t include maps, not for privacy reasons but see the explanation on my FAQ page: https://www.cruisingthecut.co.uk/f-a-q/
DJ,
You have been an “Any Port in a Storm” diversion, during self-imposed virus isolation; San Francisco Bay Area. Simultaneously we’ve been subjected for a week to quite a heat wave. And we’ve quite a bit of smoke and haze today, 19-08-2020, from lightening-strike wildfires from about 75 miles northeast.
Listening to your soothing diction and the steady rhythms of your boat’s motor, have been a life-line to comfort and calm. I’ve been a spectator for an enjoyable week; for which I thank you.
The flora of the canal environs is of interest, as numerous items are unfamiliar. You might consider a future voyage with a local botonist along to point out items unique to areas traveled.
Any chance of a vlog on fenders for first timers please. Yes fenders.
I’ve been looking online at narrow boats which appear to have some sort of protrusion, mainly on the stern, that would be worthy of Trireme bow!
I can find nothing online so I must be using the wrong term for them.
The pictures I have seen are normally from afar and don’t show them close up.
So more information on fendering options would be useful.
Cheers.
Not really sure what there is to say about them – big ropey lumps at the front and back (and normally plastic fenders for the sides)
Nice to see you back David. Our marina on the GU opens from June 9th so we plan to go up and get our boat ready for a bit of cruising. A few jobs to do and a conversion inside – removing the seat/bed and installing two captain’s chairs. We have a 39 foot narrow boat and it’s really not suitable to carry friends/family for a few days, so the spare bed has to go! Take care.
You must be looking forward to being aboard again so much! Hope the work goes OK with nothing unexpected…
I am loving that I can live vicariously through you wonderful blogs. I will never make it to the UK but do so enjoy joining you on your delightful trip down your lovely canal network. Your wit and humor always bring me joy, thank you for that
Thank you so much!
Loved your little day out. So peaceful and could hear the birds sing. Thank goodness no, so called, back ground music to spoil it all.
Wonderful to see you back on the water David.
One thing that saddens me somewhat amongst all the enjoyment and pleasure of cruising is there are scenes that remind me of LTC Rolt’s book Narrowboat. It was published 6 weeks after I was born so you can figure out my age. It is wonderful to have a new passion in life at my age
In the book Rolt comments that you can tell the true boatman and those who were eking an existence, often as squatters, by the condition of the boats he passed,. Typically as I recall he described these folk as people who had left the country sides for the cities in search of work. The boatman’s boats would be in grand condition while the others not so much.
Today, as we go by boats today that part of life seems not to have improved for many which is a sad comment on how we have not necessarily progressed as a society.
David, Pog Mo Thoin is an Irish saying equivalent to “kiss my arse”. Sorry but you did ask.
Thank you so much. We have planned to take our yearly trip from Oregon to the Midlands for our 12th narrowboat trip, but it seems everything is against us particularly the fact that at least as your Government now states we would have to quarantine ourselves for two weeks in a hotel before doing anything. The cost of that is beyond thinking. So far the hire company is being optimistic and will happily put our deposit forward a year. We have been good customers for them for quite a few years. A year is a bloody long time to wait for anything. I hope you will have more cruises to share soon.
How frustrating! The quarantine requirement hasn’t come into force yet but the canals aren’t opening until at least June 1st anyway. I’m not sure what cruising I’m going to do because I suspect now they’re relaxing the lockdown we’re going to have a second wave of infections and might all end up locked down fully again (in which case I don’t want to be stuck somewhere awkward) so I’m going to be cautious about going out for a bit. Cheers!
Any tips for a first timer doing the hire bit? Lots of experience working a wide beam on the Thames, K &A and the GUC but looking to hire next year.
Thanks
I think if you’ve already done the K&A etc then there’s nothing I can suggest that you’ll need to know about doing it on a hire boat. Cheers