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Hello and welcome to the first Spring edition of the newsletter. By the time you see this, clocks in the UK will have had an hour added and British Summer Time will have commenced. Not being a morning person, I shall resolutely add an extra hour to my sleep schedule to compensate. Actually, maybe I'll add two, just to be safe...
Cheers
David |
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News from the canal world.
*** Press releases or other news snippets can be sent to me at newsletter@cruisingthecut.co.uk ***
Lock Down
A major - and long term - closure on the Worcester and Birmingham canal has been announced due to the brick walls of Tardebigge top lock crumbling away.
An emergency repair set to cost half a million pounds is about to get underway but requires the approval of the local council due to the lock flight's heritage status.
The 200-year-old lock wall was first reported to the Canal & River Trust by boaters who were having difficulties getting through. Investigations have now revealed the full extent of the problem, with the lock likely to remain closed until August, although the exact timescale won't be known until the initial dismantling has been completed.
The Tardebigge flight comprises 30 locks within a 2-mile stretch of canal and is the longest flight in Britain. The work will disrupt any travel plans for boaters below the flight, with access to the rest of the network needing a diversion up the River Severn to Stourport, or down the Severn to Tewkesbury and up the Avon!
The CRT says regular updates will be provided on its website. See https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/news-and-views/news/emergency-repairs-for-our-longest-canal-lock-flight
Drying Tonight
One of the most scenic canals in the UK could dry up due to water shortages, according to Glandŵr Cymru, the Welsh arm of the Canal & River Trust.
The Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal, aka the Mon & Brec, relies on the River Usk for 80-90% of its supply but due to legal changes designed to protect the river, the amount of water that can be abstracted is now limited by licensing.
River authorities say the Canal took 30% of the Usk's flow in 2022 and that during dry spells this is unsustainable if the river's ecology is to survive. In turn, this means the Mon & Brec faces an uncertain future.
Businesses on the canal have been warned about the changes by CRT and boaters have been told the locks may have to be closed to prevent water loss.
The only obvious other source for water would be to pay Welsh Water for supply but this would come at a considerable commercial cost which the CRT cannot afford.
With no easy options for water supply to either the rivers or canals, there may be no way for the canal to keep operating.
Local businesses and users of the canal are so incensed about the prospect, they have started a petition to the Welsh government urging support: https://petitions.senedd.wales/petitions/246570
See the extensive report at https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cx208nj454ro
At Stake
Coming in just too late to be included in last month's newsletter, the Commision which has been asked to review the way that boat licensing works on the canals, has launched a survey for boaters to respond to.
The questions are about experiences that people have already had of the licensing process as well as changes they would like to see incorporated.
The survey runs until 9am on Tuesday 22nd April.
As the results could dramatically alter how continuous cruising is perceived and licenced, it's certainly worth a response from all boaters.
There's more info at https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/boating/boating-news-and-views/boating-news/commission-to-review-future-framework-for-boat-licensing where you can also find minutes of the meetings that have already taken place.
Puffed Up
A rare Clyde "puffer" boat is to be restored thanks to a grant of almost a quarter of a million pounds.
The money's been donated to the CRT by the National Heritage Memorial Fund in order to rescue and preserve "Basuto" at the Trust’s National Waterways Museum in Ellesmere Port.
The 66ft canal boat, whose classification as a ‘puffer’ derives from the puffing sound made by her steam engine, was built in Glasgow in 1902.
Basuto is on the National Historic Ships Fleet Register, of similar importance to the Cutty Sark, HMS Victory and SS Great Britain, and has been moored in one of the museum’s basins for more than 40 years
The project involves craning the boat out of the water onto the museum slipway, resting on a metal support frame. The exterior will be cleaned before the frame, deck, wheelhouse and hold covers are repaired and re-painted to make her watertight against the weather.
It's hoped a further £20,000 of project costs can be raised through a crowdfunding appeal being launched in April.
See https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/news-and-views/news/national-heritage-memorial-fund-grant-to-save-waterways-museums-rare-steamboat |
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My recent videos
Although I have recently been doing some filming about topics other than my own boats, that footage is awaiting additional elements before it can be turned into finished videos. Thus most of my work in the last few weeks has been either about time spent aboard my 'new' narrowboat or the now-recommenced refurbishment of my cruiser, Twiggy.
The most recent videos have covered me doing miscelleneous jobs aboard Gentian getting everything fettled, as well as my first ever cruise (on what was fortunately a beautiful Spring day).
And there was a bit of bonus footage detailing my efforts to adjust the throttle cables so that the boat went into and out of gear properly.
The latter may be an ongoing story as I'm still not entirely happy with the result and I didn't manage to replace the brass 'trunnions' as the new ones didn't fit, so stay tuned for further updates!
Click the links below to watch.
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Book your perfect canal boat holiday! |
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What am I up to?
With the end of winter canal maintenance works and hopefully more consistently pleasant weather, the time has come for me to start moving NB Gentian down from Lincolnshire to the Midlands so that it's more easily accessible to me at weekends.
As I can only spend weekends on the boat at present, the move is going to take several 'hops' firstly up the River Trent then onto the canal network and eventually down to a location still yet to be confirmed.
Of course, each of those hops should produce at least one if not two cruising videos with hopefully nothing more dramatic than encounters with swans, ducks and herons et al.
I am a little anxious about the trip not least because I need to confirm temporary moorings at all the intervening points along the trip, and in case of anything terrible happening en route but I have ordered (and received) new oil and fuel filters, and hope to take a complete set of Morse control cables with me just in case the existing ones which I recently adjusted should happen to come a cropper.
Having tested the onboard shower, I can confirm it works and the water stays hot for several hours even when overnight temperatures drop to freezing. So at least I should remain clean.
I've ordered new rope to add to the anchor chain in case of the worst and will ensure I have a full tank of fuel before I set off. Wish me luck!
Looking slightly further ahead, to May, there is a very exciting trip in prospect as I have managed to arrange a week away - and on foreign soil to boot! More details in the next newsletter...
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Into the dusty archive...
Given that I will be bringing NB Gentian up the River Trent on the first stage of its journey 'home', for this month's delve into the archive it's worth having a look at what the river is like.
This can be seen (in the reverse direction) from the perspective of my only trip along it to date. This was in September 2020 when lockdown restrictions were eased and I was able to take NB Wreyland down river as far as Cromwell lock (where the river becomes tidal - the section I will start by going along in NB Gentian very soon!)
That old journey can be seen in vlogs 230 to 233 inclusive so I'll start you with the link to 230:-
https://cruisingthecut.co.uk/2020/10/12/vlog-230-little-ships/ |
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My YouTube top pick of the month
It's been a tough month for finding new, decent YouTube content. YouTube's recommendations have, as usual, been pitiful and always focussed on whatever one thing I last happened to search on.
This does not mean that I want to then watch every possible video about that same topic! (why don't they understand this?). I might, conceivably, have just been looking up how to do something for a one-off task!
Despite this, my recommendation is a car channel that already has a decent number of subscribers (around 140k) but will no doubt welcome more viewers.
On "Not Economically Viable", our engaging host buys the absolute worst write-off / scrap cars you could possibly imagine and then spends considerable time getting them to run again.
Episodes are not short - his recent "abandoned 1989 Bentley Turbo R" was a shade over two hours! - but they're oddly gripping films.
Have a watch at https://www.youtube.com/@noteconomicallyviable |
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Final Thoughts
There's quite a lot of gloom around at the moment, not just worldwide but even on the seemingly idyllic canals and rivers. Lack of funds mean maintenance and dredging is not as comprehensive as might be hoped and a concerted campaign is ongoing to push for more funding for British Waterways.
Whether this will have any useful result remains to be seen. Regardless of how vital the waterways are to our country's ecology, I am personally certain they will play second-fiddle to more immediate concerns which are also demanding scarce funds.
So is this really a good time for me to have bought another boat or for anyone to consider spending time and money on the canals?
I say YES! The joy of bobbing about on the water with the company of wildlife and other boaters cannot be underestimated. Plus if it really is all going to pot, grab the chance while you still can.
And on that somewhat backhanded encouragement, I bid you farewell for another month.
Regards
David |
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