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Dav and Pen

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  • Gender
    Not Telling
  • Location
    Braunston
  • Occupation
    Retired
  • Boat Name
    Ex Peke , Thor, Crane, Tadworth
  • Boat Location
    Now boatless after 50 years

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  1. In this case I believe that they got stuck coming out and for some reason they lowered the pound thinking this would un jam the boat but this in fact made it worse as they then got fast on an obstruction possibly a motor bike. Trying to fill the lock clearly let water in rather than lift it.
  2. I never had a survey on any of my narrow boats but did on my Dutch barge in fact whilst in my ownership had 3 surveys for insurance purposes as boat was 100 years old. The surveyor cleaned to bare metal a number of places on the sides and across the bottom so as to get a reading on his ultra sound machine. I can’t see any evidence of this on the ops photo so I wonder how the surveyor could give an opinion about the state of the base plate. Maybe narrow boat surveyors have magic powers unlike the professional in Belgium.
  3. I go along with Belgium we brought and kept our barge near Antwerp for many years. The mooring was cheap as it was owned by the waterway authority although there are lots of boat clubs with moorings throughout the country, there is an organisation called something like VVV that the clubs belong to . The drawback to Flanders is the need for a license whereas Wallonia is free.
  4. Made a right mess of that it doesn’t look traditional in any way .
  5. Had a great holiday on the Puffer along with members of the Ashby Canal Association some year ago but I think this is the most beautiful cruise ship in the world and had some wonderful cruises on it
  6. Atherstone from 1976 looks like the lock cottage never had good access. The hat factory was still going then but I’ve lost my clowboy hat as Arther Bray called them
  7. Although this barge isn’t amongst the photos so far it must have worked the canal. I took the photo in 1973.
  8. We had our first boat in 1963 a small Dolphin cruiser and used it weekends and holidays for a couple of years and then i brought a grp hull and fitted it out. We went to various national rallies and did the Thames whilst still working and with 2 small children. Then a big step up to 2 70ft commercials carrying coal in winter and camping in summer with the help of friends and crew whilst running a business. Gradually working our way up the boat owning chain until we had a 50 ft NB built not long before taking an early retirement age 55. We took that boat all over the Northern waterways where we couldn’t go with the 70ft and then had it taken to Ireland where we spent 2 summers on board before deciding the boat wasn’t really suitable for the Irish waterways and went to Holland to look for a small barge. We finished up buying a 22m Dutch barge which was to big for most of Ireland so we kept it on the continent and had 18 years there until Madam was diagnosed with a blood cancer and I became concerned about her mobility so we reluctantly sold up and came back full time to our house. I was then aged 78 and could have carried on but it has turned out to be the right decision. Over all this time we have kept a house as the boats we brought were cheap and either earned there keep or paid for. We have come across quite a few who have sold up and used most of the money to buy an expensive boat and then circumstances have intervened leading to a move ashore to find that house prices have moved faster than they can manage so one couple finished in a small terrace in Northumberland and another in a Yorkshire flat both having originated in the SE.
  9. Gary Wards boat when with UCC. He kept it in first class order. Not much of an advert no photos apart from a poor one from the bows and wishful thinking with the price.
  10. Think this is the Welland canal in the Great Lakes, the only triple lock I know of on a big waterway apart from the Panama.
  11. This is the last lock ( or first) to a tidal river the longest in this country.
  12. I used to put Vaseline on the brass portholes on my narrowboat during the winter when we were not using it much. Kept the brass good and easy to get off. When I was a new deck apprentice with Shell Tankers on my first ship the mate had me brassoing the ship whistle every Saturday unless a gale was blowing, one Saturday I got hold of some grease and after polishing I smeared it over the whistle. A couple of days later the mate noticed it still looked shiny and knew what I’d done. It was a waste of time anyway for as soon as the midday whistle blew the steam turned the brass brown.
  13. Later Dolphins were fiber glass but bigger than this boat
  14. I brought my first boat a 19 ft Dolphin from Aylsebury in 1964 (I think) it was in the compound and the owner had gone bust so when we got there with the trailer it was all locked up. The chap fetching it for me asked the seller if he owed any money and he said no so jacked the gate up off the hinges and we took the boat away. Can’t remember the yard owners name but something like Merganisser. Sure an older member will recall.
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