MartynG

I have been to Wells in 2015 and 2016 and missed out this year due to mechanical issues with the boats then unsuitable sea state. The depth at the visitor pontoon at Wells is adequate as they have the benefit of the wind farms so it is dredged whenever necessary. Your route sounds good and I hope you achieve it. Personally I am drawn in a different direction - but not this year and maybe not even next. Work does tend to interfere with boating.

District Enforcement is a company which makes and collects parking fines on behalf of anyone who cars to invite them to do so. They appear to based in Leicestershire. Presumably if you stayed overnight you would have to pay for two days . The fee is reduced to £60 per day if paid promptly. Looks like it would be a very peaceful spot .

No doubt you are correct . On the choice of boat being influenced by the available budget - there is certainly more than a little something in that too. I could have had a narrowboat or a steel cruiser . I could have had an older but bigger boat. My present GRP cruiser choice was about comfortable accommodation and storage including a proper bedroom not a cramped crawl-in space , the ability to go to sea that significantly exceeded the previous boat , a three burner gas hob , a built in gas oven and heating. It had to be no older than the previous boat. Twin diesel engines. There had to compromise somewhere - we only have a two burner hob. The bow thruster was a bonus. I fully support peoples choice if they should buy a boat quite different to mine . Life might be a bit boring if everyone made the same choices .

Was he disabled or impaired in mental capacity in some way ?

Knew I had a picture somewhere that showed the so called girlie button - or stick in my case

If i have done it correctly there should be a picture from the visitor pontoon at Dunham taken the other week

We have some pretty big locks on the Trent some of which are made from quite abrasive concrete . And concrete /steel walls to moor up against. Thats what fenders are for. A little scratch in the GRP gel coat isn't a major issue it it doesn't penetrate the gelcoat which is often a reasonable thickness . But I do agree steel and GRP boats don't necessarily mix well in the small locks on canals.

Sealine F33

Not really sure how to post a picture - maybe there is one attached. WA2.pdf

My 33ft GRP cruiser has two comfortable bedrooms each with double beds and room to stand and dress , a spacious saloon and cockpit - plenty of space. It is well suited to the River Trent where we are based, and capable of travelling on the sea , which we have done. We spend up to two weeks aboard on holidays but could easily do more. i have some years ago hired a 57ft narrowboat and would say the space is difficult to compare against a GRP cruiser . A different use of space probably more practical for living aboard in the UK. We see a lot of narrowboats on the R. Trent but most seem to be passing through - not so many that live locally. I am not tempted from my GRP cruiser at present but have an interest in boats of all sorts.

Mooring at Muskham was probably made easier recently as the river levels have been very low. Ordinarily the flow around the out side of the bend is deceptively strong. It must be more than three years since I last moored there. The pontoon looked in poor shape than and no one seemed to know who owns it .

An interesting observation but I doubt C&RT will take any interest in the matter. it seems to me ABP consider leisure boats to be , to say the least , a nuisance.

Its usual for cruisers capable of travelling on the sea to have a speed through the water and depth gauge . We also have GPS speed over ground is handy to see how much speed you are getting when going with the tide - or losing when against the tide . I noticed a narrowboat entering West Stockwith the other day had the same equipment . That is unusual I think. It would be a bit pointless on a canal and not exactly cheap. I usually switch my depth gauge off on the Fossdyke as the shallow depth alarm sounds all too often. In a narrowboat it must be tempting to cut the corners on the Trent - but obviously best avoided .

We came up from west Stockwith Yesterday. Its neap tides so not very strong . Hardly made any affect - about 1 knot. Quite shallow the whole way - but by that I mean 5ft in places. Stick to the chart and you will be fine any time.