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Treasures from the weed hatch


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We have hired a narrowboat before without any prop trouble whatsoever, but on our most recent trip on the Cheshire Ring in May we finally got to dive into the weed hatch. Multiple times! Leaving us wondering why is it called a weed hatch? Most things that we pulled out were very inorganic. Just wondering, what is the strangest thing you guys have pulled out of your weed hatch? 

 

Just for fun we decided to take some pictures of our finds... 

 

We started off in Manchester on the Rochdale Nine, with a nightclub rope of the Gay Village district (we now regret throwing it on the towpath, it would have made a brilliant souvenir...). 

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Soon after, on the Ashton, our boat started to sound like a proper techno record due to something metal in the prop. 

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This was a brilliant day for weed hatch diving, as later that afternoon (still on the Ashton Canal) we found a sleeping bag like object around our prop shaft and we couldn't get it out... Had to ring the hire company for assistance and decided to moor up for the night at this idyllic spot. 

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The next day, still on the Ashton, we pulled out a Superdry jacket. Well, obviously, not so superdry anymore..

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It took a while, but at Gurnett Aqueduct there was a very good pub around the corner to celebrate with a cold pint our first weed hatch dive after Manchester. And what a find, more plastic than Pixee Fox!

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After that, it all went a bit dull on CRT-waters. Luckily, the Bridgewater wouldn't want to be left behind and also treated us to some random plastic stuff.

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We were over the moon! Finally, after 2 weeks of cruising, we pulled out something we could describe as 'weeds'. Success!

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Edited by Saskia
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Not a good question to ask as you may get some horror stories posted related to finding bodies when opening the weed hatch. The worst item I've found was a carrier bag which I presume contained the decomposed body of a cat judging by the tail I pulled out initially.

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Rusty, Definitely did not put us off boating - apart from certain areas I loved our trip. Hester from the hire company already warned us, if you go through Manchester you will have to use your weed hatch - so we were prepared and expectations were met ;) However what Rob mentioned, I think I'd skip my evening meal and a narrowboat holiday for a few years when finding that in the hatch... Eew..

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7 minutes ago, Ray T said:

Useful for an undercloth conversion! :rolleyes: You missed an opportunity to flog it to the boat behind. :D

I thought it looked a lot better than some of the old carpeting currently in "Flamingo", but I was told firmly I could not keep it!

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1 hour ago, Saskia said:

 

We started off in Manchester on the Rochdale Nine, with a nightclub rope of the Gay Village district (we now regret throwing it on the towpath, it would have made a brilliant souvenir...). 

 

I also regret you throwing it on the towpath.

Would it have been so difficult to bag it with your own rubbish and disposed of it properly?  Where do you think it is now?  I bet I can guess.

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3 hours ago, zenataomm said:

I also regret you throwing it on the towpath.

Would it have been so difficult to bag it with your own rubbish and disposed of it properly?  Where do you think it is now?  I bet I can guess.

Probably in the CRT yard together with the bike they pulled out of the lock before... They were cleaning/maintaining water levels when we went through there.

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3 hours ago, Boredrider said:

Saxilby visitor mooring last year:

IMG_0360_zpsonm4otnf.jpg

 

A complete angler's brolly that took many hours to remove. It was bagged and disposed of after the photos!

 

I remember that. 

It was me who introduced you to the miracle that is hand cranked engines with a mechanical gear box.

All of which is dead handy when it comes to winding rubbish back off your prop.

  • Greenie 1
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Trying to pull this 20 metres or more of high voltage cable sheathing from round the prop of an ex working boat without weedhatch took a couple of hours one December on the BCN Main Line. (next to the railway it had probably come from).

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Later that year on the 24 hour BCN challenge had 17 weedhatch trips and filed the roof with lots of clothes,  wires, bags, saris, stop - go signs, bollards etc...

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Last summer I collected a complete cratch cover around the prop, whilst about to stop at Streethay Wharf for fuel. 

DQ has a "prop protector", a serrated circular blade on the propshaft,  which automatically clears most things, but stood no chance against the cratch cover :angry:

Sorry, didn't take a picture but it took me a couple of hours to remove it.

On my first share boat the most unusaul thing we collected a pair of frilly red knickers on the Birmingham and Fazeley. :o The most difficult was a fertiliser bag that somehow enclosed the prop and sealed itself by winding around the propshaft.

Oh, and the most scary was with the second shareboat, in Armitage "tunnel". A bunch of reeds wrapped around the prop, stalling the engine. I opened the weedhatch and whilst removing handfuls for ends,   blurry frog leapt out of the weedhatch. Scared the living daylights out of me until I realised what it was :unsure:

Edited by cuthound
To add the last sentance.
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Managed to get this round my prop on the Ashton.  As I was just going into a lock, had to bow haul the boat out and then hope other boats, using the lock, didn't lower the pound too much when the hatch was off.

Took some shifting but I made the weed hatch big enough and with a sloping front, so it could have been worse...image.jpeg.c2d421055a5342845ba3cf7d8cdd1750.jpegimage.jpeg.003af5e6ab930367fb77fa55768f589f.jpeg

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A long red dress and a few weeks later a thick duffle coat. I concluded she was just trying on different looks but told her she looks fine just as she is. Never had any bother since.

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On ‎09‎/‎06‎/‎2017 at 16:10, Saskia said:

We have hired a narrowboat before without any prop trouble whatsoever, but on our most recent trip on the Cheshire Ring in May we finally got to dive into the weed hatch. Multiple times! Leaving us wondering why is it called a weed hatch? Most things that we pulled out were very inorganic.

Sometimes it is weed. We don't have a weedhatch, so it all comes off with the pole. From this:

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via this:

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leading to this:

PICT1045.JPG.e4f93eb6b46e85a441058dd2ad46e679.JPG

 

 

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Years ago in Manchester we got a dead dog wrapped around the prop shaft, not a toy dog either, we think it might have been a black Labrador. Later on the same trip we got a large sheepskin coat - for a while we had the horrors as we thought it was another big dog.

Now we have our own boat, the canals seem a lot cleaner and since you have to be a contortionist to even get to our weed hatch, never mind open it and clear anything, that's a very good thing!

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This little lot didn't stop the Kelvin,but I knew I had a problem because the offending article had wrapped itself between the stern post and the blade, so that I couldn't get the engine in or out of gear (for those unfamiliar with a Kelvin gear box, the whole shaft moves backwards and forward when changing gear.)

I can recommend pond gloves when you go delving into the weed hatch.

 

DSCF0195.JPG

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The worst things I can remember getting on the prop were on the BCN Challenge many years ago when we took part with Ed Mortimer and Steve Jackson on Auriga. Outside Dudley tunnel - we went through towed by an electric tug- enough telephone wire to wire up half of Birmingham. Then later on in Walsall we picked up a crane lifting strop some 6m long. It stopped Auriga's Lister!! We got it off by unravelling it hand cranking the engine with the de-compression taps open.

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The BCN Challenge has the Shopping Trolley prize for weedhatch findings

I think we should organise a 'wear what was on the prop' competition, we've had several jackets and a rather nice sari up the weedhatch

Richard

  • Greenie 1
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