Mike on the Wey

The Thames locks with side sluices are Bell Weir (Staines), Romney (Windsor), Hambleden (below Henley) and Sandford (between Abingdon & Oxford). I single hand a fair bit on the Thames. Going up - stern rope on, jump off boat with bow line in hand, adjust bow line as water rises (nice and easy as it's nearer to the upper pedestal). Going down - centre rope only ... if a lockie is on I ask permission to use centre rope only. If denied (very rare) I loosely hook the stern rope over a post but still rely on the centre. My boat's only 32' so I have very few issues.

If you're not interested in actual boating, then I would strongly recommend that you don't buy a boat. Sitting in a marina staring at other boats will shatter your dreams. You have a large dog? Remember that you won't be able to just let it out into a garden. Morning and night, rain or snow etc, you will have to walk the dog from the boat to an appropriate area in the (expensive) marina every time it wants to do its business. You'd be better keeping the mortgage-free house and going on occasional boating holidays in fine weather.

Make sure that the map you use is a canal/river map, as you cannot literally go anywhere. Kent has the Royal Military Canal and the River Stour. Neither is connected to the main system. The RMC is, to the best of my knowledge, used only by rowing boats and kayaks with no big boats or moorings. The Stour is connected to the sea at Pegwell Bay and in theory is navigable to Fordwich near Canterbury. Plenty of boats moor on the Stour, but I don't know about residential. If you are thinking about boat life because it is (or would become) your passion, then that's great. But if you think it's a cheap way of living, you are likely to find that it is often an unpredictably expensive life. During the colder and wetter months it can be very challenging.

They are East Street moorings. Free for the first 24 hours.

On day 14 of the break in their bona fide navigation, when they return to the boat with the intention of moving it one mile?

You're not the first to ask this, and I doubt you'll be the last. Your first question is very easy to answer. Sorry, what you propose won't be viable.

I'm pretty sure. I replaced the trigger wire entirely (and isolated the original), so it no longer goes through a multiplug and in fact has no join between the back of the ignition switch and the starter motor. The problem persisted. I then 'borrowed' the tunnel light circuit/switch, to feed the trigger wire. So when I turn the key and nothing happens, with the key still turned I can flick the tunnel light switch and power the trigger wire. Starts every time. I think I have resistance and occasional loss of continuity in the switch. Sometimes nothing happens, sometimes it's fine. No click, just nothing. It isn't influenced by temperature or the season, or the length of time since the boat was last used. It's pretty random - I can switch off to set a lock, and it starts OK to enter the lock. Then nothing when I try to restart to leave the lock ... until I flick the tunnel light switch.

My ignition switch has become a bit temperamental; I have ruled out the battery, starter motor and trigger wire. The Vetus part is STM9215, at a typically high Vetus price £54.20. It becomes particularly expensive because I would want two additional keys, which are £18 each. Does anybody know whether other ignition switches are compatible, and particularly if the multiplug at the back is a universal shape/configuration? And if a generic switch will do the job, which would you recommend?

There is a sign in the church grounds - no mooring, no dogs, no picnics.

Wallingford is £12 per night up to five nights, then £50 per night thereafter. https://www.wallingfordtowncouncil.gov.uk/wallingford-town-council-moorings-policy/

The Regents Canal is the nearest navigable waterway to Liverpool Street, with 3 or 4 locations all around 1½ miles away. Casual moorings in that area are extremely popular, with double-mooring the norm. Boaters regularly report cruising through there (say between Kings Cross and Victoria Park), and not being able to find anywhere to moor. Permanent residential moorings in that area are scarce and, when available, very expensive. Like often more expensive than renting a flat. If you move four times (I'm guessing you would be looking to move only one mile or so each time) and then turn back you will soon come to the attention of CRT (Canal & River Trust), as in broad terms you are required to cover a range each year of at least 20-25 miles. And that requires steady cruising with regular moves, not staying in one area most of the year and doing a big trip for a holiday. In practice, many leisure boaters travel 20 miles in one day, let alone a year, but many - particularly in London - seek to move the minimum distance possible in order to stay close to work/school/family etc. "Continuous cruising" in London can be done to CRT's satisfaction if you adopt a cruising range between three points (for instance) - Brentford, Slough/Rickmansworth area and Tottenham - and move at least one mile at least every two weeks. Other options are available, for instance Kensal, Hertford and Bishops Stortford. But many do the same, which leads to regular congestion. Moving day in London is often a Saturday or Sunday, and it can take a whole day to move a mile or two, fill up with water, empty toilet cassettes and find somewhere to moor. Boating in London is not an easy life.

I can't work out whether you are very naive, blind to risk, closed to advice from experienced boaters or simply a troll. If you're going to do it, I have two simple pieces of advice. 1. Get insurance (although it is unlikely that you would be covered by a standard policy for such a sea passage). 2. Write a will.

The trip itself will not be too taxing; 74 miles, 42 locks; 116 lock miles = 19LM per day average. That is based on 6 days, because you will lose half of the first and last days. Perfectly OK for a competent crew; more range than some boats manage in a year, but let's not go there! We cruised the K & A from Reading to Hanham Lock and back in August, a few years ago. Yes, it can be tricky to find somewhere to moor but we generally managed OK; early starts and early finishes certainly help. We managed to find space at all main/popular locations including Bradford, Avoncliff, Bathampton, Bath and Hanham. Not much on the Avon though between Bath and Hanham. Be careful below Hanham - "The river below Hanham Lock is considered to be tidal, as high tides often pass over the weir at Netham. Some spring tides will also pass over the weir here, making the river tidal up to Keynsham Lock."

I know this is off-topic, but is that actually allowed on a channel ferry? We used to go to the Isle of Wight each year; gas cylinders could only be carried in a designated location in a trailer tent or caravan, never in a car, and had to be declared.

I have used Mike Chambers (Conway Marine Surveys) twice ... or is Mike one who has stopped? There is an examiner based on a boat just above Walsham Gates, but I don't have any contact details. There is a sign hammered into the bank ... last boat on the right heading upstream. Conway Marine Surveys 17 Downsview Avenue Woking GU22 9BT michael.chambers263@ntlworld.com 01483 729846