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Cropredy area during the festival - getting through and mooring


Lily Rose

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22 minutes ago, Chop! said:

I was back and fore along the towpath all week but don't remember seeing anyone on Trojan or hear the engine running.

I expect they were at the festival much of the time. I went past on day 1 but it was still 3 or 4 hours until the first act were due on stage so many festival attendees were walking along the towpath at the time.

 

18 minutes ago, Dr Bob said:

Yes, well done. I would give you a greenie if I could but I cant as it doesnt give me the option.................Well done!

I would also have given Athy a greenie but it didn't seem to give me the option either.

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2 hours ago, Chop! said:

I was back and fore along the towpath all week but don't remember seeing anyone on Trojan or hear the engine running.

We heard you were coming.

But seriously, where did you park your boats? It can't have been easy to find space for them.

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On 15/08/2017 at 00:14, Athy said:

We heard you were coming.

But seriously, where did you park your boats? It can't have been easy to find space for them.

 

Just to help with your boaty edumacation, the correct terminology is 'mooring' a boat, as opposed to parking it.

Bloody clueless landies...

;)

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6 hours ago, Mike the Boilerman said:

 

Just to help with your boaty edumacation, the correct terminology is 'mooring' a boat, as opposed to parking it.

Bloody clueless landies...

;)

We moored our car in the Boaters' field so we had no problems.

Didn't use a centre line either.

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Just cycled up the towpath through Cropredy en -route to my boat,  all was calm and serene again.

YIPPEE!  Us locals have got our  CROPPERDY back !

Saw TROJAN - resplendent in purple, securely tied to her moorings despite quite a stiff breeze, you'll be pleased to know Athy.

PS  I'll bet my house -to- boat commute is more picture-skew than yours!

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On 14/08/2017 at 08:33, Athy said:

I do remember seeing 'Lily Rose' pass, what a pity that i did not realise that it was you, it would have been a pleasure to meet you.

I'll tell you a story about the engine running. Of course we run it for a few hours each day to recharge the batteries. When we do this, we normally have the side doors open to keep the engine room cool. The engine is quite an old one, a Gardner, which costs me quite a bit in Brasso. About five years ago, when moored for the festival, we noticed people (chaps, mostly) looking into the engine room, and a couple of them even asked if they could photograph it. Mrs. Athy, in one of her occasional moments of genius, said to me "You should charge them money".

Many a true word is spoken in jest. The following year, 2013, as we had become members of the Cotswold canals Trust, I affixed a brief description and history of the engine to the side door, along with a request that if people had enjoyed viewing and listening to it, they might consider making a donation to the CCT, by tossing a coin into the balti dish which I had placed beside the engine. We made over £20 in donations, which amazed us. The appeal of the Gardner must be an enduring one: I have just cashed up this year's offerings and shall be putting a cheque for £48 in the post to the CCT later today.

We wandered along and chucked out money in the dish! Nice engine. We will be now be queing to get on the Cotswolds canal when it fully re-opens (we will of course be getting there via the Wilts and Berks as we are moored on the K & A at the moment). Hope we dont have to wait too long!

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6 hours ago, Plonk said:

We wandered along and chucked out money in the dish! Nice engine. We will be now be queing to get on the Cotswolds canal when it fully re-opens (we will of course be getting there via the Wilts and Berks as we are moored on the K & A at the moment). Hope we dont have to wait too long!

Talking of the Wilts and Berks, whatever happened with Jubilee Junction on the Thames?

Opened in 2006 (I think) then seemingly abandoned and left to become totally overgrown and with no further progress so it just sits there as a 200 (?) yard dead-end.

 

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14 hours ago, Plonk said:

We wandered along and chucked out money in the dish! Nice engine. We will be now be queing to get on the Cotswolds canal when it fully re-opens (we will of course be getting there via the Wilts and Berks as we are moored on the K & A at the moment). Hope we dont have to wait too long!

Thank you.

When we first read about the Cotswolds Canals a few years ago they were hoping to get the lot open by 2020 - but there has been "slippage".

We're just back from a trip to Napton, on the way we passed a boat called Lily Rose and I confidently called out "Mr. Beethoven!", only to be met by a blank look from the steerer. Evidently there's more than one Lily Rose in those parts.

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20 minutes ago, Athy said:

Thank you.

When we first read about the Cotswolds Canals a few years ago they were hoping to get the lot open by 2020 - but there has been "slippage".

We're just back from a trip to Napton, on the way we passed a boat called Lily Rose and I confidently called out "Mr. Beethoven!", only to be met by a blank look from the steerer. Evidently there's more than one Lily Rose in those parts.

That's outrageous. Can I demand they rename their boat immediately?

I'm surprised you couldn't tell, from my avatar, that it wasn't me though!

In the meantime, to avoid such embarrassments, I've been renamed so you can just call out Lily Rose and all will be well whether or not it's me. I can't promise you won't get a blank look though, that's just how my face works sometimes.

Anyway here's us at the very top of the Ashby at Easter last year. For anyone interested, this is what the new 50(ish) foot winding hole looks like (perhaps more relevant to another current thread) with the real Lily Rose (45') about to turn - using a line due to a mass of reeds waiting to get up close and personal with the prop.

 

Sean

IMG_20160415_154546.jpg

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A (small) photo of Trojan at the very same location appears in the latest Pearson Canal Guide to the area - we were lucky enough to meet Michael Pearson while he was taking photos of the new bit in 2016, and he very kindly sent us a copy of the book when it was published a couple of months ago. What a gentleman.

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1 hour ago, Athy said:

A (small) photo of Trojan at the very same location appears in the latest Pearson Canal Guide to the area - we were lucky enough to meet Michael Pearson while he was taking photos of the new bit in 2016, and he very kindly sent us a copy of the book when it was published a couple of months ago. What a gentleman.

I have it on good authority that the author of the Nicholson guides responds in a similar manner in the same situation.

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5 minutes ago, Sir Nibble said:

Are mooring spots still being claimed earlier each year?

No, about the same time I'd say.

A rumour was circulating that next year CART will offer paid-for bookings in the village centre, though whether this would be for trading boats (which make up an increasingly colourful and attractive part of the scene) only or for all moorers, no one seemed to know.

One unoccupied long-term mooring bore a semi-official looking bankside sign "DUNFLOTIN   HOME MOORING"; whether this is genuine, or a comment on the silty nature of that particular spot, no one seemed to know either.

2 minutes ago, Up-Side-Down said:

I have it on good authority that the author of the Nicholson guides responds in a similar manner in the same situation.

That's good to hear.

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  • 9 months later...
On 23/08/2017 at 10:20, Athy said:

No, about the same time I'd say.

A rumour was circulating that next year CART will offer paid-for bookings in the village centre, though whether this would be for trading boats (which make up an increasingly colourful and attractive part of the scene) only or for all moorers, no one seemed to know.

Athy, do you happen to know if the rumour came to fruition? I haven't seen any info anywhere.

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Getting through never seems to be a problem but moorings involve a long walk unless you're early.

The traders try to take the moorings each side of the residential moorings.

Edited by Chop!
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6 minutes ago, Athy said:

I've heard no mention of it during our visits to Cropredy so far this year.

It's a pity, as I would have been interested. I make the annual pilgrimage to Cropredy but only went by boat in 2009 where I was the most northerly boat in the line, way up past Varney's lock; it was ok walking down to the festival but not so much fun walking back after a few beers! I'm planning a trip down by boat this year but don't fancy hanging around there for a week in advance to get a decent mooring if that's what's required.

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27 minutes ago, rgreg said:

It's a pity, as I would have been interested. I make the annual pilgrimage to Cropredy but only went by boat in 2009 where I was the most northerly boat in the line, way up past Varney's lock; it was ok walking down to the festival but not so much fun walking back after a few beers! I'm planning a trip down by boat this year but don't fancy hanging around there for a week in advance to get a decent mooring if that's what's required.

Two weeks would be more realistic; though it's a "Who dares wins" situation: I have seen spaces near the village centre become vacant only a day or two before the festival. Some long-term moorers move out during that week, so it is perhaps worth taking a walk along the towpath and talking to the regular moorers to see if any of them will be leaving their space free.

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57 minutes ago, Athy said:

Two weeks would be more realistic; though it's a "Who dares wins" situation: I have seen spaces near the village centre become vacant only a day or two before the festival. Some long-term moorers move out during that week, so it is perhaps worth taking a walk along the towpath and talking to the regular moorers to see if any of them will be leaving their space free.

But isn't that another problem. I remember a few years back travelling back north and trying to stop in Cropredy overnight for provisions, a meal and a pint. It was fully two weeks before the festival (which I didn't know was on) and all the moorings were taken. In the pub, boaters readily admitted they had arrived for the festival. I thought then, and still do, that to monopolise all the moorings for three weeks or so is unfair to other boaters who are just making a passage through. I have nothing against the festival. Indeed had I known about it and arrived a couple of weeks later, I would have tried to attend it. But to make Cropredy effectively full for such a long time? Yes, I know it is full most of the cruising months, but with different boats each night, not a mile or so static boats hogging the moorings two weeks in advance. Bah, humbug!

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1 minute ago, Derek Porteous said:

But isn't that another problem. I remember a few years back travelling back north and trying to stop in Cropredy overnight for provisions, a meal and a pint. It was fully two weeks before the festival (which I didn't know was on) and all the moorings were taken. In the pub, boaters readily admitted they had arrived for the festival. I thought then, and still do, that to monopolise all the moorings for three weeks or so is unfair to other boaters who are just making a passage through. I have nothing against the festival. Indeed had I known about it and arrived a couple of weeks later, I would have tried to attend it. But to make Cropredy effectively full for such a long time? Yes, I know it is full most of the cruising months, but with different boats each night, not a mile or so static boats hogging the moorings two weeks in advance. Bah, humbug!

Derek, your point, or very similar ones, is/are raised every year and always lead to a discussion. Most, though not all, of the mooring sin and around the village are 14-dayers. The mooring regulations are "relaxed" during festival week. So, a boat can tie up for three weeks without needing to worry about any sort of penalty. Some boaters feel that this is unfair. Others see it as a boon, and I am not not sure that e'er the twain shall meet.

 

As we have had a permanent mooring there for four years now, I can see both sides impartially!

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Ah... go on. Be partial, Athy!! Is it fair or not?

Incidentally we are leaving our boat in the marina there for a week at the end of this month. Hadn’t checked yet how far the walk is to the nearest pub. We will be long gone by festival time. I do like the village, so a few days there will be fun
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8 minutes ago, Derek Porteous said:

Ah... go on. Be partial, Athy!! Is it fair or not?

Incidentally we are leaving our boat in the marina there for a week at the end of this month. Hadn’t checked yet how far the walk is to the nearest pub. We will be long gone by festival time. I do like the village, so a few days there will be fun

As I said, I'm impartial.?

The walk is not that far - perhaps a mile from the marina entrance, along Claydon Road to the Brasenose Arms*. But it's a big marina so, depending whereabouts you mooring is, you may need to add another quarter-mile to that.

The village has some historic bits and does repay a good fossick around. It also has quite a network of twitchels/ twitterns/ alleys/ entries/ slipes/ jennels/ ginnles or what you will, so you can get a good view of people's back gardens as you stroll about, also the stone formation which gives a side road its name of 'Cup and Saucer'.

 

*There is another pub in the village, but you needn't bother your head about that.

 

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