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The good old days?


Ray T

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All my canal boating has been in the last few years, so I don't know whether the articles this Peter Langley read back in 1993 were unduly alarmist, but the troubles he describes are rare in my experience. So far I've come across:

One abusive angler, who was upset because the spot he was fishing had been churned up by our engine as we took a corner. Lots of anglers who totally ignore passing boaters, which I think is just because they're concentrating on what they're doing and/or they go fishing to get away from people. Lots of anglers who are friendly, or at least acknowledge a greeting.

A few abusive boaters, mostly people who will take the slightest thing and make a big argument out of it because they enjoy shouting at people, you meet them in all walks of life. Some of them have had a point, I've made errors while learning about boating but I try to learn from them. I've yet to injure someone or do major damage to property and I want to keep it that way. The vast majority of boaters are really nice people, though I did encounter one specimen in 2015 who got very aggressive over nothing, probably off his head on some drug.

The National Trust? My limited experience of them on my two trips on the Wey has been all good, but I can't comment on what it was it was like in 1993.

Locks against vandalism are a necessary fact of life in some areas, though I get the impression vandalism may be less of a problem now than it was over the last few decades. The worst culprits appear to have been BWB in the 1950s and 60s.

Hooligans; I can only remember one such incident, when a few badly aimed half bricks were lobbed at the boat by a group of teenagers at a lock on the Birmingham & Fazeley. They disappeared when we got nearer. There are often worrying looking groups of bored teenagers hanging around canal banks in towns, but I find they're usually fine if you get off on the right foot, and can often be persuaded to help with pushing a gate open or shut, it gives them something to do.

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Just goes to show that drivel has been printed for ever and long b4 forums. We lived aboard in 93 actualy on the K and A that year and there were very few boats on it or anywhere else for that matter. There were even then the no go areas such as Wigan that in reality are fine if the boaters attitude is fine. Nowts changed realy has it?

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The number of boats has changed, like cars they breed quickly and will soon fill all the available space, remember when you could park outside your house and not just somewhere within half a mile. Soon the canals will be full of all these new boats that are currently hatching and like the youngsters of today they seem to be getting bigger and fatter.

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1 minute ago, Detling said:

The number of boats has changed, like cars they breed quickly and will soon fill all the available space, remember when you could park outside your house and not just somewhere within half a mile. Soon the canals will be full of all these new boats that are currently hatching and like the youngsters of today they seem to be getting bigger and fatter.

Tee-hee. Your last point is something I have noticed, not "fatter" of course as they wouldn't get through the locks down our way, but certainly bigger. All our boats have been 40 to 45 feet in length, when we bought the first one 20 years ago that was a fairly typical size, now it is regarded as quite short.

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8 minutes ago, Athy said:

Tee-hee. Your last point is something I have noticed, not "fatter" of course as they wouldn't get through the locks down our way, but certainly bigger. All our boats have been 40 to 45 feet in length, when we bought the first one 20 years ago that was a fairly typical size, now it is regarded as quite short.

Quite true. teeny weeny boats 20plus years ago where the norm apart from x working boats. Our first was short at 56 feet but was longer than many in 89. As for kids there was only one chubby kid at our junior/infants school I went to from 59 onwards and he would be nearly slim in todays schools. There are a huge amount more so called " Widebeams " or fat narrowboats about now then of  a few years ago.

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12 minutes ago, mrsmelly said:

Quite true. teeny weeny boats 20plus years ago where the norm apart from x working boats. Our first was short at 56 feet but was longer than many in 89. As for kids there was only one chubby kid at our junior/infants school I went to from 59 onwards and he would be nearly slim in todays schools. There are a huge amount more so called " Widebeams " or fat narrowboats about now then of  a few years ago.

Which one was most Popular in 93' ,Pumpout or Cassette? 

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3 minutes ago, cereal tiller said:

Which one was most Popular in 93' ,Pumpout or Cassette? 

:lol: Norty norty. In fairness though as you are aware probably nowts changed. There were people in both camps then as there are now. What has changed dramaticaly though is since 93 there have been more than ten composting bogs sold!!

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Just now, StephenA said:

and 24 years later "electric power-flush toilets" haven't changed much at all, and neither has the storage...

Nothing worth having has changed. The best form of heating when I bought my first liveabaord in 89 was the solid fuel squirrel stove and it still is. Most of the kit used in the " Good old days " was used for a reason and still in use.

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9 minutes ago, mrsmelly said:

Nothing worth having has changed. The best form of heating when I bought my first liveabaord in 89 was the solid fuel squirrel stove and it still is. Most of the kit used in the " Good old days " was used for a reason and still in use.

I must say our very old BMC is still chugging along - still starts after 20 seconds of heaters in January when its not been run for several months....

 

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6 minutes ago, StephenA said:

I must say our very old BMC is still chugging along - still starts after 20 seconds of heaters in January when its not been run for several months....

 

I have a 1977 BMC. 2.5 , still doing it's Job well ,and only 14000 Hours on the Meter

It was retrieved  from a Sunken Timber Boat so no Idea of previous Engine hours.

Edited by cereal tiller
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7 minutes ago, David Mack said:

Probably quite a lot of bucket-and-chuckit boaters still about then.

Reminds me of my first canal trip in 1973 on an ex-working "camping" boat organised by the scouting movement.

This had a bucket and chuckit toilet, at the pointy end, so you sat facing the stern.

On the inside door to the facilities was a small towel rail.

Some wag added a label above said towel rail which said "straining bar - in cases of constipation grip bar between teeth and strain". :D

 

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1980 electric start engine instantaneous hot water elsan 12v phone box 45 ft 4 ft well deck

1993 hand start engine kettle on range bucket in engine room no bolt.

71'6 

2004 electric start stored hot water central heating mains ring inverter phone thetford cassette 70'

2017

hand start electric hot water after 5 hrs boating bucket in engine room mobile internet.55'

evolution is variable.. toilets are consistent!

 

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34 minutes ago, cereal tiller said:

Yes  ,first Live Aboard  in 1973 had an Elsan Mini Toilet , Seat and top cover no Luxuries like a Toilet Bowl!:D

I moved aboard my first liveaboard in 1973, it were very  " Traditional " with twin 15,000 shp engines those were the days.

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