|
Post by Telemachus on Aug 18, 2017 17:13:09 GMT
Well an uneventful but fairly pleasant trip back up to Bath. Cruised past the junction to have a look at Pulteney weir. Actually, it looks better from above but never mind. Lots of notices telling boaters that they will be prosecuted if they moor there, but still there were a few hangers-on - presumably those with nothing to lose. Went up the locks with a hire boat, then just past the top lock a boat was coming the other way, line of moored boats on my right, plenty of room. But he was just coming along right in the middle of the free space. I moved over as much as I could so I had about a foot between me and the moored boats he had about 10' between him and the bank on his right. He could definitely see me. But he wasn't going to budge over at all. I hoped he might do the little dance at the last minute, but no, he just hit us (glancing blow). What a tossing fuckwit. I explained expletativey that perhaps he should move over when boats come the other way, but apparently the darling was in a deep drafted boat and preferred to crash rather than risk churning up a bit of mud. It was quite a nice boat too, but he was a moron. Hopefully his wife, who popped out of the front when we collided, gave him hell afterwards..
Anyway, we then cruised to Claverton for the night. I hadn't realised that that pump was water powered. It's a pity they have mostly replaced it with an electric pump probably powered by fossil fuels! That's progress!
|
|
|
Post by naughtyfox on Aug 18, 2017 17:16:41 GMT
I do wish you would take pics and name them 'Moron of the Day' or somesuch. Boat name and number at the least!
|
|
|
Post by Telemachus on Aug 18, 2017 17:17:48 GMT
Claverton to Devizes bottom lock. A hot day, the locks were a bit slow with incompetent hire boaters but the mood was good and we managed to avoid the hostile natives. Spent the night on the VMs opposite Foxhangers. We were going to go up the first few locks but the heavens opened and it absolutely pissed down. Pretty hard to pass mooring rings when it's like that! Anyway, just as well because today we found every possible mooring space between the locks was clogged up with CMers, there was nowhere to moor in the entire flight (including the spaced out locks above and below the main flight) until we got right to the top lock. Most of the boats looked familiar from our trip down last week.
|
|
|
Post by Telemachus on Aug 18, 2017 17:19:56 GMT
I do wish you would take pics and name them 'Moron of the Day' or somesuch. Boat name and number at the least! Sorry, I was too traumatised and we had to stop so I could visit a councillor for therapy.
|
|
|
Post by Telemachus on Aug 19, 2017 18:40:29 GMT
Anyway, yesterday was Caen Hill in intermittent really heavy rain, shopping stop,at the top and then on to the dreaded long pound. But actually, we rather enjoyed it. It was a sunny afternoon/ evening and the endless line of moored boats we'd experienced before, had evaporated. Well it was still chokka at All Cannings including the 24 hr moorings (local boaters being unable to differentiate between hours and years) but a big gap between there and Honeystreet, which was pretty full but we got the last mooring. On the waterpoint. But oddly on the KandA there is often no special signage for waterpoints, we were in an area signed as 2 day moorings. We even got satellite! But Three was shite.
Today we finished off the long pound, went up and down the summit and stopped at Crofton because the lady we were sharing locks with said they did a great cream tea in the Pump house. And I can't resist a cream tea. But I was deceived, they had run out of scones.
Anyway, now tied up in Gt Bedwyn but both pubs are closed so that's a bit shite,
|
|
|
Post by Andyberg on Aug 30, 2017 13:56:49 GMT
I'm just surprised Nick has made so much progress really. I mean, how long does it take to establish whether each boater is a CM'er? Tell us Nick, what is your criteria for deciding a boater is a CM'er? What is it? Scruffy boat? Being moored up where you want to moor? Kids on board? Firewood on the roof? Long hair? (snip) Scruffy boat gives a pointer. (Not the paintwork, but the amount of crap which would get in the way while actually moving) Firewood on roof only when it is high enough to prevent a normal sized steerer seeing where he or she is going. I'd add plants growing out of the mooring ropes, mooring ropes green where they touch water, and excessively worn at whatever they're attached to. Only takes a few seconds! Here's an ideal candidate I noted just above Marton Top Lock..
|
|
|
Post by Andyberg on Aug 30, 2017 13:59:13 GMT
He/she was waiting for the engineer in exactly same spot 2 months ago when I last went past. .Pisstaking, freeloading twat more like!!
|
|
|
Post by thebfg on Oct 27, 2017 16:40:19 GMT
What's this business on the visitor moorings of only 7 days per month. Extra days at £25.
Might cause some issues with two different crews on the boat however it meant there was loads of roo. At sells green the other day.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Oct 27, 2017 17:21:46 GMT
Whatever
|
|
|
Post by Telemachus on Oct 27, 2017 17:33:05 GMT
What's this business on the visitor moorings of only 7 days per month. Extra days at £25. Might cause some issues with two different crews on the boat however it meant there was loads of roo. At sells green the other day. As usual it arises from pisstakers. You provide a visitor mooring facility for all to share. Selfish folk move in and hog it. So you put up signs saying 2 days max. So said selfish people sit there for 2 days, then in the dead of night cruise to the winding point, turn round and come back for another 2 days, repeat ad infinitum. So you then have to spend more public money changing the signs to limit it to a total of 7 days a month. Then some plonker comes along and destroys the signs so more public money has to be spent replacing them. But never mind, as long as the dreadlocked/ hipstaaa free spirits an do as they please, that’s all that matters.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Oct 27, 2017 17:57:10 GMT
The K&A is a prime candidate for privatisation. Just as an experiment. If it fails then it closes. Its happened before so it could happen again. Its a pretty nice canal but not amazing and not part of a standard cruising ring so there is no particular reason for ordinary license payers to support it.
If there is enough support from residential and cruising uses and perhaps some commercial (it is a wide canal so its possible) then it would survive as a self-sustaining business. Or close if necessary.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Oct 27, 2017 18:21:38 GMT
Pewesy carnival is an excellent evening out.
|
|
|
Post by Telemachus on Oct 27, 2017 18:33:14 GMT
We didn’t find pewsey wharf overrun with CMers, but I do think they tend to move around in packs, like rats. They’ve obviously decided to descend on pewsey since we were there in September. The little pub was a bit odd though. We stopped there for a lunchtime beer but it had an odd atmosphere and I was served a pint that resembled canal water just after a hire boat has passed at speed. Ok the lady changed it when I commented, but really when you are the only customer, it doesn’t seem unreasonable to expect that someone pouring a pint be vaguely aware of what it’s like. It shouldn’t really be up to the customer. I say this as someone who sometimes tends the bar at our gliding club, where we have “real ale” on handpump sometimes. I’m always aware of whether it’s bright or not and wouldn’t hand someone a glass full of shit.
|
|
|
Post by thebfg on Oct 27, 2017 19:21:40 GMT
Pewesy carnival is an excellent evening out. We will go. Have you been to the illuminated ones. A bit further west. They are definitely worth seeing. I've got a video but I can't seem to get it off Facebook.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Oct 27, 2017 19:41:50 GMT
Pewesy carnival is an excellent evening out. We will go. Have you been to the illuminated ones. A bit further west. They are definitely worth seeing. I've got a video but I can't seem to get it off Facebook. A mate of mine lives in Burbage, been to the carnival with him. I've not done any of the others, although a friend of ours had us sut througha DVD of Weston Super Mare carnival in the pissing rain. They do make the old Wellingborough and Rushden carnivals look a bit sad
|
|