Speed Limit 4mph.

I have been able to find out that the speed limit for narrow boats (and others) that travel on the British Canal System is 4mph maximum.

This answers the question regarding the sort of speeds these boats travel at as they slowly work their way around the canal system.

Even 4mph can be annoying for some of the boats that are moored-up as the wake (even at this speed) can cause them to rock, and this is not so good if it is either your home or your place of work.......or even when just trying to relax in the evening when watching the TV.

Bob.

Canal Licence.

Hi Dave B,

All of the canal boats have to have a licence of some sort to be able to stay on the canal waters.

Some have a residential type of licence and pay for a permanent mooring and those with this type of licence are often lived in and are moored-up in designated residential areas of the canal.

The other sort or licence is for those that are “constant cruisers” and they are only allowed to stay in one place for a limited amount of time before they have to move on to another location.

We did notice that the Cruzcombo narrow boat had moved to a new mooring yesterday and that most of the narrow boats that we saw last week had “moved on” and were no longer to be seen on this stretch of the canal.

I don’t know when you plan to take your river cruise on the Rhine, but we are all hoping for some rain to fall before too much longer, and I am aware that the Rhine has very low water levels at the moment.

Everywhere is dry in Europe at the moment and the farmers especially need some rain to water the crops………and has been mentioned elsewhere - we need to learn to save more of ithe water when it does rain.

We tend to put in quite a few miles of walking along the tow paths we we go gongoozeling , so it is quite good exercise out in the fresh air, and we usually feel quite tired by the time we come home again.

Enjoy your river cruise.

Bob.

@zooma Cruzcombo, Cruzcompo .... it appears that the gentleman pictured on both logos will toast to either. Prost!!

Dave B

PS While I understand that "Gongoozling" is the leisurely hobby of standing on a bank or bridge and watching boats, locks, and everyday life unfold along a canal. I hope to participate in the opposite activity in October, from the deck of a riverboat, I don't think there is a proper slang for that, but I will call it "Land Watching". I just hope Europe gets some rain, so my "Rhine River Cruise" doesn't morph into a bus tour .....

Canal-side Public Houses and Countryside.

A second gongoozelling trip along the tow path of The Leeds to Liverpool Canal at Burscough today reminded me that there are other things to admire and enjoy when not necessarily facing towards the canal water!

Most canals pass through some beautiful open countryside that in itself is worth a look, and some pass though city centres allowing them to be viewed from a direction that would often never be seen.

Burscough is a small town surrounded by beautiful countryside that can be easily viewed when walking along the tow path,

Gongoozeling can be a thirsty occupation - especially on a hot summers day, and fortunately most canals have some public houses alongside them that can help to quench a well earned thirst!

The wharf in Burscough has been transformed into a collection of mostly modern sellers of food and alcohol, and whilst this may be of interest (especially in the evenings), it was not the most appealing series of alcohol sellers that attracted me the most.

But a short walk along the tow path (in either direction) reveals some more traditional types of public houses that may well have been there back in the canals “hey-day” when they would have provided some rest-bite for the canal boat operators and their live aboard families.

Three that I “viewed” today are pictured here - purely to illustrate the variety of canal side pubs!

The first pictured is The Farmers Arms that is a lovely pub that has a “swing bridge” and a nice restaurant with some tables along side the canal back where I sat and enjoyed a quite drink in the sun earlier.

The second shown here is The Slipway that also has a swing bridge. Both these canal side pubs have their own slipway to give access to the canal for small boat users.

The Ship is a larger pub that is alongside the canal but does not have a waterside location - although it does run closely alongside the canal and has a large car park that seemed very busy (for a Monday afternoon!).

There was also a lot of intersting water-born birds to be seen too, enough to keep the “twitchers” happy as well.

I should have taken a decent camera with me so I could capture some more intersting “things” to share here, but on a hot day most of us cant be bothered to carry a heavy camera and telephoto lens, so these iPhon snap shots are all I have to illustrate today’s gongoozeling .

Bob.

@PhilH

You could well be right about the top speed of the average narrow boat Phil, they are not much faster than a brisk walking pace - some are slightly faster than others - but not that much faster !

Bob.

@Ronald

Your humour was not lost on me, but very much appreciated Ronald..

I spent a lot of my working life with German business’s and very much enjoyed their (generally unrecognised) sense of humour ….and I also enjoyed drinking a lot of beer with them too - both in Germany and here in the UK.

“Warm English Beer” (as it was referred to - by them) was generally enjoyed as a contrast to the usual chilled German beers that my German friends were used to drinking, and I enjoyed drinking their cold beers just as much when I was their guest too.

I very much miss my time with my German friends since I retired 11 years ago, but remember them and our various escapades together with much fondness.

Bob.

Hi i would have thought a barge would have top more like 4 -6 miles a hour
Philuk👍

@zooma
Bob, I think you may have overlooked my attempt at humour. Prost is the German phrase beer drinking like the phrase “ Cheers”or “Bottoms-Up”.

I don’t know what the top speed of a canal barge is Ronald,
but I would guess it would be too slow for water skiing at around 7-10mph ?

It’s not much more than walking speed from what I have seen over the years.

Bob.

@zooma

Like the image shows this vessel probably just “ Chugs” along. Prost 🍻!

They have lovely cructhes on them
Philuk👍

Another interesting narrow boat was this one that has an all steel welded front cover where a detachable canvas cover would be the norm.

This must make it a very secure boat, but access to the open air and ventilation at the front when cruising has been lost. Maybe it has air conditioning instead?

Nice paintwork though.

Behind it was another nice narrow boat with is roll-back canvas front cover, shown here for comparison.

Bob.