Відео

Thanks Trev, that could be a really good idea in some places. I was using 4k video back then, which creates large files. But I've gone back to 1080p now, so it is easier - and even the long videos on this channel are usually no more than 3 or 4Gb. In those moorings where I'm really struggling to upload a video (and to be fair, there are not too many of those), I will copy the video to the phone and upload it from that instead, whilst I'm in town. What better excuse to pop into the local pub! Cheers Trev.

Believe me Mr C, there were times (when Dave and Di were working me like a dog) that if I had a gun, I would have been sitting in the corner cleaning it and thinking very dark thoughts! 🤣

To be honest Rob, those guys were determined to help me anyway. A queue was starting to build up and they were trying to get everyone through faster . So if it was skiving, it was forced skiving! I made a joke out of it, which I do about most things involved with boating to be honest, but I was pretty rough that morning for some reason, so I was certainly not going to refuse their help and slow everyone down! I can say I've helped to get other boats through locks many times when there was a queue. I always joke about it being a pain in the arse, but in summer as you know its a very sociable activity, and it really brightens up your morning.

@@the_boating_god I was joking btw :P

@@RobMoore01Yeah I protested a bit too much there! Guilty conscience... 🤣

The art of skiving is very much underrated Jeff! But I will say that for some reason, I was feeling low on energy that day. So my pathetic medical excuses were not entirely a fabrication Not entirely...

@@the_boating_god Yes indeed... an art that takes years of practice to get right! But I do believe you of course!!! (love the boating god name!)

Thanks a million for your very supportive and encouraging comment Brian! I wanted to also mention that if you feel these videos are a bit too long, I have a second channel where I post much shorter versions of them.

Thank you so much for your lovely comment. Sadly the UK roads are not yet set up for cyclists, and we must sometimes take a few chances to reach our destinations. But I fully realise how fragile I am at the age of 61, and I can't afford to take crazy risks on the roads, although I think it probably seems like I do. My achilles heel ( and probably what makes the videos more interesting), is that I have a limit of patience. Once I am properly fed up with the situation, I tend to lose my sense of control and perspective, and I must admit, then I am prone to doing stupid things, purely out of frustration. I was once detained at an airport because my bag did not come out on the luggage carousel. This was after a 24 hour flight delay, and I was not in a good mood when my suitcase did not appear on the luggage carousel. In my anger and impatience I climbed behind the barriers into the 'forbidden zone' in a desperate attempt to find my suitcase. The alarm sirens went off, and I was detained by a squad of police, but thankfully they understood my point of view and let me go, I wonder if it is this fragile temperament that makes my videos more interesting to the viewer?

Yes, you're probably right. It's expecting the unexpected that gives the videos an edge. Looking forward to the next one.

Haha, yes Mr C, those are wise words indeed. But I do worry that I have indulged a tad too much in the gift of beer. I had an incident at Coventry canal basin - it was back in Sept, so I've not reached that yet in the videos. My right foot swelled and became quite painful if touched, and Trev advised me that it sounded like gout. It subsided after a week or so, and I was able to move freely again, but I treated it as a shot across my bows, and I've reduced my weekly beer intake by about 60% since then. It seems we have a choice, once we get into our 60s. Option 1 is to carry on indulging all of our food and drink desires, and then to face some fairly serious consequences (of which my gout attack was probably the least serious). Option 2 is to throttle back on the beer intake, in the hope of living a decade or so longer, (and still be at least reasonably mobile). For the sake of my global audience, I am trying to take option 2, whilst not turning into a dour and miserable bugger.

Brian, I honestly can't thank you enough for your kind comment. It takes a lot of time and hassle to edit these videos- even the rough versions that I post on this channel. (Not to mention the very heavily-edited videos I post on my other channel.) And so it is really positive and really encouraging to know that there are a few folks out there who appreciate the time and effort that goes into editing them, and who are the same sort of wavelength as myself, to appreciate my daft sense of humour.

You are very kind, thank you. But I fear that the word 'spry' may be too generous. My cycling around England would surely be no less distasteful to behold if someone had decanted a large tub of lard into the seat of my bike, and filmed its progress along the country lanes.

back in grandpa's day you would have been regarded as, "portly", "barrel chested", "successful".

You phrasing is very kind, and I do appreciate that, but the harsh truth I must confront is that my current weight is way too high, and I really do have to take it more seriously. On the plus side, I have lost some weight since August when this video was filmed, but there is a lot more work to do. I will never be booked to appear on a catwalk, but it is almost a survival and longevity issue. If I even want to carry making videos for another decade, the time has come to address the elephant in the room. Pun very much intended 🤣

Its a great idea, next time I leave the boat I'm going to hide away something that can be tracked- even just an old phone if necessary. The battery only needs to last a few days. They fit tracker on cars costing 20k, so it makes sense to fit one on a boat costing twice that and more!

@@the_boating_god If you have an Apple phone you can get a tracker for about a tenner I think. battery lasts a long time.

I can assure you that I'm not motivated by money. My normal videos here get about 100 or 200 views. And my other channel is not monetised, even though it is eligible for monetisation. I opted not to show any ads as that would disrupt things for the viewer (although it seems that sometimes happens anyway). I make nothing from this or my other channel, and I spend many hours each week creating these videos as a personal interest. I could have posted this video on my main channel and it would have gotten twice as many views. But I opted to hide it away on this channel that nobody watches, in the hope that it would not get too many views. Because replying to rude comments is just too tiresome and negative an experience. If I wanted to earn a small amount of money, I could easily create a controversial video like this every week, give it a silly clickbait title, and in a year I'd have 5,000 subscribers. But what I'd also have is a ton of rude and ill-considered comments like yours. I don't normally post serious videos, and that is for a good reason. They attract too many negative comments, and they attract people who will not enjoy my normal light-hearted videos. So no, you could not be more wrong - this is absolutely not a financially driven channel. I earn nothing - not a penny- from this video, or any others. At least not in financial terms. But I do get the great pleasure of knowing that at least a few people enjoy watching them. This is a tiny, tiny channel. But I do know that most of the viewers here are on the same wavelength as myself. We want to be positive, and we like a laugh. One thing that you were correct about is that this is not the right channel for a person like you, and any future comments you make (other than a grovelling apology) will be banned. If you've forgotten what it means to be kind and to just enjoy a bit of absolutely pointless fun, then I can't help you.

Yes, I'm sure you're right, and I wonder if more boaters will start to consider placing some sort of tracking device on their boats. I do wonder whether the 4mm thick steel roof on most narrowboats might interfere with the signal from a tracker device- but there are other places you could hide a tracker on a boat. I'm pondering a tracker myself tbh. Boats are so easy to steal its ridiculous.

@@the_boating_god Would be curious to know if some have managed it, at least then it wouldn't matter what colour they painted it ha ha

I searched on the Canal World Discussion Forum and I couldn't find any mention of anyone fitting a tracker device. I'm definitely doing something though. Next time I leave my boat for more than 24 hours, I'm going to plant a phone or other device that has enough battery life to last for more than 2 days, and that can be tracked.

@@the_boating_god Worth a trial at least.

I saw a short video clip from 2018 showing a gang of young men kicking windows in on two narrowboats near Birmingham uni. Apparently the video was passed to the police and the uni, but the boat owner never heard anything back. Really sad to watch such wanton mindless destruction of other people's property.

I think the word 'stupid' is perhaps a little harsh, given I am not experienced in tackling rat infestation. But that aside, you do have a good point. I buried the rat anyway, so the birds should not be able to reach it. In this case the poison had not affected it at all - it was still very fast and lively, and it was the trap that got it. I agree that poison is a poor method as it endangers other animals - but also because it does not seem to affect the rats at all.

@@the_boating_god Not referring to you but the method ( as many see it ).Had a friend whose dog died due to poison left out for rats .With all the poisons ever produced immunity comes quickly They are able to loose a few and keep on going . Only two things really work a)keep all provisions well sealed and locked and same is true of trash .Saw a film yester day from a guy not seen in ages.The state of the canals was his theme So much trash in water etc a Costa del Rattus .He lives on a boat .Good luck .Depends on the area and stretch .His video are great..the greatest survivors on earth are the Rat and the cockroach .Meanwhile maybe consider a little dog lol Possibly not you have your hands full.Happy boating .I love canals being from UK

I always carry 4 to 6 bags in case of delays in reaching the next marina, or the fuel boat is delayed, etc. And there isnt room inside the boat for that many bags. What you have made me realise though, is that I need to cover up the bags on the roof with a tarp.

I do suspect that there are more people moving onto boats who are not hardened criminals, but who will steal opportunistically - things like bags of coal, or items left loose on the roof, etc.

It sounds kind of crazy, but thieves have gotten away with stealing boats more often than they failed - or at least they have in the past.

I've seen generators running on the towpath but chained to a boat lots of times, and in some regions I bet its considered the standard practice. If I ever use one, it will 100% be chained to the stern when running. And when stored away in the bow, I would install a security bolt so it could be chained there too. I think people can be lulled into a false sense of security in some regions, where the roaming thieves don't operate. On the Llangollen canal, for example, I never heard of theft, and I did see a couple of generators running on the towpath unsecured. And to be fair, they were probably safe in those places. But in other areas, such as London, I get the impression that it would be a lot more risky to leave a generator running on the towpath whilst not chained up.

Its interesting to hear that you feel crime is on the increase - I have a similar feeling, but not much hard evidence- and only 4 years aboard. On the other point, I don't pay attention to second hand stories about illegal immigrants killing swans. To be honest, it sounds very similar to the poisonous tripe that Trump was spouting about immigrants eating dogs, and that was based on a facebook story that the woman later admitted she just made up anyway.

Blimey! Cutting through the prop shaft - underwater, mind you - just to remove the prop itself? That is a lot of ingeniousness and determination, right there. I forgot to mention in the video - a boater told me last week that about a year ago he had his brass tiller handle pinched at a water point- and he was inside the boat for less than a 5 minutes. This was in the Midlands too.

Was this your panels?

@@the_boating_god no

The incidence of coal theft probably varies depending on your location, and tbh I am getting a bit more concerned about that as I move further south. But I dont want to be negative about youtubers, and especially because nearly all the ones I've met have been lovely people. But in many cases I suspect that their focus is on creating videos in a way that gets maximum views- especially if they need those views to earn an income. So they are probably tempted to focus more on showing people what will be popular, rather than trying to give a balanced overview of boat life as such. And to be fair, they have no obligation to portray a balanced and realistic overview of liveaboard life - they are just making videos about their own lives. So they're NOT telling lies, and they're not bad people in any way. But I think some of them shift the focus a bit, so to speak.

An old iPhone hidden in a boat would do the trick or a car tracker.

That's a great idea to be honest. I think many of those trackers require a monthly subscription cost, but for a boater who regularly leaves their boat unattended overnight, it's well worth it. I wonder if I can fit a tracker to each of my coal bags...

@@the_boating_god No an old IPhone set to find my phone costs nothing.

@@lablackzed , does it work with android phones too? Is a phone findable even when its battery has gone flat? And would it need to have an active SIM in it?

@the_boating_god Yes you can do it with android phone's even older android tablet's .

I find it really sad to hear these stories, especially when it looks like other boaters who did it. The guys who nicked the stove on the T+M know only too well what a nightmare that's going to be for the boater, to be without their stove just as it starts to get properly cold. And it had to be a boater in your case too - no ordinary householder has any use for a boat chimney. As you say, there are a few really nasty people on boats.

They nicked a half-full toilet? Yuck. But it goes to show, as you say, that basically anything is fair game. I spoke to a young boater in a GRP who had his mooring pins stolen on the Bridgewater a few months ago. The thief had very kindly tied his boat to a nearby rail, so at least it didnt drift off!

I agree with you on that, and as I mentioned in the video, I think the reason for my perception of increasing crime could well be down to me hearing more about boat crime recently. As I described in the video, I never heard much at all about theft by boaters in my three years up north so my guess is that although its not crime-free, it is not a frequent issue up there. But in the midlands (and just in the last 2 months), I've heard of two boat thefts, a stove theft, coal theft, and a number of other issues. One does start to wonder if there is a regional difference in boat related crime, or a wider trend going on, or nothing at all. Maybe its me getting spooked by a flurry of reports, as I said in the video.

abu dhabi is pretty close

I haven't heard much discussion about crime on youtube lately, although Trev showed us a pretty graphic example a few years back when he faced up to a couple of young scumbags on the towpath. On one hand I want to show the truth about canal life, in all its aspects. But on the other hand, I am aware that sometimes when we hear a few repeated accounts about problems, we can get spooked out of proportion to the actual threat. And maybe thats what happened to me. So I dont want to exaggerate, but I do have a sense that crime is on the increase in the last few years, and so I think its worth reminding boaters that not all the boaters out there are good guys. Some are really bad. You know me well enough by now Mr C to know that this is not a quest for views. Ultimately I dont care if this is watched by 100 people or 10,000. In fact I find that the more viewers these videos get, the more hassle it is, and the more chance you get of people posting tactless or even rude comments. So I would prefer if it stays under a thousand viewers. I was going to create a more polished 5-10 minute version of this for my other channel, and it may have gotten a few thousand views, but the truth is it will probably not be worth the hassle!

You'll never guess - I moved location today to Rugby, and so far this evening I haven't heard a peep from the cratch, AND the trap hasnt been touched. I'm starting to think the rats were a local crew based around the moorings at Brinklow. If that's true, it means they havent set up home in my cratch. But I'll find out either way when I empty it all out to have a sort out next week.

I will be honest Mr C- if the trap had not half-killed the poor animal before my arrival, I think it might have gotten the better of me. The rat's end was exactly like a combat scene from Gladiator, with me brandishing my blade above its head, ready to deal the death blow. But it does makes me think- perhaps I should enrol in gladiator school as preparation for the next encounter. And sadly there will be one - last night there were more scritching noises in the cratch, about an hour after dark. I left a trap in near the bow doors, but the animal (or animals) might be getting wise.

I suppose one could resort to such unfeasibly early starts, but being awake at 6am has a negative impact upon several of my chakra. So its a religious thing, in a sense. One does occasionally see (or rather hear) these people chugging past at deeply antisocial hours of the morning (and sometime at very late hours). But my already fragile popularity can't afford to take that kind of a hit.

My dear Mr C, I only wear the long trousers because I am forbidden by law to wear any form of trouser which would expose my horribly white and knobbly knees. The law applies in any public place where people might reasonably be expected to be eating. And I do own some shirts that are lighter of fabric, and shorter in the arm- but sadly all of those garments had long since been removed from front line service, on the grounds that they were so utterly filthy that I might have caught leprosy from them. I'm sure some tiresome chap from sub-saharan Africa will pop up and tell me that it was hotter over there, but on that particular afternoon I'm pretty sure Glascote was the hottest point on Earth, if not the solar system. Fortunately I've never complained about weather in any of my videos.

I'm moored up alone, at the top end of the Oxford canal and there's not a boat in sight. AND its a full moon! 😱 If I dont make it through the night, I want you to look after my imaginary shipmate Wilson. He always speaks very fondly of you. Next destination is Rugby, where I will finally be reunited with my dear beloved M+S. No human being should have to go without garlic and coriander beef for this long.

@the_boating_god Wilson already knows he's welcome here.. Thank you for the update. It's so annoying to watch you in lovely weather when I'm freezing to death 🤣. Nice video Tony. I particularly liked the abrubt ending 🙃. I'd just got settled and whoosh you were gone!. Just think M&S have probably got all the lovely Xmas goodies in 😊

I love the M+S xmas range. Its a good job they dont call them pigs in duvets, because I'd feel uncomfortable. It's essentially what I am in winter.

Once again Marvel, I must give you my sincere thanks for your kind words, I truly appreciate it. I know that in future years when I am too old to cruise, I will be so glad that I took the time to create these longer style videos that I can look back on. And I will be grateful that people like you encouraged me to do the work of creating them.

Why thank you very much for that tip. I have thought of a few different ways of keeping the windlass on me when I'm doing a few locks. A long time ago I actually got a leather holster thingy from Etsy, but my windlass handle tip is so wide that its a real faff squeezing it through the hole in the holster, and so in the end I just started tucking the windlass into my belt, but your idea sounds good. On that lock I was badly distracted by trying out the tracking feature on my camera gimbal, and thats why I forgot the windlass - but to be honest, I have forgotten it a good few times before then!

Why thank you Marvel - these longer videos seem to take forever to edit, so it really helps to keep me motivated when people say nice things like that.

Hi Peter, I'm glad you enjoyed the video, and and thanks very much for your kind comment! Just a thought - I do realise these videos are quite long for youtube, and so just in case you prefer shorter videos, I do have a second channel where I post much shorter versions of the videos you can see on this channel.

I'm doing the next part of this video soon showing those two locks, so I'll check it out and see if I can see the housing development. I dont it recall at the moment, but it was a couple of months ago. I do miss the Robin - what an incrdible icon of British motoring that was... And the Bond Bug for that matter. As a small kid I thought the Big was the coolest car ever. Until I saw the Lamborghini Countache!

I know - the longer videos are quite a marathon! But I personally prefer making these ones, because they are more realistic in terms of what cruising feels like, and in future years when I'm too knackered to cruise, I'll be able to look back on them as a more detailed record of my travels, compared to the 20 minute vids on the other channel, where I have to cut out most of the footage from each cruise, and just leave in any highlights or fun bits. The long videos are certainly not for everyone, but there are some subscribers who actually prefer to see more of the raw footage, even if its not particularly exciting or fast paced. But this issue does bring to mind my general approach, even on the shorter videos, of leaving too much footage in the video that is not very exciting. But there's no point changing my approach - well at least there is no financial incentive. Back in 2015 when there were hardly any channels, people would watch almost any canal content, and in very large numbers. But now there are scores of YT canal channels (if not hundreds) creating well-produced videos, and its very difficult to gain large numbers of viewers- unless you are young and attractive, and you sell a dream, or a story. There are some I really like and think are very genuine, like Boat Time and Holly the Cafe Boat, but I feel they are the exceptions. And even if you do make a success of selling the narrowboat dream to a larger number of viewers, your life and work probably then revolve around making videos. Which is fine if there is a reward or recompense- but there just isn't these days, what with the large number of channels, and the miserly way that YT operates. So my thinking is that you might as well make the videos exactly the way you want. I just switch on the cameras, and whatever happens, happens. Or not! Dont get me wrong though - if a financial reward ever looks likely, then I will be happy to adapt the other channel to have a wider appeal (this one will always stay as it is). I'm ready to sell out - its just that they don't pay me enough! 🤣

First watch … pretty good video … feeling a bit confused though … 🙂

Hi Peter, and thanks for your comment. These cruises often confuse me to be honest, so its not surprising a viewer would also be confused! But do feel free to ask, I'm more than happy to explain anything in the video that is confusing. Also, just to mention- if these videos are a bit too long, and if you do prefer a more normal and shorter type of video, I have another channel where I usually post shorter versions of these ones: www.youtube.com/@theamateurboater5892

There you go....just past Balls Bridge. 33:38 is where I visited. That line of moored boats are my friends. Yes, the purple boats both belong to a married couple. The last boat where you mentioned electric and water you can see other friend's wood-heated hot tub on the dock. Their pups run that field every morning.The Tame Otter is a few short blocks. I had groceries and hot food delivered to that bridge. There is no wilderness in England. 😁

No wilderness in England, you say? There are thousands of square miles of England that are not with walking distance of a Waitrose supermarket. What else can those areas be called, if not wilderness? But it was interesting to learn that my guess was right about those two purple boats belonging to a couple. Your mooring there is a really nice little spot- and I do mean really nice, even by canal standards. I didnt stay there, but I could see Hopwas was a genuinely nice location, and I was seriously tempted to stay. In fact, if it had been winter, I totally would have stopped there. But my problem is that I'm getting a taste for a more mobile lifestyle. And since I'm retired (unless and until circumstances change for the worse), there is no single town, or mooring spot, that outweighs the benefit of being able to move every week or two. Since our disastrous and tragic decision to leave the EU, I can no longer travel the continent freely and cheaply (with full health insurance cover etc)- but I'm hoping there will be other ways to make prolonged visits to that amazing continent- even when I am too old to travel there in a motorhome or a car. But for the next few years, my boat will be open for visitors from all continents, and that includes the continent of Florida.

That is such a perceptive comment- I must say that. I hadn't considered that issue before now, but the pace of life on the waterways is so slow that I do have to mentally shift into a faster gear, in order to function as a road user when I go into towns. I become aware again that car drivers are mainly interested in reaching their destination asap - and it can be so congested at times that any other issue is of no interest to them. I suppose one perspective you could take is that I've become more slow-witted since living on a boat and spending so much time in quiet places with little road traffic. But I tend to agree with you - its not such a bad thing if you adjust to a slower pace of movement and less noise. And it must be one of the reasons why I was attracted to this lifestyle in the first place. Its not just about being able to move your house around the country (although that is a big factor) - it is being able to get away from the noise, the rush, and the crowds.

Oh dear, I imagine the other viewers were doing the same then... Well this is all very embarrassing. What you dont realise Leigh, with your perfect memory, is that all I could think about was the two choux buns from M+S sitting in my pannier. With custard filling, dammit. I'm only human. Well, partly pig.

@@the_boating_god 😂😂😂 On a serious note. I think you do really well on your road travels. I have heard other boaters say that it can be very overwhelming around heavy traffic. I can imagine that it could be after living the quiet life on the boats. You handle it well, but then you are the boating God 😉😂. Hope ya enjoyed ya buns. Bet there's cream down ya shirt 🤣🤣

Those custard choux buns were so delicious, OMG. I dont know how they're even legal. I ate them so fast that I think I would have eaten half my shirt if I spilled any of the filling on it. But there's something even worse. Waitrose do something called Keralan chicken, it was so lovely that after I moved away from Northwich I used to lie awake at night sobbing. But yes, you are right that it can be a jarring experience visiting a busy town after 3 or 4 weeks of very quiet life on the water. Big towns like Manchester are where you feel it most. Small to medium towns like Tamworth aren't so bad, except in rush hour. I do enjoy cycling though, so its no problem for me visiting places by bike. Rather than by van, for example 🤣

@@the_boating_god For now anyway 😉

I actually wondered about touring by motorbike, but then I realised that if I fell off I'd break everything and be in hospital for months. I'm so out of shape, the accident scene would look like a lorry had spilled a pallet of lard 🤣

Well you made me smile there Mr C. Perhaps I am becoming a pampered country boater, who doesn't know a traffic jam when he sees one. But I must offer my sincere apologies to any viewers who suffered from involuntary drooling during the video. I'm afraid that spontaneous drooling is one of the risks of watching this channel.

Thanks for your comment, and I appreciate your concern. I think the problem is that I'm lazy and I use the electric motor every time I ride the bike- so I dont build up any level of fitness. And that means as soon as I actually have to do some hard pedalling or effort (as in this case when the motor stopped), I am very quickly panting hard - especially going up a hill. What I think I need to do is to turn off the electric motor for say half of each journey, and do some work myself in order to develop some basic level of fitness. It also doesnt help that the camera is mounted within about 6 to 8 inches of my mouth, so it picks up even the slightest breathing sound I make.

I must thank you Marvel for your kind comment. It is great to know that there are some people out there who enjoy seeing more detail of the cruising, which I can shown in these longer videos.

Do you mean one of those death bats? That's a cracking idea Mr C. I do actually have one of those that sees frequent action during the summer evenings, and I think it would be a great idea to keep it handy on the stern when cruising in the warmer months. If you mean one of those static plug-in types, I'm afraid I'd be pessimistic about their effectiveness. I could lead a mains cable and a socket out of the cabin, but I'd be very worried about rain showers with a live socket on the deck somewhere. Also, I believe that they rely on emitting repellent odours or chemicals, right? In anything more than a 10mph breeze I think the chemicals would be dispersed too quickly, so you would lose the repellent effect. The problem with the horseflies is that they are the stealthiest little bastards I've ever seen (apologies for my bad language - talking about horseflies brings out my inner chimp). They land so lightly on the skin that if you are even slightly distracted you probably wont feel it. I had no idea that a horsefly had landed on me that day until I started editing that bit of footage just a few days ago. And I presume their bite is almost completely painless, because the couple of times I was bitten I have no memory of any sensation. As usual, you have prompted me to consider a better solution. The livestock-grade repellent that I use is probably a bit too dangerous for me to spray so liberally on all my exposed skin, so what I really need is a spray-on product that is very, very effective, but also safe. Time for some google research...

To be honest, if I can help even one person to avoid the expensive mistakes I made, I'll be very happy. Buyers dont dwell on this issue at buying time, but a repair will be needed sooner or later for most ebikes, and within a few years. I really think buyers need to give some thought to where they will take the bike if/when this happens. When a pro bike shop told me they werent insured to repair it, I think they were fobbing me off. But it is worrying. Also, my battery is totally custom to fit the frame, so when it dies, I cant get another one anywhere on the planet. I'll have a real problem to sort out. Nowadays, I'd advise boaters to buy at Halfords- they have branches all over the country, and lots of them are based close to the waterways. Also, maybe avoid unique or custom-made batteries.

Why thank you for such a kind comment, I very much appreciate it! None of us are perfect of course, and certainly not me, but I do appreciate your kind thoughts.

Hi there- I've been living aboard since August of 2020, so a bit more than four years now. It feels like it has flown by, which is very strange!

Why Janet, that is a lovely compliment. If I were not so utterly shameless I would blush! I must say I am impressed with your knowledge of canal construction too. To my shame, I didn;t even realise that the canal arm near to the Plough was actually the start of the old Lichfield canal! It would be fantastic they can complete the restoration - it would be great to see boats coming into the city of Lichfield itself. But I fear the lock rebuilding may slow things down a bit, they are very complex. Its such a lovely area, I will definitely be coming back that way some time- but there are lots more canals to see first! .