Maritime News

35 Inland Waterways Vessels Lost During Recent Storms

October and November saw Storms Babet, Ciaran and Debi pound the UK with the loss of 35 inland waterways vessels according to River Canal Rescue (RCR). Boats succumbed to rising water levels on several canals and rivers.

RCR Managing Director, Stephanie Horton said:

“Boats either couldn’t cope with the deluge of rain, were unable to rise in line with increasing water levels due to too tight ropes, or in the case of one call-out, sunk after trying to turn in strong currents, ended up listing and catching a tree stump where water overwhelmed the vents.  A number were swept down river when flood waters and flow increased, depositing them, semi- submerged and miles from their home location”.

Stephanie  went on to advise: “With our winters predicted to become even wetter, it’s important to prepare for stormy weather and check your insurance is adequate”.

Story Credit: Narrowboat World

Storm Damage To UK Canal Network Costs Millions

The Canal & River Trust responded to the damage left by Storm Babet in which hundreds of trees were blown down and the canal network suffered structural damage including towpaths being washed away.

Richard Parry, chief executive of the C&RT said : “Storm Babet will leave the canal network with a bill likely to be in the £millions. This illustrates the increasing expense of keeping the canal network safe and open at a time when funding from the government is reducing in real terms and ahead of the steep future cuts they announced earlier this year. These extra costs are becoming increasingly commonplace as the changing climate takes its toll. Without adequate funding, they will lead to some canals’ gradual deterioration and eventual closure”.

Story credit: Towpath Talk 

Links to both of these stories are in Further Reading.

Boat Chat Focus - Winter Is Coming

The leaves are almost all off the trees, the nights are drawing in and the shops have set up their Christmas displays.  Boat Chat can ignore it no longer - winter is coming!  Winter means many things to many people; the thought of mince pies, mulled wine, Christmas carols and an extra-large Radio Times may be all you need to sustain you.  For the boaters out there a very different set of priorities force their way into the idle mind.  Antifreeze, trickle charging, dehumidifiers and chafe will all gnaw at the subconscious mind.  ‘Did I top up the fuel tank and switch the bilge pump to automatic…?’

 “Si vis pacem para bellum”

In these turbulent times a recent TV news report showed a demonstrator’s t-shirt with the phrase “Si vis pacem para bellum”  which broadly translates as ‘if you want peace prepare for war’.  This struck a chord with Boat Chat; perhaps we should evolve this into a more maritime focussed adage:

‘If you want peace of mind, prepare for the storm’

We’ve talked about Closing Up lists in previous Boat Chats and their important role in making sure you do all the jobs you need to do when putting your boat to bed.  This helps you sleep soundly at night, knowing that your boat is prepared to slumber peacefully while you aren’t there and is ready to deal with whatever mother Nature throws at it.  Preparing your boat for winter storage is just a special version of the same list.  In the same way that Christmas dinner simply means cooking a slightly larger Sunday roast than normal…

So how should we prepare our boats for winter and what should be on the Winter Closing Up List?  That depends on what your boat is, where your boat is and how long your winter is likely to be.  Of course the best thing for any mechanical system is to stay in use on a regular basis.  Winter sailing can be a magical experience when the weather is favourable as the rivers and coast tend to be so much quieter.  For the liveaboards amongst you this is your daily routine.

However if storage ashore for several months is the norm for your boat then a centrally heated, under cover storage garage is ideal, but isn’t likely to be an option for many!  The quality of boat storage ashore varies from tucked away little yards up quiet creeks to wide open marinas exposed to prevailing winds.  Each yard will have its own storage policies to suit their environment (mast up / down, cradles vs props, cross bracing or not, shore power or not and so on).

A Winter Closing Up list needs to be tailored to your boat, your location and your intentions.  To help prompt the right sorts of question on what needs doing on your boat, Boat Chat has pulled together a suggested Winter Closing Up list which covers most of the likely jobs for most of the scenarios for most of the boats.

It is free to download from the White Hat Marine Surveying blog:

Boat Maintenance Tips

If the prospect of a full Winter Closing Up list is too daunting then the most important thing is to make sure your boat doesn’t sink when you’re not on board. Here are my 5 essential habits to stop your boat sinking.

Mid-Life Gap Year?

It was great to re-connect recently with previous survey client Dave Hartley for whom I surveyed a delightful 2003 Liverpool Boats 55’ trad stern narrowboat called ‘Pedestal’. 

Dave has grasped the opportunity to take a mid-life gap year and travel the UK’s canal network with his partner plus their dog and cat.  If you need to read something calming that tells of life at a different pace and with very different priorities than the rest of us endure, read his Gap Year....Afloat blog at:

https://davehartley20.wordpress.com

Book Review

An excellent book giving you plenty of information on the maintenance and repair of narrow boat engines is from River Canal Rescue Managing Director, Stephanie Horton mentioned in Maritime News. Most of the engines found in narrow boats are also commonly found in yachts and smaller motor boats and this book serves both fleets. It’s a great read and primer for anyone new to engine maintenance.

🎄Christmas Is Coming 🎄

Find Inspiration For Presents

It’s December and the number of shopping days until Christmas is dwindling FAST. If you need inspiration and present ideas for the boat owner or marine surveyor in your life or as a treat for yourself check out our collection of great ideas at Kit.Co 

Boaty Terminology

Heaving to –Stopping a sailing vessel by lashing the helm in opposition to the sails. When sailing on a given tack, tack the boat but do not tack the jib and then put the tiller back again as if trying to tack back.  Lash the tiller / wheel to the downwind side of the cockpit.  The jib will try to drive the boat off the wind whilst the rudder pushes it back up.  In this state of balance the vessel will gradually drift to leeward‚ the speed of the drift depending on the vessel's design.

Links To Further Reading

How To Support Boat Chat

Boat Chat’s mission is to ‘Help People Understand Boats Better’ by looking at what is going on in the world of boating. Helping people make sense of current maritime events, offering suggestions on how to make the best / minimise the worst boating outcomes and reviewing books and products of interest to boaters.

The easiest way to support Boat Chat is by buying us a beer at:

BUYMEACOFFEE.COM

N.B. Links to products in this newsletter are typically Amazon Affiliate Links which may earn Boat Chat a small commission should you buy them using the link (this does not affect the cost you pay).