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A boat in distress
Posted on: Monday October 21, 2019 at: 2:43 pm
We are currently moored at the lovely location of Tixall Wide. So called, I guess, because it is near a place called Tixall, and it is, well, wide!
Tixall Wide
However, this post is about an incident that happened yesterday. We moored up, over the weekend, at Weston. I chose the spot because we could get a good satellite signal to watch the Rugby World Cup quarter finals – although in some respects, I wish I hadn’t after the Ireland match on Saturday (huh!)
We were about 3/4 of the way through the Japan – South Africa match, and the result was becoming a foregone conclusion, when I heard a very loud and hard revving from a small hire boat that had just passed us. Looking out the window I saw this boat coming backwards towards us and the lady at the helm was shouting “help, I can’t stop”.
Fortunately it was a light boat and although it hit us full on, it wasn’t hard enough to do any damage. We quickly went to the bow of Brandy Pad, which was where the boat was now heading, and Helen grabbed their stern line, which we tied to our cleat and then I grabbed their bow line to tie to our hand rail. Then I asked them to switch off their engine, as it was still powering in reverse.
Needless to say the couple onboard were rather flustered and shaken by what had happened, but we calmed them down, before investigating the problem.
Lifting the floor boards to look into the engine compartment, it quickly became apparent what had happened. The Morse control, which is the lever that controls the gearbox and the engine, is a very simple device. You push it forwards, to go forwards, and pull it backwards to go in reverse. It has two cables that come from it – one to control the engine speed, and one that puts the gearbox in forwards, reverse or neutral. Their problem was one that happens to boats from time to time. The cable that controlled the gearbox had come partly adrift (they sometimes snap), and having put the boat in reverse immediately before this happened, it was no longer capable of controlling the gearbox. Hence whatever she did with the control lever, the boat was going to continue going backwards, only potentially faster.
This is why we carry a spare control cable, along with alternator drive belts and other spares. Once it happens to you, all you can do is stop the engine and hope you are not in a dangerous position at the time. Then you pole the boat to the bank.
In this case, the passengers called the emergency number the hire company had given them and someone soon turned up to repair the cable. We went for a Geocaching walk, and they had gone when we returned a couple of hours later.
Never a dull moment!
Rain stops play!
Posted on: Tuesday October 1, 2019 at: 1:56 pm
Well, this is a first. As I mentioned recently, we are currently on the River Weaver. We have been on this river several times and I have always considered it relatively benign. Just goes to show, never take anything for granted, because we are currently stuck here:
You will be aware of the recent heavy rain. Because of it, we have been laid up here since Sunday when they closed the river to navigation. Had we been a little bit earlier we could have got through, but now we are stuck here, below Dutton locks. Rats!
Barge pole keeps us away from the bank – hopefully!
The problem is compounded because not only is the flow too dangerous for navigation, we are also having to deal with the level going up and down. If the level comes up too much, we could potentially be washed onto the bank, so have had to take measures to try and avoid that.
Water has been rising above the edge of the bank
Although the Weaver is not tidal as such, it empties into the Manchester Ship Canal, which in turn empties into the River Mersey. The reason for the level going up and down so much is that we are apparently on an Equinox tide. That seems to be particularly high, which means they have to close the sluices between the Ship Canal and the Mersey to stop the Mersey flowing into the Ship Canal. This is turn means there is nowhere for the water in the Ship Canal to go, which then backs up onto the Weaver, hence we get, in effect, a high tide. Who knew?
Fortunately, we are moored up next to a water point, have plenty of fuel and are expecting a delivery from Tesco tomorrow – one of the conveniences of modern life.
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Problems you don’t have in a house!
Posted on: Wednesday January 16, 2019 at: 5:33 pm
There are few problems that can’t easily be overcome on a boat, but this is one of them.
Dish in an elevated position
This is our satellite TV dish. The observant amongst you may notice that it isn’t actually a dish. It is flat, consists of a serious of “phased receptors” and is very clever. When we switch it on, it elevates, hunts around for the satellite automatically and positions itself for best reception, assuming there aren’t any trees or buildings in the way. It can also find other satellites, which is great if you fancy swotting up on your Spanish, Portugese, Polish or various other languages.
Lowered dish
This is the unit in switched off mode. We chose this one as it is the lowest profile of all the units we have seen, meaning it is less likely to get caught on a bridge. Neat huh?
The problem is that the satellite is roughly 23,000 miles away, which means the dish has to be pretty accurate. Even a few degrees out means it won’t work. If the unit is pointing along the axis of the boat (to the bow or to the stern), things are fine as when the boat rocks, it merely rotates around the axis of the signal. However, if it is pointing side on, then the slightest movement tilts the dish off the signal completely resulting in loss of the picture. We have become quite adept at finding the best position to sit inside in such circumstances, and move around the boat carefully, as narrowboats rock very easily. (The rocking motion is one of the best things about living aboard.)
However, we do get to enjoy views like this one from the bow this evening:
Sunset in Calcutt Marina (click for a larger version)
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