Victor tells the claim is rubbish

I JUST wonder what you think about the claim that a a marina is so 'quiet around that you’ll think you’re in the middle of nowhere'.?

That has the eight lane M1 Motorway a few hundred yards away, (as seen on the map)' a motorway feeder road running along its boundary, two railways within two miles and a major airport within three miles?

One of the railways is the main line from Sheffield to London St. Pancras and the other a freight line running through the night.

But what is the most startling are the many planes taking off from East Midlands Airport at full throttle when the wind is in the right direction, or coming down low to land when in the other direction. Especially so many in the holiday season.

Would you agree to having the Floating Home being ['It’s] so quiet around Sawley that you’ll think you’re in the middle of nowhere'. Yet the noise never stops!

We who have suffered the marina for many a year don't believe it, for I reckon it's likely the noisiest inland marina in the country.

That's why

If you are wondering why we stuck it  for so many years it's because our boat has steel doors and just one window in the sleeping quarters that I can assure you was fastened tight shut—whatever the weather, so kept some noise out.

You get used eventually to the everlasting noise of the motorway, and with ear plugs for the night.

And as I mentioned previously an easy trip down the M1 to get to it.  But now moved to real peace and quiet.

Steam ship at risk of bankruptcy

The often failing swing bridges on the Weaver could put the 120 year old steam ship The Daniel Adamson at risk of bankruptcy.

Caused by the ever-failing swing bridges and their many stoppages leading to the number of cancelled trips this summer and the ship cannot even get off the river because of closures, with the Chairman of the Daniel Adamson Preservation Society, Stuart Wood, telling it is down to 'poor maintenance'.

The reported structural issues in the Acton, Sutton Weaver and Vale Royal swing bridges, caused around a £45,000 loss in income, as the company had to cancel numerous cruises at the last minute, as stoppage notices appear closing the bridges, and then having to refund money for the cancellations.

This is deadly serious, putting the 'Danny' out of business. It is a maritime heritage item of the highest value, being number 15 on the National Ships Historic Register, along with the likes of HMS Great Britain and HMS Belfast, and the only one used and not sat gathering dust.  A real attraction, not just a trip boat, but people coming from all over the UK to experience a trip aboard this 1903 icon.

The 'Danny' arrived back at its base, near Frodsham, at the beginning of June following a trip to Liverpool, and then Canal & River Trust trapped it at Sutton Weaver after finding faults in its bridges, facing the wrong way and unable to turn due to its size.

There is no intimation as to when the swing bridges can be operational again. Canal & River Trust tell that Acton and Sutton Weaver bridges' swing mechanism is kept in a flotation tank.  However, due to 'intense rainfall' earlier in the year, run-off from the busy road above has seeped into part of the tank, causing an 'imbalance in the structure'. The high temperatures in June resulted in the expansion of the metal bridge decks that did not help matters

So there you have it. And of course there's also the lack of cash reason/excuse from CaRT.

Insurance

Over the past few weeks I've been trolling boat insurances, and come up with some strange conditions, that I'm not going to bore you with, finding those that seem to give most cover and the least conditions for narrowboats at a sensible price, that are registered with the Financial Conduct Authority and have many years in the business.

The agent that comes way ahead is Newton Crum Insurance, with over 64 years of providing insurance to a colossal number of boat owners across the UK.

With very competitive premiums and exceptional coverage at a remarkable price, it in fact provides our own insurance coverage. So we picked the right one some 20 odd years ago! 

I discovered It has a dedicated in-house claims department providing assistance when you need it most and has a reputation for settling claims quickly as can be seen from the thousands of letters of thanks it receives from grateful boat owners, that I had sight of.

So for the first time ever I'm going to recommend an insurer—Newton Crum Insurance.

Watch what you are buying

Most of us have fenders on our narrowboats to give a measure of  protection to the hull paintwork, and of course want them to last. Which makes it essential to get a decent brand, and especially the type that doesn't rip apart under pressure.

This means one with a decent steel washer at the bottom not one with nothing, as the knot holding the fender will simply pull through the fender and be lost.

Nowadays there are many second rate fenders turned out of China with neither washer nor with rope thick enough to stand any decent strain, so watch what you are buying.

Both the two illustrated fenders are of poor quality, the one with the washer having a rope that is too thin to take any strain and so be lost, (we put in a thicker rope) and the other so poor that it was possible to squeeze the fender, and so the rope simply ripped through it making it useless.

Victor Swift—telling tales for 23 years.