THE article on boating at the present time has raised quite a few comments, with boaters being somewhat surprised, with Martin Howes well summing it up.
I don't know how far into his five months cruise Peter Ponting is, but he is likely to have over-wound himself well before the end of it judging by his experiences so far.
Not all private
Firstly, not all boats without a telephone number and fleet owner on the side are private boats, so he needs to be a little more open minded. The hirer who informed him that he was subsidising private boats was probably not far from the truth!
I dare say that he would not have objected to the Grand Union above Catherine de Barnes being relieved of the 'large objects' which impeded his progress, but being held up by the activity of British Waterways staff doing that at Fradley annoyed him. One needs to be philosophical at such times, and be grateful for the maintenance that is done. Little used urban canals come very low down the maintenance/cleaning schedules.
Tightest and blindest
The bridge at Weston is probably one of the tightest and blindest(?) on the system, and the moorings are signed and located well away from the bridge. Experience steers the boater away from such sites, and often it is not speed that causes collisions, which were no doubt side scrapes, but navigating a tight bend in adverse conditions, especially if negotiating other moving craft makes it all but impossible to avoid vulnerable boats.
Take a little more time, Peter, and look for moorings more out of the way of popular pubs and shopping areas, and you will enjoy your cruising much more.