David: At last—the Basingstoke

THE Basingstoke Canal re-opened in 1991—we even attended the celebrations—but every time we have tried to cruise it in the past something has stopped us—usually shortage of water or the Thames being in flood.

This year we finally succeeded, albeit three weeks later than we had intended as a result of a medical emergency. Although we live near the canal and have walked it often you get a different perspective from a boat and we thoroughly enjoyed the trip.

Only at week-ends

To access the canal you have to book and the locks can only be used at weekends, which means that you have to spend a fixed amount of time on the waterway. The locks were easy to operate, especially on the Deepcut Flight, where a lot of money has been spent replacing gates and paddles.

They do have a problem with debris behind the bottom gates of some of the lower locks, which can make two-boat operation difficult—I am assured that this is being dealt with and a boater who had gone up the previous week (actually it was CaRT Trustee John Dodwell—good to see a trustee out and about on the system) said that it had not been a problem then.

No serious problems

There are a few shallow spots and some weed in the lower reaches, but nothing caused serious problems. In fact the cruising was a lot better than the lower end of the Chesterfield, which we did last year, where the weed sometimes brought us to a standstill and there was almost nowhere you could reach the bank to moor.

I cannot think of another canal which is so beautifully wooded—you would not know that you are passing through fairly densely populated areas. Woking slipped by almost unnoticed. (As shown in the photograph.) Earlier this year falling trees caused a major landslip a few miles from the end of the canal, but they have managed to clear it sufficiently to allow boats to get past—it must have been a major operation and all credit for having done it so quickly.

Thoroughly enjoyed

Altogether we thoroughly enjoyed the cruise and would be very happy to do it again—especially if the water supply problems can be solved to allow less restricted access. The Basingstoke Canal Authority and the volunteers who restored and now maintain the canal are entitled to our grateful thanks for a new cruising experience. Only the Ribble Link and the Lancaster left now!

Pump-out Cards

Whilst in Limehouse Basin I went to buy a pump-out card from the office—£15. I then mentioned that I was only buying it as a reserve and was told that it would only work in their machine, so I had a refund. Since the marina in the basin, to which the pump-out belongs, is a BWML one, this seems quite lunatic. When I asked if they were not the same organisation as CaRT, he said "Well, sometimes"! So be warned, check whether the pump-out cards you buy will actually work everywhere—or not.

While on the subject, the Basingstoke only charges £5 for its pump-out machine at Mytchett and the EA £8 for its on the Thames, which exposes for the black lie it is, that CaRT's £14.85 is driven by market forces.