canal boats across the channel

[catmandoo]

In today's Times there is a report that a couple of OAP's sailed a 60 ft flat bottomed canal boat across the channel .

Why does it take a couple of pensioners to lead the way in this example of extreme Britishness . Surely all you young bloods so deft with your PC's and Laptops should have thought of it first and done it . Huh ?????

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[LadyInBed]

Met a lady OAP liveaboard on the Midi in 1995, she had had her British canal boat transported across to France.

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[poggy]

Hi,

Us young ones want to live long enough to be OAP's !!!!!.

Poggy

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[supermalc]

More than likely had a death wish.......or were senile.

I'm old and fed up as well.

<hr width=100% size=1>Malcolm.

 

[Jools_of_Top_Cat]

Didn't somebody try this from Jockland to the Isle Of Man and go missing on route

<hr width=100% size=1>Julian

<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.topcatsail.co.uk>Top Cat Homepage</A>

 

[oldsalt]

Jockland?! Careful..Kilroysilk got sacked for less...!! There was a canal boat that went to the Scillies..

http://www.waterways.org.uk/library/waterways_mag/2003/nov/iwanews.htm#Back from the Scillies via Bude


<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[Avocet]

I've got a video of some nutter from a company called "Lee Sanitation" taking one across Liverpool bay from the Dee estuary to the Lune estuary to go up the Lancaster canal! At least he had a safety boat with him but it looks a bit scary where he meets a bit of wind-over-tide in the Mersey!

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[victor_meldrew]

This 'nutter', Chris Coburn, has already done the Channel trip in his narrow-boat 'Progress' possibly 7 or 8 years go. Featured extensively on TV at the time, spawned a whole series which is now re-run regularly on one of the Discovery channels. Actually made the trip from the upper Thames to Brussels to protest against a road development that would mean that some ancient Midlands canal could never be reopened

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[andy_wilson]

Loads of flat bottomed narrow boats have done this over the years, and completed UK coastal passages to reach disconnected parts of the inland waterways system, many of which would be potentially more testing than a 23 mile channel crossing eg

Mersey to Glasson

Humber to The Wash

Wash to the Broads

Broads to The Thames

Thames to Dover

A customer of mine with a steel fabrication business built a boat for retirement and took it across The Channel this summer.

It was broad beam but still not sea-going. he got insurance for a crossing in F-2 only.

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[graham]

Re:I take my hat off to them.

They planned it carefully got off their arses and did it.

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[charles_reed]

Time rich, cash improverished

- speaking from experience - is the situation of most retired people.

You'll find retired folk doing all sorts of "daring" things.

Necessity is the mother of invention.

By the way I'd treat with utmost caution anything printed in the Times - IMHO it's unlikely to have been properly researched or corroborated.

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[Keen_Ed]

Well, someone has sailed a modified narrowboat across the Atlantic, so should crossing the channel be seen as such a big deal?

http://iwn.iwai.ie/v29i2/ifrances.PDF

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[alant]

Since no age given, this presumably means they were decrepid & at least 55! What's so bloody special about them being "OAP's".
The news surely is that someone did it in a canal boat! Put a few planks over the side of course & this would change it into a 'Botter'

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[colvic]

Have seen over a dozen "British" narrow boats between L'Havre and Arles. Been done many times.


Phil

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[waterboy]

Once saw a spectacular photograph pf a narrowboat passing Beachy Head. The boat was cresting a wave with the front half right out of the water. We don't hear of too many narrowboats sinking mid channel ot the RNLI tut tutting for that mattwer. Good luck to them.

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[muchy_]

Nothing unusual in that. Last summer I saw a Dutch narrowboat on the Broads so its not just our narrowboats making the trip.
And theres me wondering if I should attempt it in my Seamaster 30...Gawd!


<hr width=100% size=1>