Battery Boost

January 2 2007

 

As a matter of routine now, I'm starting my boat engine once a week to keep the batteries happy throughout the winter months and indeed when the boat isn't being used. I had my first Boat Safety Certificate issued just before the Xmas break and I needed to hand over a cheque in payment to Roger Alsop who is HNAs boat safety examiner. The boatyard that he works in is about a ½ mile upstream of HNA HQ. Rather than just run the engine for about an hour I figured I might as well have a mini-cruise to the boatyard and drop the cheque off personally. It then would only require a winding to get back to base.

           What was it that Robbie Burns said? 

"The best laid plans o' mice and men" gang oft a-gley."

He must have known what was going to happen! Our usual winding point is the stinkhole, about midway between HNA and Wood, Hall and Heward--the boatyard.

I eased the nose of the boat into the stinkhole entrance, the plan being to bring the stern about and continue upstream backwards until I could alight at the boatyard.

Now, with a fairish breeze blowing downstream along with a steady current owing to the recent rains, I was always on a loser. Never mind the fact that I've got a steerer's ticket--I held it up to God and he just laughed in my face. The boat proceeded in a sideways manner--in fact every manner bar the one I was desirous of until I faced the fact that I was never going to cover that relatively short distance to my destination until my beard was brushing the tops of my shoes!             

I conceded to the almighty and turned the boat upstream once more. Within minutes I was tying up at the boatyard and wishing Tim Wood a Happy New Year. Cheque duly paid in, Tim advised me that just a bit further upstream was a spot only yards from Springwell Lock that I'd just be able to turn 180 degrees and this time the current would work in my favour !      

Sure enough, it went like clockwork, I held back as the nose of the boat was about to get intimate with the middle of the bridge spanning the inflow from the River Colne. At first nothing seemed to happen then imperceptibly, the bows crept round in the flow and faced downstream, it was then just a matter of applying a few revs and off I went back to the moorings. There's nothing to beat a little local knowledge. I've passed that spot countless times and would never have believed that 57'  of boat could turn round so effortlessly or indeed even fit between the banks!