Category: Continuous Cruising

Living on a continuous cruiser on the UK canal system under CRT rules.

Adding to narrowboat battery bank

Over the course of the last few weeks, I’ve been planning to upgrade the electrics of Bonnie Lady narrowboat.

One of the first jobs has been to add to the battery bank

Battery Bank

Is a collection of batteries which feed the boat and all the appliances on it.

Currently, we have 2 AGM 120ah leisure batteries in the bank. (There’s a starter battery, since none of the appliances run off this, I’ve not included it. It starts the engine. End of).

agm-leisure-battery-lp120
Due to the ‘live-on’ nature of the boat, this really isn’t enough:-

  • If you want to watch telly
  • If you want to be able to charge your computer, run printers, charge hoovers etc.
  • If you’re planning on having solar panels fitted

Solar panels will charge 4 leisure batteries during the course of a sunny day and less on more covered, cloudy conditions. The more batteries in the bank, the more cushion you have to soak up and store excess energy when it’s available. This may be through running the engine, or through the solar panels. When it’s raining, and you end up sitting around the boat all day with the lights on using the internet, you’ll really appreciate the difference!

Adding batteries to the battery bank

Major considerations are:- Continue reading “Adding to narrowboat battery bank”

Weedon -> Dodford

Or thereabouts…

Dodford - Grand Union
Spot Bonnie

This is my new home. It’s perhaps 800m from the car. A little way.

Flore Bypass

There is a meadow opposite and some constructions where they are building the new road connecting the A45 to the M1, bypassing Flore, which it currently runs right through…

The A45 is a noisy, busy road. They are building some new houses in Flore, so I guess it’s going to alleviate residents concerns by removing a lot of the ‘through’ traffic.

It’s very peaceful and there is a meadow opposite, meaning you get a few butterflies coming over.

Pretty uncommon in modern day Britain. I’d seen moths, but these were my first butterflies this year.

They weren’t Red Admirals or anything, Purple Hairstreak according to this website.

Here’s a picture of where I’m located now.

 

Continue reading “Weedon -> Dodford”

Stowehill -> Weedon

Now just on the outskirts of Weedon. Weedon Bec I think they call this place. It’s all very peaceful apart from some horrible yapping dogs which belong to the permanent moorers pictured on the left and side of this photograph.

They’re on the other side of the canal, or I might be tempted to give one of the little shits a swift boot in the head as I walk past.

Annoying little rats.

Nene Valley Way

Here’s some pictures from Stowehill, Nene Valley Way, which runs right along beside the canal and then down to the Narrowboat Inn on the A5.

Whilst I was moored over there, I took a walk down the Nene Way on a number of occasions.

It runs along the river at some points.

I cycled down the Nene Valley Way through Northampton and down to Cogenhoe and had lunch in a pub.

It becomes a little wider after you reach Hunsbury fields, turns into a cycle path until you get to the other side of Northampton, at which point it reverts to a path.

 

Nene Valley Way Continue reading “Stowehill -> Weedon”

Nether Heyford -> Stowehill

Pig’s hill. Don’t see many pigs around, certainly not seen any on the towpath….

Stowehill

Has a nice view down to Flore, the opposing village, separated by the River Nene, just in it’s infancy here.

Took some images out across the valley.

Nene Valley looking East from Stowehill
Nene Valley looking East from Stowehill
Stowehill Grand Union
Stowehill Grand Union
Nene Valley looking West from Stowehill
Nene Valley looking West

I scouted the area, as I always scout the area before a move.

The two important things to consider are

  1. Access:- You could be in the prettiest spot in the world. Fine until you need to use the car and it’s a 2 mile walk to the nearest parking spot.
  2. Internet Access:- I’m on 3 which has fairly good coverage all over. However, if you want to be using your phone on the boat, which I often do, you need to be getting a good, strong signal.
    Use this to check your signal.

Local amenities – Marinas and Firewood

Yesterday I had to go and have a pump out, the first one I’ve paid for since February, usually they’re free because I do them myself.

A pump out is £15. And depending on how much you use the toilet, you have to do one every two weeks.

Got some fuel as well from Rugby boats which worked out about 1/3 cheaper than filling up at Whilton Marina which is about 4 miles up the road.

Rugby boats is right outside the Navigation Inn and right next to the A5.

There is also a Christian farm that sells natural firewood. This is a good place to drop in if you are in the area. It’s at New Creation Farm. It’s Nene Valley firewood, or Northampton Firewood.

If you speak to them nicely, they will do you a really good deal on Firewood.

There are a surprising amount of people that work here. It’s a proper little industry.

Bank Holiday

Crick boat show is on. That’s probably about 2 hours away on the boat, maybe 3.

Apart from that, doing as little as possible today.

Given up drinking for 6 weeks now.

Not really missing it TBH. When I see beer, I want to drink it, but I don’t often see it.

Out of sight out of mind.

Life goes on….

Gayton -> Nether Heyford

Quite a long trek.

Mooring between Bugbrooke and Gayton

There isn’t really any mooring in Bugbrooke, unless you want to stop outside the pub.

The rest of the journey is along ‘reclaimed bank’. This is where the towpath has been eroded and re-supplemented with new soil and sandbags, then re-seeded and allowed to grow.

The general effect for boaters is an unstable, un-constituted bank which you can’t trust with your feet and you definitely shouldn’t drive pins into.

The only mooring there is, is a long way from the road and close to the railway line, making it impractical for me personally.

Beast from the East

For that reason, I carried on right the way down to Nether Heyford, where I was when the ‘Beast from the East’ set in. Continue reading “Gayton -> Nether Heyford”