Victor: Don't they know?

Published: Sunday, 31 March 2019

WHEN friends considered cruising down the Leicester Section from Crick Marina to see us they discovered that yet again it was closed, so took to the Nene instead.

So I had a look at the Leicester Section stoppages on Canal & River Trust's stoppage page and found none listed, so of course contacted our Keith Gudgin who pointed out there were stoppage notices after all but listed on the Soar page.

But as the Soar navigation starts at King's Lock then down to the Trent, the stoppages at Ervin's Whetstone Lane and Gee's locks are well above King's Lock, so well and truly off the river.

Which means that those in charge of stoppages don't know they had the stoppages listed in the wrong place—the Soar instead of the Leicester Section, or Leicester Line, as they prefer to call it.

Mind you, considering the mess they make of stoppage notices, I am not in the least surprised. But wonder just how many others missed the stoppages?

Quite a few

It was in September 2017 that the Ervin's and Whetstone Lane locks were closed, and strangely for the same purpose as they are to be closed in April.

Cruising the Leicester Section at the time we had purposely arrived at the locks after the work was finished, knowing of the stoppages, to learn that there had been quite a queue, being closed from the Monday to the Friday.

From which can be gathered, as again the stoppage notices were not given as being on the Leicester Section, but on the wrong page, boaters had not known about them.

CaRT really should sort it out and publish the notices on the actual waterway page concerned and not that of a non-existent river!

They leave us

Whenever we make boating friends at Sawley, they up and leave! Okay, okay, okay, it could be me, you are no doubt thinking, but the circumstances show otherwise.

The first friend simply took off above Derwent Mouth Lock as he saved quite a packet in mooring fees, now being by the side of the canal, that is a good enough reason.

The second friends, whom incidentally we still meet up with, left because of the poor treatment owing to frequent changes of staff, Crick Marina getting the advantage and they telling us they are getting better service.

It was last week our latest friends departed Sawley Marina, as primarily they were upset at being moved from a berth where they could easily manœuvre their boat to one at which they could not. Also like many before they were fed up of those hard to work broad locks up the Trent & Mersey, so hopped it to King's Bromley, not caring for any of the marinas in between, with a bonus of their new mooring being cheaper!

And yes, Sawley did then offer a better berth, of which there are plenty, as many narrowboats have departed, that prompts me to ask—why move them in the first place?

Better

But Sawley Marina is definitely improving now it has left CaRT.

For starters we have had all new lighting on our long B jetty with bollards and up-to-the-minute LED lighting, and not a single failure. How different from years gone by when up to half of the old bulbs failed, and were rarely replaced.

A problem at Sawley is that it has a very large car park, and it is obvious by the number of cars during the day that people leave a car there and 'double-up' with another driver, no doubt handy for the nearby M1 motorway.

But it is now a pay car park, with car registration numbers having to be entered, and no chance of 'fiddling' as cameras that read number plates are being installed, recording vehicles arriving and leaving, but with the first couple of hours free to encourage visitors.

As for moorers, their car registration numbers are on record so are able to pass freely, and if having visitors can give their numbers to enable access.

But best of all we are promised automatic gates, which will be a blessing, especially in the dark evenings of winter.

What next I ask?

Victor Swift