Boat for canals & coastal cruising - possible?

[uncle stinkybob]

Originally Posted by Don C L

...and there is always this option!
CANAL AND RIVER BOAT TRANSPORT PHOTOS

these are kind of fun too:

Those barges are pretty fast!
Did you see that guy sounding with a stick as they are sailing? Pretty amazing stuff.

Awesome video's Don. Thanks for posting.

[DaisyMcDuff]

NV US - you said your dutch steel cruiser would be no real use on coastal water, why is that? Is it similar to the Kempala Kotter that Steady Hand posted or different in some way that makes it less suitable for leaving the river?

[NV US]

Hi again Daisy,
I can't get too techie but I'm certain that more learned posters will jump to offer their valued opinions.. my boat Mokita is 30ft long, 9ft wide & draws only 3ft. A previous boat I kept on Lough Derg, (a very large lake in Ireland) had almost the same dimensions and when the weather acted up this 7/8 ton steel boat was f##ked around like a leaf in the wind... my 2nd wife, who was on her knees holding the roof edge with her teeth(the wind had whipped the 2 chairs away earlier) beside me at the top steering position was screaming " do something you c##t !"... that one was no fun at all but actually cursed like a sailor, hmmmm ... I personally know people who motored from the english coast to the french coast in similar sized craft..some had to be rescued more than once... their advice/opinions are not highly regarded & obviously taken with a pinch of salt..sea salt that is....
Norman

[NV US]

.PS for Daisy,
I forgot to compare/include the dimensions of "kampala Cotter" ...45 ft long compared to my 30 ft....must be wider..think she draws about 5 ft if I'm remembering right..twin daf engines..mine is a super 43 hp nanni..I effed out the antique lump of iron that was the mercedes 636..a heap of ****... no doubt it will have its defenders..any engine that you have to be "nice" to has no place in a boat..not my boat anyway..overheated so much that other boaters thought I was addicted to tea..hot tea..
Norman

[Ungvar]

Daisy, I sail in a part of Canada with many canals. Both air draft and draft are a going concern for us.

Yesterday I had to push my 4'8" keel through significant mud to get into dock, and today I am sitting with a bit of a list, in mud at another dock.

I was chit chatting with the skipper of the only other sailboat in the moorage and discovered that he is sitting clear of the bottom in a 35' sailboat.

His boat is a Tanzer 10.5 swing keel. The boat is a centre cockpit and would be very tight to pass through 8'9" with a mast on deck, but if he stowed it to the side of his cockpit, I think he could make it.

A Tanzer 10.5 in the UK would be a rare find indeed but boats like you are looking for do exist.

If I can recommend a course of action with regards to operating in very shallow water, I find a powerful engine and serious prop help to get you through the mud.

You must absolutely be able to clear the cill of the lock if you are to be succesful. There is no powering through concrete.

[NV US]

..to all the guys that push through mud. keep a very regular watch on your leaf filter as mud+leaf litter+plastic bags LIVE in harmony here... a table tennis... ping pong ball in your filter will make checking raw water intake flow, if any, easier...