Waterways Action Squad Blog » ChristyM

May 2010 Ambassadors Meeting

ChristyM — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 12:14:12 +0000

Lunch break

The Pride of Sefton was the location for this months ambassadors meeting. This narrow boat has been specially fitted to allow disabled access and frequently travels along the Leeds-Liverpool Canal. Docked at Haskayne, we arrived a little later than intended but with plenty of enthusiasm and plenty of grub!

Cruising along the canal we got to discussing the hot topics of summer activities schedules and ways to get returning students into volunteering with us. The Waterways Action Squad newsletter, which we hope to make a regular thing was also brainstormed. Ideas thrown into the pot include adding puzzles and volunteer profiles to get more people reading it. Plans to get our leaflets into public places and into universities were also put in place.

After a few hours, the biggest muffins ever and plenty of other food was brought out. We got to watch the baby ducklings whilst chatting about the ambassadors residential that’s coming up over the summer. We even got a few people to sign up on the day.

Then it was time to have a go at steering the boat (althought I think we just held the handle and Frank and Alan did the steering!).

Overall I would say it was a great chance for a catch up and to plan what will be going on in June, July and August, whilst getting to enjoy a fun trip along the canal! Thanks Pride of Sefton!

Polly’s Day Horseboating

ChristyM — Tue, 25 May 2010 15:27:38 +0000

On a lovely April 28th a few very brave people took to a boat to begin a journey from Slaithwaite to Huddersfield powered only by horse! Starting at 10am and arriving at their destination at 6pm

‘It was a day of trials and tribulations that we overcame as a team – great fun!’ (Mayow, Hazel 2010). Here is an account by a Waterways Action Squad volunteer who helped to crew the boat on the day…

I signed up to help the Horseboating Society because I was very interested to see this old style of boating in practice. I wasn’t sure what to expect before I arrived but I did imagine it to be very arduous for the horse. I was surprised that the boat glided effortlessly and Bilbo (the Society horse) didn’t seem to struggle at all. There was a gentle silence to the boat, which is not possible with a motored barge, and when we weren’t preoccupied with the locks it was relaxing to walk alongside it. I’d never operated a lock before so that was an experience in itself, some of them were quite easy but others were rusty and they posed a bit of a challenge.

When the narrowboat, horse and crew in (mostly) full Victorian dress passed through more urban areas the difference between old and new was striking and it made a nice image.

It was exciting to ride in the boat through a long, dark tunnel, which had been especially built beneath a development to accommodate passing boats. There was no room for Bilbo who had to be taken along another route to meet us at the other side. Without the horse towing us members of the crew used poles against the side of the walls to push us along. I appreciated seeing this technique but I was quite glad we didn’t need to ‘leg’ the boat through. ‘Legging’ involves lying on the narrowboat and pushing it along a tunnel with your feet using the walls or ceiling. I wasn’t sure I was quite ready for the indignity of that!

It was an interesting day and I’d encourage anyone to have a look at horseboating in action if you get the chance.

Polly xxx

The Secret Life of Canals and Rivers- Photo Competition

ChristyM — Thu, 06 May 2010 11:58:03 +0000

Hey, did you know we’ve got a competition on at the moment? The deadline for entries has been extended to May 31st to give you time to get photo-taking!

If you’re aged between 16 and 25 and enjoy snapping away on your camera, see what the theme ‘The Secret Life Of Canals And Rivers’ conjures up in your mind and send your entries to emma.wright@thewaterwaystrust.co.uk by May 31st 2010. Use your imagination and see what delights you can come up with, whether it be a photo of a canal boat or a Kingfisher.

Make sure you send jpegs and keep them to a maximum size of 800 pixels x 800 pixels so they fit on our screens! The best entries that we receive will be exhibited in the National Waterways Museum at Ellesmere Port some time later in the year and the winners will get to spend a day boating with friends!

Get snapping!