My Canal Boat Trip 2015

[JOhnGw]

What does the Misses do during such a day. Does she sit up front in the air, or look out windows, or occupy herself other than having a tour?
Jbee

She sits in the front, sits inside looking out, stands with me at the stern or occupies herself with domestic tasks. Even washing up is much more pleasurable when there is a moving tableau outside the window.
Yesterday she took advantage of a long run which would replenish the batteries to use the vacuum cleaner and after the flight of locks at Knowle she had a shower and changed from boat working clothes to tidy dining clothes.

[JOhnGw]

Thursday

Much to my delight there were some FRN opportunities in spite of the other boats moored nearby and I was able to remain naked until we set off.


Putting stuff in the cockpit lockers.


Taking the ash to the rubbish skip.

On the way up Ashstead Locks I copped another bladefull(*). This time it was a "No Parking" cone.



We moored up for morning coffee and lunch in Aston Science Park, where I stripped down to my boiler suit to touch up some paint that scraped off on the wall of Ashted Tunnel.



No chance of FRN in the middle of the day but I did get some morning FRN here when we moored overnight a few years ago.





After lunch we continued up the Farmers Bridge flight of 13 locks, again doing a very good time thanks to the help with the gates we got from passers by and the volunteer lock keepers on the top half of the flight.
We are now moored up at Gas Street basin and will be going out to eat this evening at one of the restaurants in the Mail Box development.

(* Boaters' jargon for getting something caught in the propeller.)

[JOhnGw]

Friday

We decided on an early start and breakfast on the move which gave me an opportunity for a little more early morning naked boating. This time it needed to be a litle more discreet as there were already joggers around.



However by choosing my moment I was able to discreetly unmoor the boat.



Once under way I kept the stern doors closed as I was now much more exposed.



After being quite comfortable naked while active I found it too chilly for total nudity and was glad of my pint mug of hot tea.



I soon started encountering lots of cycle commuters on the towpath so I put on my shorts and opened the stern doors.
We later stopped in a beautiful sunny location for coffee, lunch and doing a bit of rust removal and painting before continuing to the top of Tardebigge locks (the longest flight in the country) where I will shortly be having my shower and a naked evening on the boat in front of the coal stove.

[nuduke]

Just caught up with last 3 days' posts, JOhn, and a few reactions:

Hatton flight...wowww, must do that one day!  Need to go in to training for that one!

It's amazing what the propeller will entrain!  A traffic cone!  Must have stopped the boat manouevring completely!  In our May trip we collected a sizeable room rug!  That took some pulling off.

As I have remarked before, you are so bold with your nakedness.  The built up area in your last few pics must have many opportunities of being seen.  I guess it was very ealry in the morning.

Hope you are enjoying similar fair weather to the really nice weather we had today (Saturday) in the E Midlands.

John

[JOhnGw]

John,

Thirty years of naturism starting form beaches and short discreet country walks plus a parallel forty years of intermittent river and canal boating have allowed me to get a good instinct for the amazing amount of urban FRN which you can do.
It is mainly a matter of reconnaissance, knowing sight lines, using the early morning when there are few people around and not worrying too much about stray glimpses which people may get from distant windows.
Perhaps I should put a portfolio of my urban naturist pictures with suitable commentary.

In the meantime you might like to look at this quarter hour video of boating naked through Milton Keynes several years ago.



Edited to get the link right

[JOhnGw]

Hatton flight...wowww, must do that one day!  Need to go in to training for that one!

John

It has just occurred to me that it would be possible to do Hatton naked if one started out just before dawn on a midweek date within a fortnight of midsummers day.

Even better if we could get a FRN crew and sort a charity funding deal with some such organisation as Marie Curie Cancer Care who raised lots on a world record mass skinny-dip a couple of years back.

[nudewalker]

I'd be willing to report for duty for a FRN event. In the name of charity of course!

[JOhnGw]

Saturday

Just the usual amount of early morning naturism before we had a late start. We had a full English breakfast before tackling 29 locks of the Tardebigge flight.
We did this in a very creditable four hours and then stopped for the afternoon.

Sunday

After the usual naked croissant breakfast we started off in a fine but cool morning for the last day's boating back to base.



It being a fine Sunday there were plenty of towpath walkers, joggers and cyclists, plus a 45 peg fishing match.
When the day warmed up the clothes I started off with became far too hot and I had a brief moment of nudity when I changed into shorts and polo shirt.



We arrived back at base and I had the usual trouble with the wind getting the boat back into its mooring before starting the packing up ready to go home tomorrow.

[Greenbare Woods]

All good things must come to an end.    It has been a wonderful tour that makes us all jealous of your trip. 

Bob

[eyesup]

JOhn, two comments you made in your post that just occurred to me:

« September 16, 2015, 10:30:53 PM »  Filling the coal scuttle from the locker.

then . . . on

« September 17, 2015, 06:35:48 PM »  Taking the ash to the rubbish skip.

What is the coal for, heating or outdoor cooking? I am assuming the engine is either gas or diesel. Cleaning anything that involves burning coal has to be the most enjoyable task on this planet.

Also the young man from BN in the clip posted by Bob, shows the interior of his canal boat. It looks like a long hall with alcoves. Is yours basically the same? What's the beam on yours? Are all canal boats subject to the same dimension criteria? In the pictures, they all appear the same or similar. This whole concept of canal, or urban, boating is different than what most Americans think of when you say houseboat.

Apparently a lot of questions were queued in my brain and needed a nudge for them to domino.
Apologies. I sound like my son when he was in grade school.

Duane

[JOhnGw]

JOhn, two comments you made in your post that just occurred to me:

« September 16, 2015, 10:30:53 PM »  Filling the coal scuttle from the locker.

then . . . on

« September 17, 2015, 06:35:48 PM »  Taking the ash to the rubbish skip.

What is the coal for, heating or outdoor cooking? I am assuming the engine is either gas or diesel. Cleaning anything that involves burning coal has to be the most enjoyable task on this planet.

It is a coal or wood stove in the saloon. You can see the flue in the saloon picture in post 21. I'll try to remember to get a picture of it next time I'm on the boat.

Also the young man from BN in the clip posted by Bob, shows the interior of his canal boat. It looks like a long hall with alcoves. Is yours basically the same? What's the beam on yours? Are all canal boats subject to the same dimension criteria? In the pictures, they all appear the same or similar. This whole concept of canal, or urban, boating is different than what most Americans think of when you say houseboat.

The original narrow canals were built for 30 ton boats 70ft by 7 ft - this was the weight conveniently pulled by one horse.
It is fairly obvious why they are called narrowboats.
The size is therefore restricted by the lock dimensions as is visible in my last post above where I am changing in the lock while waiting for the next lock in the flight to be clear. Most modern leisure boats are shorter than the maxumum - Ernest is 57ft. long.
There are a variety of interior layouts, some more corridor-like than others within the available dimensions.

Apparently a lot of questions were queued in my brain and needed a nudge for them to domino.
Apologies. I sound like my son when he was in grade school.

Duane

No need to apologise - It's good to see that my postings are creating some interest.

[nuduke]

Hey!  I'd be up for a charity FRN canal boat trip - what a wheeze*!  I live marginally nearer Droitwich these days, (if that'd be the starting point).  Mind you my historical efforts at getting sponsorship for charity walks and other sponsored events has been a bit pathetic...but hey!...Make a special effort for the FRN opportunity, what, what!

What charity would we support?  British Skin Foundation?  Psoriasis Association?  Maybe something that helps the underprivileged (e.g. Children in Need) or a bunch of naked 50+ and 60+ men on a boat has to be a candidate for Comic Relief, surely? 


John
* with the apparent average age of available UK FRNs, wheezing may be frequently encountered! 

[eyesup]

What charity would we support?  British Skin Foundation?  Psoriasis Association?

Healthy doses of UV are good for skin conditioning. Some skin clinics use UV as a proactive treatment for some conditions. There is also the vitamin D component.

You may be onto something. Take a whack at it.

Duane

[JOhnGw]

Two videos from my canal trip are now viewable on vimeo.


Leaving Gas Street moorings in the centre of Birmingham.

and


Changing into cooler clothes after an early cold start.

[jbeegoode]

How illuminating! I get to hear the sound of boating. Is that throaty deep drone so evident, or was it the positioning of the camera. Is it insulated from sound in the cabins, or is there a rumble and vibration that would lull a person to cozy sleep?

This gives a better idea of the standardized widths, the age and composition of some of the structures. In the second one toward the end, there appears to be a complex, or palace, or something far in the background, amongst the countryside. What was that?

Surely, plenty of joggers in the city, but all of their eyes and focus all seem quite intent and forward. They don't act like they are aware of their surroundings, for some reason. Is that common?
Jbee