Sunday 15 February 2015

over-eager CRT

I was moored down in Brentford and, as always,  noted down my date of arrival and when my 14 days would be up. On the 14th day, I finished work and got back to the boat around 6pm. It was spitting and dark so I moved the following morning. When I'd moored up again, I happened to check my emails and found a message from CRT, saying I'd overstayed and faced financial sanctions. There were plenty of spaces in the basin so no-one was inconvenienced.
The next time I moved on was 13 days after mooring up and the mooring warden was there, noting down my number as I locked up through the Hanwell flight. No eye contact, no friendly chat. How things have changed since my ealier years of boating. There seems to be an assumption of wrong-doing. The Brentford arm itself feels quite hostile to boats anyway, with dredging not done (went aground in the middle of the canal on one bend and couldn't get into the side at all where boats used to be able to moor up) and litter-clogged locks. If the aim is to discourage boats from visiting Brentford,  it's working!


Tuesday 3 February 2015

wintry afternoon

Looking through the porthole in the cratch. Hope everyone afloat is keeping warm.