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(see individual headings for date of last update)

Introduction
(03/05/99)

Why does anyone  boat single handed?  Well, there are many reasons, but I suppose  the usual reason for your first attempt, is a distinct lack of available crew at the time you can get afloat, or perhaps that while afloat, some accident or illness befalls the crew and you are left with the boat in the middle of nowhere, and no-one to help. Whatever the reason, once tried,  I think you may well feel the urge to do so again.

In this article I hope to dispel the theory that single handed boating on canals is a lonely experience which is at best difficult and at worst impossible. I would however caution that it is something not to be entered into lightly, without an amount of thought and planning, but if you do plan there is no reason why you should not be able to cope with a boat of any size. After-all, the working boatmen and women managed in the past.

The experience is one which I find  rewarding in the same way as you might when climbing a mountain, or running a marathon. It is exhilarating to have conquered something  which at first sight, you may have dismissed as too tough a challenge. Of course it also has the benefit of bringing you into a situation where you are truly at one with the elements and nature. For as all of us who have experienced the canals know, the environment is one where you can revel in all that the countryside, the town and the weather has to offer. It is also, like all canal cruising, a quiet and restful experience, but it need not be lonely just because you do not have a crew. We all know that (most) canal users are friendly and gregarious characters, and when boating alone, I have found it to be even easier to strike up a conversation with other boaters and canal users.

I will endeavor to look at all aspects of the planning and execution of the single handed cruise, from getting prepared, to setting off, coping with locks and movable bridges, mooring up and everything in-between!

I expect that for every idea I have, there will be at least one other way of achieving the object that I have not thought of, or a pitfall I have overlooked  . Well, if that is the case - PLEASE - let me know! I will be delighted to add your comments to what I hope will be an evolving document which will be of use to those of us who from time to time do cruise alone, and also to those who may never wish to, and I hope will never need to do so, for many of the ideas will make your boating easier however many crew you have.

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Planning
(23/4/99)

What planning can you carry out for single handed cruising? Well I think there are many steps one can take in order to ensure a pleasant and trouble free cruise. The first step is to plan where you are going!   Where do you plan to stop next? What will you encounter on the way - including weather conditions? It sounds obvious, and indeed I expect that many of you reading this will do this and most if not all of the other things anyway.

Having decided your destination, you will now be in a position to more efficiently carry out the rest of your planning. Next on my list is to ensure that the normal boat checks have been carried out -  It is no fun to run out of fuel, overheat the engine, or sink the boat even when there are several of you on board, and so someone else to blame for not checking fluid levels, or that the weed hatch is secure! - To these I would suggest adding a few more.

Have a center rope fitted which is long enough to reach while at the stern, but not long enough to foul the prop if it falls in the water! This length should also ensure that you can walk to the front of the boat with it in your hand. The reasons will become obvious later! (I have two center ropes fitted when cruising single handed, so that I can have one leading to the front as well as one to the back.)

Make sure that all gas appliances, taps and so on are safely off, so that accidents do not occur while cruising. Close all windows doors and hatches which may let in water if it rains, or at locks if gates or sides are leaky, It is a tricky decision whether to lock the bow doors or not. Locked you don't have to worry about the opportunist thief stepping aboard while your attention is distracted, however, if for any reason you have to board your boat from the bows, will you be able to reach the stern safely via the gunnels or roof?

Ensure that you can get to a windlass, boat shaft, boat hook, and boarding plank from the steering position, if possible have another set available at the bows. Make sure that the chimney is off if it is likely to foul bridges. Check that none of the above will foul your center rope when you need it most!

Put your map, a pen and pad and camera where you can reach them. The same for waterproofs and the extra sweater. Ensure that mooring pins, hammers and so on are easily to hand front and rear. Make a flask of Coffee and put near to hand - especially in winter - Substitute Scotch if really cold! Pay a call of nature.

As well as the above which to me form a minimum of necessary preparation, I always also put to hand several other items of equipment which I have found to be most useful when cruising single handed. These will come to light as the various sections are covered.

This done you are ready to Start the engine, and cast off! One last thing I always do when cruising alone is to don an automatic inflation lifejacket, even the best swimmer can't survive if they knock themselves out when falling in! 

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Starting Off
(23/04/99)

Always start the engine before casting off. There is nothing more embarrassing than finding yourself adrift with an engine that wont start, and other boats arriving!  When casting off I prefer to start at the bow, and so head in that direction with center rope in hand, stowing side fenders on the way. The center rope is invaluable in helping you to keep control of the boat while untying.

Untie the bow rope and place mooring pins or chains safely on board. If cruising single handed I personally like to have a bow rope of the same length as the boat - I find it invaluable at locks - and if this is the case, I take this back along the roof to the stern while keeping the center rope in hand. Otherwise neatly coil the bow rope and put it where easily reached, having in mind which side the towpath will be when next you stop. Keep the boat parallel to the bank while untying the stern and placing pins etc on board, and coil and stow the stern rope.

Push the stern out when stepping aboard. If necessary use the boat shaft (you have previously put to hand) to move the stern further out.  engage gear and reverse off of the bank before straightening up and moving forward.

The biggest problem you are likely to encounter when starting off is the wind. Invariably it will be blowing you onto your mooring, hence the importance of having a shaft readily to hand.

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Locks
(26/04/99)

The basics are of course exactly the same as for working with a crew, and I won't go into these here. Instead I will try and give some hints about the easiest ways to cope safely by yourself with both wide and narrow locks, going uphill and down. They can be dangerous if not treated with respect, and the last thing you need when single handed is an accident, so if at all doubtful the safe thing to do is wait for help to come along. 

One difference which you may notice here from the description of how to work a lock in my beginners guide is that here I take the bows of the boat right up to the lock gates, rather than keeping the boat close to the bottom gate. This is contrary to the way British Waterways recommend but is the "traditional" way I believe - and more to the point, is in my opinion safer and easier when single handed as long as your contact with the gate is gentle. 

The art of "locking" single handed is to take your time. That way not only do you stay safe, you also look efficient to the ever present gongozzler.I am one of those people who enjoys statistics, and Andrew,  co-owner of a share in Osprey with me, and my usual canal companion will tell you that I time how long any section of canal takes to cruise. This habit has shown me that the difference between working a lock flat out with a crew of 6, and working the same lock single handed is only five to ten minutes at the most, so even on a cruise like the 4 counties ring with the best part of a hundred locks it only means an extra hour and a halves cruising a day if you wish to complete it in a week.

The first thing to decide on approaching a lock is where to leave the boat while working the lock. If someone is already working through, I would suggest mooring properly at the bollards (hopefully) provided. This enables you to check that the gates and paddles are "all correct" before committing yourself to a course of action, and also enables you to let the other boat crew know you are single handed. It is a happy thing with the cut that many boaters will offer to help set the lock for you if at all practical, if they know you are single handed (especially in a flight where it won't delay them much)

UPHILL
If there is no sign of anyone at the lock as you approach you can of course still moor up properly, and indeed when locking down, this is my preferred course of action. I also do this if going up at a wide lock. If I am going uphill at narrow locks however, I choose to motor gently up to the gates, rest the bow fender against them, and leaving the forward gear engaged at slightly more than a tickover (this is to counter the tendency of the initial flow of water from the paddles to push the boat away from the gates, after a few moments the water action reverses and the boat is drawn toward the gates) go ashore taking the bow rope with me. I then empty the lock, open the bottom gates, and using the bow rope (and the small amount of engine power) bring the boat into the lock, and right up to the front, where again I rest the fender on the gate. Then having closed the bottom gates and paddles,  I open the top paddles and wait for the levels to equalise. Care needs to be exercised regarding catching the bow fender on the gate or indeed the cill if the lock is a deep one, and once the boat is a foot or two off level I tend to go on board, move her back off the gate, and put the engine in neutral.

Once levels are achieved if a boat is coming in your direction there is nothing more to do than open the top gate(s), drop the paddles and motor out. If however you are going to have to close the gates behind you, it is necessary to stop, and take a line ashore while closing the gates. I have seen people let the boat wander out on tickover, and once clear of the gate jump off having put the engine in reverse, close the gate(s), and jump back on before the boat  hits the gate, but having tried it myself a couple of times, and having to abort the attempt and take a line ashore anyway, this is to my mind asking for trouble! 

For wide locks (or even for narrow if you prefer) I find it easiest to tie up and set the lock, go back to the boat and motor in, and climb off the roof of the boat with the center rope once in the lock in order to work it.

DOWNHILL
As I have said, I always tie up whether the lock is wide or narrow. This is because of the obvious - the gate opening the "wrong way"- it takes just as long fiddling the boat round the gate as mooring up! Once in the lock I put the engine in neutral and control the boat with the center rope, paying special attention to keeping her off the cill. Once levels are achieved and the gates opened, I tend to favour boarding the boat and motoring out rather than trying to pull her out with ropes, but if you do wish to go along this route, it is worth taking the bow rope off with you as well as the center one. Once out, again hopefully another boat will save you the trouble of closing the gate, otherwise again tie up to deal with it.

Hints and tips?

Being short of leg and low on courage I tend not to step across locks when the gates are open, instead I take a boat hook off with me and use this to open and close the far gates. The boat hook can also be used to close gates behind you when locking down as you leave the lock (push on the end of the balance beam) while on the boat  if the lock is not too deep. In both cases make sure the hook doesn't slip as you apply pressure so dumping you in the cut.

If you put the boat against the bottom gates while waiting to go up, take care how fast you empty the lock. To start with the boat will tend to move off the gate (hence the engine in gear) but once the flow is established there is a tendency for the boat to be dragged forward and moved from side to side - sometimes forcefully. This is why I do not use the same procedure on wide locks, as the extra width of the channel allows the boat to be hammered about.

A tip from working boaters for locking up is to use the boat to open the gates (by gently pushing against them) If on your arrival the lock is set in your favour this would certainly save time. The downside of this being damage to the bow fender and the paintwork of the bows, not to mention the possible damage to the gates, and more importantly the potential danger to anyone who may get too close to the balance beams as they are swinging round unattended.

If mooring to set the lock, the center rope round a bollard or ring will suffice, if neither of these is handy I have found a single hooked grapple appropriately tied to the center rope can be used to hook onto piling or any other suitable object

I'm sure we all know to open the top ground paddles of a wide lock on the same side as the boat first when locking up to help keep the boat stable against the side. I also find that it does pay to use all the paddles on wide locks despite the extra work involved to speed up the filling and emptying process (some locks with leaky gates never seem to equalise unless you do), and also make opening the gates easier. On this subject it is a lot easier to move a gate by putting your back against the beam and going backwards than pulling or pushing with your arms.

Above all be careful, if you fall in single handed you are in real danger, and you are probably more likely to be single handed in bad weather when lock sides, beams and boat roofs are going to be more slippery.

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Bridges
(23/04/99)

Bridges come in two basic types - the helpful and the darn right difficult. The helpful ones I will write about in the While Cruising section. Here I am going to (attempt to) deal with the difficult.

It has long been said that the canal builders had a sense of humour, and could also see into the future (bridges on blind bends, difficult bends put just where you always meet a boat) Well they excelled themselves when constructing bridges we need to move. To my knowledge every* swing and lift bridge is constructed so that when you have opened it, you end up on the non towpath side of the canal. A "real boon" to the single handed boater who now needs to retrieve their boat in order to get though the bridgehole without undue delay to the stream of traffic waiting to cross, which comes from nowhere as soon as the bridge is opened! OK so we know why this method of construction was chosen - the towpath needed to be kept clear of the obstruction of a raised or swung bridge for the ease of the horse drawn boats, but it doesn't make it any easier  for the single handed boater!

The easy answer - and sometimes the only one - for dealing with swing and lift bridges is to wait for another boat or enlist the help of a passer-by. Not only does this save a lot of hassle, it can often lead to stimulating conversation which had you been with your usual crew, may well have passed you by, as well as help at the next lock! But what if there is no one around and you can't afford the time to wait on the off chance?

How we overcome this problem is one where there isn't a standard answer any more than there wasn't for locks, and indeed the first problem to look at is the same. Where do you leave the boat while working the bridge? My answer has almost always been the same, nose the boat gently right up to the bridge, on the non towpath side in all cases where the situation allows, and disembark from  the bow taking with me the bow rope rather than the center one, having ensured the boat is out of gear, or the engine stopped. Tie to the bridge rail or any suitable object IF USING THIS METHOD WITH CREW ON BOARD, BEWARE OF TRAPPING SOMEONE BETWEEN BRIDGE & BOAT IF THE BRIDGE IS HIGH ENOUGH OFF THE WATER TO ALLOW THE BOWS TO PASS UNDER! (I believe someone suffered this fate on the Llangollen in years gone by)

If the bridge is a lift one, the next problem is how do you hold it open while you move the boat through? Again no standard answer as there is no standard bridge. Some will stay open once opened, others take a hefty body to get them open and to keep them that way. In all cases I suggest that you do not rely on luck to ensure that it stays open. I take with me a length of rope with which to tie the balance beam firmly down. I have heard of boaters using a shaft to wedge the bridge open from the towpath side. I have never tried this or seen it done, but would not myself entertain it for two reasons. Firstly, it doesn't sound too secure, and secondly it seems to entail having to open the bridge from the towpath side, something I think may well prove impossible in most cases.

Having got the bridge open I then reboard my boat and motor through and stop just clear of the bridge, again on the non towpath side, and get off at the stern, with the stern rope this time. Having reset the bridge you are on your way!

Swing bridges offer a different, and usually easier challenge. I employ the same procedure to get off the boat, except that with swing bridges you need to allow for the direction the bridge will swing open in when deciding how close to leave your boat.

Once open swing bridges stay that way so no problem there. Once open retrieve your boat, motor through and disembark again, close the bridge and "Bob" as they say in Black Adder may well be your "Auntie"

What  will the main difficulties be? Usually finding a safe way of getting on and off the boat, and obviously keeping the lift bridges up. Other areas may well be the queue of people forming to cross the bridge while you "perform" and of course the wind which will almost certainly be in just the right direction to blow your boat into the trees by the bridge.

Apart from the length of rope for tying down the balance beam, one other item I always have is a BW key that is not on the same bunch as the boat's ignition key. Invariably if you need the key to work the bridge, it needs to stay "captive" all the time the bridge is open, so making it tricky to start your boat if you have stopped the engine rather than just putting it in neutral.

* British Waterways do however tend in some cases to install their key operated units so that you can operate on the towpath side. This is not always the case though especially for the swing bridges..

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While Cruising
(23/04/99)

What is the difference when actually travelling between being single handed or part of a crew? Well, not a lot when all is going well, however there will be times when you do miss that crew member for something other than conversation. The first couple I have alluded to in the section about Planning. Who will make that "cuppa"? Fetch the notepad? and take over the steering while you take a "Natural Break"? A flask and some thought before you set off will help a lot here.

Running aground is usually the time we shout for assistance when steering, and there are a couple of tips to bear in mind when this happens and you are alone (or indeed when you have a crew)

• The boat was floating just before you went aground, so backwards is likely to be the best way to get.

• More rev's make the boat sit deeper, so gently does it.

• Help to keep the stern clear of the bank and in deep water with the shaft while trying to back off.

• Rock the boat from side to side, and keep your weight to the opposite side from where you are caught.

• The "draw" from a passing boat may well be just enough to float you off, or ask for a tow off.

• If all else fails, running your drinking water over board may well float the bows clear. I try and cruise with a full tank for just such a situation. Before running all your water off, first fill a kettle and a bottle or two in case the next water point is a distance off. Turn off any pumps if you do run the tanks dry.

Helpful Bridges were mentioned in the section on coping with lift and swing bridges and these are the ones where either the bridge has long since departed and just the "narrow" is left, and all other fixed bridges. They come in useful for several tasks, as they are an ideal place to pause for a moment or two with little danger of drifting into trouble if you don't feel like mooring up.

Check for traffic, and stop in the bridge 'ole to put the kettle on, shelter from the rain while grabbing waterproofs and all those other little jobs that only take a minute or two if you don't have to stop and moor up properly.

Last but not least, be friendly to passing natives and other boaters. They may well be the people at the next lock or bridge when you could do with some help.

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Mooring
(03/05/99)

The potential problem with mooring single handed, is keeping the boat where you want it, while you secure both ends. It is frustrating, not to mention embarrassing, to stand up from knocking in a mooring pin to discover one end of the boat has drifted across the canal and is obstructing traffic or even more so if both ends are too far from the bank to reach.

The importance of taking at least the center rope with you and keeping it secure is therefore obvious. The Grapple mentioned in the section on locking comes in useful here again as a temporary measure (or indeed one of the mooring stakes that are designed for use without a hammer) If the wind is "off" the mooring, I always take two ropes ashore, the stern and the bow rope (I have previously mentioned I carry an extra long rope that will reach from the bow to the stern)  This is because I have found from bitter experience that trying to pull a narrowboat back to the bank with the wind against is difficult if not impossible with the center rope alone - luckily the experience was gained while there was someone on the boat to retrieve the situation.

There is unfortunately no magic solution to dealing with the wind, if it is too strong to get the boat alongside the towpath and tie up, you have no choice but to either move on, or moor on the "off" side. A little bit of forethought when getting close to your planned moorings may however make things easier. Check the wind direction five or ten minutes before you get there and then compare this with the map and see if the towpath is going to change sides, or the canal change direction enough to make a difference for ease of mooring. A short walk to your favored hostelry is better than 10 minutes of cursing the wind.

I have of course assumed that as previously mentioned, you have put all your mooring equipment close to hand before setting off. This leaves just one thing to mention with regard to mooring single handed. If a Pub is not in reach, I find I tend to watch more T.V. so it is worth making sure that you are not mooring in the shadow of trees, pylons and so on and will be able to get a picture. 

Steve.

Planning | Starting Off | Locks | Bridges | While Cruising | Mooring