Evening cloud

Just about sorted boat now. Just waiting for new licence and replacement permit - are bw on a go slow at the moment? Got a slight list to starboard - as with pearl all the heavy fittings are on one side of the boat - kitchen, cooker, fridge, diesel tank. There are a lot of rocks under the front seat on the port side - perhaps not heavy enough. Another minor problem was a leaking mushroom vent - not sealed at the base - made a mess of the roof lining - but easily sorted with filler and paint. Ready for next trip - will take it easy as still not confident about the engine - 21 yrs young - will probably do alrewas or fradley in early June.

Boat sold

Evening lady sold - just waiting for cheque to clear. A bit of a drawn out process and a lot of time wasters/fender kickers. Poor bloke that bought it broke down after we signed the invoice. Felt really bad, but, the same thing happened to me when I sold pearl last year - prop came loose just before hand over and it cost me £280 to put right - oh the joys of boat ownership!

New boat

Evening cloud bought -
23' springer with inboard thorneycroft diesel. Picked up from Nottingham Marina last weekend - a few teething problems - lost water due to leaky cap and noise caused by broken exhaust weld. Most jobs pretty small - blown fuses, loose wiring and broken bulbs. Boat has been blacked, new anodes and 4 yr safety - only large expense is new licence.

Looking forward to a cheap boating year!

Didn't get on with the cruiser, I knew I had made a mistake as soon as I steered the boat. Not as relaxing as steering a narrowboat and a bit of a worry in windy conditions. Availability of petrol also limits journey distances. The outboard seemed to have a mind of its own - sometimes starting first time and others not at all.