Manchester residential mooring

[Adam]

I'm thinking about relocating to Manchester some time this year. Although I
ultimately intend to live on dry land, it would be a bonus to be able to live
on the boat for a few months while things settle down.

I've never sought a residential mooring before, but I've got the impression
that where they exist, particularly when they're near large population
centres, they come with a waiting list measured in decades. And so, I assume,
it will be with Manchester, which makes my timescale unviable. However, I
don't *know* this to be the case...

I only really know the Bridgewater canal approaching from Preston Brook,
although I've been up to Barton Swing a couple of times - where are the
residential moorings around Manchester? *Are* there any residential moorings
around Manchester?

240VAC and a landline phone would be useful, as would parking for a car,
although for what I have in mind, I'd take whatever I could get. Given that
we're talking about MSCCo waters here, beyond the need to be
registered/licensed for a stay of any length, what are their rules on
mooring? I'm assuming overstaying at Castlefield would not be tolerated...

Sale cruising club appears to be a nice spot, if only because it's right next
to the Metrolink. There are also moorings to the north of Barton Swing, which
would be handy for Bolton where I may also have business. Anyone know if any
of the cruising clubs etc around Manchester would be likely to accept a
liveaboard boat for a few months? Possibly with the person doing the living
aboard offering a bit of labour to set against his mooring fee...

Comments? Beyond, "get a bedsit," that is... <G>

[Su/Cutworks]

Post by Adam
Sale cruising club appears to be a nice spot, if only because it's right next
to the Metrolink. There are also moorings to the north of Barton Swing, which
would be handy for Bolton where I may also have business. Anyone know if any
of the cruising clubs etc around Manchester would be likely to accept a
liveaboard boat for a few months? Possibly with the person doing the living
aboard offering a bit of labour to set against his mooring fee...

The MSCCo does not permit residential moorings.

Finding a place on the Bridgewater with mains and phone is similar to
winning the lottery. And if you do live on the Bridgewater, it's unofficial
and not acknowledged or approved of by the management. The time we spent on
the Bridgewater was pleasant but always fraught with the issue of
'residential/non-residential'. I know that there is talk of the MSCCo
creating some residential moorings on the Ship Canal itself, you can always
call them and ask. Or check if the new 'marina' at Stretford amongst the
newest 'executive' cardboard boxes will allow a residential mooring.

There may be sites just up the canal towards Wigan on the L&L, or up along
the Ashton, if they haven't burned the buildings down around it. Your best
bet is to contact BW or check some canal magazines about moorings in that
area.

Best of luck.

-Su

[Andy]

Hi Adam, not best hunting ground I'm afraid.

Boatyards to try listed here:
http://www.manchester2002-uk.com/transport/canals7.html

Or how about the Rochdale? http://www.southpenninering.co.uk/moorings.htm

Andy

Post by Adam
I'm thinking about relocating to Manchester some time this year. Although I
ultimately intend to live on dry land, it would be a bonus to be able to live
on the boat for a few months while things settle down.
against his mooring fee...
Comments? Beyond, "get a bedsit," that is... <G>

[Martin Clark]

Adam wrote...

Post by Adam
I'm thinking about relocating to Manchester some time this year. Although I
ultimately intend to live on dry land, it would be a bonus to be able to live
on the boat for a few months while things settle down.

There are a number of marinas on the Macclesfield Canal within
reasonable commuting distance of Manchester.

[Neil Arlidge]

Post by Martin Clark
Adam wrote...

Post by Adam
I'm thinking about relocating to Manchester some time this year.
Although I ultimately intend to live on dry land, it would be a
bonus to be able to live on the boat for a few months while things
settle down.

There are a number of marinas on the Macclesfield Canal within
reasonable commuting distance of Manchester.

........and *some* of them are more expensive than down south! ;-)

[s***@navvy.freeserve.co.uk]

Post by Adam
I'm thinking about relocating to Manchester some time this year. Although I
ultimately intend to live on dry land, it would be a bonus to be able to live
on the boat for a few months while things settle down.
I've never sought a residential mooring before, but I've got the impression
that where they exist, particularly when they're near large population
centres, they come with a waiting list measured in decades. And so, I assume,
it will be with Manchester, which makes my timescale unviable. However, I
don't *know* this to be the case...
I only really know the Bridgewater canal approaching from Preston Brook,
although I've been up to Barton Swing a couple of times - where are the
residential moorings around Manchester? *Are* there any residential moorings
around Manchester?
240VAC and a landline phone would be useful, as would parking for a car,
although for what I have in mind, I'd take whatever I could get. Given that
we're talking about MSCCo waters here, beyond the need to be
registered/licensed for a stay of any length, what are their rules on
mooring? I'm assuming overstaying at Castlefield would not be tolerated...
Sale cruising club appears to be a nice spot, if only because it's right next
to the Metrolink. There are also moorings to the north of Barton Swing, which
would be handy for Bolton where I may also have business. Anyone know if any
of the cruising clubs etc around Manchester would be likely to accept a
liveaboard boat for a few months? Possibly with the person doing the living
aboard offering a bit of labour to set against his mooring fee...
Comments? Beyond, "get a bedsit," that is... <G>

Whatever you do DON'T say you are looking for a residential mooring. You
won't get one and anyway what you do on your boat is your own concern. I
assume you will not be on your boat 24hrs a day 7days a week so are you
living on your boat or are you just spending various amounts of time on it?
By all means ask for electricity etc but staying on your boat for a few
months shouldn't be a problem. That is not residential.
Continuous cruising is the other alternative. Drawbacks are the pain of
having to move every 2 weeks to another "safe" mooring. No security, no
electricity or other facilities. Having to move both car & boat.
RBOA can give advice as can NABO
Good Luck
Sue nb Nackered Navvy

[Adam]

Post by s***@navvy.freeserve.co.uk

Post by Adam
I'm thinking about relocating to Manchester some time this year. Although
I ultimately intend to live on dry land, it would be a bonus to be able
to live on the boat for a few months while things settle down.

Whatever you do DON'T say you are looking for a residential mooring. You
won't get one and anyway what you do on your boat is your own concern. I
assume you will not be on your boat 24hrs a day 7days a week so are you
living on your boat or are you just spending various amounts of time on it?
By all means ask for electricity etc but staying on your boat for a few
months shouldn't be a problem. That is not residential.

Okay. That's interesting, thanks. Certainly not on it all the time, no - got
to earn money! But most nights, sometimes not getting back 'till the early
hours if I go out. It's just that I've got a boat and it'd be nice to live in
my own space with my stuff around rather than some crummy bedsit or a
friend's floor while things settle down and I find somewhere decent to live.

Post by s***@navvy.freeserve.co.uk
Continuous cruising is the other alternative. Drawbacks are the pain of
having to move every 2 weeks to another "safe" mooring. No security, no
electricity or other facilities. Having to move both car & boat.

And the MSCCo have the same attitude to mooring as BW? I've been up to
Manchester a couple of times in the last year and saw the same boats in
roughly the same places on what I assume are public moorings. Looking at a
couple of Neil Arlidge's photos of his time there last year shows at least
one of these boats, so I assume it/they have been there all along. Without
wishing to be *too* specific, I don't know what their status was/is - both
had Bridgewater registration/index numbers and one definitely had someone
living aboard.

Post by s***@navvy.freeserve.co.uk
RBOA can give advice as can NABO
Good Luck

Thanks folks.

[Su/Cutworks]

Post by Adam

Post by s***@navvy.freeserve.co.uk
Whatever you do DON'T say you are looking for a residential mooring. You
won't get one and anyway what you do on your boat is your own concern. I
assume you will not be on your boat 24hrs a day 7days a week so are you
living on your boat or are you just spending various amounts of time on it?
By all means ask for electricity etc but staying on your boat for a few
months shouldn't be a problem. That is not residential.

Okay. That's interesting, thanks. Certainly not on it all the time, no - got
to earn money! But most nights, sometimes not getting back 'till the early
hours if I go out. It's just that I've got a boat and it'd be nice to live in
my own space with my stuff around rather than some crummy bedsit or a
friend's floor while things settle down and I find somewhere decent to live.

Using the approach suggested above isn't exactly going to be simple,
pleasant or easy. For one thing, if you're holding a Bridgewater license
and living aboard on the Bridgewater, then they can simply revoke the
license. In my experience it's not happened often but it's an uncomfortable
way to live. We moved off the Bridgewater onto BW waters where being a
residential boater isn't against the regulations. It's difficult to spend
much of your time telling lies about your residential status. There is a
small collection of liveaboards on the Bridgewater, but they don't talk
about it. Not a good way to live, really. I also don't recommend fudging
the truth to marina owners, it's hard to fake the situation when there is a
whole community of other boaters who will notice if you're really living
aboard or not. You could alienate your neighbors if you get a mooring under
false pretenses.

Post by Adam

Post by s***@navvy.freeserve.co.uk
Continuous cruising is the other alternative. Drawbacks are the pain of
having to move every 2 weeks to another "safe" mooring. No security, no
electricity or other facilities. Having to move both car & boat.

And the MSCCo have the same attitude to mooring as BW? I've been up to
Manchester a couple of times in the last year and saw the same boats in
roughly the same places on what I assume are public moorings. Looking at a
couple of Neil Arlidge's photos of his time there last year shows at least
one of these boats, so I assume it/they have been there all along. Without
wishing to be *too* specific, I don't know what their status was/is - both
had Bridgewater registration/index numbers and one definitely had someone
living aboard.

No, the MSCCo is pretty random in their approach in actuality. The 'usual
suspects' may be moved on from spots such as Lymm if they're tying up
mooring spots during the active cruising season but to have a Bridgewater
license you have to have a registered mooring. There is a very active
community of regular boaters on the Bridgewater that spend a lot of time on
their boats in a few popular spots, as it's a nice canal with no locks so
weekend cruising is very popular and goes on all year round. Therefore
you'll see a lot of boats tied up in a favourite spot every weekend. As a
side note, if you saw a bunch of boats in Castlefield in the same place
every year, that's because there's a boatyard there, and there are private
moorings located in one section of the Castlefield basin.

Post by Adam

Post by s***@navvy.freeserve.co.uk
RBOA can give advice as can NABO
Good Luck

They can indeed give advice, but remember that the Bridgewater is a special
case, not bound by the same rules as the BW waters and not all general
advice is useful or even accurate. You won't be a continuous cruiser on the
Bridgewater as their license requirements don't allow it. You can't be a
legitimate liveaboard (with very rare circumstances) but there are
liveaboards. They keep their heads down, their mouths shut and don't use
stretches of towpath for private gardens or turn their area into a rubbish
tip. There are several boat clubs, they can be very welcoming although
moorings can be scarce. If you're really serious about something in the
Manchester area, the best advice I've seen yet is to look on the Macc.

We lived aboard for several years on the Bridgewater. I know whereof I
speak. We miss it but chose to move off it onto BW waters for our own
reasons, many of them having to do with wanting a regular base, having a
baby and wanting a decent mooring where he could have room to play and not
liking playing the 'we're not liveaboards, we just spend all our time on
board' game. We were VERY fortunate to find the mooring we have now..
Mains electrics, linear mooring with our own garden area, telephone with
broadband. The marina was virtually empty four years ago when we first
moved there, now it's full and has a waiting list. We only have a
percentage of residents here, but it's a lovely community. I'm sure if you
look hard you can find something just as good, as long as you look with the
right ideas. Our marina wasn't well-maintained before we came but the
boaters who live next to us took on the maintenance work, we all pitched in
to create gardens and now we're all proud of our home. You may find
someplace with potential, too. If you don't think an hour is too far to
commute, come on up the Rochdale and have a look at Hebden Bridge, there are
occasionally moorings available there, with a lovely village and a community
of residential boaters.

Best of luck in your search.

-Su