Hi, I read once of a lone boater stranded in a lock going downstream when the boater he was following kindly opened the paddles and sailed off, there was no ladder in the lock so the lone boater could not get out to open the lower lock gates. He could have been stuck for days in the winter! Perhaps an extending ladder such as sold in Maplins would be an idea if you’ve space to store such a thing… Its amazing what I pick up as a canal boat dreamer…..

Chris

Something I was taught recently by monzie, she learnt it on her helmsmans course.

Going up, As per Paul, enough way on to take her into the lock then take the boat right forward to the lock gates using the centre line and secure her to the gates. Open paddles as always gently and keep her forward as the lock fills, the rope is right to hand. It works nicely for me. Only tried it going up, but going down I think it will work as well.  

Hi

No such thing as a stupid question ;))

Only need to open one side, if you are a single boat in a double lock (one that can take two boats).  Not all locks have two gates, some single locks have one. Depends on how comfortable you feel going in one gate. It is harder work having to open the two but the bigger opening might make you feel a bit more easy taking the boat in or out.

No right or wrong, purely personal and depends how many crew sometimes (single boaters might only want the work of one gate).

The one important thing is to take your time, the other is safety always.

The weather and the conditions at the lock also come into play. If it is very windy you might want both gates open to make life easier. Likewise if there is a strong stream at the exit such as from the lock bypass or river.

richardhula said
Quite often the second gate on a wide lock will swing open a tad anyway both on entry and exit with a narrowboat, which defeats the object, but as a single hander I aim to manage with just one gate.

Regarding the advice I have been given on leaving engine at tickover in forward to hold bow against the gate. As a single hander I’m not happy accepting this for several reasons:

Once you step off the boat you are not in control.

The front button may snag on the gate when descending or the front of the bow scrape on the cill if ascending, not to mention having the well deck fill with water if someone is over enthusiastic with the gate paddles.

The boat needs to be backed off the bottom gate to open it which would entail getting back on the boat then off again.

There is also potential for having debris wrapped around the prop, and finally the afore mentioned wear and tear on engine/transmition. 

Locks vary enormously in their action on the boat so it’s horses for courses with no specific advice to suit all. Generally within a flight they will perform in a similar manner though. Let the boat decide what it wants to do and control it with a snagging centre line in narrow locks and with double lines in wide ones unless they are benign.

I only leave boat in forward tickover when in a narrow lock going up – it ain’t going anywhere.  Agree you have to keep an eye on the front button in narrow and wide locks but so far I have never snagged in a narrow lock.  It also has the advantage of often opening the gates for you!  As Richard says you may hit the cill but it often has a wooden board protecting the cill for that reason.  In deeper locks you need to be a bit more careful as the button will initially rest against the cill and the boat will go forward when the boat rises above it – in such cases I use the centreline to slow forward momentum.

One gate for broad locks if on my own or with another single hander or (usually) if there is only one crew-member on the other boat, assuming they are happy.  First boat in gets bow into corner opposite the open gate and swings over – going out as the second boat I push the stern over to the opposite side, often using the pole.  I only ever use a centreline except in large (river) locks – no problem going down and open paddles very slowly to start going up.

grannykins said
So when single handing going down, is there any way to do it without having to use the lock ladder? Not sure I would be up to doing that.

Sometimes I use the ladder and sometimes I don’t! It depends on a number of factors, the primary one being whether I think the ladder will be a safe descent. In quite a few locks there is insufficient depth behind the ladder to enable me to place more than just my boot/shoe toe on the rungs and that does not feel safe to me.

Usually I then prefer to use the lines and pull the boat out. Which line you use depends on the circumstances at the lock. For example, if the lock and tail exit are free of obstructions I will use the centre line, as I do for most activity as I am single handing. However there are times when I have to use the back rope as I need to ensure that most of the boat goes through a bridge across the tail of the lock without a towpath. That allows me to stop the boat in the bridgehole, drop the rope on the back deck or roof, make my way around to the other side of the bridge and do whatever I need to get back on board and steer the boat away from the lock.

HTH

Cheers,

John