IWA National -Redhill

It's ten to nine on a summers? evening!! It's cold enough for me to consider lighting the stove. All this talk about global warming - well, I can assure you all it is not happening at Redhill!

At least it has stayed dry but the wind in this part of the world is second to none. Now, back to the matter in hand, THE NATIONAL. After several last minute panic jobs to be done, the IWA National Festival and Boat Show 2009 finally opened. The weather was fine and dry, although windy, the gates opened at 10 and the punters started streaming in through the gates. After carrying out a few last minute jobs I ventured onto the festival site, for the first time this year!

After a pastie for lunch I left my wife doing a 2 hour shift in the food court cleaning the tables, the word 'scrubber' came to mind, but, needless to say this was not pursued for very long!

After her shift she managed to venture into one of the exhibitors tents where she managed to spend a small fortune on 'christmas presents' for the kids. Having not enough cash on me to pay for these goodies, I had to leave the site by car, pop into Kegworth and avail myself of the cash machine outside the Co-op.

That's about it for the time being, in a couple of days we will start taking it all down again.

IWA National -Redhill

Apologies for the lack of communication over the last few days, we have had so much to do that by the time I get back to my boat, have something to eat, I want to go to bed!!!

My work has been much of the same over the last few days, building landing stages on the steep banks of the River Soar to enable boaters to access terra firma.

Today has been spent trying to sort out the pontoons for the exhibitors boats and historical craft, plus sort out some means of securing the disabled moorers pontoons to dry land. The main problem is that from the pontoon to dry land is 8 metres, and health and safety dictates that the maximum span for a gangway is 4 metres so tomorrow we have to build more landing stages which will protrude at least 4 metres into the river.......

After tomorrow I will put on my other hat and become a harbourmaster, this will be much easier and will hopefully enable me to spend more time on my blog.....

IWA National -Redhill

Oh - the joys of being on the B.O.D.S moorings - an electricity supply and water!!! I have it on good authoority that B.O.D.S stands for Builders, Operators and Dismantlers - if that is true then it is a very apt title.

For us in Waterspace today was much the same as yesterday, EXCEPT..... the cake that Pat bakes us each day is a different, we've had fruit cake, lemon cake and today a Victoria sponge with blueberry jam filling, it is definitely a hard life being on Waterspace!!

Tony took an early bath today allbeit he only sat in the water managing to keep his feet and top dry, the sight of him wandering around in boxers whilst waiting for his shorts to dry has had to be censored from any photographs. The order of a baptism in the River Soar seems to be oldest first, then next oldest, I should be alright for a few days then!!!

We managed to finish the hold offs and landing stages on F section today and tomorrow will start on D section. My mooring as harbourmaster is on D section and I have already put the order in, I want decking, pretty little solar lights, a built in BBQ and the grass mown, electricity and water would be a bonus but I know that that will not happen.

IWA National -Redhill

Progress was rather slow today as we have changed our work site - we now have to work through Ratcliffe Lock to get there!

Once there, we had the added problem of overhanging trees where the moorings were supposed to be. We marked out the moorings and then decided to move one block as their mooring was right where a willow tree decided to send its branches 20 feet out into the river.

Meanwhile the men from the Slea Navigation were busy with their brush cutters - the stinging nettles form a 20 feet barrier between towpath and waters edge.

Our morning was complicated by Rees deciding to perform a backward flip into the river, He did not quite score a perfect 6, and in the afternoon when we had our tea break complete with cake, we thought Rees should have had Dunkin Donuts!

Lunchtime meant working back down through the lock and after lunch back up through the lock.

Needless to say, after a marina worker arrived with chainsaw and removed a couple of problem trees we got on with our work, the six feet wooden posts that form the basis of the H frame landing stages can be pushed five feet into the mud by hand....... the scaffold poles we need for the hold offs will need to be somewhere near 5 metres in length........

More fun tomorrow!!!!!

IWA National -Redhill

Work on WATERSPACE started in earnest today! After a lot of tooing and froing we eventually got started on what we really had to do, build access for the visiting boats and also build a system to keep them from ending up on the bank should the river flood!!

Apparently Cliff from n.b. REST HARROW, a retired Thames lock keeper is infamous for getting a pontoon into places other pontoons have never reached!!

We breasted up the pontoon alongside his narrowboat and in a few minutes we were crashing into the trees and bushes overhanging the river which were getting in our way. After a bit of deft use of the bow saw there were very few branches to hinder our efforts of building landing stages for the visiting boats.

I really wish I could show you pictures of what it was like but internet speeds do not allow this at the moment although I do believe Cliff has captured the interesting moments on video!!

Working on a pontoon on the river really makes you aware of the need for health and safety lectures and the need to wear a life jacket. Common sense also tells you that if you carry your mobile phone in your pocket you will end up in the water but if you leave the phone on your boat you will stay dry - I took the best option and left my phone on the boat and stayed dry

IWA National -Redhill

How things change overnight, I thought I would spend the day erecting security fencing, but, I am actually part of the Waterspace team and this year there is a lot of work for the Waterspace team!!

Today was spent moving pontoons and boats, and then marking out moorings, tomorrow who knows what we will have to do but on Monday we start work in earnest. Each set of boats on some of the moorings have to have scaffold poles affixed to keep them away from the bank and to allow for changes in river levels should we be unfortunate to have some of that dreaded wet stuff that I dare not name, then each set of boats need a little jetty to allow them to get from their boats onto the site, some need forward access, some need rear access.

The whole system has been planned so that even if the river level rises by two feet we will still be able to safely get from our boat onto land and the boat will be on a safe mooring.

The only problem with all this planning was surveying the site which was covered in two foot high stinging nettles, and believe me, theyreally do sting!!

However, once the tractor and mower are fixed, it only needs a shear bolt, but no-one knows where they are and how to fix them as the one person who does know has done a disappearing act for the time being.

Speak to you again tomorrow!!

IWA National -Redhill

I was hoping to publish some pictures again this year showing the developement of the site from a field to what amounts to a thriving village of probably a thousand souls. However, the internet connection is not that good for downloading photographs so you may have to wait until I get back home to my wireless broadband before you can view the pictures.

Today was a quiet day, workers boats arriving, the inevitable Elf'n Safety talk and signing your life away before being issued with a wrist band that allows you access to everywhere on the site, it is a bit like being a criminal and being tagged, everyone knows who you are and where you are going!!

After moving a couple of boats around I helped Bob and Jeff from the plumbing team to erect the tea tent, one of the essential jobs to be carried out first, followed by a bit of unloading of plumbing gear from the TARDIS and then the inevitable fencing duty!

Tomorrow will see more fencing duty as the main show site has to be fenced, - nevertheless it is nowhere near as big a task as last year at Wolverhampton where we had to have double security fencing with special security fixings!!

Shall I try and download a photo - oh well, nothing ventured, nothing gained, if not, I will update you tomorrow.

IWA NATIONAL - Redhill

Thursday 13th August 2009

I arrived at the festival site at Redhill in the shadow of the great cooling towers of Ratcliffe on Soar and quickly settled down back on the boat, stowing away all the essentials, clothes, food, beer and wine!!

Several other boats were already on site and after a while I was told I could move down to my temporary mooring on the BODS. I say temporary as, although I work on site before and after the festival, for the three days before and during the festival I put on a different hat and become a harbourmaster, necessitating moving to a different mooring and then after the festival moving back to the BODS.

2009 National

Not long now before I an resident agin on GUELROSE... Photos of the national site will follow providing I can get an internet connection in such a rural area....

2009 National Waterways Festival - Redhill

n.b. GUELROSE has now arrived at the national festival site at Redhill following an eventful journey.

Birmingham and Wolverhampton were passed without any problem, before going on to Great Haywood and Fradley. The river section at Alrewas was well into the green, and then came Thursday!! Several hours of heavy rain overnight played havoc with the river levels!

Arriving at Shardlow my son found no moorings - everyone was moored up - the Trent was in flood as was the Soar.

They eventually found a mooring, and next day, after telephoning the lock keeper they ventured onto the Trent, with a view to spending a day on the Erewash. The turn into the Erewash was apparently something else with Guelrose's engine revving at maximum to extricate them from going broadside down the Trent.

The crew were not impressed with the Erewash although the water was clear and the fishing was good. After a stop for lunch they moved back down to Trent lock and after a telephone call on Sunday morning to confirm that the Soar was open they eventually made it to Redhill where I was there to meet them to sort out the transport.

Guelrose is now all alone at Redhill but I will be joining her on Thursday morning to replenish the store cupboards in preparation for my three week stay at the national.

Photographs of the site will follow once I am safely esconsed on board Guelrose.