Egyptian Goose was declared a pest in the UK in 2007 |
We had an appointment with Mark early on Thursday morning to discuss the work schedule.
As we were parking the car, we were greeted by this beautiful bird. Is it a duck, or is it a goose? I think it's an Egyptian Goose (a relative of the shell duck, so not really a goose at all.).
Steel thickness marked at regular intervaks |
To our surprise we found the boat out of the water, on a trolley, and already cleared of the muck and waterways' livestock.
MWNN gets a verbal report summary from Michael |
MWNN had booked a hull survey with a local surveyor. Michael was half-way through the survey when we arrived. The survey involves measuring the thickness of the steel to see how much corrosion has taken place. For a boat built in 1991 and launched 1992, she's lost very little from the original 6mm (0.2mm - 1mm)
Damage - port side |
Mark told us thar he checked the inerior of the boat and found that the cooker had fallen forward, deposting parts from the hob onto the floor. I went aboard and checked that it hadn't damaged the gas pipe connections.
Damage - starboard side |
What Mark didn't mention was the fact that the front cratch cover had been ripped off its anchor-points by the wind as the truck travelled back from St Quentin on Tuesday. MWNN was a bit concerned that the relatively-new cover had failed so spectacularly. I pointed out that it was designed for a narrowboat - top speed 4mph, not a truck - top speed 60 - 65mph. We'll need a replacement which can be fitted to the new cratch board we had made in France.
We're pleased with the progress so far. Next Monday, the Safety Surveyor will do his survey and the gas man will service the gas appliances and change the tanks from French to English ones. In the following few days, any remedial work required by the safety check will be carried out so that we can apply for a cruising licence. If all goes well. we hope to move the boat to its new mooring by the 9th September.