There is a bloke in a barge at the bottom of my garden.

[Justginnoschweppes]

Well not technically IN my garden, but close enough to see in my living room window! It’s annoying as they moore up all the time now till the end of summer. Some even wave at me when I’m sat on the couch 🙄 his little log burner must be going as puffs of smoke are coming out of the chimney.

I’m jealous of his freedom right now or should he be moored up some where staying put? But definitely not at the bottom of my garden!

Is He BU for chugging around the county side

Or is he NBU? As technically he isn’t walking about anywhere.

I live next to a canal and I'm rather jealous of them in their barges. Seems like a lovely way of life right now.

Makes a change from the usual MN 'there's a stranger in a parked car outside my house - they've been there for hours/days' threads

I'm seeing high grant as the canal boat owner and Emily blunt as the op. I sense a romcom in the offing! 😁

My wife and I live on a narrowboat. We are not currently tied up outside the OP's house, although if - as I assume - her garden backs onto the towing path, then one day (when all this is over) we could do.

I think a lot of newer houses have been built close to what were once rural canals because the nice view gives the developer an excuse to put the price up.

Normally we would cruise continuously but under the present circumstances we have been told by the Canal and River Trust that we should only move the boat for essential purposes. Next week we will have to get water.

But at present - and I mentioned this on another thread - we are self-isolating because I'm in a highly vulnerable category.

OP, the towing path is there for the use of people with boats. Other people - walkers, cyclists - are allowed to use it, even though, unlike boaters, they pay nothing for the privilege. By contrast, boaters pay quite a lot.

If I were at the end of your garden, and I saw you looking at me, I would wave too. It's a friendly gesture, and people on the towing path often wave at us and say hello. So I would wave back if I were you. And maybe go and talk to the guy (from 2 metres away, obviously). Maybe he also has to self-isolate. You could ask if he needs anything. Once, when we were frozen in, a kind person let us fill up with water from her garden tap. Perhaps you could offer that?

It's NOT a BARGE.

We live on a canal, happily on the non tow path side. The bottom 6 feet of the garden was on a separate title with mooring rights and our solicitor insisted we buy them at the same time we bought the house for this very reason.

If I was you I would making the mooring at the bottom of my garden deeply unpleasant, or at least unpleasant enough that they go up the canal a bit. It's incredibly intrusive!

And he is off!

I am jealous really. What a wonderful life it must be to just chug around the country side.

It’s a long garden so he isn’t right outside my back door!

We rent so we don’t own it and although it’s in a lovely area we wouldn’t buy as it’s too much for what the house is worth, although I did consider it bit DH said no chance were only supposed to be here another six months before we buy bit I guess that’s out of the window with all this uncertainty.

Next door have got a small pool and they have it much worse as people walking past just stop and blatantly look in the garden whilst they are sitting in it

CandyLeBonBon

My kids would quickly ruin that idea!

Go for it OP, plenty of families on boats, we see them quite a bit as often park up in the same areas.
It's a great life away from bricks n mortar, we are on land though and atm in bricks n mortar as hadn't set off after the winter before shutdown, gutted we are stuck here now.

You should buy some curtains and leave the boaters in peace.

And it’s a narrow boat.

I’m off to glare at the people who park outside my house.

I have often fantastised about living on a canal boat....I have scoured sites too. Wish I were on one now.

Looked at barges too. @leonardthelemming I asked DH if we had one could we drive it across the Channel to France. Said NOOOOO, might be a bit dang. Have you met many adventurous boat owners ???

@OVienna

Most of the people we meet - often when passing through locks - stick to canals and non-tidal rivers. Flat bottomed boats aren't really suitable for anything else.

But quite a few boaters have YouTube channels. I won't suggest any because I can't possibly list them all, but a quick search should give you plenty of suggestions.

Worth a watch to see what it's really like!

@Ironfloor269 damn you beat me to it!

Are you sure it's not a worm instead?

Jobseeker19
There's a girl in the garden .

Ha! Im watching Resident Evil at moment Lol