2017 Mooring Costs.

Here are some pictures from around Hull, City of Culture.

On Bowlalley Lane, (yes there used to be a bowling green here) close to the Land of Green Ginger in Hull's Old Town is Samman House. It is no apartments but was built to house the Deddington Shipping Company that was set up by Henry Samman and named after his home village. It only about 3 miles from Aynho Wharf on the South Oxford Canal. He came to Hull and soon had a successful shipping business having ships built for the company and never keeping them more than 10 years. He sold up after WWI as he foretold the shipping slump. He gave the building to the Chamber of Commerce and Shipping and dedicated himself to good works etc. He left a fund to assist people going abroad to study business or languages. He became Mayor of Beverley too.

Another of the Amy Johnson Moths.

By the Marina Lock is this sculpture that depicts a family arriving from Continental Europe or Scandinavia. about 2 million passed through Hull up until WWI as they came looking for a better life. Most were entrained for Liverpool to continue to Canada and the USA.

Albert Dock, close to the centre of the City is still a working dock. Unfortunately these vessels are currently laid up due to the slump in the oil price so lack of exploration in the North Sea.

Princes Street has lovely Georgian Houses along it in the heart of the Old Town. One end is almost at the Marina and the other is in Trinity Square looking over the Minster.

Just off Trinity Square, on Trinity House Lane, stand Hull's Trinity House. There is no connection with the Trinity House of London and the south, other than the name and the nautical connection. The building is a treasure trove of objects and valuable but they are rarely seen. Last year they opened their doors to tours every week and every one was filled. They are mainly a charitable outfit these days and they own a lot of the Old Town and these rates keep their charities going.

The main front of Trinity House.

Mooring costs for 2017 were much higher than previous years, largely as we have moored for longer periods due to the City of Culture!

 Mooring Costs                                  2017         2016       2015         2014

Hawne Basin 15 nights (7 free)          32-00

Sherborne Wharf 7 nights                 106-00

Venitian Marina 7 nights                    80-00

New Islington 5 nights (2 free)          30-00

Viking Goole 7 nights                        55-17

Blue Water, Thorne 5 nights              50-00

Hull Marina,  10 nights                    565-29

Selby Boat Centre18 nights             180-00

Driffield Nav. Society Donation        30-00

Pocklington Canal A.S. Donation      50-00

Beverley Beck Barge Donation          60-00

Selby Boat Centre 12 nights             120-00

Reedley Marina 17 nights                 170-00

Streethay Moorings 30 days             163-80

Fettlers Wharf winter to 31st Dec    456-06                                                      

TOTAL                                           2148-82     1268-48    1524-55    1298-48

Days moored                                    104             38             31              27

It can easily be seen why our mooring costs were much higher this year as we have spent three times as long as the average of the last three years (33) on moorings. That is not counting the winter moorings at each end of our cruising. Even so the stand out figure is for Hull Marina!! We knew that it was expensive and we could have avoided it, but we chose to moor there and had lots of visitors. We did not use any of the facilities, other than water and free parking in the centre of town, that probably save us about £10 at the most. The Marina is geared for cruisers and as such the cost per unit length is very high to make up for them being shorter but wider. In actual fact we had over £100 discount too as we belonged to an affiliated Boat Club!!

We made donations to Driffield, Pocklington and Beverley waterways out of courtesy. The Barge Preservation folk were very kind to us (and we did have free electricity during our stay) and they loaned us the proper equipment for working the Driffield Nav locks. We moored for a few nights at Frodingham Wharf, and had assistance from the Pocklington Canal Ameneties Society so felt it only right to further their causes to keep the canals open and promote more use of them.

I am pretty sure we wont be repeating the moving backwards and forwards between home and boat as it is quite disruptive, and of course not only is their the cost of moorings but getting backwards and forwards too. Whilst closer to home I was able to get back and pick the train up, but we did hire a car and as we have the cat and budgie it makes it a little awkward. Mind you it was all part of the design for our city's year in the sun.