Inland Waterways sites

Now that would be handy alright,
It might be worth mentioning to WI that not all Motorhome owners are part of a club or what ever and suggest that they print guidelines for the camper/MH owner,
I know it's a sad day when you have to point out to a fellow Motorhomes what not to do,
For example
park sensibly
Don't empty cassettes into water (supposedly has happened in Cobh and Howth)
Don't let grey water flow across the parking area
Don't have a monster of a loud genny running late in the evening
Try and educate the MH owner to have a bit of curtasy and common sense

I could go on but you get my drift, and I know it's the one in a hundred that do it wrong but we all get tarred with the same brush

/
How'd you get on with them ?

I have a few issues with Tims article......

First of all if boaters do not want to use the facilities provided in ballyconnel that is their business.'' They outnumbered the boats by five to one in Ballyconnell when I visited ''.Sensationalism lends no creedence to his article. Why didnt he just provide a figure?. I assume what he means is that there were about four campers and one neglected hogger cruiser. Ballyconnel is a poor example as any boater who knows the Shannon erne system realises that it is a stop off point on a canal mainly used by boats transiting up or down the system.

2] Dont know what he means by ''an alternative source of revenue for waterways Ireland'' as pleasure craft do not have to pay to use the shannon nor are they required to provide insurance. An alternative to what?? ? the money that tax payers north and south of the border pay i assume.
He makes it sound like the guy with the 100,00 thousand euro twin engined cruiser is actually contributing something more to the upkeep of these facilities than the person in the twenty year old camper with a pull out bed.

3] as a boater for over ten years but a camper for just over two i would contend that '' the big question is how to get BOATERS to pay up''. Campers pay road tax, insurance and have to prove road worthyness/safety, boaters do not.

4] As all compliant boaters know the public harbours all over Ireland contain boats that persistantly hog and unlicensed boats. Maybe Tim should suggest to W.I that they fine owners or seize the boats that continually abuse PUBLIC FACILITIES that were payed for by THE TAXPAYER . It might provide ''an alternative source of revenue for waterways Ireland''.

Unlike Tim,I would not like to see this turn in to an us and them situation but i have read many things over the last couple of years that imply or give a vague impression that a boat owner has got more of a right to the use of a waterways Ireland facility than a camper owner simply by way of the fact that they have a boat. These public facilities are put there for everybodys enjoyment wheter you be a walker,fisher man,boater,camper vanner, sunbather, rich or poor, not for the exclusive use of an elite minority.

In the interest of balance folks let me reiterate that i have been a boater for over ten years and have traveled most of the navigable Inland waterways on more than one occasion from Belleek to Killaloe to Dublin and back.
Paul

Well not having a clue how the boats work that certainly changes things, straight from someone who knows.

Paul, would agree there is no point in us contacting them at this stage as it seems we are already helping supporting their network by buying WI cards?

What would the point in registering camper vans be except to create more paperwork and head aches for WWI. WWI can not control the harbour hogs in almost every inland harbour in Ireland. The next time you are in shannon harbour take a walk along the quay walls and see how many boats have a valid permit. Some of these boats have been in the same place for years.
I would be extremely carefull about making any concessions to waterways Ireland without the advice of a solicitor and political consultation, if you do not understand how this extremely secretive cross border quango works, or you could end up with a very messy situation.
The best thing to do is to keep the head down,dont mess with the rules and try not to draw attention to campers. I would not pay much heed to what the boating fraternity think and i have read plenty, as far as i am concerned they regard camper vans as encroaching on their playground, but as i have said above ....they are not paying anything more than you to avail of the facilities, in fact they are paying less due to the fact that they are using a public mooring which you have subsidised. There is room for everybody to play in the playground and shouldnt be any need for campers to have to start filling out forms and signing bits of paper when WWI already have their hands full trying to keep some order on the boating crowd. Folks, this is only my opinion.

Yes Bob, I think that is a good policy .

Sorry folks, but i would just like to add an adendum to what i have all ready written to be accurate and fair about what boaters ''pay'' on the shannon as i just read a marine notice this morning which contains a charge that i previously left out,

Time Limits on Mooring in Public HarboursOn the Shannon Navigation and the Shannon-Erne Waterway craft may berth in public harbours
for five consecutive days or a total of seven days in any one month.
Winter mooring may be availed of by owners during the period 1 Nov to 31 Mar by prior arrangement and payment of a charge of €63.50 per craft otherwise the “5 / 7 Day Rule” will continue to apply.
On the Erne System no vessel may berth at a public mooring for more than 48 hours without a four hour intermission within that period,
throughout the year.

Now i wouldnt be a great man for the 'auld maths but to me that roughly works out about twelve euro a month for five months with no repurcussions if you dont bother to pay. How many campsites in Ireland would you get for 12 euro a night?

Sounds about right, Helga.

We were in ballyconnell on Sunday too. Not in the Motorhome, we were in the Slieve Russell.

Yes. Very nice.
We're in Farnham estate a few weeks ago which was also excellent.

Yes Jim. Nice place.