How to do canal locks like a Boss!

(Location: Farmers Bridge Flight, Central Birmingham, England)
There are many wrong ways to operate a lock, and there is a right way...

In commercial carrying days, boatmen were paid by the ton, so the sooner they arrived the sooner they got their money. Because the life of a boatman isn't a sedentary pursuit, you need to work efficiently and safely with which comes speed.

Here we have three boats, two powered 'motor' boats go on ahead, each helping the other, and in turn help the 'butty'. When single handing it's important to ensure you are in the right place at the right time, and to ensure you have positive access to your boat, however at times you can take a minor risk, as we see here when the second boat on a particularly short pound lets the boat find its own way in.

Originally a horse boat, the butty would have been pulled by a horse. Even when pair boating with motors started in earnest in the 1920's the motor would go up on it's own, and a company horse used. However this service was stopped by the end of carrying, so enthusiasts now how to provide the motive power themselves.

It is very important to ensure the boat goes smoothly up the lock, and keeping a check on the boat is important. The motor boats have fenders on the delicate rudders, but the butty boat must keep the 'elum (a boatmans corruption of Helm) away from the lock gates. The tiller is pushed over to give a little extra room, and a line is tied to the gates to stop the paddles pushing the boat backwards.

The technique used by the Fullers is one which uses 'running blocks' along the top of the boat, and a t-stud on the cabin top with which to lock the line off on. This was in common use on the Grand Union, where the motor steerer could just drop a line on the dolly and allow the butty steerer to control the snatch.

Filmed by Michael Askin in September 2011.

music by audionautix.com