January 2014

The boat is a Norfolk Broads cruiser of fibreglass construction, moored among a cluster of other boats under a Docklands Light Railway viaduct on Deptford Creek. A couple of months ago I was having a miserable and increasingly desperate time trying to persuade a succession of South London property agents that I was a suitable tenant for one of their less expensive one bedroom lettings, and having already lost several hundred pounds in agency and referencing fees, with no successful outcome, things were not looking good. Then a boat dwelling friend of mine messaged me with a link to a Gumtree website ad for a houseboat to rent - at an affordable rent with, importantly as she had pointed out, no letting agents or any other kinds of agents involved. The ad was only about 45 minutes old when I saw it so I was able to get in quickly, telephoning to arrange a viewing for me and C- (my 14-year-old daughter who stays with me weekends) the following Saturday.

Anyway, to cut a long story short, after a friendly chat with the owner who then went and offered it to another viewer who then dropped out, we got the boat, and moved in at the beginning of November. Moving in went reasonably easily in the end. Heavy storms had hit southern England the Monday the week before, which had worried me a bit (fearing the boat might sustain damage before I could even move in), and more bad weather was predicted for the day of the move. but I and my four helpers made an early enough start on the day, to avoid further stormy weather that was forecast but never really materialised.

You get to the boat from a gated (and usually locked) yard off Creekside London SE8. From inside the yard there are two gangplanks that lead down to the boat. The first gangplank takes you onto the back of a huge old barge that dominates the moorings; the second gangplank is a rather more wobbly one which goes from the barge onto our roof. From there you then step back alongside the gangplank to the back of the boat where some steep aluminium steps lead down to its narrow door. For the move I had synchronised our arrival with high tide thinking that this would make it easier to get on, but it didn't make any difference really - the tide just modifies the angles of the gangplanks, which remain, not surprisingly, always the same in length.

Apart from the big barge, the boat is also moored alongside and between two other vessels; a small yacht, appearing to be rather in need of repair (a tarpualin covering the cabin), which turns out to be occasionally inhabited, is on the nearside of the mooring, and on the outside of us is another fibreglass holiday cruiser, like mine but smaller, which turns out to be home to a certain South London musician of my acquaintance.

Having sold or jettisoned so many of my possessions to fit in the boat, I am fairly happily surprised that everything fits in pretty well, with even a bit of shelf space to spare.

The boat is an old Hoseasons Broads cruiser, 37 feet long and 12 feet wide; a holiday boat of fibreglass construction which has found its way onto the Thames and up Deptford Creek to find its permanent mooring here. On one side it says "This boat is fitted with Sun Power charging systems - 01692 630 461" and on the roof there are what appear to be two solar panels,which I thought at first didn't work, but do. The name of the boat (definition - to be overcome with astonishment; astounded), is nowhere to be seen on it - it had, I am told, been written on the back by the door, but this has somehow rubbed off. If anything has so far disappointed us about the boat, it is its rather uninspiring and unromantic name. C- has tried to insist we re-name it, to which I reply that naming rights reside with the owner, and not us. Actually I am coming around to the name, which chimes fairly well with the unlikeliness and happy surprisingness of our being here.

Coming in through the little back door, the boat inside has headroom of 6 feet, meaning that I can't quite stand up straight in it, and must therefore part my legs a bit to stand with a decent posture. I have had to put masking tape over some screws that secure the ceiling panels in the galley area because my hair was catching in them. From outside you step into a little living room area, with cushioned seating in a U shape on your right which converts into a bed, and a shelf with cupboards below on the left - big windows on both sides. A couple of steps forward, in open plan, and you are in the kitchen/galley and stove area. The stove, a Morso Squirrel multifuel, is on the right, then further in we have a shelf under which there is a mini-washing machine, a dryer, and then a fridge freezer facing back at you. Along the left side is a kitchen worktop, then a sink, and then a four-ring Calor gas stove - yes, all mod cons! The gas stove runs off Calor propane gas housed at the back of the boat to the left of the door. Opposite the stove is a toilet and shower room. It's a macerating toilet, which means it chops everything up and sends it straight out into the Thames, which is permitted, because we are in tidal waters. In front of the toilet, in the same little room, is the shower (which is heated from an electric immersion heater, as is the sink's hot water) which empties into a plastic shower tray on the floor, over which are placed two wooden panels which make for a sturdy floor when the shower is not in use. When the tide is out, and the boat is resting on the uneven muddy creek bed, the slight tilt of the boat (a couple of degrees downwards from port to starboard) means that the water will gather at the toilet end of the shower tray, not draining fully down the plughole until the tide comes in and the boat levels out on the water. Similarly, though the kitchen draws and doors are fitted well enough, and will always close, they will shoot out rather once opened, when the tide is out, as a consequence of the slight tilting of the boat.

Beyond the kitchen and toilet, with a wooden door that closes, is the bedroom, which is also where the boat's steering wheel and controls are (front left). The boat, so I understand, is a runner, and I have an agreement to allow the owner in from time to time to run the engine. But that's as far as it goes, and for all I know, the boat may not have seen action on water for many a year. It is certainly so well and complicatedly roped up, not only to the mooring but to the three other adjacent boats, that taking it out would be a major operation. Perhaps one day, who knows? Anyway, the bedroom is very pleasant, with a comfortable double bed, a fitted wardrobe on the left as you come in, and more big windows at the front and sides, with crimson velvet curtains. For use in the warmer months, there is a sliding roof which opens to let the sunshine in, which will be delightful.

At the front of the bedroom are two doors that take you out onto the front of the boat, which has a little semi-circular "garden" area, with unobstructed views (that is, no boats in the way - we have a front row seat on these moorings) of this part of Deptford Creek, with the narrow River Ravensbourne flowing out into the wider creek reach from the right, where it passes under and becomes un-navigable at Deptford Bridge, out of sight just a little way upstream.