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No experience or license needed
When you see the size of a barge you
may immediately think it is complicated to drive, yet they are very simple
with the tiller and lever for forward or back.
The top of the range barges, Dutch class,
have
a covered wheelhouse with ship's wheel steerage. This may be prefered during
cooler off season rentals but I prefer the more traditional tiller steered
barges, myself. Despite chat and rumours Ireland actually has many, many
more hours of dry weather than wet and hardly any days in a year when it
rains all day. I like the feel of the open water and breeze on my
face while steering with a tiller. You also see and experience much more
on a tiller steered than wheelhouse boat.
With less than thirty minutes of instruction
and less than an hour on the waterway you should feel very comfortable
in command. Barges are built with steel hulls so everyone on board is very
safe. Also, boats coming in the opposite direction always give a wide berth
for barges, especially the fibre glass built cruisers.
No boat driving license required. That
says a lot about the ease and safety of barge cruising as you'll know the
government would soon drive through legislation to enforce "official" training,
testing and licensing if there was a problem.
Barges are comfortable homes and
transport in one
You'll be amazed at the amenities, large
gas cooking stoves, large sink with hot water, large refrigerator, lots
of food and delph storage, large dining table too. The dining area also
serves as a comfortable lounge made comfortable during cool evenings with
the turf and wood burning stove. The whole barge is also heated by a wonderful
gas central heating system piped through radiators throughout the barge.
Many barges also have televisions and
sound systems, as if you need them.
There's usually adapters and transformers
to charge up laptops, mobile phones, iPods, rechargeable batteries and
so forth.
Most barges provide sleeping quarters
for 6 adults with no children or 4 adults with up to 4 children. The Dutch
barges have two en-suite bedrooms with seperate showers, sinks and toilets.
The tiller steered barges have seperate bedrooms and can sleep more than
the Dutch barge, but its a shared bathroom. However, this bathroom has
a real bathtub as well as a shower! That's something you would pay huge
hire fees for on a cruiser.
Remember, that barge hire is a package
of accommodation and transport in one and you are charged per boat and
not per person so that makes barge hiring very affordable. Of course, you'll
never cover the miles a car or even a bicycle may manage but you'll actually
see and discover much more. While on the waterway you'll see views and
wildlife that are different and far more interesting than seen from a road.
And don't forget to relax
While cruising, only one person needs
to steer. On tiller steered barges there's plenty of space on the fore
deck where the engine sound is mute so all you hear is the lapping water
and sounds of nature. On warm sunny days there's plenty of room on the
strong roof for sunbathing. There's also plenty of places to stop, shut
down the engine and fish awhile.
A group of 4 adults never need to always
be on top of each other. There's plenty of places around the barge to snatch
some time of personal space and privacy to re-charge and then get back
into the fun of the group. |
| Where can
you hire a barge? |
I recommend the Shannon-Erne
Waterway and Upper Lough Erne
In my opinion these waterwaya offers
more than all of the rest of Ireland's waterways put together. The variety
of man made canals, nature's winding rivers, wild marshes teeming with
wildlife and lakes with many mysterious islands are just not found on other
Irish waterways. There's plenty of moorings for overnight stops or daytime
adventures beside hidden remote beauty spots, uninhabited islands or in
the heart of small traditional Irish towns. Once you've tried this waterway
you'll soon be back.
Click
here for info on boats, rates and booking |
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